September 25, 2008 | Sex Life

Up close and personals, Round 2

After yesterday's article on gay personals we're sure many of you considered giving online dating another chance. And once you've figured out what you're looking for in a sex (or life) partner -- and after you've spent minutes sweating over the perfect personal ad -- you need to find the right place to stick it (the ad, that is).

The Internet, for all its size and trillions of webpages, can be surprisingly limited in what it has to offer in quality gay personal sites. And often what is available is going to cost you a not-so-pretty penny.

So we did some digging for you and found the best providers of free online hook-ups. Ready to get laid by Mr Right? Then let's get started ...

Craigslist.org is the first place you'll want to explore. There's nothing fancy here, but by keeping the layout simple Craigslist has expanded its reach from a single city (San Francisco) to over 50 countries in just over a decade.

You will need a free membership to post an ad, and to get one a valid e-mail address and telephone number is required. Users are now being verified as real people before they can start uploading anything into certain sections.

If there is a downside to the site it's this: every posting is monitored by the users themselves. This meansanything deemed offensive can be flagged and removed, which is good when something particularly vile shows up (you'll find a few racist rants now and then). However, legitimate ads are also targetted by the overzealous, the bitter, or the bored. You may find your ad flagged four or five times before it is finally left alone.

One of the granddaddy's of gay hook-up sites is none other than Gay.com. In 2005, it was the most popular online gay personals in the United States, falling to a still respectable third in 2007.

You can post an ad for free here but, as with Outpersonals.com and ALT.com, you need a paid membership before you can contact other members. That will cost you a whopping $20 per month. We say: Skip it! Your free membership will give you access to the chatrooms where most of the gay.com activity is taking place anyway.

Another biggie is none other than ManHunt.net. Of course you'll all remember the bruhaha that developed when Manhunt chairman admitted to supporting McCain over Obama. He later stepped down from his position. But that shouldn't take away from the fact that this is one of the most active sites online, meaning you will need to weigh your politics with your urges and see which one comes out on top.

This is another site which promises more bang for your buck. Sign up for a membership and you will have better search options and be able to hook-up with someone much more quickly. Stay with the free membership and you're experience is greatly reduced.

Adam4Adam.com seems to offer one of the largest African-American rich listings we've seen from any site. But it's certainly not limited to one race; men of all ethnic backgrounds can be found looking for casual hook-ups, friends and sex. The site even offers listings for visitors so that your next trip to Las Vegas needn't be a lonely one.

"Unlike other sites, we don't depend on expensive membership fees at Adam4Adam," the website explains. "We run on your goodwill and good wishes, with the help of sponsors and the occasional donation. We want your experiences here to be fun and hassle-free."

At any given time you'll find thousands of men cruising through the photo-rich pages of dudesnude.com. You can become a supporter of the site for as little as $5 for two months, giving you better download time for videos and eliminating advertisements from your search. Better yet, you can visit the site and start e-mailing men without setting up a profile of your own.

As well, the designers were smart enough to institute a verification system. You'll be able to find men who have proven that they are indeed the very same hunk you see in their photos.

They also have a sister site called guys4men.com promising over 300,000 members around the world. This site requires a membership but there is no charge for it.

Prefer things a little darker? You may find the leather daddy or pig bottom of your dreams at collarme.com. Declaring itself the "largest BDSM Community on the planet" the site seems to make its money off of a few ads.

Recon.com should also be considered by our edgier friends. Men into ink, skinheads, fisting and fighting can find kindred spirits, legs spread eagled, at this stop. Again the free option limits you, but you can actively engage other users, send messages, and complete localized community searches without relying on your credit card.

There are other sites which are equally as promising (like Men4Now.com and  AGayMen.com) but this should get you started.

Not an exhaustive list by any means but there you go. Just have fun, play safe, and think of us when you're getting that best pounding of your life. Well, at least think of us after you've had the best pounding of your life.