I've participated in a couple BIFs, but not actual one-on, one trading. I would be looking to enter into trading in a local for local fashion.....my question is, how would I know what anything is worth. I wouldn't want to insult someone by trying to initiate a trade that was overly to my benefit, but I'm not wanting to get taken advantage of.by someone who realizes I have no clue what I am doing. (Though it seems like the vast majority are decent folks). How do people figure out what is worth what? I appreciate your input!
If you're happy with what you're receiving and so is the other party then no one is getting ripped off.
Find someone who is game in an area with different distribution than you. In a locals for locals trade you really only focus on keeping the $ value in the same ballpark. Let that person know what breweries/styles you're interested in and if they're an experienced trader they'll be able to walk you through and put together a great box for you. They'll probably have some specific ideas of what they'd like, but you can suggest things (like if you have access to Pipeworks for example). Locals for locals are fun trades.
Its worth what you paid for it. Although willingness to trade bottles that someone stood in line for may vary from person to person. You could put out a ISO: Local FT: Local post. Not everyone is going for whales, sometimes its just about trying new beers. Although your wallet will appreciate you just deleting your BA account right now.
I'm new to the trade world and have had good luck posting locals for locals. Got at least 10 responses within 2 days. Ended up gettin 3 done on this site with that post. Would have done more until I realized how expensive it is, but very enjoyable to try a bunch of out-of-market stuff. I went dollar for dollar on mine (plus some extras) and had no issue with that. If I asked for something stupid hard to find without knowing it I was informed by the other person and we moved on to something else.
It is generally better to start with locals and shelf beers and find someone who doesn't get them in their area. That way you get familiar and comfortable with the process. If you have beers that are hard to get, watch the posts here in the trade help forum and watch the posts in the ISO:FT forum. Most trade posts these days are people trying to maximize value and "trade up" treating beer like a commodity. Most ISO posts do not get done, but you can feel free to BM people and ask how their ISO went. Taje the time to learn what your beer is really worth.
Update your wants, read Alewatcher's blog, trade locals, be generous and remember it should be fun not a business transaction.
Pretty much this. Also, start small and try to stick to just a couple of trades to start. Like so many have said, it gets expensive quickly and can be rather time consuming. When it comes to the .rars, you may need to expend some time and energy tracking down local limited releases. But really, for me at least, it's a question as to whether or not I'm willing to trade a known quality for something you may not even enjoy. You could do worse than tracking down some local BA's that host bottleshares and attending. After you've pinpointed some beers you really feel compelled tl acquire, throw up a "what's it going to take" thread to see if it's attainable based on what you have access to. Tl;dr, crowd source this awesome community.
Thanks for the input everyone. I already received an offer for a trade, so this worked out nice. I've done a couple BIFs, just signed up for another, and now apparently am venturing into iso:ft trades. I agree with everyone who pointed out how sad this makes my wallet, but it's too late now!
Great way to try beers not distributed to your area. Bad way to kill your wallet. Enjoy and welcome to the club
