The "Reverb Scam" Gets Scarier
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- Опубліковано 16 тра 2024
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There has been a huge influx of fake listings on Reverb lately and their scamming tactics are always constantly changing. This new iteration isn't just trying to scam you for the value of the guitar - they are going after your bank account! Stay safe out there friends
🐕 Episode Guide:
0:00 - Intro - Check Links in the Description
0:11 - A Usual Day on Reverb
1:07 - What They're Doing Now
2:15 - The Old Dummy Package Scam
3:15 - Why Scammers Want International Transactions
4:23 - What Happens If You Take the Bait
5:45 - Keep Your Business on Reverb
6:01 - When In Doubt, Ask For Photos
6:45 - How Could Reverb Solve This?
9:26 - Red Sparkle Les Paul Deluxe
11:13 - More Scam Examples to Learn From
12:17 - 2016 Gibson Flying V Standard
12:43 - 1972 Gibson Les Paul Custom Ebony
13:56 - Gibson Celebrity Series Firebird V
14:55 - 2012 Gibson Paul Landers Signature LP
15:59 - 2010 Gibson Thunderhorse Explorer
17:06 - Stay Safe Out There!
17:38 - What to Watch Next!
🎞️ Videos Mentioned:
0:59 Fake Listings on Reverb Warning
• This Scammer "Scammed"...
1:16 2022 Gibson Kirk Hammett Greeny Les Paul Collector's Edition
• The $50,000 Guitar Rev...
1:20 2023 Gibson Kirk Hammett "Greeny" Les Paul Custom Shop Murphy Lab Aged
• The $20,000 Guitar Rev...
1:24 2020 Adam Jones Signature 1979 Les Paul Custom Silverburst
• The Ultimate Compariso...
1:42 Gibson Custom Shop Fast and Furious Les Paul Custom
• Guitars That Go "FAST"
2:15 Trogly's Guitar Unboxing Vlog 39
• I Got Scammed on Rever...
2:58 April Fools 2020 $1 Toy Guitar Review
• Trogly's April Fools 2...
9:59 1975 Gibson Les Paul Deluxe Basalt Blue
• The Holy Grail - Spark...
12:20 Gibson Flying V Standard Blue Quilt Top
• You've Never Seen One ...
14:02 1990 Gibson Custom Shop Original Firebird V Purple Violet Burst
• A Custom Color You've ...
14:09 1991 Gibson Celebrity Series SG Standard
• Surprise! Hidden Repai...
14:58 2012 Gibson Rammstein Paul Landers Signature Les Paul Studio
• This Les Paul Was Stol...
15:24 The SNAKEPIT Counterfeit Les Paul Story
• I Was Scammed Out of $...
16:32 2011 Gibson Thunderhorse Explorer Silverburst
• How A Thunder Horse is...
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Never ever give anyone a two factor auth code folks. No matter who or what they claim to be. EVER!
I think the message with the code say not to share it with anyone. It’s the keys to the castle
A confidence game at its finest. I’m trusting you so much that I’LL give to YOU, all the info you need to steal from me.
I fell for this once, I then had to get another person’s phone number to then break away a rogue Google Voice account the scammer created.
Especially you’re embittered passive aggressive wife…
Crazy the dome folks don't know that
Scammers ruin EVERYTHING!
Some people scam for subscribers, like some of these 'reviews' right here on YT.
Reverb needs to implement a security check on all buyers and sellers to verify and weed out scammers.
There should never be a ‘rare’ or high end guitar being sold by a person with no transaction history. I’ve turned down local offers in order to build my reputation on Reverb, so there’s definitely a way they could gatekeep better.
It would be continual, some sort of ongoing process or protocol.
They are owned by Etsy now. Etsy has little to no interest in dealing with scams, laundering, counterfeits. It has become a huge problem on all their sites. I am not surprised it has reached reverb.
@@corail53 It has. I'd say about 10-20% of stuff that I am seeing on my feed/newly listed for me are scams.
Chibson pushers everywhere
If you have a delivery scan on an item sent through the Postal Service, it can be tracked to the delivery point. The local Postmaster has GPS coordinates that they can access but customers cannot access the information. You must contact the local office to get the information to assist in filing for your claim. I know how this works, I’m a recently retired Postmaster.
That might work if you have a decent local post office. The post office in my city is run by incompetents.
