On Wed, 15 Apr 2015, Gary KW4Z wrote:

Any comments or suggestions as to where a person could best look to find
Amateur Equipment for sale that could be at least considered fairly safe
and not subject to someone out there seeking to just separate a person
from their money? I realize that there are scams everywhere and some
places more than others. I am aware of Amazon.com's marketplace and of
course eBay where there are many radios posted but just curious of if
anyone else knows of other places that a large number of Ham Radios are
offered usually for sale or trade.

Thanks in advance for the answers.

Old is different from used.

Old is a niche, people wanting to use equipment from their childhood (that
they either got rid of or could never afford), despite it being old, and
more important, limited in features. But that is part of the appeal, a
desire to go with simpler equipment, or AM when SSB is the norm today.

Used is more recent equipment that has been used, but may not require the
effort of decades old equipment.

One place to get used equipment is the local ham outlet. Once upon a time
those were common, and they'd take trade-ins when people bought newer
equipment. The store would generally give it a run through to make sure
it was working.

Otherwise, it's buying directly from some ham. DO it by mail (or over the
internet) and there are risks, you don't know the guy, so even if he's
legit he may not know enough about the equipment to know if it's working
fully. Buy it locally, as someone suggests a local fleamarket, you need
to know something about rigs that might be available and you need to gain
some skill in determining whether something is in working order, but you
are buying locally, no fussing about shipping or the cost of shipping.

Bought locally, you may have to worry about others wanting the same
equipment, but if you're willing to risk that, you can always wait. Go to
the hamfest, check what's available, if something seems close, you can ask
the seller for contact information and go home and read up on the
equipment, buying later (assuming nobody else grabs it).

Or make friends with the local hams, who will not only keep out an eye for
suitable equipment, but might be willing to help you determine whether a
rig is suitable or not. That's not just in terms of whether it works, but
whether the thing is too date or too complicated, or if there's a known
problem that often arises with that rig.

I realize one can get a ham license without much effort, but when I was a
kid, it wasn't an end goal, it was just part of a process. So we'd start
reading the ham magazines as soon as we knew about them, and just reading
them gives lots of information, lots to think about. Being involved in
the hobby that way is part of the process of entering, so when you are
ready, you know about things like the local clubs, and when they put on
their fleamarkets or auctions.

Michael