How it works
Hobby Swap is a marketplace for plastic and resin model builders and enthusiasts.
The site is meant to be a simple, clean and elegant way for collectors and builders to sell their kits to other collectors and builders.
There are no fees for buying on Hobby Swap. Sellers pay a 10% commission on kits that get purchased. This covers our overhead to run and manage the site. All listings are 100% free and you don't pay anything for listings that don't sell.
To get started:
1. Take a picture of your kit. If the kit has been opened, take some photos of the sprues.
2. Create a listing. Make sure to get it in the right category so people can easily find what they are looking for.
3. Pick your price and shipping cost.
When your kit sells:
1. You'll get a notification that someone wants to buy it. Make sure you still have the kit!
2. Authorize the sale. The buyer will now pay for the kit.
3. Ship the kit. When the buyer receives it, they will mark the transaction as complete.
FAQs
1. How would I decide the shipping cost since it varies?
If you want to be exact, you can leave it blank and add a note to your item description that lets buyers know that you'll figure shipping based on their address. To that end, this link from USPS can help you estimate Retail Postage Price Calculator (usps.com). The seller can always reject an offer if they find out the kit is going to Antarctica and the buyer isn't willing to pay more in shipping.
This system works best when a buyer contacts the seller BEFORE selecting "Buy". That way, the seller can update the shipping cost. Once the buyer selects "Buy" for any listing, the seller must reject that offer in order to change the price.
Disputes are settled between buyer and seller. Our rating system allows buyers and sellers to see the history of their counterpart and to read comments left by others. As time goes on the rating system will be increasingly useful. Failing all that, you can dispute a charge through PayPal if you feel you've been ripped off. If a buyer or seller continues to have issues with interactions, we will remove them. The key takeaway here is that the rating system only works if users are diligent in using it.
3. Which party is responsible for return shipping cost?That will be up to the buyer and seller to determine. You can contact the seller before a purchase to ask. As a seller, you can put that information in the item listing.
Our hope is that Hobby Swap acts as a platform for buyers and sellers to move kits. The simple format and rules help keep overhead to a minimum which keeps us from charging sellers more than we absolutely must. As a result, most of the responsibility of a sale stays between buyer and seller. There will be outlying cases, but so far, we've managed to work out every transaction.
4. What does it cost to create a listing? How many listings can I make?
It is 100% free to make listings. You can make as many listings as you want. You aren't charged for making or removing listings. A 10% fee will only be taken out after a kit is sold.
Use the "Contact Us" link if you have any questions or issues!
Thanks for checking us out!