In general the USPS is great
@@steveparish9210 lol. Sure
@@steveparish9210 Great at drop kicking parcels.
@smelltheglove2038 so is mine.
The more horror stories like this I hear, the more convinced I am that the way to go is simply not buying used guitars online. Go to a store, try the instrument, then decide.
Yeah but not at all realistic for most of America. I only order stuff within The US. If it ain't here it ain't mean't to be.
Yes, 100%
Not just that, but the prices are way too high on reverb...
I’ve had trouble on reverb just trying to buy stuff. It doesn’t seem safe to buy from them
And that's how fox news fear mongers trump supporters. "The internet told me to be scared so now I am!"
I work at a fairly well-known guitar shop, and we (along with several others) have had our pics, listings, and descriptions copied verbatim and spoofed into multiple fake websites over the last few weeks. Bottom line: if the price looks too good to be true, it is!
Yeah I agree . . . I am sorry but when you see anything priced far far lower than it should be you should know better
They’re absolutely utter scum! Great video and the ultimate respect for passing on this information.
If Reverb don’t figure this out and end it, their platform won’t last.
Their customer service is dreadful and when you get scammed they give you the cold shoulder.
I never buy anything not based in the USA. My only foreign purchase was a Duesenberg from a very reputable shop in Germany. I received the guitar in less than 24 hrs from Aschaffenburg......freaking amazing!
I tried to buy a Duesenberg from that place. I waited months and it never came. Fortunately after much work I got my money back.
What shop?
That's really odd. I communicated directly with the manager or maybe even part owner and received the guitar via DHS from Germany in under 24hr. I was astounded that happened. @@ledaswan5990
It's called the Guitar-Place in Aschaffenburg, Germany. They are a Duesenberg dealer. They carry all the models@@vgs44
Purchased a Dusenberg from Spain that arrived in six weeks, damaged beyond repair. Luckily it was from a brick and mortar store over there and after ten days of chasing some Spaniard around I was able to get refunded and returned the 1/500 Joe Walsh models they had. Stay away from all International sellers and Reverb in general.
I once reported a fake boutique pedal that was listed there, I was completely ignored & the listing wasn't taken down.
I bought a $400 Squier Strat through the mail, and THAT direct from Fender. I would NEVER EVER buy an expensive, vintage guitar without touching it myself.
My favorite is when the Sold Listings show the scam listings for well below market as well, this can easily shift prices in the used market if enough listings are there at once.
Great point.
Not just guitars, synth as well. I flagged two synth listings this week. In this case, there was unique woodgrain. Reverb did take the listings down very quickly. One was Switzerland and the other was Florida
Unfortunately, you just can't trust anyone, anywhere.
Hey I have a question for you. I use to own a Gibson Les Paul Custom that I sold in the early 90's. I've never known what year it was but it only had 5 numbers on the serial number. The first number was a 5 and the fifth number was a 3. The guitar was really old and had the ebony fretboard, The wiring was original and had the cloth wiring, but everything else was replaced. Brass bridge saddles, bone nut and the old original Grovers with recess letters on the them.
The guitar was Red Wine. Would that have been an actual 53? or when did they first make the Red Wine, Les Paul. Customs? Also would love to know what you would think that guitar would be worth today? Thanks, Peace.. Joe
I worked at a music store in the shipping dept and we were responsible for charging the customer's cards or collecting from PayPal. We got scammed once where someone used a hacked PayPal account to order a mid range acoustic guitar. We ended up having to pay the hacked person back the money AND we lost the guitar. Luckily it only happened that once, but that was like 8 or 9 years ago.
Ebay/paypal horror stories: I once listed a 1970s thunderbird (car; "As is" no warranty) for a friends small used dealership (in Wisconsin).Buyer is from Hawaii wins the bid; pays with a credit card through paypal ;we picked him up at the airport. he does the paperwork, drives off. (contacts us two weeks later from California complains the cars tires are worn and the car needs brake work; demands some money back.We sent him the "As is" paperwork he signed. He puts car on freighter for Hawaii and gets a charge back on his credit card. Paypal takes his(/our) money out of the dealers' account. Buyer now has the vehicle; the title AND %100 of his money back.Took months and a denied paypal claim to get the money back to my friends account. Screw paypal ,e-bay and the horse they rode in on...Never again.
Happening less, but as a seller there used to be a lot of “I am interested, or “my uncle is looking for this” with the “please contact me” at and either an e-mail or a phone number, to try to scam you off of Reverb.
