Aquabid?

[Gill Blue]

having compared aquabid to the local stores, once you add shipping there isn't usually much difference in price. sometimes it's less, sometimes more, no different than comparing competitive stores. if you want something expensive you're going to pay. aquabid for me is more about finding something specific that the LFS's can't/won't get.
and just like the LFS, you take your chances. with aquabid you don't get to check them out first.
for example, I ordered a dozen blue spotted cories through aquabid and got 9 blue spotted and 3 delphax. not a problem for me since they do tend to socialize in the wild, but if I was picky or wanted them specifically for breeding I would have 3 cories I didn't want and nothing to do with them since for breeding you'd want them separate to eliminate the chance of hybrids.

 

[Jrob]

Best advice is to know the reputation of the person you are buying fish from. If you are looking for bargains on fish, join a local aquarium society. Get fish from fellow members or through auctions run by most fish clubs. Here are some of the fish societies in Michigan:

Grand Valley Aquarium Club
Greater Detroit Aquarium Society
Michigan Cichlid Association (MCA)
Michigan Guppy Breeders
Michigan Killifish Association
Motor City Aquarium Society
Southwestern Michigan Aqurarium Society

Awesome, never thought of that...thanks for doing my homework for me

 

[Jrob]

I use aquabid to see what different sellers have and usually contact the seller directly. I've purchased from snookn21 and wetspot after seeing their fish on aquabid in the past.

yeah i came across some of wetspots posts yesterday, and i have spoke with snook before on here if im not mistaken

 

[Jrob]

I've used AB. In fact, the Phoenix area MFK'ers use it quite a bit, and I think we've all had good luck overall. It's always cool when you can get someone to go in on an order with you so you can split the shipping.

That is what me and my best friend were talking about doing, because he is in the hobby with the same type of budget i have....the rationale behind this post is because the other day i seen a WSIWYG type post for some green bam bams, being sold for 50$, for 2-3 heads....plus the 26$ shipping so 76$ for 3 little heads .... where my gold bam bams from my LFS were 30$ for 5 heads....just trying to pry some info, i appreciate it from everyone..maybe we will try it later through a fish association or with a couple different friends

 

[Jrob]

having compared aquabid to the local stores, once you add shipping there isn't usually much difference in price. sometimes it's less, sometimes more, no different than comparing competitive stores. if you want something expensive you're going to pay. aquabid for me is more about finding something specific that the LFS's can't/won't get.
and just like the LFS, you take your chances. with aquabid you don't get to check them out first.
for example, I ordered a dozen blue spotted cories through aquabid and got 9 blue spotted and 3 delphax. not a problem for me since they do tend to socialize in the wild, but if I was picky or wanted them specifically for breeding I would have 3 cories I didn't want and nothing to do with them since for breeding you'd want them separate to eliminate the chance of hybrids.

Very true, i mostly went on there to find the best deals like you mentioned...but found out that it is very similar...i was going to use it to try and afford more uncommon salt fish...but found out quickly that its more or less a freshwater site...with a mix of corals.....however starting a breeding tank for plecos did sound fun for me...lol

 

[aclockworkorange]

There are definitely some reputable sellers on aquabid, actually some MFK vendors are on there. I've seen snookn and gage on there, as well as several MFK members selling off fry.


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[Steveo McNello]

I hate when I find an aquabid deal and the seller wants 95 dollars to ship a 4" fish from iowa to chicago.

 

[Jon M]

I've used aquabid a few times and never had any problem. There is no way of telling if you are going to get an "amazing deal" or not because it's just multiple different people posting whatever they have for sale. That being said each auction will be completely different as far as price, s/h fees, and terms.

Whenever I've used aquabid I make sure to check the sellers history and terms of sale before even considering dealing with them. Also worth mentioning quite a few reputable vendors that sell here in our MFK marketplace such as snookn21 use aquabid on a regular basis. As far as finding a cheapers deal online than at your lfs though, that's a pretty far fetched hope. Specially since most lfs can be asked to order something in one of their weekly shipments w/o costing you any money in s/h. Fish aren't cheap to ship. Your s/h fee alone will surpass your lfs price on most fish.

 

[Jrob]

Yeah it was worth a shot and myabe some future looking into, thanks for the insight everyone