Trading instruments through the Classifieds

[Daniel Nestlerode]

Have you done a stright or partial trade? How did you work it? Is there a standard Mandolin Cafe protocol for this? Did you use an escrow service or trust your trading partner? What about refusal options where one party wants to keep and one does not?

Curious,
Daniel

[arbarnhart]

I traded a tenor guitar for an emando. Neither was worth all that much and we just trusted each other, and blindly shipped.

[otterly2k]

As for escrow or no... I think it is best to err on the side of caution, and if either trader prefers escrow, the other should not take it personally. Most of us have had the experience of being ripped off SOMEWHERE in our lives, and once burned is often twice shy. #

Doing good honorable business with each other strengthens this community. #Sometimes that should include checking references or using escrow. After all, anyone can post on the classifieds, even people who have no sense of connection to the informal honor code of this community. #In my experience, the correspondence with a seller or buyer usually reveals enough to me to decide whether I feel like I can trust the person. #I think it is a good guideline to always trust your guts. #If something seems fishy or not quite right, let the deal go past. #There will be another one eventually.

Re: a trading situation where someone wants to keep and the other not... I think it is very important to negotiate that ahead of time. #Play "what if", come up with an agreed-upon plan, and put it in writing before putting instruments in transit. While there is some precedent around selling instruments and trial periods, etc., trades are more idiosyncratic. #Good communication is the key...

That said... of course it depends on what you have at stake. If it's one set of strings for another, probably you don't need to overburden that with too much negotiation. But once you get into stuff of serious worth (and remember, that is relative to the person!), it's a different story.

[Daniel Nestlerode]

Thanks Guys!

Anyone else?

Daniel