Reverb seemed to have put in a filter that flags these and blocks the person because the message will say “you cannot message this person”, though I still reported them anyway.
I think the scammer deactivates their account so your only option to continue to talk with them is on the phone
I got the "My uncle" one last time I sold something on Ebay. Just didn't feel right. I don't hardly list things on either platform, so it took me a second to think about it. Thankfully I just ignored them.
Reverb needs to have serial numbers logged with guitars . Even privately just to the website . Also passport proof or any accredited id system in each country .
Excellent vid. Very helpful! I wish I saw this last week when this happened to me! I "bought" a 1968 Gibson ES-335 on Reverb from a first-time seller in Switzerland. The good price and lack of reviews were indeed red flags, but what got me was the excellent detail in the photos and the corroboration of very specific details pertaining to the guitar's provenance in the description. An hour after the sale I ran a search for 1968 Gibson ES-335s and found the exact same listing for sale from another seller (also in Switzerland), which I promptly flagged. Half an hour later, it was for sale yet again; this time from a seller in Japan. Since then, I have been seeing these scam postings EVERYWHERE in Reverb.
Kinda makes long for the old days when you get your friends and drive to the city to visit guitar stores. Ancient history, I know.
Thanks for bringing this to our attention! Is there anything that Sweetwater is doing differently with their used marketplace?
Thanks for looking out and sharing what you've learned about this stuff, Austin. I buy/sell on Reverb often, although not in the thousand dollar range just yet, and I definitely feel a little better equipped to root out scams with what you have said in the past and just now. I hope they do put in better safe guards. It will only encourage people to feel more comfortable making high end purchases!
I've bought two pieces of gear from Reverb, a Schecter guitar and a Blackstar tube amp. Both arrived as advertised but then again, I purchased from retail outlets with a large amount of positive reviews (and verified that said retail outlet existed) instead of some Joe Schmoe.
I know that Ebony 72! That guitar came through a shop I was working at a handful of years ago for a cleanup and strings. It was certainly a mishmash of mods, but it did play surprisingly well! And the lady that owned it had a really great story!
Just one more reason to deal locally, and in person, when ever buying, or selling, used instruments. It is always better, even if you have to run ads, and wait a while, to find what you are looking to buy.
This is good information to know. I found a guitar I wanted Friday (07/28/23). My left handed Kenny Hickey C-1. I made an offer through Reverb; they had asked me to contact them so we could work out a better deal. Yes I did pay less and skipped all the extra pricing that they have to pay through Reverb. I only paid the cost of it plus their state tax or what ever. Which is still less than the cost asked on Reverb. I have a tracking number, but it has not moved yet as of Saturday (coming UPS to Kansas). So only time will tell if I get it and it is not broke or all F'ed up. Love your channel.
I like that Custom with the Kahler, although I already have two Les Pauls with Kahlers and really don't need another one. Kluson locking tuners are now available, so that is what I would install rather than a string lock, unless a proper locking nut is installed.
So far, I've been lucky with Reverb, although these days I am usually buying obscure rack gear that only a handful of people want, or I'm buying new items from well-established vendors. The few guitars I've bought have arrived without any issues.
I almost got scammed by a buyer on Reverb. He "bought" the Soloist I was selling and cancelled the transaction. Luckily, I hadn't shipped it out yet. Then, he tried to report me to Reverb for being a scammer myself. They reviewed the listing and my messages with him prior to purchase and took my side. I found out about a week later that the "buyer" runs an eBay store and was only buying it to dox me because I left him honest feedback on an item. After that, I changed to selling in person in a public place.
My gosh, the internet really has revealed the amount of outright sickos there are out there
This is an especially informative posting, Trogly! Personally, I only BUY on Reverb; and only do so (generally) if the seller is in the Continental U.S., has good feedback, posts photos with the serial # and verifies that in writing on Reverb Message, accepts AMEX payment, and ships UPS or FedEx. Haven't been burnt yet--although my volume is nowhere NEAR what you do! Plug for RUFUS in Vancouver, B.C. for playin' straight on my MIK Kramer Pacer LE!!
I have a beat-to-shyt 73 LP Custom BB FW. It has the embossed pup covers (which they did to early 73) along with an old repaired headstock break. The guitar has serious wear and tear, but the orig speed frets, which still has the nibs, have been well taken care of and the guitar plays amazing. This is truly a magical instrument, and like many old Customs, wakes up a few minutes after you start playing it to deliver 10-fold what you put into it. No other guitar I know of does this so this ones a keeper.
