• This Forum is for adults 18 years of age or over. By continuing to use this Forum you are confirming that you are 18 or older. No content shall be viewed by any person under 18 in California.

Due Dilligence Beats Scope Scammer

On another forum I recently contacted a seller for a NF shv scope. I think this one runs around $11-1200. They were asking $900, which is a deal. Not exactly the scope I wanted so I went fishing for a better deal. Here's where I started wondering. The following is our conversation.

Me- "Willing to ship? Also, did you ever have it mounted on anything?"

Seller-"Hello, Yes i can have it shipped to your door. Zelle, CashApp, PayPal friends and family accepted for payment.
The package will be properly wrapped in a larger box with Styrofoam padding and shipped. Where are you located ?
God Bless."

S- "i bought the scope brand new with intention of hunting varmints and other small games but later had a shoulder injury that prevented from from using my hunting rifle and therefore the scope. I had it professionally mounted on Remington 700 Mountain Rifle in 270win using a Spuhr SP-3001 mount.
The scope has been sitting in the safe unused for a few year now so i decided to sell it. Do keep me posted Sir,
God Bless."

Same day a few hours later
S-" Did you get my previous messages."

Me- " Yes, thanks. I'm trying to decide if the weight of the scope will work with my lightweight build, I see they are 30 oz."

S-" The SHV are one of the lightest NF scope and long range scopes in the market. They are lighter than the Atacr series and the NXS. I had no issues carrying it. My brother only has one and its his go to hunting rifle and he sometimes use them for competition. This scope is well endowed with all features for best clarity and performance. It will surely compliment any lightweight rifle plus i have seen them a lot with AR's at the range."

S- "Okay, Shipping to MN will not be a problem. FedEx 2 days delivery with tracking information would do. The scope comes with all extras from factory.
I'll need your full mailing address to get it out and also let me know which payment options works best for you. Zelle, CashApp, PayPal friends and family accepted for payment.
God Bless."
Me- "Let me think a little longer. Ide buy it for a little less for sure, but I've been looking at leupold vx5hd's too."

S- "What the exact model of Leupold vx5hd's that you are looking at ?
And how much are you offering for the NF ?"

Like he might have one sitting around!
Granted ad said obo too! So....

Me- "$800 would have to be it for me. I understand if that won't work."

The next day....

S- "Okay, I think i can work with that."

Me- " ok"

S- "Let me know where you want it shipped to and also what payment option works for you.
CashApp, Zelle and PayPal F&F works for me."

This is where I want to try and mitigate any potential scams so I ask for a photo.

Me- "Could I get you to send me a photo of the scope with my name written on a piece of paper next to it? A little piece of mind. I can then send a descrete friend and family payment. Can email me or text me photos."

S- "Okay, I will try and take some pictures and text them to you then we will take it from there."

Me- "sounds good. thanks"

Person responds with this photo through the site.
Screenshot_20210421-234735_Chrome.jpg
S- "Need your mailing address where you want the package shipped to and also let me know if i should provide my PayPal Email for payment."

Me- "Don't mean to be a hassle, but that photo looks weird. Do you have a zip tie you could loosely zip around the scope and take a photo of it with the box and the other stuff in the box?"

S- "mmhh"
S- "Okay, I'll get it and send to your Email. If you want anything else please say it now.
Maybe a piece of fruit next to the scope ?"

Kind of a snarky comment imo.

Me- "nope"

S- "ok will do"

Then radio silence.

After he agreed to the $800 my scam meter was rising. So I went into his profile I also checked his activity on this form. While there were several reply to op's threads, none started by him. His profile was created 2018. No posts until about a month ago. The responses were for the most part decent with replys that were fairly within the range of each topic, some with somewhat knowledgeable about guns in general, but no real specifics. Also some gun related comments in our pm's. A couple had conflicting info about being 64 years old in one post and having a 16 year old kid in another. NOT unheard of, but some posts sounded like a young dad with his kid out hunting and having a good time, then others talking about not hunting because of a bad shoulder and aging.

After he sent me the first photo, I really was thinking scam, and the image looked photoshopped to me. I asked for the second photo, a zip tie around the scope with the box and other items in there. I should have asked for the same background too but I figured this would be harder to photoshop. Must have done the trick. I guess it was too much work. Didn't hear anything for about 4-5 days so I wrote it off as a scam.

Got a message today from one of their site admins asking to not send money to this guy if I haven't yet. I informed them of everything above and unfortunately a couple other folks fell for the scam and got taken.

Posting this info hoping it will help others from getting taken. I was lucky, but a little patients, due dillagence, and research made me think twice about this and ultimately saved me from loosing $800. Anyone selling an expensive item should be more than willing to send specific photos. The more specific the better within reason. Check their history on a forum. I won't buy from people that have not been actively participating in a site for under a year without consistent or knowledgeable posts. All these things together are usually pretty good at weeding out scammers. Face to face when possibly helps too.

Added 4-22-21. I forget to mention that this seller was from Nigeria. Also I could not find any trader feedback on this person. I think that site has feedback, but I'm not on there enough to know without looking through a million profiles.
 
