seller etiquette

When money rules over the "word given" it is not civilization but jungle or a peculiar zombies hive...

The creator of our social fabric design , the Calvinist  B. Mandeville, not Adam Smith nor Marx, wiser than them all, knowing the unconscious centuries before Freud,  Mandeville, if we listen to Hayek who called him "our master to us all" , Mandevile said it in this way: " the private vices create the public virtue"...

I am not very fond of this "virtue"...

Ignorants applauded and called this "economy"  and "civilisation"...

I understand the OP reaction...When i gave my word i mean it...

Road:

What didn't you understand after the definitions of uh huh I posted?

DeKay

@mitch2 

You pay first, and then trust that the seller will ship your purchase to you

Interesting angle. So I would send nearly a $1000 to a stranger WITH ZERO guarantees because I must TRUST the seller. 

But the seller has all the reasons in the world to NOT trust me that I will come at the agreed time and date with cash in hand. Seems like a very biased, one-sided view.

This is not a hard question.

He agreed to your terms.

He broke his agreement.

He is in the wrong.

Not sure what makes it uncertain to you, because it's clear as day to me.

@parkergetdean - absolutely yes, it happens all the time on Audiogon and USAM.  You should by all means do whatever due diligence makes you comfortable like checking feedback, assessing your communications with the seller, speaking on the phone is helpful (can’t do this under A’gon rules), looking at the pictures in the advertisement, and whatever else you need and, then when you are comfortable, send your payment.  Over the years, I have paid for, and been paid for, hundreds of audio items before the items were shipped.  That is mostly how it works.