What is the best way to purchase a modular bumper from someone on this forum without being ripped off?

As a retailer, I can tell you don’t use PayPal. PP’s claim/fraud process sucks. Credit card is your best option. Cash or similar only meet in person. Venmo, etc., only good in person once you have the item. If someone is willing to ship a bumper to you, but can’t take a credit card, then walk away. Bumpers are a PIA to ship.

When I purchased mine I was lucky enough to meet in person. That is always the best option, however assuming you are shipping that means using a service like others have mentioned like paypal.

The first thing I always do is check the sellers profile, are they well known or new, what is their post/thread history. Dig into their activity on the site, this does not always prevent the scams but it helps you get a gut feel

Buying and selling only works on these forums based on reputation and trust, so you should only buy from someone who is:

1) a member of this forum for some time (minimum months) before selling anything to anyone

2) is active on the forum. Posts, replies, engages. There should be a history you can scroll back thru to verify that they are really engaged in this community before they show up selling something



keep the adage in mind that “if it’s too good to be true, it’s too good to be true”

Anyone who reaches out, out of the blue, with exactly the thing you want, is new here or has zero history here is a scam. On my other forum (ssforums.com) the mods are ruthless, watching new sign-ups like hawks, forcing WTB and WTS into the right forums so everyone can see and comment. An unexpected DM is a redflag. A willingness to ship a bumper is a giant redflag because absent a freight deal or a access to an incredible corporate Fedex account that they’ll misuse, shipping something of that weight by a retail customer (ie you and me) is prohibitively expensive.

I tried to buy tube doors off of Facebook marketplace from a guy in texas. A legit seller, lots of take off parts, long enough history. I priced all my shipping options, including using my company’s fedex and we’re still talking many hundreds of dollars in shipping.

Unfortunately i think you buy your bumper in person or from a vendor, not from a rando user. Too many flags. Can you afford to be out all the money if it’s a scam?

Find one for sale locally, meet in person, exchange, Safest way.