I'm okay with these threads, for the most part they are self regulated pretty well. I participated in them seldom but on /ic/ they had a circlejerk problem where there were very much so the very same people giving eachother art back and forth while dominating the thread and ignoring other posters or requests. Maybe a good way to put this is that if we allowed such then we should be "Chummy but not Cummy". It's fine to fraternize and we already do this to a degree. But I have issues with requests not getting filled because people are too busy sucking eachother off.
I like making things for people when the requests aren't a thinly veiled attempt to collect free wank material, and occassionally make a random autist happy. I am myself that autist despite being an artist even if I am too shy to ask for things. I think making an 'art trade' thread is a bit better and more fair than simple oc threads since it's already got the expectations coded in the name.
In any case request fags are kind of an assumed given as there will always be more people who can ask for things than people who have the ability to create, though trading could be an effective compromise to dissuade the hoards from swarming in asking for free shit. Thoughts?