Fear of trading tapes with newbies?

[Flying Dutchman]

Well I am a new trader on these boards and i can understand some people are very reluctant to trade with a new trader especially when you know nothing about me or other new traders, It just so happens i have bought things on ebay with a small but perfect feedback record so far, If you go to ebay click the site map on the left scroll down to Search click on search for members, Put in

musicman420_10 and read my feedback this will give anyone who may want to trade with me an idea of what kind of person they are trading with, and if other new traders deal with ebay id sudgest doing the same so all traders can know who they are dealing with Happy trading everyone. Tim

[Agent 13]

Tim,

When I first started trading, I also posted my eBay ID, which had an excellent feedback of well over 500. No matter who contacted me for a trade, I had to send first, whether they stated this or not. I don't know if this is how all traders treat newbies, but that was my experience.

Eventually it got to the point where the tape trading rule applied "He who initiates trade sends first, " but that took months of establishing credibility. I personally think it's a good rule because of the countless promises I've gotten from newbies (i.e. complete DVD sets of I Love Lucy, Gentle Ben, and others which easily entice a collector of really old shows).

I ended up getting burned by four people, in total, all of which took advantage of my newbie state, but it was worth it in the end, to learn some of the tricks of the bad traders. The bottom line is that when you're a newbie, you start at the bottom. Keep trades small, above all, and the pain of getting burned won't be quite as awful.

[Flying Dutchman]

Thats great advice and im going to try to keep it small at first I noticed on some of the bad trader posts that alot of crooks have traded or should i say taken the tapes and givin nothing in return and it usually happens with newbies, take care agent 13 and thank you again . Tim

BTW is your name from Get Smart ? Love that show.

I really likied agent 13 David kechum, Do you remember the agent # that victor french (mark highway to heaven) played?

[Agent 13]

Tim,

Yes, I chose Agent 13 from Get Smart. That's one of our favorite shows, and David Kechum is great. Initially I used his picture for my avatar, but then people started thinking I was a guy. We can't have that, now, can we?

I have never watched Highway to Heaven so I couldn't tell you about Victor French's Agent number.

[Flying Dutchman]

Originally posted by Agent 13
Tim,

Yes, I chose Agent 13 from Get Smart. That's one of our favorite shows, and David Kechum is great. Initially I used his picture for my avatar, but then people started thinking I was a guy. We can't have that, now, can we?

I have never watched Highway to Heaven so I couldn't tell you about Victor French's Agent number.

Have you ever watched Little house on the praire? he was mr edwards in that show

[Agent 13]

I misunderstood your question until now. I checked http://www.tvtome.com/tvtome/servlet...014/season-all where Victor French is listed as playing Agent 44.

Jen

[Flying Dutchman]

BIG THANKS AGAIN JEN

[debwalsh]

There are enough people out there building high ratings on eBay who behave more like scammers in the trading world that people are becoming suspicious of eBay ratings to establish credentials. I do the same thing - I have a link on my trading page to my eBay feedback - and I don't think it carries much weight these days. Heck, one of the things that got me back into trading was discovering a show I'd always wanted was actually available in an eBay auction - where I got seriously scammed for over $50. I still see the trader (Richard Johnson, aka ragstorichesfan, gothammaster, and a host of other aliases) show up pretending he's someone new or has been wronged by other people.

I've been trading off and on for over 20 years, but for most of that time, I wasn't trading in the mainstream, only among a few good friends. So even though I've been around the biz a long time, I'm not necessarily a known quantity because I haven't been active in the hobby until the past year or so. And I'm very selective about what I'll trade for and when, simply out of necessity - I have thousands of tapes and DVDs and only so much space and time (my TARDIS has been broken for quite a long while :>).

In a way, I prefer to send first because then I control the speed at which the trade happens - life can interfere, and I hate to have someone waiting on me sending something where I've already received.

As for trusting newbies, I think the important thing is to start small. Establish a reputation for coming through and providing quality. Take the time to build the rep, and get to know the reps of the folks you want to trade with.

