Hi, Larry!
Lots of great stuff above.
I've had my share of triumphs and sorrows buying instruments online. It's not for the fainthearted! But it can be done. See answers to your questions below.
I have been reading the board off and on for many years. Having recently retired, I am actually finding the time to learn to play. I currently have a Guild JF4-NT and with my increased playing time I think may be aggravating a shoulder injury. I am currently working on changing my ergonomics which may help. I have found that playing my parlor guitar is easier on my shoulder although the sound is a little lacking after playing a jumbo. This has created an excuse to buy a dreadnought guitar which would be smaller then my jumbo and probably sound nearly as good. I have been looking at D55ce's on line.
It will sound different - but great. I've never heard anyone complain about the sound of a D55!
As I am currently learning to play in DADGAD tuning the extra frets that can be used maybe helpful. My actual question is this, what are the pitfalls of buying sight unseen on the internet?
It depends. Some sites are very carefully policed by the hosts. Reverb.com one. They make it very hard for scams to happen. For example, they escrow your payment and don't release it to the seller until the seller provides a shipping tracking number. They're also prompt and professional in answering questions and helping resolve problems.
Others are death traps. Craigslist, for example, is crawling with scammers. That doesn't mean don't use it, but I'd only buy a guitar from there in person. I've met up with people at fast-food restaurants, both as buyer and seller. That's the safe way to buy from Craigslist sellers.
Most sites fall somewhere in between. For openers, skip ads:
- WRITTEN ALL IN CAPS.
- involving third parties.
- from people in other countries.
- with terrible spelling or grammar or written in text-ese.
- asking for personal information that has nothing to do with the transaction.
I like dealing with advertisers who:
- offer their phone numbers and addresses.
- seem like reasonable, sober people when I talk with them.
- have believable reasons for selling the instrument.
- don't tell me there's another person waiting to buy the instrument.
- seem straightforward about any issues the instrument has.
- are willing to take it back within two or three days as long as I'm will to pay the return shipping.
- generally seem to know what they're talking about.
What is the best process to use when dealing with a remote seller?
Have a good, unhurried phone conversation (or two). If there are
any red flags, move on. If a seller you don't like pesters you, just say you've bought what you're looking for from someone else, thanks very much. That
always works!
Ask questions. Is the neck bowed? What's the relief at the twelfth fret? What's the condition of the tuners? Are there any cracks or repairs? And so on.
The more photos you can look at, the better. If you seem sincerely interested in buying, most sellers will happily tell you what you want to know and send you more pictures.
Is it reasonable to ask for a video clip of someone playing the guitar . . .
Some people can provide them, some can't. It doesn't hurt to ask, but I wouldn't make it a condition of the purchase.
. . . and is the sound quality over a computer with good headphones good enough to evaluate the sound quality?
No. You can tell some general things about the sound, like whether it's in tune, but only hearing is believing.
Sure thing! Let us know how it all works out!