Another armslist scammmer rant

I have had good experience with Armslist for FTF transactions. Not sure I would even seriously consider an out of state purchase. Almost without fail, whenever put up a sale listing on there I get scammers.

One interaction last week (selling an AK Drum Mag).

HIM:
Hi, you got a good deal and I am interested. Your asking price is okay as well as condition of Item. Pls do get in touch to discuss. Thank you

ME:
Ok, what else would you like to know?

HIM:
Thanks for the message, I`m Interested and ready to purchase as the state of Gun is great likewise the price. I wont be able to come get it myself but my FFL will be doing that. I just relocated and i still have some properties which is to be moved from your area. My FFL Dealer would come with the movers to get my things and he'll come pick up the Gun as well. He would come with the Copy of his FFL and bill of sale.. I will be making payments through Check and after its been cashed at your bank a local pickup will be made as explained. I will add an extra $100 to the asking price if you can secure the purchase for me till the check arrives. Please get in touch with your name and mailing address to send the check to. Include your phone # as well for fluent communication. Thanks

[rofl]

You should have told him ok and waited with the cops to see who shows up with an "FFL"
 
I think Armslist is great, you learn pretty quick what is legit and what isn't - helps to craft the ad a certain way. I did recently have a guy looking to "bypass the FFL" on a couple guns. I don't get many scam replies any more, but when I do I usually respond with "That sounds great, please contact me at my email address - [email protected]".
 
I’m probably in the minority but I have had very easy painless transactions on armslist - selling in MA. Almost all of the guns I’ve sold have been through armslist not NES. I get plenty of tire kickers on NES but they rarely commit.
 
I sold three guns on Armslist and used it to make a trade. I think I’ve only ever sold one on NES actually. The garbage offers on Armslist are a lot more though.

By contrast I’ve never bought a gun through Armslist, but have bought about 3 through NES.

The only weird Armslist thing that ever happened to me was when a buyer emailed me and asked if I required an LTC to purchase my posted gun.
 
I tried to sell a shotgun on armslist. Got emails from a couple different people who told me all sorts of nonsense. One told me to box it up, and mail it to his house by UPS (sent that listing and email to ATF). Another gem was someone who wanted me to ship it to a foreign country by UPS.
 
My favorite armslist fun was selling a 20" billet ar-15 in Maine. (Quinten Defense. From yes THAT group buy.)

Actual transaction went smooth. Met in aa Lowe' parking lot and got sorted in minutes. He came with two copies of a simple bill of sale. Spent five minutes chatting. Funny thing was there were two poliece SUVs lit up in the parking lot the entire time we were there. (they pulled someone over minutes after I showed up.)

I figured if he was shady, he wasn't gonna show with the lights going off 100 meters from where I parked.

The ArmsList funny was one of the other people who sent me a question. It was some wacko chick from New Jersey yowling at me via email for selling a machine gun online.

Her first email was normal and asked about the condition or if it came with mags or something simple. I made the mistake of responding honestly with name email and phone number.

Idiot wouldn't stop texting me and emailing for weeks. Finally stopped when I found her on Facebook, friended her under a dummy acct, and pasted a screen shot of her original email saying she wanted to buy it on her wall and also on one of the antigun groups she was a member of.
 
I bought my Daewoo on Armslist.

Found the advertisement after my cousin told me about it. Called the shop that posted it, sent my cousin in to look at it (he lives on the left coast) everything was as advertised, sent them payment, they sent the rifle to an FFL here. Getting the FFL to transfer it after the fact was a little difficult becaybe they couldn't get ahold of the importer of record to verify pre-ban status, but that importer went out of business in early '94, so they agreed that it had to be.
 
My favorite armslist fun was selling a 20" billet ar-15 in Maine. (Quinten Defense. From yes THAT group buy.)

Actual transaction went smooth. Met in aa Lowe' parking lot and got sorted in minutes. He came with two copies of a simple bill of sale. Spent five minutes chatting. Funny thing was there were two poliece SUVs lit up in the parking lot the entire time we were there. (they pulled someone over minutes after I showed up.)

I figured if he was shady, he wasn't gonna show with the lights going off 100 meters from where I parked.

The ArmsList funny was one of the other people who sent me a question. It was some wacko chick from New Jersey yowling at me via email for selling a machine gun online.

Her first email was normal and asked about the condition or if it came with mags or something simple. I made the mistake of responding honestly with name email and phone number.

Idiot wouldn't stop texting me and emailing for weeks. Finally stopped when I found her on Facebook, friended her under a dummy acct, and pasted a screen shot of her original email saying she wanted to buy it on her wall and also on one of the antigun groups she was a member of.
You are lucky.

I wish somebody would email me and text me for weeks.

I'd send some of my best selfies and D pics.
 
I’m probably in the minority but I have had very easy painless transactions on armslist - selling in MA. Almost all of the guns I’ve sold have been through armslist not NES. I get plenty of tire kickers on NES but they rarely commit.

My experience is the same as yours. It has reached the point where I don't even bother posting on NES anymore. A few years ago the opposite was true.
 
I had good experience with ArmsList.
I always insist on FTF, Cash and eFA10 sale; it weeds out most of the scammers. I have been stood up once, but I usually transact at my gun club (as it’s under constant surveillance) and shoot while waiting. So no total waste of time...

I also bought a few items, FTF and cash as well. All good experiences. But so is NES for buying...
 
Selling on armslist is worth 20%-30% more in selling price than the skinflints on NES. Yes, there are scammers. I get more insane low ball offers on NES. I don’t buy off armslist, that is a fools errand.
 