[Flying Dutchman]

I Am truly sorry about your experiences on ebay and i have read about others as well, so far i have been lucky until now i havent been ripped off on ebay yet but thats not to say it wont happen im sure it will sometime, infact i ordered a video from a woman and paid for it on the 3rd i emailed her asking when she was going to send it I didnt hear from her till the 8th and she said she sent it out on the 9th but i still have not recieved it so this may be the first for me, some sellers on ebay are flakes most are on the up and up, If you order videos on ebay and would like this sellers ebay name, just email me and ill send it to you because you may want to avoid this woman especially if you want your item within a week, as far as sitcoms online tape trading i am going to go slow and build up a rep thats is good, I want people to know that they will always be treated good with me. Thanks again Tim

[Agent 13]

Originally posted by debwalsh I still see the trader (Richard Johnson, aka ragstorichesfan, gothammaster, and a host of other aliases) show up pretending he's someone new or has been wronged by other people.

I think this is one of the main reasons newbies are asked to send first. I've seen too many bad traders come back with a new ID and a "Hello, I'm new!" Often these traders are exposed, but who knows how often they get away with starting fresh... at least until they rip someone else off again.

[u2bonoman]

Hello, I think this is a good discussion topic. I'm new to trading myself - don't have much at all really. I've emailed several people who have trading sites to try and either trade or buy, and most people don't even reply.

It really makes me mad that so many people scam others, because it makes it hard for newbies who are honest to get somewhere.

I just wanna build my collection, and I'm willing to start at the bottom, but if no one responds to my emails, I can't even make it to that point.

Luckily, there have been a couple people on this board who are helping me get some shows to build my collection. I won't name their names, because I'm not sure if they'd want me to. But if you see this, I'm sure you know who you are, and I'd like to say "Thank You!"

[debwalsh]

I think spam filters can also play havoc with getting a response from someone. I've contacted a number of people on this board through regular e-mail, and not gotten a reply, yet when I've posted through the board, I've heard back within a few hours. So it could be that you're not hearing back from people because a) your e-mail is unfamiliar, b) the person's spam filter is filtering you, or c) your e-mail isn't getting through for some other reason.

And there's also the issue of free time. Most people on this board and pretty much all the others have lives in addition to hobbies. I personally find it tough to reply to someone who sends me a laundry list of shows they want to get from me, and they have nothing I want. It's tough to say no. And if you have a list to provide, it takes time to review the list. I kept hearing from one trader who wanted to trade with me, and so I really studied his list to see if there was *anything* I wanted from him. The only show that remotely interested me was one he had a funky notation on - here he felt the show was so rare (he'd taped it himself, mind you, not imported it from another country or transferred it from film or done anything else out of the ordinary to acquire it), he felt it was worth a three for one trade (he'd get three times as much stuff as I would). I told him that was kind of exploitive and he went off on me, got fairly unpleasant - which makes me a little gun shy about trying to find something to trade on a stranger's list. I imagine I'm not the only one who hesitates to open a potential can of worms, for a variety of reasons.

I remember reading either here or on another forum a good example where repeated messages are a real turn-off and a potential deal killer. Someone had been writing to this one trader like every four hours demanding a reply. Got really nasty about it on the forum, and the person he'd been trying to get a trade with pretty much took off his head and handed it back to him. And he kind of deserved it - not only had he been rude, he'd been spamming this trader's mailbox for days. In trading as in all things, manners matter. :>

When I first started trading again, I was grateful for Tobal2 and his great list and affordable prices. There are some other traders here who will also sell for a low fee. There are also folks who want a lot of money for very little. As always, you need to evaluate whether what someone wants is worthwhile for you.

[mego73#2]

I think those who initiate trade send first is a good idea. The only problem I have had so far with a trade is when I traded with someone and all the tapes he sent me looked as if they were taped from a barely tuned in channel. In other words, the image was snowy on each and every tape, no matter the source.

Upon telling him this he said it's his VCR and there is nothing he could do about it. Of course, he didn't inform me of the problem before the trade..

BTW, Agent 13 is a steller trader and you will never be disapointed with her.

[Agent 13]

Originally posted by mego73#2
BTW, Agent 13 is a steller trader and you will never be disapointed with her.

Well, thank you mego73#2!

You're a great trader, too!

[mego73#2]

Sure, we'll have to get something going again soon!