Thanks for the tips. We just need more local music shops so buyers can actually touch and see what they are getting...a dream I know but there has to be a way to set up "Guitar brokers" with scrupples?
Great buys are still to be had at thrift stores. You have to check regularily. You really can't buy a guitar online from a picture because you will get burned. If your looking for a vintage guitar I would only spend money at a reputable dealer.
Two of my last three Reverb sales had suspicious buyers sending me sketchy messages. 😒
I had a Guild acoustic for sale on Reverb. A guy asked me to send his dad photos of the item. I couldn't respond to his message, but he gave me his dad's email address. Like a dummy, I sent the pics. Immediately, I got a long email response from "dad" saying pictures looked great, he's ready to purchase, will send me a cashier's check, needed some personal information from me, and will arrange for someone else to pick up. Lots of separate hands potentially involved in that transaction - and none of it through the Reverb process. I shut that down. Sketchy for sure.
@@mylerism I've gotten those same "Dad" messages. I thought Reverb would be better at weeding them out. But I guess they can't stop them all..
Reverb could definitely either use a third party verification system (i.e they don't have to store any info on their servers) or utilise some photo matching tech on their newly submitted listings to at least check against their old listings and demand genuine re-sellers of old listings use their own photos. Easy stuff to implement these days! In the meantime there's always the one golden rule - If it sounds too good to be true, it usually is! Always worth doing a Google image search which will at least give you the heads up that something is a bit "off" when you invariably find the original listing at twice the price. Great vid Trog!
The only times I have bought on Reverb, I have done so for local pickup only and met them in either a music shop (so I could plug it in and sound check it) or in a police station parking lot (where videocams capture the entire transaction). It keeps the scammers few and sincere.
I recently bought 3 Les Paul's through Reverb using Affirm.
1 from Arizona.
(Guitar store)
1 from Idaho.
(Guitar store)
1 directly from Gibson.
UPS shipped.
Everything went quickly and smooth.
6 Gibson Les Paul's in just 5 months.
TOTAL - $17,000
You can never have enough guitars.
Especially if they're all Gibson Les Paul Standards.
I got scammed out of a RAT pedal because the seller sent it to an address in the US when in fact the delivery address was in the UK. I've been on Reverb chat 4 times and after about 15 minutes each time I'm told a specialist will email me within 48 hours. The email never came each day I went on the chat for an update. Over a week now and nothing. BEWARE!
Scary world we live in today and on top of it all the scammer/opportunists out there. Thanks for what to watch out for Trogly 👍
Thanks for the great security tip! Sucks that musicians are getting scammed, too.
Thank you for watching, Fred
Even more: there are fake (rare) pickups out there. I didn't know about that. It may be uneasy to spot a fake pickup.
Etsy is doing the same thing. I ordered something from Turkey, showed up in customs in NY. He said it looks like it was delivered to an address in Brooklyn. I contacted the USPS, they too said it had reached its final destination and was marked delivered. The USPS was able to verify that It wasn’t even addressed to me.
Etsy refunded me quickly.
Ha nice! That flame top flying V is being sold by the guitar shop I used to work at in Missouri. Earnie Williamson Music. They are a great shop (they have a couple locations now). That was fun to see on here.
Man it seems you can't trust anyone anymore. Ebay and now Reverb are full of scammers and I just had a terrible experience with GoodWill that just turned me off the site completely "lets just say they ruined a vintage jazzmaster". I would say don't buy anything unless you physically see it but I don't know anymore...
Thanks for the heads up! I’m leaning towards using Sweetwater over Reverb for just this reason.
It's been taken over by Chibson peddlers
Thanks for posting this. Very helpful for honest folks trying to just pursue a hobby and interest.
Gibson made instruments- but often they were not completely finished and shipped for quite a while, so the pots may be later than the registration number dates the guitar.
I have to say, I've never done business on Reverb and when I see video like this it sours my inclination of ever doing business on Reverb. Thanks for the tips to protect myself but I remember a car ad that went: "The best way of not getting hurt in an accident is not to get in one in the first place".
