AAAARGHHH... freight from oklahoma

what an interesting turn of events, out of all the freight companies i could have called, i got the exact person that's been dealing with said person,

he's upgraded himself from tool to person because he has actually chased a price. . .

the price they gave him was $550

he's just downgraded himself back to tool . . .

So even according to the company he's been talking to the freight should be $550 and not $1,100?

Definitely trying to scam you. You said you bid on it, was this on eBay? I'd contact eBay and Paypal if it was. Even if it is past the deadline you should have some kind of recourse.