Trading policy

I would love to trade duplicate stamps with any and all other philatelists.  Here is my current trading policy:

• Please contact me before you send me any materials.  This way I know that I should be watching out for something from you and I will have some idea as to when it should arrive.  It will also allow me to ensure that you have my correct mailing address.  I can be reached by email, but to foil the spammers (or at least delay the inevitable), you'll have to put the address together yourself -- start with "stamps" add an @ symbol and finish with "riptrack.net"
• Any materials that arrive in my inbox, whether I know they are coming or not, become my property when they arrive.  This should be fairly simple, but I'm stating it here just so we all know that if it is sent to me and I receive it, it's mine unless you have contacted me directly and made an agreement with me first.  I can be reasonable, really.
• I will normally trade one-for-one based on stamp designs.  If you think an item is worth more than the typical 5¢ individual stamp price, I need to know so you don't get cheated.  On the other hand, if you think an item you're sending to me is not worth as much, please let me know.  I want to keep the trade fair so we can continue trading in the future.
• I do not make much of a distinction in trades with mint/used/CTO/hinged/gummed materials.  That means that if you send me a bunch of mint-never-hinged stamps for trade, you might get hinged, ungummed, used or CTO stamps in return, unless you contact me and we make another arrangement first.  But, that also implies the next point...
• I don't mind CTO stamps.  I am building a collection of stamps that relate to a specific anniversary date.  Stamps can be cancelled to order on any date, and if the date in the cancel shows March 4, or if the subject depicted in the stamp design otherwise relates to March 4, then I consider it a valid addition to this collection topic.
• All material that I send will be out of my duplicate stocks.  The whole point of trading as I see it is to trade stuff I've got a surplus of for stuff that I don't have.  I will not send you the last copy of any item out of my collection.
• Materials sent from me can relate to any collecting topic.  I have a lot of stamps in my collection, but my duplicate stocks may not be the best place for you to complete your own want list.  I will try to accommodate your collecting interests with the materials that I send to you for trade, but please don't be upset if the amount of items you receive within your collecting topic is less than you had hoped.  My stocks are limited.
• I like to alternate mailing materials for trade.  In other words, the trades will work like a tennis match where the ball represents the materials that are being traded.  After I receive some materials from you, I will put materials together to trade for them and send my trade to you.  After you receive materials from me, please put together a packet of materials to send back to me.
• It may take some time for me to prepare and send material back to you in trade; please be patient.  I have a lot of projects on my to-do list, and philately is not at the top of my priorities (paying the mortgage and grocery bills are the top priority right now).  I will try to send materials back to you as soon as I receive trading materials from you, just don't be surprised if it takes a little while.  I will let you know when I send materials so you know when to expect them to arrive too.
• I am not responsible for items that are lost or damaged while in transit between us.  I can't control what happens to materials until they arrive here or after they leave my collection.  If you feel the material you're sending me is more valuable, please make any necessary arrangements to insure the materials from your end.  And that leads me to my final policy item (so far)...
• Any fees that are required for postage, handling, processing, insurance, etc. in getting materials to me are your responsibility.  Look, I've got enough bills already.  I want to keep this fair and open, so don't go berserk in piling on fees when you send me materials because I won't pay anything beyond what I'm sending back to you in trade.