Yes, same. Never used Reverb so far. Bought a few things on eBay but all went smoothly, yet still prefer the meet in person hand over cash/instrument in public place option. Reverb is such a great idea and marketplace, but it needs to up its game as there were two sales they lost from Trogly in this one video alone. I've been scammed before on a cheap guitar pedal - so no biggy - but people I know have been scammed even worse for thousands. Only thing that makes any market work is trust and confidence, and right now the online marketplace for high value goods like guitars has neither. It's got to improve :)
That why I got mine from you. Thanks again! Love the show ,and yes the scammer are out there.
Years ago, Trade Tang from China advertised American made guitars using photos pirated from e-bay. Attractive pricing enticed unsuspecting buyers (don't ask how I know) then once payment was made, they send you a Chinese cheap substitute - not the guitar shown in the photo. They advertise returns and you soon learn that you have to pay shipping easily exceeding the original price you paid for the guitar.
Yep. This exact thing happened to me almost a year ago. I was able to get my money back from Reverb, but it wasn't easy. At first they just kept saying "but tracking says it was delivered"
I never buy anything from a different country. I was paranoid as hell when I bought my 1961 jr off of reverb. I messaged the seller multiple times and it all turned out good. Always be cautious people. I'm sorry you got had man.
Good idea with getting them to add something to the photo. Might be worth getting them to tuck it under the strings as well as that would be very hard to photoshop!
Yeah that’s why I still go to guitar stores as I want to see and feel the thing first and I hate online shopping and don’t want to go through all these kind of problems and I just go back to the store if I have a problem.
Great video bud thanks for the heads up on the reverb scam
Tip: only buy from sellers that have been selling for at least a year and have lots of positive reviews and feedback.
Great PSA Trogly! More "Loyal Viewer Hours" content please!!!
i see these listings ever day and don't really think anyone's gonna fall on them, but i guess they apparently do. glad to see someone actually make a video on it.
Thank you Trogley. A reminder is always appriciated. Learning is good too. Thank you.
Thanks for the warnings! I’ve been fairly lucky through five transactions. I’ll be more careful in the future. I usually have a message exchange to get a sense of the seller. The last time, I didn’t hear back in a day, so I just put in a very low ball offer (to open a conversation) and it was accepted. But … the description of this classical did mention a “small crack” that had been repaired. It wasn’t pictured (although I mistakenly thought I saw it) and it turned out to be 3” on the edge of the lower bout and patched underneath. Fortunately, in that location it doesn’t noticeably affect the sound quality, but it definitely affects the overall value. In the end, because of my low offer, it was a good deal because it is a gorgeously rich sounding flamenco model, handmade by one of Granada’s top luthiers, whose other guitars on Reverb go for roughly twice as much.
Many of the red flags can be seen a mile away but when you're caught up in the moment of buying something it becomes way more difficult to spot them. Just take a moment to think things through and don't access links outside of Reverb. I almost got tricked for $700 a while back and managed to figure out the scam at the last moment.
The same thing is happening on ebay. I was recently scammed for a Gibson Les Paul custom black beauty and am going through the process of trying to get a refund. The seller shipped the package to a different address in my city so it showed it as being delivered even though it was not delivered to my address. The post office looked into it and said the package details they were able to look up was that it was a small box and clearly not a guitar and they think it was a scam. However, I did not buy it from a country outside of the USA. This ebay seller is based in Colorado which is why I made the purchase.
I would add that anyone selling a Gibson must include a photo of the truss rod. One of the reasons I don’t buy used on Reverb is because when you return a guitar, you are not able to leave feedback. This gives sellers a limitless license to try to dump damaged inventory, hoping to find the buyer that won’t return the guitar. Of the 3 used guitars I’ve bought, two had to go back for significant undisclosed defects. Both were relisted before I even packed the return, with no mention of the problems I found.
And this is exactly why I will not shop for a guitar online, unless it's, trogly. Only person I'll deal with once I can. That's all I say. Only person I will ever trust. If I buy a guitar. I gotta see it in person first
@@CatBlackGuitars exaclty. Always been local shop's for me, except for my last 2 I got off of Sweetwater. 1st 2 I've been the only owner of off. Never got a new guitar. Always bought used stuff and made it my own
I get the sentiment, but I also think complete self-prohibition on online used purchases is really limiting and isn't necessary. I have done literally hundreds of transactions and ran into only a handful of issues in the last 5 years (and no actual scams, though I'm pretty careful). IMO if you ask a lot of questions, you can find out pretty quickly who you're dealing with, and if you stick to people with a clear feedback profile you can do enough research to feel good about your purchase. As Trogly mentions, it's better to stick to Reverb payments (they'll have your back as a buyer).
