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Is this a gunbroker.com scam???

Posted: Wed Dec 09, 2020 5:00 pm
by armedpolak
I asked the seller about shipping this item quickly if I bought it today: https://www.gunbroker.com/Item/886712565

When I sent the question there were still 6 days remaining on the auction with a buy-now option at a price I was good with. The moment he replied back to me the action was suddenly closed and instead I was asked to pay for it here: https://www.shop.powellarms.com/Payment ... er-NAA.htm for about $50 more than what it was listed on GB.

WTF?

Am I being scammed? seller has A+ rating on GB...

EDIT TO ADD: He did say the higher price includes faster shipping, tax, CC fee, etc....

Re: Is this a gunbroker.com scam???

Posted: Wed Dec 09, 2020 6:53 pm
by MikeFL86
That kind of behavior is too weird for me. I would avoid.

Re: Is this a gunbroker.com scam???

Posted: Wed Dec 09, 2020 7:14 pm
by lakelandman
Tons of scams on GB always go with your gut.

Re: Is this a gunbroker.com scam???

Posted: Wed Dec 09, 2020 9:03 pm
by Tenzing_Norgay
Auction is legit, but he's trying to avoid paying Gunbroker their commission. Report him.

Re: Is this a gunbroker.com scam???

Posted: Wed Dec 09, 2020 9:20 pm
by armedpolak
Tenzing_Norgay wrote: Wed Dec 09, 2020 9:03 pm Auction is legit, but he's trying to avoid paying Gunbroker their commission. Report him.
well, but I really want what he's selling...

Re: Is this a gunbroker.com scam???

Posted: Wed Dec 09, 2020 9:43 pm
by Jimmy
$339 plus 7% sales tax, then add in $39 shipping all comes out to what he is billing you.

Looks legit, what am I not seeing?

Re: Is this a gunbroker.com scam???

Posted: Thu Dec 10, 2020 2:00 am
by ss1
Looks legit but I own a NAA convertible and I’ve always wondered how this belt buckle would be perceived/received should anyone actually wear it in public in FL.

Re: Is this a gunbroker.com scam???

Posted: Thu Dec 10, 2020 4:01 am
by FfNJGTFO
This is a timely thread for me, as I have just completed my first "successful" auction transaction with GunBroker. See "this thread" for some back story.

Yes, there is the potential for some scammers on GB or FGT or all the other sites. It all depends on the merchant, but merchants who do things like what you described don't last very long at GB. They get poorly rated and GB will terminate their association pronto. As stated above, I'd report them to Gunbroker, with precise detail as to what happened (exact sequence of events and their results).

As for me, it took a few extra days for the carrier to "accept" the package the merchant sent me, but I did receive notification from the carrier that it was accepted and it's scheduled for delivery this weekend to my FFL. It is possible that the merchant was just lazy and didn't drop it off until Wed (he told me he had dropped it of on Monday), but it is also possible that the carrier hadn't checked it in until Wed. I'll err in favor of the merchant as he gave me a real good price on the item, and I learned a lot on how to handle auctions on GB.

The key is what happens in the last 15 minutes of the auction. Prior to that, any number of bids can come in for the item. In my case, there were none after I bid with 1.5 days left in the auction. That said, with 2 hours left in the auction, I was outbid by $5.00. I was watching the auction and saw that immediately. GB even sent me an email indicating that I had been "outbid." I was able to "counterbid" by another $5.00 (minimum raise). And that was the last bid until the auction closed. Had the other bidder wanted to, he could have raised me again within the last 15 minutes of the auction, which would have invoked their "15 minute rule." It's also known as the "Going.... Going...Gone" rule. If someone bids within the last 15 minutes of the original auction ending, the bidding is extended by 15 extra minutes past that last bid. Thus, If you bid first, and the auction originally ends at 19:00hrs, and someone counterbids you at 18:55 (i.e. a "snipe"), the auction automatically extends by 15 minutes to 19:10 (the time of the last bid + 15min.), giving you some time to re-counter. If you then re-counter at 19:05, the auction extends until 19:20. If no one else re-counters, then you win the auction at 19:20. It was done this way in order to discourage "sniping" (outbiding people at the last minute).

That's how it works. You need to be sure you are watching the auction "minute by minute" within those last 15 minutes.. After that, it then becomes a matter of how well you work with the merchant to get payment sent to them and how well they honor their commitment by proper shipping/tracking, just as if it were a "buy now" transaction.

Hope this helps. :)

Re: Is this a gunbroker.com scam???

Posted: Thu Dec 10, 2020 6:27 am
by P5 Guy
I guess I'm the odd guy out, I have never and will never buy from an internet auction site.

Re: Is this a gunbroker.com scam???

Posted: Thu Dec 10, 2020 1:15 pm
by FfNJGTFO
P5 Guy wrote: Thu Dec 10, 2020 6:27 am I guess I'm the odd guy out, I have never and will never buy from an internet auction site.
I thought I wouldn't, either... but if they actually have the inventory you're looking for and at a decent price.... :?