Any viable alternatives to Gunbroker ?

[geezer]

For decades GB has been my go-to site for auctions, but it's customer service access is poor: there is no one to actually speak with, which is the only way to effectively resolve issues.
FAQ's and selection menus don't work well, along with the one to three day response time, and then the frustration that my issue isn't specifically addressed...
Was there once a time when this forum considered an auction link?

 

[geezer]

So I take it that no-one has an opinion of GB, pro or con (???)

 

[Doc]

I only buy from big name accounts. If they don’t answer the phone I don’t bid on their stuff.

 

[MarkItZero]

Not an auction site or anything but I find many of the deals on reddit gundeals are better than most on gb

 

[gunpoorboy1]

I've purchased a couple of guns off gun broker.
I got the firearms in record time compared to other gunsights (Grab-a-Gun, Bud's , etc.).
The whole process was easy and without problems so I guess I'd have to give the sight an A plus.

 

[jcbrown]

I've sold about a half dozen guns, and bought various items over several years. Over the last year, my account has been hacked 3 times. They did resolve the issues the first time. The hackers sold several guns for over $10k. The last two times, they immediate locked my account before any activity occurred. I've given up using them.

 

[Ballistic Therapy]

I have both bought and sold on gunbroker and have never had a problem.
When it comes to collectables or high dollar guns , to get the most response and money , gunbroker is the best option I have found.

I have offered guns for sale locally with no responses at all. Then put the same gun on gunbroker and every time they have sold for more than I was asking locally.

I don't rely on email or texts . When I buy and sell I have a phone conversation with the other person before any transaction is made. I have had an account on gunbroker for over 20 years and have never had a problem one.

 

[geezer]

jcbrown, are you a dealer ? Very interested to known how the hacking goes down. Did you actually lose $, and why were you vulnerable ?

 

[Abbey]

I've sold about a half dozen guns, and bought various items over several years. Over the last year, my account has been hacked 3 times. They did resolve the issues the first time. The hackers sold several guns for over $10k. The last two times, they immediate locked my account before any activity occurred. I've given up using them.

Did you have a complex, unique password? And did you have multi-factor auth enabled?

If the answer to either of those questions is "no", then I'd expect any site to get hacked because brute force compromises with password lists mined from previous leaks are rampant on the internet. I'd only blame the site for that if they don't offer MFA.

 

[hairygreek]

Not really alternatives for self listing I know of. Plenty if you want the auction house to do the work (and thus need a larger collection or high value items.)

You can look into other busy forums or forums that cater to a specific manufacturer. But sometimes they want you to post 50x etc. on the forum first.

 

[Doc]

[mention]geezer[/mention] you going to tell us what is for sale or what?

 

[BigNate]

I've generally only used GB as a pricing tool... I think I bought some magazines through them once - but never a gun. I like the ability to use them to see generally where the market is on things - but buying guns on a national auction site - just not my thing.

 

[geezer]

Doc: my current offering is a 94 Krag sporter. It'll be the third go-around for this rifle in a year.
The first winner about 8 mths ago refused to read or comply with my clearly stated terms.
2nd guy, whom I suspect to be a shill for the former guy, waited to the end to bid, and ultimately didn't communicate, nor reply to me. FYI he only had a record of one transaction so he had little to lose, reputation-wise...

 

[jcbrown]

jcbrown, are you a dealer ? Very interested to known how the hacking goes down. Did you actually lose $, and why were you vulnerable ?

Not a dealer, just clearing space in the safe.

The first time, I did not have an overly complex password. The last two times, it was lengthy with various characters. I did not use a 2ndary authenticator.

Gunbroker stopped the transactions as soon as I contacted them. The buyer was able to get my info, but the hackers had changed my payment method. The buyer was suspicious when the name on the account was different from mine. Neither the buyer or myself had any financial impact.

 

[Doc]

Doc: my current offering is a 94 Krag sporter. It'll be the third go-around for this rifle in a year.
The first winner about 8 mths ago refused to read or comply with my clearly stated terms.
2nd guy, whom I suspect to be a shill for the former guy, waited to the end to bid, and ultimately didn't communicate, nor reply to me. FYI he only had a record of one transaction so he had little to lose, reputation-wise...

Could go old fashioned and put up flyers at the range?

 

[tunnug]

Haven't sold anything yet but I've bought several from https://gunsarizona.com/ , it's classifieds not an auction site so don't know if it'll be what you're looking for.

 

[Yellowcarbon]

I buy way too much stuff on Gunbroker. It's easy to shop when I'm taking a break at work. Particularly after I collect on sales commissions and got play money burning a hole in my pocket.

I usually view of couple of local shops. Their Gunbroker cost is very similar to their in store cost. I enter a low bid or the maximum I'll pay on items and if I win, I win. But I don't chase the auctions. I've lost stuff to the next highest bidder and regretted it. For example, I bid $925 for a POF Rouge .308 12.5" pistol. The next guy got it for $931. I really should have bid $1000, but there is no saying he wouldn't have gotten to $1010. I've lost a few AKs & Galil by $40-50.

On the other hand, I have won a couple of Turkish HiPower clones at $386, IWI Tavor TS-12 for $885, Sig M18 for $435, Mini-Draco AK pistol for $585, S&W M&P 9C for $275. Now you still have to add taxes and shipping on a few of them. But still a pretty good deal overall.

The thing I dislike about gunbroker is you have to watch all the extra fees. 3-4% for credit card payment, shipping, sales tax. So on my Tavor, I ended up paying $1040 or so after all the fees. So still a decent deal, but not the great deal I had at $885. The sellers that have the no CC fee and free shipping always gets my bid over the other. You really have to consider the over all fee on the auction when you bid.