Guitars that should never have left the factory have been my problem, but since I've auctioned my collection I'm Free!
I started shopping for a 1971 P-Bass the other day. Of course I checked Reverb first. found one for 500 dollars. I sighed, and closed the window, deciding on the spot that I am unwilling to take the time or put in the effort to weed out scams. I think I'm just done with reverb for good.
Lately I've noticed that the fishy late night overseas Reverb listings go up already marked "In someone's cart!" but then hours later it's still there and still in a cart.
Wouldn't put it past scammers to work multiple accounts to create urgency that overrides common sense.
Regarding guitars from Japan, they are often a bit beat up as they're rarely collectors or have that kind of space for such (hence gig bags instead of hardcases) and actually play and gig the heck out of them.
Yes the same thing happened to me. I was trying to buy a Les Paul case and the seller info said that they were in Florida. Paid for it pay pal and the exact thing happened to me . They sent me a whole log of tracking through UPS then it goes to the US postal service and it shows the time said package was delivered. Nothing ever came I have cameras. Contacted PayPal and they denied my claim because the shipper provided tracking information. I spoke to them and wrote to them and told them I could send them the camera footage that has a time stamp. They still didn’t care, and denied my claim and I was out $100 bucks. Thank god it was a $100 case and not a $3k guitar because it would have been the same outcome.
Dang. So sorry this happened to you, Austin. It's scary knowing if it can happen to you, it can definitely happen to anyone of us!
I have a package delivered to me monthly , value in excess of $ 7500 .
This is an ongoing delivery that has be delivered over the course of 3 years .
Every single carrier , UPS , Fed Ex , USPS leaves without a signature . They start off asking for a sig but eventually they just drop it off . Most not even ringing the entry gate .
This is a package that clearly states in yhe shipping instructions to require a signature for delivery completion.
Incompetent.
I tried reporting a bad listing to Reverb but it’s still there. You clearly see 2 different necks but apparently they deemed it legit.
Maybe your eyes are bad?
@@michaelpacinus242 I don’t need glasses to see a hole for a truss rod
@@martianmurray eye*
I feel that you should send this episode to Scammer Payback. He's gone as far as getting scammer offices shut down overseas.
Just a thought. Loved the B Roll footage of those great guitars. I really dig that Special with the blue overspray.
I love that guy! Busting Indian guys that are posing as Microsoft techs preying on older folks saying they owe you a refund if you wish to cancel something, I forgot what, then give you an .exe file to type into your computer that let's them onto your computer to navigate and access your camera (which I always keep covered, myself) and your online banking apps (stupidly with saved passwords) to transfer an amount in your savings to your checking to look like you did receive their payment and from there ask you to send them the refund of the difference "accidentally" overpaid with gift cards and such. He gets them so riled up! Even speaks a little Bengali to them and pinpoints their exact call centers as he's a cyber crime specialist. He begins with a voice alteration software to sound elderly. He's done great work and he calls potential victims that are literally almost out the door to go to Best Buy or wherever to go get the gift cards and do it!
The red Firebird is also beautiful!
For the 2nd time a synth I've purchased on Reverb was within a few hours cancelled, and stated *I* requested a refund (when I didn't). The seller's account in both cases were disabled (assume by Reverb). Reviewing the listings later both were in Switzerland (I've bought from all over the world and never had an issue before) and both were PayPal only (but I paid via PayPal as a "guest" so I wasn't using a PayPal account).
What if you sell an authentic guitar a buyer buys it and receives it, swaps out parts and sends it back? Does that happen? I haven't sold on there because of that.
My very first transaction on Reverb was a scam (counterfeit Tokai in Canada, I got full refund) so I've ALWAYS been leary of Reverb. Honestly their payment processing fees are a rip.
Who gives a rat's butt about idiots paying 5 times, 10 times and up for anything like 'collectible' guitars? Why don't they do arbitrage in the stock market? That's what happens when one sells anything priced so far above it's actual value. Caveat Emptor 😮
MAN O MAN, I have listened to you for years now, and have seen times where sellers tried to scam you. Very Good Info and grateful that you are sharing to help other honest folks avoid the traps. Good call on calling out Reverb to step up their game to remedy and make the buyers' experience safer.
