Greetings,
I see these 2 groups in Yahoo for HO scale buying-selling-trading. Quick question, what is/are the basic differences between the 2?
Thanks in advance,
Mark
The difference is who started them. What they are like, LION cannot say. LION does not go near groups..
ROAR
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I believe that there are at least 3 such groups: HOinterchange appears to be the largest with 5000+ members; HOswap which has 790+ members; and HOswap2 which has 300+ members. If you go to the group home page for each group, there is a description of what they hope to accomplish as well as their "rules".
I am a member of all three groups, but have not ever listed anything there for sale. However, I did sell a couple items to some individuals who had want to buy listings, and I also made a purchase of some kits from another individual.
Everything is done on the honor system in that you have to believe in the goodness of your fellow man....there is no protection like you theoretically get with Paypal/E-bay should a transaction go bad. On the other hand I suppose that word would get spread pretty quickly if someone abused the system.
I believe that they are pretty firm on what they will or will not allow to be listed. For example, I think one of the groups allows books to be listed, while another allows them to be listed only at certain times. I believe that one of the groups asks that the seller post a picture of the for sale item, while the other two groups seem to have this optional. Other than things of this nature I find them very similar.
It doesn't cost anything to join any of the groups, and I find it interesting to see what people are asking for their items and how fast some items seem to sell.
maxman I believe that there are at least 3 such groups: HOinterchange appears to be the largest with 5000+ members; HOswap which has 790+ members; and HOswap2 which has 300+ members. If you go to the group home page for each group, there is a description of what they hope to accomplish as well as their "rules". I am a member of all three groups, but have not ever listed anything there for sale. However, I did sell a couple items to some individuals who had want to buy listings, and I also made a purchase of some kits from another individual. Everything is done on the honor system in that you have to believe in the goodness of your fellow man....there is no protection like you theoretically get with Paypal/E-bay should a transaction go bad. On the other hand I suppose that word would get spread pretty quickly if someone abused the system. It doesn't cost anything to join any of the groups, and I find it interesting to see what people are asking for their items and how fast some items seem to sell.
BroadwayLion The difference is who started them. What they are like, LION cannot say. LION does not go near groups.. ROAR
LION no like buffet? No need to know correct fork to use.
Wayne
I have bought and sold on both of those groups too many times to think about. All successful, pleasant transactions. As long as you adhere to the owner's rules (they run and maintain the group, so like it or hate it they call the shots), everyone seems to get along. It's a great place to get a great deal now and then, find something that is difficult to acquire, and sell some items that either you don't use, were impulse buys, or no longer fit your needs.
Oh yeah, and no commissions. You can still get Paypal protections if the buyer and seller agree to use it btw. Most seem to go by the honor system and ship when payment is received. Has always worked for me.
LION traded some subway cars with someone on the SubChat forum. He sent me some brown cars and I sent him some red cars.
Mark,
I'll give you my experience with those 2 groups. The moderator of the HO Interchange has a somewhat caustic personality almost to the point of having a dictator complex, that's just my opinion your results may vary. There seems to be an encyclopidea of rules for posting items for sale there, I felt I should be given college credit when my selling posts went unchallenged or not "sent back for correction". They do have a lot of members so finding hard to find items can be a good experience. I am still a member but I no longer sell there.
The HO swap group is basically all the refugies from the HO interchange group who got fed up with the moderator. The moderator of the HO swap group is what you would expect a moderator to be. Although I've purchased items from both groups, I now prefer to only sell on HO swap for the aforementioned reason. You may have a pleasant experience selling on the HO interchange group, (and I hope you do).
Just my 2 cents
Todd