Silk Road forums

Discussion => Newbie discussion => Topic started by: blueberrywaffles on June 04, 2013, 04:10 am

Title: After some advice for my first purchase
Post by: blueberrywaffles on June 04, 2013, 04:10 am
Hey all, long time listener, first time caller, or something like that. I've been scoping out SR for a few months now, but haven't ever purchased anything because I thought finding somewhere legit to buy Bitcoins and all the rest would be too much of a hassle, (when in reality buying Bitcoins today took literally 15 minutes -_-).

Anyways, I'm just after some advice on buying for the first time. I'm in Aus and I only want to buy domestically, for now at least. What's the best way to go about it? I've heard of new buyers getting their purchases cancelled simply because they're new, and I'd rather not send out my address if there's a good chance that it will just get cancelled anyway. Would it be best to message the vendor beforehand? What sort of things should I say or ask? Is FE'ing worth the risk if a vendor asks me to?

My apologies if these have been answered on other posts, but I looked through a few and they weren't much help.

Thanks in advance anyway!
Title: Re: After some advice for my first purchase
Post by: 292mp on June 04, 2013, 04:13 am
yes message the vendor beforehand and they should be happy to help you out
Title: Re: After some advice for my first purchase
Post by: Adelphi on June 04, 2013, 04:16 am
Sending a message before hand has worked flawlessly for me. Just choose you vendors carefully for your first few.
Title: Re: After some advice for my first purchase
Post by: gonethroughtime on June 04, 2013, 04:27 am
you have nothing to worry about... just dont FE if they dont seem legit. iv only ever done international... wouldnt even bother with prices of aus dom!
Title: Re: After some advice for my first purchase
Post by: world wide what on June 04, 2013, 04:40 am
you have nothing to worry about... just dont FE if they dont seem legit. iv only ever done international... wouldnt even bother with prices of aus dom!

I agree with gtg - Try to avoid FEing even if they seem legit. I have just ordered and am awaiting my first order from OS and wouldn't touch oz domestic vendors unless you really needed it - like desperate. The price just isn't worth it.

I hope it works out for you either way - Let us know when you've made your order or when it arrives :)

Cheers

WWW
Title: Re: After some advice for my first purchase
Post by: Adelphi on June 04, 2013, 04:48 am
Yeah I did a FE for some stuff from a "reputable" vendor. Hopefully it works out buy I consider any FE to be money thrown away.
Title: Re: After some advice for my first purchase
Post by: alchemetric on June 04, 2013, 04:53 am
Yeah, some vendors can be downright mean to first-time buyers. A friend of mine set up an account and tried to buy some LSD off a seller I'd bought from quite a few times before. The seller said no to him. I sent a msg to that seller vouching for my friend and saying that he's legit. The seller thanked me and did business with my friend. So, maybe if you know someone else who has an SR account they've been using for a while, get them to vouch for you? Otherwise, just build up your rep by buying small things first. A g of weed, 1 pill etc. That will build up your stats then you can move onto more serious orders.
Title: Re: After some advice for my first purchase
Post by: Adelphi on June 04, 2013, 04:57 am
Yeah a vouch wouldn't be bad but unfortunately I'm first haha. Small orders is working for me.
Title: Re: After some advice for my first purchase
Post by: alchemetric on June 04, 2013, 04:57 am
And never FE. If you were buying a product in the real world you wouldn't hand over money to a complete stranger before knowing they have the product, so why do it on SR?

I FE'd once and then the guy told me had "misplaced his stash". When I complained and said I was going to report him, he suddenly found it again.
Title: Re: After some advice for my first purchase
Post by: world wide what on June 04, 2013, 05:06 am
The person I just ordered with (first order) just put my order in transit and has PM'ed me to FE or anything and he's an OS vendor with top rep. I might msg him to make sure everythings all good but yeah not to bad for my first order :)

WWW
Title: Re: After some advice for my first purchase
Post by: blueberrywaffles on June 04, 2013, 05:29 am
Thanks for all the advice guys, I sent a message to the vendor I hope to buy from, waiting to hear back from them.

I'm pretty apprehensive about buying from OS, for the moment anyway, from what I've seen the prices are only mildly better (for bud anyway, which is all I'm really interested in buying), and the majority of seizings I hear about are packages coming from OS. It just seems like a bigger risk in my opinion.

Also, is FE'ing still a bad idea even if the vendor has great feedback and has been around for a long time?
Title: Re: After some advice for my first purchase
Post by: alchemetric on June 04, 2013, 05:41 am
If you feel comfortable FE'ing and the vendor has plenty of positive feedback it can't hurt. I know I talked it down before, but sometimes it's just a courtesy. The seller is taking a risk selling to a new buyer, but you're also taking a risk giving away your money without having a product. It's really up to you. That's why I suggest starting with small purchases, if you lose $20 here and there it's not a big deal. When I first started on SR I'm pretty sure I FE'd early a few times to get the ball rolling. I'm now up to 30 transactions.

One more tip to stay in good standing with vendors: Finalise and leave feedback as soon as your product arrives. a) That releases the money to the vendor. If you get your product then wait a week to finalise you are basically not giving the seller their money, which is rude. b) If you forget to finalise within 14 days and SR finalises automatically for you it gives you an "auto-finalise" score on your profile. Sellers can see this and some sellers won't sell to people unless they have a ZERO auto-finalise score.

Enjoy your travels on the Silk Road and beyond :D