mac malloy
Active Member
Err, have I missed something? Are there any updates, maybe? This is so awesome. Thank you
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Deprecated Nike FOOTWEAR Tube Bag (seller banned)
- Thread starter cavx
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cavx
Master Member
Update.
So the first bag shipped out and arrived smashed. Even though it was insured, the postal services are denying all and any involvement, claiming it was not packed properly and that they don't offer a fragile service. I call BS on this as I have shipped many, way more fragile items than this, since 2006. Both Australia Post and US Post seem to blame each other with neither side coming to the party.
What really pisses me off about this is that in a single year, I've spend over $10k in postage where a single item I was shipping cost $5000! And they are worried about $350.
Because this thing is huge, finding suitable boxes was a challenge at best. In the end, I used double card board fruit boxes. There was no point in bubble wrapping and by the amount of damage, bubble wrap wasn't going to save it anyway.
So I am now having to make a new tool to vacuum form the end caps so they can handle been thrown around (as seems to happen in transit).
If, when I send the next bag out, there is a repeat of this, refunds will be issued and this run will be over.
joshslayton
Well-Known Member
That really sucks to hear man. Nothing ruins a project more than the item getting damaged during shipment. I sent mine off to mexico and it seemed to have delivered intact but then again it wasn’t shipped over seas. Really sorry for the trouble man
OK I've kept silent on this for almost a year. I hate to even come here to air grievances. I always feel issues between sellers and buyers should be handled privately. But when the seller starts to ignore messages, I'm forced to come to this.
Short story: Mark sent this bag inside 2 fruit boxes taped together, open to the elements, with zero padding. Needless to say, it arrived completely smashed.
Long story: I've believed in the project from the get-go. It was a grail piece for me, and maybe I believed in it blindly. When the project was in jeopardy I was the first (and I think maybe only) person to send a $200 deposit to keep the project alive. I'd also like to say here that I think Mark is a good guy - he's made tons of contributions to the RPF, especially with BTTF. But maybe he was in over his head on this project? I'm just wildly confused on the lack of updates and eventual radio silence. I welcome Mark to come here and offer his side of the story, and I'd love for other members to offer their opinions after that because I just can't see his reasoning. I feel like I'm taking crazy pills.
All in I spent $400. My bag was originally quoted at $350 but when it came time to shipping he couldn't afford it, so I sent him an additional $50 so he wasn't out more money. Because the completed bag was delayed longer than he expected, Mark also send me a t-shirt from his Marty McFly, Jr. run and a set of replacement Mag soles.
Sept 18, 2018: When I arrived home to see the box sitting on my doorstep I was thrilled. This was years in the making! Then quickly, once I got a look at the fruit boxes, my heart began to sink. The attached pictures are from the day it arrived. I couldn't believe it. Who would tape 2 fruit boxes together, full of holes, to ship something from Australia to Los Angeles? I had mixture of confusion and anger. Everything was damaged except for the 2 top lids.
Mark's response was to put blame solely on the postal service. When I asked why he didn't pack it in a larger box with packing peanuts or ANY type of padding he said that it would have been more expensive and he assumed I didn't want to pay more. But I was never offered this or made aware before it was shipped.
Still, he had it insured and I wanted to work with him to get it resolved through a claim. Mark's offer was fair: if he was fully reimbursed through the insurance claim he would ship me a new tube bag. If he got a partial reimbursement, he would send a kit for me to complete on my own with the 2 surviving lids.
What followed next was something I wouldn't wish any of you to deal with - weeks (almost months) of trying to figure out how/where to file my claim with the USPS. I got the complete run around. I was told to call various numbers, drive to different post offices, fill out specific forms (only to be told later those weren't the correct forms), etc. Finally after a 48 minute phone call I was given the correct instructions: bring the entire contents of the damaged package to my local post office with a specific form and they would hang onto it while they investigated. USPS would contact Australia Post and take it from there.
Nov 1, 2018: This is where we start to take a turn. Mark let me know he was contacted by Australia Post about the zero packaging (they also claimed there was no box, which I have no idea where they got that). At this point they wanted to talk to him on the phone and not deal through email.
Nov 28, 2018: after a month I check in with Mark about an update. He says it looks like he's out of pocket on this one, they didn't rule in his favor. So he will bubble wrap new parts to send to me, and also re-tool and vac form the end caps so they don't break. I asked if it would be new parts for a complete bag, because the post office still had the box of damaged parts with the surviving lids. Not really a response to that, but I assumed he would be sending parts for a complete bag.
Jan 9, 2019: I check back in for an update. Mark sends me a pic of the new tool for his end caps.
Feb 12, 2019: I check in again. Mark tells me he had to rebuild the vacuum former.
April 1, 2019 (!): another check in from me (this is always me reaching out, when in the past he was giving me weekly updates). He says that the vacuum former is assembled and just needs some time off work to finish.
June 7, 2019 (!!): months of no updates, so I check back in. Mark says he can't get things working, after $6k into the project. He also says he doesn't understand why I just "gave the lids away." I replied that the post office asked for the entire contents of the package and I've displayed an abundance of patience during this process. Mark is agitated (which I understand, but it seems to be directed at me). He says it took him so many tries to get those lids correct, tons of money, etc.
So at the point I want to move on and said he can just return my money. Mark's response: "Technically if I am to fully refund you, I should get all the parts back. But that can't happen now, can it. The difference here is that I am not Diamond Select or Matty Collector."
So I'm at a loss for words here. I tell him it's his shoddy packaging that got him in this pickle. It's clear I've burned my $400 and my only alternative is to bring it up on the forum.
