I think I'm done trading

I've heard a lot of that lately. I'll respond to an ISO with exactly what the guy asked for, and he'll say, "What else are you willing to offer?" I'll say, "Just what you asked for." Then they say, "I'll pass."

I've noticed this as well, and from some prestigious members.

 

I have one more big trade coming up, then I think I will be hanging my hat. Who knows, tickers gotta tick....

 

My goal over the last 8 months has been to build up a cellar that I have to jump into when I get home. There are still a few choice bottles that I'd like to snag, but I'm mostly in this to meet new people when I travel and develop a handful of traders with whom I regularly want to make trades. As of now, I feel like I have 2 or 3 that are in that category, along with a few local people that I know to do tastings with once I move back to the states. (I am still taking applications for westcoasters!) I like tossing in extras, fun bottles, or glassware to people, but it seems like the trading market is going in a different direction. People asking for silly bottles to trade away a Beatification, a bottle of Cantillon losing value because "you can buy it on a website but just have to split the shipping with 17,000 people in your area to make it worth it," or people wanting highly regarded beers because they got lucky with a scratchoff ticket on DLD and their bro said this whale is awesome. Soon, someone will be tazing someone at a beer release and the bros will win.

 

I've cut way down and am probably in the neighborhood of 6 trades a year now instead of 6 a month. It has gotten way too expensive and what people expect now a days for their beer has turned it into an auction. I think I could save myself time, money, and hassle by just buying something I really want on an auction site.

With the exception of a few, extras seems to be a way for folks to get crappy beer out of their fridge lately.

I'll keep doing a few trades a year to keep some verticals going and get bcbs but other than that Denver has just as good if not better beer than I can trade for.

 

people made fun of me when i announced this back in 2010. i guess it pays to be a big, bootin' drunkard. makes ya popular or something.

but really: trading. makes. no. financial. sense. glad to see others coming around.

srsly tho, hope you'll still hang out and post.

 

He lives!

 

i'm only hanging out here for 40 days before ascending to heaven and being seated at the right hand of jean van roy.

 

interesting post indeed. over the past 3+ years I have had similar trading numbers and have recently said I think the insanity needs to stop. I am limiting to an occasional BIF or LIF and a few regular trading pals across the states. For me it is not the money (although the wife will be happy not to see all the FedEx charges) but more of a change in attitude. The forums have certainly changed and the what's in it for me attitude certainly doesn't help. But as with everything else in life, you need to change and adapt or get out of the way. I am choosing to get out of the way, and that's ok. Regardless, it has all been a fun ride.

 

I love this one. It's like, well, yes, you could go buy them online by dropping $300, but then why did you put up an ISO? And then these same people want you to give them up for half their cost because you were able to buy so many when they only landed 3 bottles of their 50,000 bottle count beer. Makes my head spin...

 

I see a battle to the death in our future!

 

Couple things I feel like adding:

1. I trade exclusively for the beer I want. I have zero interest in whatever ho hum ale whichever brewery put out. I go by the ratings on this website because I don't have a better metric, and I am ok with expanding if the trade includes beers that are rated solid. So I don't necessarily subscribe to, "I'd try any beer" when it comes to trading.
2. Related to above, if it's a small trade, I always ask if the other guy wants to do extras and have zero problem if he doesn't. In fact I stress on no extras sometimes.

This wasn't always the case but now I have trusted trading partners and local BAs that I can count on. Thanks guys!

PS: I hate hating on new traders.

 

I've just lost interest. If I see a good deal for a Darkness(!) I'm in. Or a Victor Frankenstein.

With the way traders are factoring in EVERY SINGLE DOLLAR, it's become a headache.

Besides, I've had everything I've really wanted, I'll let the newbies fight over a King Henry.

 

And while this thread is being discussed, another bad trader post is being discussed....
And people wonder why people are quitting. This is the reason thats keeping me from biting the bullet on ISOs that I have. I quit ebay/forum buying atv parts for this exact reason.

 

I can count on one hand the number of trades I've done in the past 6 years. Because each time I spend 25 minutes packing up a box, then looking at the shipping costs, I say to myself "I am never doing this again".

 

To clarify: I don't like the hatred directed towards new traders. I consider myself new depending upon the level of beers we're talking.

Also, there is no shortage of shitty self proclaimed veterans on here. Get off your high horse and do it like a business transaction: fair, responsible and on time.

 

There are a lot of things that make no financial sense...that fact doesn't mean its an effective deterrent. People do lots of idiotic things that make no financial sense week in and week out. Its more about whether you get any satisfaction that makes it worth it for you than whether it makes sense or not financially.

I've done stupid expensive crap that I've told myself never again and there's been others that when I think about the financial side I just facepalm but when I think about what I got out of it I find myself thinking hell yea I would do it again. I don't trade for random shit anymore but there's some beers that if I can't get at an online store then I'll go the trading partner route.

Quitting trading altogether is much easier said than done unless you live in Cali, Portland or any of the other awesome beer cities. If I could get Hunahpu's on shelves and FB Maple Bacon and berliners as well as Wakefield's berliners then I could quit trading in a heartbeat. Unfortunately, all these great beers have severe supply/demand issues and I don't see any other breweries around here producing top notch IPAs/stouts/sours in quantities where they will grace our shelves for some months so I'm stuck with trying to get them from elsewhere.

 

You are one of the people I plan to keep trading with Al.