Selling on armslist is worth 20%-30% more in selling price than the skinflints on NES. Yes, there are scammers. I get more insane low ball offers on NES. I don’t buy off armslist, that is a fools errand.
Hah hah, so true!
 
One told me to box it up, and mail it to his house by UPS (sent that listing and email to ATF).
jeezus, bud....a little drastic for something like this, ya think? maybe a novice and doesn't know the law. how many newbs post here yearly asking shipping questions, lots. if atfe showed up at his house, I guess you can take credit for manufacturering another anti to the cause after the experience. me, I would have explained shipping policies and then stepped away.
 
jeezus, bud....a little drastic for something like this, ya think? maybe a novice and doesn't know the law. how many newbs post here yearly asking shipping questions, lots. if atfe showed up at his house, I guess you can take credit for manufacturering another anti to the cause after the experience. me, I would have explained shipping policies and then stepped away.

Take it one step further: he never said it was an interstate shipment. If it was an intrastate sale, which is frequent on Armslist, shipping it his house via UPS is perfectly legal.
 
Selling on armslist is worth 20%-30% more in selling price than the skinflints on NES. ...

Must be all the ham radio operators around here.

Once upon a time,
my secondary Elmer decided to get rid of a suite of vintage Drake 7 gear.
(Including the "rare, highly sought-after balun on the back of the transmitter",
which is apparently like having a compass in the stock, and this thing that tells time).

Takes it to Hosstraders, prices it at $800. No bites.
Schleps it all the way Dayton. Nada.
Comes home all upset and throws it on eBay.
Bang! Instantly gone for $1300 like it was pre-ban.

I think he was more upset that someone bought it for a stupid price,
than that no one would buy it for a fair price.
 
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The guy lived in Indiana. When I insisted on using an FFL, he got very sketchy, angry, and overly defensive, and angry after that. He said that I should just "trust him and not ship thru an FFL."
Take it one step further: he never said it was an interstate shipment. If it was an intrastate sale, which is frequent on Armslist, shipping it his house via UPS is perfectly legal.
 
The guy lived in Indiana. When I insisted on using an FFL, he got very sketchy, angry, and overly defensive, and angry after that. He said that I should just "trust him and not ship thru an FFL."

Had a gun in NJ (mentioned above) who wanted to "meet half-way" for a pistol I was selling. WTF? When I pointed out I was in NH not NJ (giving him the benefit of the doubt; maybe he missed that) he got all pissy.

What amazed me: legal or not, who TF drives "half way" from NH to NJ to sell...anything?
 
Let's see, why do I use Armslist? Hmmm, because most ads INCLUDE THE SELLER'S LOCATION, for starters. I've also had more inquiries from A/L people turn into actual sales than inquiries from those on NES (even though I list my location, people would still ask, or ask if I'd drive the million miles down to southern NH (or MA to meet at an FFL). Plus, as mentioned above, I don't need to pay/charge shipping and transfer fee. Plus, if something was in another part of the state that I wanted (such as a pistol/revolver), I wouldn't have to drive 2 hours to southern NH, wait for 2 hours for a transfer at a dealer on a busy GS weekend, and then drive all the way home. I'd just drive there, FTF it, and go home.

ETA: if their questions/response isn't in "standard" American English, I just don't bother replying.
 
Funny thing was there were two poliece SUVs lit up in the parking lot the entire time we were there. (they pulled someone over minutes after I showed up.)

I figured if he was shady, he wasn't gonna show with the lights going off 100 meters from where I parked.
Uh-oh! "100 meters". Sounds like Nigerian English to me... [rofl]
 
Selling on armslist is worth 20%-30% more in selling price than the skinflints on NES. Yes, there are scammers. I get more insane low ball offers on NES. I don’t buy off armslist, that is a fools errand.
Ain’t that the truth!
 
I’ve had good luck with armslist. I do not search nationwide only in Massachusetts, and only do face to face no shipping or money orders. Works like a charm. Perhaps all the trouble is because folks are looking to ship stuff in etc.
 
I’ve had good luck with armslist. I do not search nationwide only in Massachusetts, and only do face to face no shipping or money orders. Works like a charm. Perhaps all the trouble is because folks are looking to ship stuff in etc.
Yeah, the problem is very rare items you might only find once in a few years and never in the same state ...
 
Armslist is just Craigslist for guns and the same rules apply. Face to face and cash only. Any diversion from this is at your own risk.
 
I've had many positive transactions on armslist, buying, selling, and trading. Sometimes you get a few flakes in the initial communications. I don't give them my contact info until a few back and forths with the armslist email. You can usually get a pretty good feel for them then. More often then not, I do a Google search for their email address and find they have a profile on NES anyway.

Only ever had one face to face where I thought I made a bad mistake. Drove to the guy's house, pulled in to his long secluded driveway when two guys holding shotguns appeared on either side of my car. I was halfway between crapping my pants and having a heart attack when they invited me to take a shot at the target they were out there shooting at while waiting for me.

NES, I've had mostly good experiences too but I sell quicker and for more money on armslist.
 
I've had many positive transactions on armslist, buying, selling, and trading. Sometimes you get a few flakes in the initial communications. I don't give them my contact info until a few back and forths with the armslist email. You can usually get a pretty good feel for them then. More often then not, I do a Google search for their email address and find they have a profile on NES anyway.

Only ever had one face to face where I thought I made a bad mistake. Drove to the guy's house, pulled in to his long secluded driveway when two guys holding shotguns appeared on either side of my car. I was halfway between crapping my pants and having a heart attack when they invited me to take a shot at the target they were out there shooting at while waiting for me.

I picture myself doing a one-man Australian Peel to break contact before two very surprised guys got a chance to smile and invite me to shoot with them.
 
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