Bitcoin Forum

     Hey guys long time lurker and first time poster so I'd just like to start off by saying thanks for all the great walkthroughs and threads posted here. I was able to get my first skrypt miners up and running in a few days because of you. So down to business:

     I recently came across a pretty good deal on Craigslist for an Antminer S7, which really seems to be the only way to go right now as far as actually making a profit of some sort in the future. The miner ships from Denver, CO and comes with the Bitmain PSU. Now my question is how do I go about paying/receiving this item without getting ripped off. I somewhat trust the seller (He's given me some proof of who he is), but I don't like the fact that we wont be able to meet face to face which is what I usually do if I ever buy anything from Craigslist. To reassure me he offered to be paid half upfront and half COD through UPS.

     I haven't tried offering an escrow service by someone here yet because i'm not sure he would be up for it and I'm seriously considering just doing the half now half on delivery option because he most likely wont have the 2 extra units after Wednesday 20th . At least that way i'm not out the full $$$ if this guy does scam me. Any opinions or method's i'm not thinking of that would somewhat protect me? Thanks for all the help.

congrats, on your 1st thread / post and stopped being a lurker  :D

But as you know most of the miners are usually bought on this forum using a escrow with trusted rep + symbol in dark green.

So shying away from this forum is at your own risk. I would take the same concept, go google research for escrow services which they are out there in your own state and usually serves more then one location.

Just remember to do your homework, which avoids all your problem.

Yeah I've offered up possibly using an escrow service here (OGNAsty I think is who I see a lot?) so maybe he will go for that. And beyond that I've offered paypal as an option. Not sure how much protection would be afforded to me thru Paypal but its better than just sending him the BTC or $$$ directly.

Avoid paying 1/2 upfront though craigslist it sounds highly scamy.  Is he asking for you to pay him in BTC?   Or did he take paypal?

Paypal is reversible if he never sends it.   Bitcoin is not reversible, so if he wants BTC I would avoid unless good escrow of your choice, not his.  Also what is price?  I'm wondering if it's too good to be true and he tries from everyone 1/2 up front as a scam.

Price he's offering is $1400 USD which includes the Bitmain PSU and shipping or 3.0 BTC. I've offered escrow services and paypal and he refuses to do either, so looks like I will most likely have to skip this deal. I don't want to be burned on my first major miner purchase. $1400 may be a small amont to some but with me just entering the scene I dont want to get hosed. I'd rather just wait for a group buy here, but as difficulty is to increase soon the quicker I can get a hold of one the better. Speaking of which anybody know of any coming up? I'd rather not do a hosted group buy as the main goal is to tinker and learn. As always thanks again guys.

Unless you can do it face to face, then don't do it.

You could know the Avalon 6 group buy, Bitmain does not seem to give much rebate on group buy, however there is a big difference for the Avalon 6 price. Specially if youre in the US.

I am doing escrow. For the Avalon6 group buy.

Hopefully the gear would get to you in about six days. If you are USA which you said you were.

Why don't you buy directly from Bitmain. B9 is less than $1100, they may ship earlier than the 20th. My B8 was shipped 2 weeks earlier. Bitmain PSU only works with 240 V, so make sure you have a 240v outlet at home.

If op has the btc a direct purchase from bitmaintech is pretty safe.

But thats more expensive than an Avalon6. Also no import fee with the A6 as it is domestically located. You may also not receive the S7 it for 2-3 weeks and the Avalon6 is a better quality unit.

So its not that much of a clear distinction between which is the best one to grab.

I am guessing OP is based in US, so no import or other fees to pay. You get 1.13 TH more for the same price with Bitmain, and it gets here within 2-3 days after shipment.

What? The B8 is the only thing that could get to the US within a week from Bitmain and the price is much higher than the Avalon 6 AND there are other fees by dealing with Bitmain.

He's in US. No import fee. Just shipping costs.

My last B8 was shipped within 24 hours of payment and I got it on the 3rd day. They are selling from stock now, didn't someone already received a B9.

Edit: no fees if you are in the US, UPS put a wrong HST code on my last shipment but a quick 3 min call resolved the issue.

You keep saying this in other threads as well. THERE ARE NO IMPORT FEES FOR U.S. CUSTOMERS. We don't pay VAT, import taxes or fees. You pay the price + shipping which is usually around 35$. I have bought multiple S7s and can prove no other fees besides price plus shipping.

A few have already received batch 9

The possibility of maybe getting a B9 early does not change the fact that it is a 200$ difference with B8. If you want to gamble with B9, go ahead.

I think we would all agree buying direct is better option then buying that Craigslist he mentioned.  And that is before you take in fact it sounds he wants BTC 1/2 in advance for Craigslist ad.... which sounds scamy to me still.

Even at the higher B8 price I would still do that over his offer he had.  It is true he could get lucky or not lucky on B9 shipment date no way to say for sure.  So it is a gamble.

Its not much Gambling with craiglist however, its a garanteed "Throwing BTC down the drain." Regardless, the buy now price of S7 is still better than best case scenario with Craiglist so there is not much point in considering the craiglist offer. The PSU from Bitmain is arguably cheap. I would go with an alternative, however. Especially since it need 240v and there are better options here.

For 120v i'd go with Avalon6 no contest, since ATX PSU at that capacity range are still affordable.

I will have to look at the numbers again and see what my buyback period would be with the Avalon 6 group buy price, but would be interested. I'll go check that thread out and we may be in touch, Thanks.

I have been really torn between the A6's and the S7's, but taking a 100th look at it I think being in the US it may just be a better option to go with the Avalon 6 in my case.

I won't be pursuing this buy from the seller on craigslist to those wondering.

I would not consider 240 a lesser option or PSU's that run on it.  It is actually a really good option just not everyone is set up for it.   But for those who can I would go 220/240 go for it.  I really like it in my hobby mining area.  

S7 could go on 120 to, its just for a ATX psu with 10 PCIe is so expensive.  There are not many and they are a lot higher then a 240 server psu that is as good if not better on some.

I meant to say that the Bitmain's PSU is 220V+ only AND (the Bitmain PSU) is a lesser option when you have access to 220V+. I'd probably go with some of those packages with J4bs pci-e breakout board and get some ultra kaze or some such to cool the PSU's relatively quietly. Or EVGA psu's that do 220-240V.

I ran my S7 with two PSU for a bit, it worked just fine, it would definitively reduce costs vs a single 1500~1600 or whatever, but its still expensive unless you already have them on hand.