I am relatively "new" compared with some of those with 4 digit post counts . . . . !
But, I do believe that some people will take advantage of an easy target. Some sellers that are chased away from Ebay or can't sell high ticket items there, or that know they will be caught if they try anything shady, will seek other places where the controls are few. RFF just might be a target for that sort of shadiness. But RFF should not have to put controls in place either - it just should not ever become a problem. Here, trust and familiarity are key in such deals. I have made one trade on RFF and it went through very smoothly, and it was a good trade for both of us. So I do have some experience with this angle of the RFF thing.
But. . . if you are a newbie and want to sell someting pricey (or even just a stick of gum), maybe setting up an auction at one of those sites (*) is a good idea, then you can advertise to members here, but asking people to make deals without any decent protection is just bad form, especially when your identity is nothing more than a username and a sentence intro.
The social system here depends on some degree of ambient and mutual familiarity and trust and the sense that everyone here has an identity defined by lots of posts about different things. Someone that joins and immediately wants to sell something high priced is obviously here for that purpose - though they may discover that they like it here for REAL reasons and decide to stay. Sure, there are lurkers. I was a lurker for a couple of weeks, but I would not have tried to sell something without gaining some place in the RFF society first. It is just good manners. Good business.
This should not be a snooty place, but just imagine it this way :
There is a very tight-nit group of car lovers that gather every weekend to play with eachother's Ferraris and Porches. They have been doing this for months or years and have relationships with eachother on different levels. About 8 months into it, when everyone has come to know everyone else, or at least is aware of who everyone is, a new guy shows up and the first thing he says is "Hey, now THAT is a nice Modena. Mind if I take it for a spin?" That would be shockingly inappropriate - but the guy would probably find a more open armed acceptance of his request had he been interacting with the members for a few weeks or months and given them a sense of who he is. That is why people shake hands, why they demand that you keep your hands above the table in card games, don't go to a business meeting wearing dark sunglasses, etc.
With the camera lust in the air around here, we are sitting ducks for potential shadiness. Social strength built through conversation is the only source of unity or security that we have, and that should be something that we take seriously. I know that some people around here don't have the money to simply lose on a Leica M6 that never arrives, and it would be a shame to leave the doors open for shadiness to crawl in.
NOW, I am not saying that anyone is shady right now. As far as I know, nothing like that has happened yet (at least not a huge sale) - though maybe it has. But all I mean to say is that it would be sad for things to get sketchy because of a few dark deals, and for the open trading and selling to gain an air of unpleasant distrust.
***Bottom line, though, is to be accepting, as the other responders have said. Maintaining a message of welcome to wanderers by or even first timers trying to sell something is better than putting up a closed sign or turning people away with sharp tongues. But everyone should be careful too. Careful and polite. And sincere.
just a week of posting would make a difference if you seek to sell something as a newbie. Having a website or something that adds dimension to your identity is also a good idea. When I first joined, I gave my web address and email to the roster immediately.
Speaking of that, my E*bay username is GWMPHOTO for anyone that browses that site occasionally, and I am selling my LF gear to pay for the RF645 that I just bought from Robert White last night.
Listing numbers 7567424577 and 7567433701
The camera is a great deal, obviously, and so it the lens (not as great but still pretty good). I just need to sell these since i actually got a new cred it card to buy the RF645. :bang:
😎
