Many traders just assume that level 1 and 7 are duped, there is no direct way of knowing.

Please be advised that there will always be a risk using a middleman for things like this.
Choose one wisely by selecting one from this list: http://steamrep.com/list/M
Even then, there will be a risk.

I believe this is fine as long as what your saying about showing different weapons is true.

There is a good chance that the guy is lying so he gets a free game.

It's up to them.

You have to remember that the Outpost admins have lots on their to-do lists and therefore closing every reported empty trade may not be prioritized as high. Also they will close the trade at their own discretion so perhaps you are seeing something differently then them.

Either link an image in your notes or put your picture as an attachment towards the bottom when making a trade.

There are already strict rules regarding sharking; refer here[www.tf2outpost.com] for more information.

The least you could do is post your suggestion in the right sub forum next time:
https://steamhost.cn/steamcommunity_com/groups/tf2outpost/discussions/6/

Originally posted by Ha Ha Ha Thud!!!:

What are Steam, and TF2OP rules about having a second Steam Account soley for trading? I don't want to continue risking my 10+ yr account if this is how Steam handles this crap.

Steam encourages users to have idle/trade accounts because guess what; that's extra $ for them once you buy premium in order to trade those items. The only thing they hate is using third party sources to get drops but that's mostly with idling and you will get hit with the ban hammer for it. I am not sure if there is a rule against that for TF2OP though since I don't see anything regarding it, but I would imagine its fine considering you are only using it for "good".