Thank you so much!!!!!!!! I’m so grateful for your help and support!!!
Watch out guys also hello
Greetings Random
reverb is the worst thing thats ever happened to the guitar community
Yeah, it’s frustrating to be a hobbyist in the internet age, particularly when it involves vintage items. People exploit everything for maximum profit.
Be ever vigilant. No matter how savvy you think you are anybody can fall for a scam. They just need to get you once.
I was nearly scammed, but my heightened sense of paranoia made me question the transaction just after making it - I was able to shut it down with Reverb and PayPal before it completed. Now, I see these types of ads all the time and report them. I just saw one today that said it was from Milwaukee, WI but shipping from Sweden! No ratings is a tip off as is the ridiculously low price. Report early, report often.
Z is for late.
Cheers Sgt!😃
🧇🧇
✌️
Peace Peace Hector
@@sgt.grinch3299 ✌️
while is sounds good in theory to have all kinds of id information verified/stored by reverb, it opens them up to some MAJOR liability. like identity thief or data breaches. the less info that a company has, the better when it comes to breaches or amount of security protections/audits/regulations they have to deal with. this is one of the major problems overall. you hear about companies demanding your driver's lic or something to verify but they are usually the same companies that 'fail' to notify authorities or individuals when bad things go down
So helpful man. Really appreciate the info and insights. Gorgeous guitars 😎 thanks!
Thank you! Vety good info. 😀👍
I have had several customers bring me some guitar they bought off reverb as "authentic les paul" to check out. I own a very rare early 80"s Hondo 748 Deluxe MK II - It is an EXACT replica, until you look at the electronics including dimensions of the pots. In any case, they are taking really good les paul copies and removing the name and replacing with gibson decals.
I notice these fake listing starting in September of 2021. 2 years later they have only gotten more prevalent. I literally go through the recently listed just to report these fake listings. But they have gotten very out of control.
Great education! Thanks for the info and the warning! This is a little off point, but let’s hope the scammers in government don’t learn from these people! 😢
Very helpful and useful points thanks.
I got a Gibson the Paul silver/ blue sparkle like kiss sn shows 1999 id sale, how much worth ?
Wanted a guitar on Reverb and it was an ok price. About $100 over what id want to pay. It was pick up only off of Broadway in NYC. Had friends there look for the music "store". No luck. I kept emailing the guy stating i have a visual on the address and dont see his business. Asked him if it was in a suite and/or if he was an actual store or a side hustle. No strait answer. So, scam in country...beware.
There is some very good info in this video! Thank you.
There are a lot of Fodera Emperor basses being offered from Japan for about $1500 under market value on Reverb. I just can't imagine how you can import a hand-made in Brooklyn, NY boutique bass to Japan, then turn around and sell it cheaper than you can find one in the US. Buyer be ware.
I would just like to point out too, if you can buy local, do it. It saves so much time, worry, and you can personally inspect an instrument too. I’m not bagging on Reverb though. I have used them a couple months ago to get a couple dream guitars that I can’t get around locally. However, If I can, I just like to buy local.
Thank you for this video Austin . Buyer Beware still holds true. I hope that Reverb gets active here and continues to update their policies and practices (eg. Extending time for a claim beyond 7 days to two weeks, ID verified etc)
Hey Trogly, just a couple of words about the photos. My experience shows that usually people just don't know how to correctly photograph the guitar. Even more, there are shops that don't know it as well. They do it at the wrong angles, and so on. Luckily I've seen a few shops which do that correctly (like on your photos when you're talking about the subject).
It’s all over the place on Reverb now. Filtering on seller location doesn’t work because Reverb doesn’t verify the “shipping from” region matches the account region. The only recourse is not to buy from new sellers who are selling a hot item well below expected value. There is no free lunch, and if it seems too good too be true then it is. Be careful out there.
Had this happen to me on eBay. They made me file a police report before they would issue a refund through PayPal.
Great video!
I've only used Reverb a few times. Mostly for some basic parts I needed, or something like a new keyboard stand. Thankfully I haven't had any real issues, other than paying for imperial guitar knobs and getting metric. No big problem. They weren't pricey. There were a few guitars I had my eye on recently though, but after seeing this video, I think I'll pass.
Thank you for bringing this scam to everyone's attention! Subbed!
Can't thank you enough!