Last edited:
I am glad you avoided getting scammed. And you followed some of the wise practices that we recommend, such as demanding custom photos.

However, I do think you invested more time than necessary.

1. First, I generally recommend buying scopes new, from a reputable retailer. It’s not worth the risk and potential warranty issues just to save a couple hundred, unless you are buying from someone you know and trust after actually looking through the optic.

2. Always get the seller’s full name and street address, along with email. Run this through Spokeo.com for a fast background search, and (if this is an expensive item) consider doing a full $20 background search on the seller. A full search will get into tax/criminal history.

3. Never use Zelle or Venmo. You will have no protection.

4. Never, ever do a sale with a vendor who insists on friends and family PayPal. With F&F you have ZERO Protection. The scammer can take the money and run.

5. You should have immediately asked for multiple custom photos that required different scope angles and something actually touching the scope (such as the ziptie you did request).

6. If the guy had no selling history on the other Forum, it’s probably unwise to have even started.
 
Last edited:
What did you see on the photo that indicated it was photoshopped?

Forum Boss: The edges of the name sheet are not right, the perspective is wrong (big give-away), the colors are not right. Oh and it's just superimposed on the original photo!! HUGE RED FLAG.

When asking for a custom photo, make sure you ask for something that TOUCHES the scope and ask for a different angle. For example -- tie a colored sock around the scope and put it on your window sill.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Glad to see you smoked him out. They're certainly getting better at it, but his verbiage would of scared me off. Sadly though... I probably would have bought into that pic.
I too seemed to think the scope pic with his name on paper was sufficient for an honest sale. I've seen scopes sell with those exact same pics, nothing more. I get the uneasiness of the scenario but we still don't know if this guy was actually scamming anyone. Maybe he just got tired of dealing with the purchaser. No disrespect as I understand the need for complete transparency and security. Sure would be nice to actually know if he was scamming and/or gets caught at it where it's publicly determined on that or any other forum.
 
I too seemed to think the scope pic with his name on paper was sufficient for an honest sale. I've seen scopes sell with those exact same pics, nothing more. I get the uneasiness of the scenario but we still don't know if this guy was actually scamming anyone. Maybe he just got tired of dealing with the purchaser. No disrespect as I understand the need for complete transparency and security. Sure would be nice to actually know if he was scamming and/or gets caught at it where it's publicly determined on that or any other forum.
Says in the first post he got a couple victims
 
On another forum I recently contacted a seller for a NF shv scope. I think this one runs around $11-1200. They were asking $900, which is a deal. Not exactly the scope I wanted so I went fishing for a better deal. Here's where I started wondering. The following is our conversation.

Me- "Willing to ship? Also, did you ever have it mounted on anything?"

Seller-"Hello, Yes i can have it shipped to your door. Zelle, CashApp, PayPal friends and family accepted for payment.
The package will be properly wrapped in a larger box with Styrofoam padding and shipped. Where are you located ?
God Bless."

S- "i bought the scope brand new with intention of hunting varmints and other small games but later had a shoulder injury that prevented from from using my hunting rifle and therefore the scope. I had it professionally mounted on Remington 700 Mountain Rifle in 270win using a Spuhr SP-3001 mount.
The scope has been sitting in the safe unused for a few year now so i decided to sell it. Do keep me posted Sir,
God Bless."

Same day a few hours later
S-" Did you get my previous messages."

Me- " Yes, thanks. I'm trying to decide if the weight of the scope will work with my lightweight build, I see they are 30 oz."

S-" The SHV are one of the lightest NF scope and long range scopes in the market. They are lighter than the Atacr series and the NXS. I had no issues carrying it. My brother only has one and its his go to hunting rifle and he sometimes use them for competition. This scope is well endowed with all features for best clarity and performance. It will surely compliment any lightweight rifle plus i have seen them a lot with AR's at the range."

S- "Okay, Shipping to MN will not be a problem. FedEx 2 days delivery with tracking information would do. The scope comes with all extras from factory.
I'll need your full mailing address to get it out and also let me know which payment options works best for you. Zelle, CashApp, PayPal friends and family accepted for payment.
God Bless."
Me- "Let me think a little longer. Ide buy it for a little less for sure, but I've been looking at leupold vx5hd's too."

S- "What the exact model of Leupold vx5hd's that you are looking at ?
And how much are you offering for the NF ?"

Like he might have one sitting around!
Granted ad said obo too! So....

Me- "$800 would have to be it for me. I understand if that won't work."

The next day....

S- "Okay, I think i can work with that."

Me- " ok"

S- "Let me know where you want it shipped to and also what payment option works for you.
CashApp, Zelle and PayPal F&F works for me."

This is where I want to try and mitigate any potential scams so I ask for a photo.

Me- "Could I get you to send me a photo of the scope with my name written on a piece of paper next to it? A little piece of mind. I can then send a descrete friend and family payment. Can email me or text me photos."

S- "Okay, I will try and take some pictures and text them to you then we will take it from there."