Mark's response to this was a tirade that accused me of not caring how much money he was into this project, that I was running into victim mode, that I sided with the shipping company when I gave my statement and that's the reason they closed the case. Also that I viewed him like a corporation who should be able to provide a refund or timely replacement.
At this point we seemed to be very far off from our interpretations of the situation. And this was pretty much the same thing I told him: if I had $400 of someone's money I would be more motivated to send updates, but I must be wired differently. And to think that the post office sided against him based on my statement is ridiculous. They had the evidence right in front of them: 2 fruit boxes tightly packed around a plastic item with no attempt at protecting. Lastly, am I just supposed to sit around for an indefinite amount of time with no updates/timeline, waiting for these parts to arrive?
No response from Mark. But I held off on blasting him publicly, despite what a few of you told me privately. It makes me sick to my stomach to do this. But I need some sort of resolution here.
Sept 7, 2019: after summer has passed, I assume it's been enough time to cool down. I sent him a message on Facebook asking him if there's been any progress. No response, but Facebook shows that he's read it.
Sept 8, 2019: I sent another message saying I hope it hasn't come to the point where he's ignoring my messages. All I'd like to see is any sort of timeline for the parts he said he'd send me. No response from Mark, but again, Facebook shows that he read it.
So here we are, a week shy of one year since it was delivered damaged to my doorstep. I have no way of knowing if he ever plans to fulfill this commission. I'm not here to slander Mark. It just seems the only place that I can get a response since I'm being ignored...
No idea tbh. By the time I went back no one knew where they were.
oh wow, I am so sorry that happened to you Matt! And it's such out of character from Mark :/
I hope this will eventually get resolved somehow...
I hope this will eventually get resolved somehow...
Thanks Emma. Yes this is all very bizarre. But it stings a bit more when you see him playing with a new 3D printer on his Facebook page...
Klen
Well-Known Member
Why am i not surprised ...
This is sad @MattgomeryBurns it shouldn't happen to any of us especially when we know that when you ship something you expect it to be thrown as a piece of trashcan by carriers.
A wooden box, with lot of foam inside of it, would have have cost much more of course, but would have secure the shipment.
What a sad first read after being gone for few years.
This is sad @MattgomeryBurns it shouldn't happen to any of us especially when we know that when you ship something you expect it to be thrown as a piece of trashcan by carriers.
A wooden box, with lot of foam inside of it, would have have cost much more of course, but would have secure the shipment.
What a sad first read after being gone for few years.
What's disappointing to me about this is that MattgomeryBurns pitched in off the bat with funds to help cavx with the project.
I have to say that this bag, while a bit complex, is a pretty doable project for a committed maker. But sure, it could realistically take months to get it done between design, build/production of master parts, molding. On cavx 's first post, he reported he'd have bags done in a couple weeks, which tipped me off immediately that he didn't quite realize what he was getting into.
At each step cavx seemed to inexplicably select the most cost-intensive way of doing things, and then half brag, half gripe, at how much he was spending. The masters for this thing didn't have to be made from machined metal, and the final pieces could be laid up from fiberglass or some other composite. No need to spend thousands on a vacuuforming setup. I was continually astonished at him reaching a roadblock, only to choose "throw-more-money-at-it" as the solution.
MattgomeryBurns , I sincerely hope cavx decides that his reputation is worth more than the $400 or so bucks it would cost to refund you. I see his comment above about there being "no point" to have packed the part better, but he doesn't say why. I think better packing could very well have made a real difference. He specifically dismisses bubble wrap. Again, why? Hard to understand.
I have to say that this bag, while a bit complex, is a pretty doable project for a committed maker. But sure, it could realistically take months to get it done between design, build/production of master parts, molding. On cavx 's first post, he reported he'd have bags done in a couple weeks, which tipped me off immediately that he didn't quite realize what he was getting into.
At each step cavx seemed to inexplicably select the most cost-intensive way of doing things, and then half brag, half gripe, at how much he was spending. The masters for this thing didn't have to be made from machined metal, and the final pieces could be laid up from fiberglass or some other composite. No need to spend thousands on a vacuuforming setup. I was continually astonished at him reaching a roadblock, only to choose "throw-more-money-at-it" as the solution.
MattgomeryBurns , I sincerely hope cavx decides that his reputation is worth more than the $400 or so bucks it would cost to refund you. I see his comment above about there being "no point" to have packed the part better, but he doesn't say why. I think better packing could very well have made a real difference. He specifically dismisses bubble wrap. Again, why? Hard to understand.
Jedifyfe Klen Spyhunter2k I appreciate the support. Spyhunter2k you couldn't have articulated it better.
I went public with this 3 weeks ago. I didn't get into name calling or throwing wild accusations. But seeing that cavx has been to the forum multiple times since then, as most recent as yesterday afternoon, there's only one word that comes to mind: coward.
He's had plenty of time to offer his version of events. He's reading all of these posts. Yet he's keeping his head in the sand. All for what? $20 worth of packing materials?
I went public with this 3 weeks ago. I didn't get into name calling or throwing wild accusations. But seeing that cavx has been to the forum multiple times since then, as most recent as yesterday afternoon, there's only one word that comes to mind: coward.
He's had plenty of time to offer his version of events. He's reading all of these posts. Yet he's keeping his head in the sand. All for what? $20 worth of packing materials?
I believe he said when the postal service took them for the insurance investigation, they never returned them. That happens a lot. I had this happen to me before and when I called to see if I could at least get my broken item back to salvage anything from the debacle, they claimed they couldn’t find it and it was misplaced.
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