Originally Posted by
Patrick Kane
I agree. Trust your fellow citizens, 99% of them are good people. This natural distrust of people really upsets me. Im not telling you to go out and do reckless things, but i think people automatically assume distrust over trust. For example, if i had a flat and someone stopped to help me on the side of the road, my first thought would not be, "this person is going to rob, rape, and murder me". For a lot of people, that would be their first reaction.
I agree with everyone else, Paypal business transaction should be pretty safe for you. Unfortunately, it doesnt cover you from missing parts, damage, wear n tear. That is where you need to be intelligent, ask the right questions, and finally, sack up. I hate to say it, but the latter part is the important part of any used machine purchase. When buying used, you dont have the privilege and benefit of a Felder customer support person holding your hand and assuring you everything is going to be all right. That is why you are saving potentially thousands by buying used. Its on the Buyer to shoulder the risk and figure things out for themselves. I dont mean for that to come across as being a jerk, but a lot of people buy used things, find a bolt missing, and then come online to a forum to say they got screwed by the Seller. Unless you are buying from a third party machine seller, id probably assume this machine is going to need a few misc. parts etc. Account all of that into your offer.
I will fly in the face of conventional wisdom with my experiences. I have sent money orders for sevarl thousand, paypal friends and family, venmo to ushippers to pull cash and pay buyers, and several personal checks to sellers. Those are all risky things to do!! The seller can absolutely pocket your $4,000, and theres really nothing you can do about it. Sue someone for the $4,000? Sure, your attorney fees will be that much or more. I guess you could drive the 8-10 hours to go sucker punch them at their doorstep, but that is about the extent of your options if the person is a crook. However, the above is necessary if you want the deals, and in my experience, guys that run small shops arent crooks. Most of the time i end up talking machines with them for 30 minutes prior to sending the money. Each one of those examples, i ended up with the tool or machine from hundreds/thousands of miles away for shockingly low prices. More risk, more reward. Educate yourself on the machine you are buying, talk through potential downfalls with people that know more than you about the machine, and then determine if the risk is worth the savings from buying new. I havent been burned yet, and maybe its because im lucky. Its also because i go into things eyes wide open, and if i go in half-blind, then my offer to the seller will be extremely aggressive. If you buy a tool for scrap value, then you really cant lose, and thats the important part.