From a european perspective - payments to the US are bloody hard to do - all of Europe (and most of the rest of the world, actually) uses IBAN.  Sometimes I would like to purchase in the US on auctions etc, but I am in the impossibility to use the payment method indicated.   
BTW - it's not because someone knows your bank account no. that he is able to empty your account - all those companies doing commercial transactions would be ripped off quite easily otherwise...
Seems to me there's quite a lot of unwarranted suspicions in the US re. international transactions.
As to the request to reduce value - I won't condone the seller, but he probably wanted to reduce the amount of taxes he had to pay on import - which is on the declared value + shipping.  The rate is somewhere between 35 and 50+%, depending on the country.
Still, in that case it is the seller's call to do it or not, but I wouldn't call it fraud - he most probably wouldn't be trying to rip you off, just to avoid lots of taxes.  Also, you could just put the risk with the seller, in which case you needn't worry about it.
FWIW, some of the US bank delings would never be possible in Europe - like having a cheque clear and then it being withdrawn - no way!

Harry,

All true with people selling off-ticket stuff for a living and set up for credit cards - but try purchasing a rifle (even an antique) or whatever from a private person in the US and you can only pay with a US post office money order, nothing else allowed...  No international money orders, no paypal, no electronic transfer (as they won't give you any bank details...).  And certified cheques on foreign banks aren't accepted either.
I find it easier to make a payment to SA than to the US, sad but true...
For the rest, same story here - you pay for customs clearance, you pay VAT, duties and whatever, and if no license is required, you will finally get the item at a considerably higher cost 

Boy, was this a good subject or what. I just mailed a rifle out today after calling the persons bank to ensure the certified check is real, and it is so out went the rifle. It's not thaty I do not trust. I just am protecting myself. In this day and age anyone can print a Certified check at home in multiple colors too. So, it just pays to be on the side of caution. I hat getting taken advatage of. Now, maybe the fellow as some of you all are suggestions was not trying to pull something fraudulent but to me it was. He also wanted me to insure it for a lower amount, and if anything would have happened to it then he could have come back on me for the differance, not going there. And he did not understand the USPS TRACKING SYSTEM, and I did not understand it all I guess, but I got an earfull from my local Post Master who had the time to explain the system to me. If you ship Priority you do not get an actual tracking number unless you pay more for it, then he went on the explain that with the Expressw mail you get to insure the article for a higher amount and get an actual tracking number. It just cost 100.00 to send a rifle in a package weighing in at 25 lbs to Florida.
And the other buyer was bitching about it costing double that to go overseas. Hell, I get folks that will not sell to me as I live in the Peoples Rebluck of Californai, and our gun laws are not as sad as Iniana's are. In Indiana any gun that can use modern ammo will be registered I guess as that is what I have been told, CA at least leaves the antique guns alone so far.
Mike