I'd advise you not to put your faith in packing peanuts!
They're lousey when used on their own. I suggest that anything of value be double boxed. Peanuts are okay for the outside box, but if you don't have the original packing material your best bet is wrapping it a couple layers of heavy bubble wrap, then boxing it in a box that fits it closely, then dropping that into a larger box filled with foam peanuts or more bubble wrap.
I once bought some large, fairly spendy speakers from a guy with great feedback. The arrived in tattered boxes, with no protection other than plastic bags and packing peanuts!
Miraculously they were fine, but peanuts were leaking out of tears in the box.
When in doubt you can have the shipper pack, for a fee. If you do that and your package is damaged, at least they'll usually pay the claim promptly. Shippers love to pass the buck and blame your "inadequate packing" to cover their own blunders.
Paypal is a convenient way to pay or receive funds, but I only use it with sellers/buyers I trust. I like Postal MO best. It's as good as cash and easy to verify. It's good advice to wait until the payment instrument clears before shipping, and no honest buyer will complain; fair or not, that's SOP for transactions of that type. When dealing with forum members I've been aquainted with for ages, like the gang from AudioCircle (and it's precursor, HarmonicDiscord), I sometimes ship when they
tell me they've sent payment. Obviously that's a leap of faith, but so far it's worked out. And that courtesy has been extended to me on numerous occasions, too.
Here there's no feedback forum, so I consider it a bit riskier (no offense to any members!). I'd be a bit more comfortable dealing with people that have been here a long time. Of course, that doesn't guarentee they're honest but you usually get a sense of their character. Plus, I figure that longstanding members won't want to jeapardize their standing on a favorite forum by screwing me over. Audiogon & eBay (shudder!) are good avenues to sell thru. Agon has a bit better clientele, IMO. The average Agon'er is generally more knowledgeable than the average eBayer, and as a rule better stuff is sold there. Of course, I've had great luck with both (knock on wood). And you can get gouged on both. In all instances, read the feedback carefully. Feedback systems aren't infallible, but past behavior is the best predictor we have of future actions. While I don't hold a single negative too much against someone, beware of those with many negative feedbacks. And beware of PowerSellers with feedback scores under 95%- I feel that shows dishonesty or carelessness. You can't please everyone, and sometimes people are unhappy no matter what you do, so I'll consider one or bad marks on a case by case business.
My best peice of advice is to reiterate an earlier point: assume the shipper will actively try to destroy your package. Even if you must charge more for shipping don't skimp on packaging. Nothing is a bigger headache than receiving merchandise broken by UPS or FedEx, excepting perhaps having something perfectly good when you boxed it show up DOA.
Best of luck with your sale.