Me- "sounds good. thanks"

Person responds with this photo through the site.
View attachment 1250153
S- "Need your mailing address where you want the package shipped to and also let me know if i should provide my PayPal Email for payment."

Me- "Don't mean to be a hassle, but that photo looks weird. Do you have a zip tie you could loosely zip around the scope and take a photo of it with the box and the other stuff in the box?"

S- "mmhh"
S- "Okay, I'll get it and send to your Email. If you want anything else please say it now.
Maybe a piece of fruit next to the scope ?"

Kind of a snarky comment imo.

Me- "nope"

S- "ok will do"

Then radio silence.

After he agreed to the $800 my scam meter was rising. So I went into his profile I also checked his activity on this form. While there were several reply to op's threads, none started by him. His profile was created 2018. No posts until about a month ago. The responses were for the most part decent with replys that were fairly within the range of each topic, some with somewhat knowledgeable about guns in general, but no real specifics. Also some gun related comments in our pm's. A couple had conflicting info about being 64 years old in one post and having a 16 year old kid in another. NOT unheard of, but some posts sounded like a young dad with his kid out hunting and having a good time, then others talking about not hunting because of a bad shoulder and aging.

After he sent me the first photo, I really was thinking scam, and the image looked photoshopped to me. I asked for the second photo, a zip tie around the scope with the box and other items in there. I should have asked for the same background too but I figured this would be harder to photoshop. Must have done the trick. I guess it was too much work. Didn't hear anything for about 4-5 days so I wrote it off as a scam.

Got a message today from one of their site admins asking to not send money to this guy if I haven't yet. I informed them of everything above and unfortunately a couple other folks fell for the scam and got taken.

Posting this info hoping it will help others from getting taken. I was lucky, but a little patients, due dillagence, and research made me think twice about this and ultimately saved me from loosing $800. Anyone selling an expensive item should be more than willing to send specific photos. The more specific the better within reason. Check their history on a forum. I won't buy from people that have not been actively participating in a site for under a year without consistent or knowledgeable posts. All these things together are usually pretty good at weeding out scammers. Face to face when possibly helps too.
Good job researching. I may have lost 800.00 based on the picture and name card. Luckily I don't need a scope. Wouldn't have used F&F. Only G&S option. Learned the hard way once.
 
Last edited:
I think the smoke signal was in the overselling from the seller.
All of my experience buying and selling on forums like Accurate Shooter is providing the very basics - like 4-12 power, 50MM objective along with the brand and model number. If there were anything unusual, like scratches or even mounting marks, they are mentioned and a pic of the area.
I think I would begin to wonder what's going on at the 'shipped to your door'. Hunh? Where else would you ship it.
But, his response to the concern about weight was so over the top.
 
I have some target bullets to sell before I move later this summer but plan to wait a full 30 days so folks can "learn me". Any specific advice to build confidence and lessen anyone's concerns? I would sell COD but I also have concerns about selling to an honest buyer.

68W40
 
Seriously, the Cash app, paypal, zelle, stuff is a no go for me on any deal unless I personally know you or you have a good reputation on this site. Anything else, is all Personal Check, USPS money order, or Cashiers check and even then Im hinky. Modern scammers like electronic money b/c they dont have to show their face. Old fashioned payments make them have to do that and usually have a bank account at the bank.
 
Yeah, guy was from Nigeria and was in fact a scammer. I would not have posted it here otherwise. It is interesting to hear other peoples takes on what red flags may appear.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dub
I am not sure I can pick out the photoshop, but here are the red flags for me:

1. It reads like someone has read descriptions but not actually hunted
2. Hunt varmints with a .270 Mtn rifle
3. "small games" vs small game
4. Shoulder injury preventing varmint hunting
5. Spuhr SP-3001 mount on a mountain rifle
6. Had the scope "professionally" mounted
7. The SHV "are" vs "is"
8. He sometimes "use them" vs "uses them"
9. "My brother only has one"
10. The scope is "well endowed"
 
I am not sure I can pick out the photoshop, but here are the red flags for me:

1. It reads like someone has read descriptions but not actually hunted
2. Hunt varmints with a .270 Mtn rifle
3. "small games" vs small game
4. Shoulder injury preventing varmint hunting
5. Spuhr SP-3001 mount on a mountain rifle
6. Had the scope "professionally" mounted
7. The SHV "are" vs "is"
8. He sometimes "use them" vs "uses them"
9. "My brother only has one"
10. The scope is "well endowed"
Totally agree. Just too much wrong with the whole thing.
 

Upgrades & Donations

This Forum's expenses are primarily paid by member contributions. You can upgrade your Forum membership in seconds. Gold and Silver members get unlimited FREE classifieds for one year. Gold members can upload custom avatars.


Click Upgrade Membership Button ABOVE to get Gold or Silver Status.

You can also donate any amount, large or small, with the button below. Include your Forum Name in the PayPal Notes field.


To DONATE by CHECK, or make a recurring donation, CLICK HERE to learn how.

Forum statistics

Threads
166,265
Messages
2,214,886
Members
79,496
Latest member
Bie
Back
Top