MIKA-the-better-one
You know I can sometimes be very critical of SA... but one thing I never appreciated until now here living in the USA is.......
Every trade or sale I ever did in SA was a pleasant one, there were never any suspicions, scams, lies... it was always a happy outcome (I hope I can say this for both parties)
while in Sa I traded / sold ALOT of gear +- about 15 Fender guitars, 5 tube amps, and ALOT ALOT ALOT of Pedals...... and not once did anyone ever try and scam me.
Since moving to the USA I have had attempted scams 4 times in 6 months!!! people give Sa all this stress for being a bad place or dangerous, but herein the USA its worse I swear.
So I guess what I want to say is good on you in south Africa for being a good community of guitar loving people..... and to all that I dealt with which is ALOT of you... thanks forthe great times and experiences......
Mika
Bob-Dubery
If I may, I think it's GFSA that you have to thank. We do get scams going on in SA, but I think that GFSA is a much more reliable trading environment. I have heard staff in music shops in Jo'burg tell customers "don't sell on Gumtree, sell it on Guitar Forum, it's safer."
So a big round of applause from us and for us ?
Highway-Chile
Hey MIKA...yeah man it get's tiring all the BS artists huh!
Now, tell me about these 15 guitars! You are from the USA right? So how long did you live in SA and did you amass all 15 while you were there? That's a lot of Fenders for a private person.
VellaJ
Jeez Mika, didn't realize it was that bad over there...
Yeah Any sale I've ever done was pleasant, even on Gumtree. One or two unreliable people, but never in terms of scamming.
Crime isn't the only thing that the international community gives us stick for, but I won't go down that road because I feel very strongly about their hypocrisy, and I may get modded ?
giggsy
? Speechless!
But +1 for giving credit where its due
Tokai-SA
MIKA the better one wrote
while in Sa I traded / sold ALOT of gear +- about 15 Fender guitars, 5 tube amps, and ALOT ALOT ALOT of Pedals...... and not once did anyone ever try and scam me.
Since moving to the USA I have had attempted scams 4 times in 6 months!!! people give Sa all this stress for being a bad place or dangerous, but herein the USA its worse I swear.
Well, look at it this way.
The guitar playing community in the States is most probably 50 times that of SA...one very small State in the US most probably equals the entire SAfrica...if that.
Did you ever try sell gear in Junkmail here in SA?
Within a few hours of placing an ad you'll get your first phone call from a Nigerian telling you he wants all your gear, unfortunately he's in a wheelchair so he'll send his son over to collect the gear and his son will give you a Bank guaranteed cheque.
How many electric fences have you seen where you live, do you have to pay a private security company R800.00 a month to protect you? ?
SA is dangerous, it's just that we're used to it and brainwashed into accepting it as the norm, it's not, it's insanity.
singemonkey
I think the small size of this community has a lot to do with it MIKA. There was that thread in which everyone's changing their nicks so as not to be anonymous. Point of GFSA is: pretty much no one is anonymous. Almost any regular member is known by another member in the flesh. That's a great guarantee when buying from known members.
Try to do the same thing on a US or international forum... well, it's possible, and I see the same stuff going on. Forum members have an investment in their reputation on a forum - just as they would if it was a real-life "club." So they're pretty careful about it. Buying from unknown members or from a general classifieds like gumtree or craigslist or whatever, you're going to find it infested with crims and con-men/women.
kapepper
I fully agree with Mika
I also have done several transactions on gumtree and GFSA and always very pleasant experiences
ofcourse when you sell something you indeed get strange messages but using your commen sense you can discard them pretty easy
securitywise, i think we have to relax a bit more here in SA.
Dont do any stupidities and I think you will be fine
I dont want to minimalize SA crime problem, but having lived in other countries, mostly South America and Belgium (home country), (serious) crime is everywhere, the thing in SA it is Big Business, and the people are scared (because of media manipulation)
chris77
Bought a guitar of gumtree earlier this week. Remembered having seen it on GFSA before, so first searched the forum for the guit, then the member. Some folks had good dealings with him and he looks legit, so paid over the funds not having seen the guitar or met the seller before. Would not have done it if he didn't check out on gfsa though.
@H.C. - Mika was like a pre-sale catalogue for potential buyers. We would check out all his insanely cool gear in the New Gear threads and start saving for when he inevitably put 'em for sale or trade. ? He moved some way cool gear i tell ya....
raithza
MIKA the better one wrote
Since moving to the USA I have had attempted scams 4 times in 6 months!!!
What kind of scams? How did they try scam you?
MIKA-the-better-one
Hey I dont disagree with you guys that GFSA is a great community for gear.... but I wont lie I went beyond its borders many a time...... and before I joined I had trded and sold my fair share... It was actually my running inti MRT in a trade that led me to GFSA.
I dont deny Sa has its crime and scams and I had a Nigerian or two phone me... but herein USA I deal with Fake USA sreats, dressed up all the time, I deal with guys who dont trustr anything you sell them, they think everything they buy is a fake until proven true........ I have never had to justify a guitar to people so many times......
In the way of guitars to sum up what I can remember......
John Mayer Fender strat, Fender AVRI jazzmaster, Deluxe Strat, Deluxe 69th anniversary strat, Eric Clapton strat, Roadwaron Strat, Highway 1 Strat, and Mexican Strat, Fender Ltie Ash Tele, Fender Rosewood Tele, Fender 72 tele, Fender J mascis Jazzmaster, Fender MIJ Jaguar, Fender Mustang MIJ RI, Fender mustang 64.
Aria Diamond, Cort G series, Squire Stagemaster, Epiphone Les Paul, Epiphone Dot.
Behringer V amp, Fender 212, Vox ac50, Fender 72 Twin, Fender Bassman, Fender Hot Rod Deluxe.
Pedals ... no we wont go there... but I have never owned a Zvex pedal, thats the only brand that seems to have escaped me
Rescator
I moved from Europe in SA 6 years a go , and I can tell you this is lovely country !
It is not perfect (who and what is perfect anyway ; except my 2 Tom Anderson guitars; ?) but much better than I ever thought .
vic
Crime is everywhere....and THIS is how we deal with poachers in our reserve
mity88
yeah, i browse gumtree and bidorbuy and stuff, and if i had a choice id much rather buy from someone on GFSA, it just feels much safer...no wonder, we are a "community" coz we constantly talk to each other and so we learn each other, just makes sense to support each other too when it comes to sales
Mr-M
MIKA the better one wrote
So I guess what I want to say is good on you in south Africa for being a good community of guitar loving people..... and to all that I dealt with which is ALOT of you... thanks forthe great times and experiences......
Yeah it was fun. We had our fair share of transactions.
MIKA the better one wrote
Hey I dont disagree with you guys that GFSA is a great community for gear.... but I wont lie I went beyond its borders many a time...... and before I joined I had trded and sold my fair share... It was actually my running inti MRT in a trade that led me to GFSA.
I remember that one. Sold you a fuzz and then traded you again later to get it back. ? You know you're a pedal obsessive when you've owned a pedal more than once - especially if it's the very same pedal! ?
