Bad Dargie Story

[Big Poppa]

OK I wrote a long thread and lost it but here it is....

We did the Dargies as a fun and nice gesture to the forumites and selected dealers. Making just about every model made it a break even at best....

But a few forumites got creative and deceitful. One loyal Australian decided to hook up with a USA forumite and attempt to circumvent our distribution network. The first of many mistakes was choosing the dealer that they did. The second was paying him in full in advance even though he had just publically admitted a meth problem. THe forumite who was involved was just greedy enough to add profit for his troubles. The guitars started shipping and the dealer had spent the payment for the guitar so I couldnt ship it. The Australian wanted to know where his guitar was.
They ever so cleverly ordered the guitar under a fake name. Well allegedly the dealer stopped communicating and the greedy forumite panicked and had another forumite contact Jack for help only admitting that they used a fake name because they thought we would make an inferior guitar for him if we knew it was for him.( Thats not insulting) The fact is that this forumite eventually worked his way into the least favorite status by all that had dealngs with him. THe dealer used the fact that the greedy one ratted him out to tell him to take a hike.

I told the greedy one he was on his own and the claim was with his dealer. After sitting on it for a few days I decided that I would help him out and run a sale at cost through Pete Dubaldo. He never thanked me or told me the real story. Pete paid for the guitar and then discovered the real story. These people had no problem putting Pete in a bad position but Pete is the only stand up guy in this side of the deal. Pete still has the guitar, is out the cash and the greedy forumite even lied to Jack recently about his involvement.

The funny part is that we are reasonable. Mike not Fat got a dargie from a Canadian dealer and Macd just got one too as we no longer make them and there werent any available in their country.

Be careful dealing mixing money with virtual friends. No matter how many posts you just never know what someone does when things go bad.

Karma is a strong deal.....

 

[roburado]

Man, I never knew it was such a convoluted deal. So, Pete still has the guitar? What is it?

 

[Danserrano]

that goes both ways BP, i know u and Pete are both successful @ what u do b/c of the way u have treated people. Thx and thats shared with sincerity.

Do unto others.......that's my motto.

just today i got rear ended in a really bad accident. Totally not my fault, yet i couldnt help but feel sorry for the guy that just rammed the heck out of my 2007 car. One day that person may very wll be me.

Again Bp and if u read this as well Pete. Thank You

danny

 

[Quarter]

Wow ... a crazy story. ... I guess the good news is Pete is the man to find that Dargie a good home. I can't imagine it lasting too long

 

[Ripper]

I think its a DD AL.

 

[bovinehost]

The guitar in question is an Albert Lee, and I'm sure Pete would be glad to hear from you guys and be able to make his money back on it.

I don't want to get overly dramatic about this, but I do want to be clear about things.

When I found out the identity of the Forumite who ordered the guitar and subsequently was having problems with the dealer in question, I was asked to make some phone calls and find out what I could. Then I was told that the guitar was ordered under a fake name. Why? Does anyone think that EBMM would NOT make a guitar for a customer who had paid for one? Or for a dealer who paid for one?

This was complete lunacy, so when I made the phone calls, I used the REAL name. And lo and behold, the guitar was ready, had BEEN ready for weeks, and no one cared whose name was on the purchase order. It's business, folks. The only hold-up was that the dealer hadn't bothered to pay for the instrument.

Uh oh.

Oh, what a tangled web we weave.

When I began to hear that the transaction wasn't exactly on the up and up, I talked to a mutual friend of mine and the forum member in question, who insisted that this couldn't be right. So we ended up on the phone and I asked the question directly - is this guitar destined for someone in a foreign market?

Answer - direct and without equivocation - no. No such thing.

Well, folks, personality conflicts are one thing. I'm sure not everyone thinks I'm the greatest thing since sliced bread, and that's okay, I'm past the point where I need everyone to love me unconditionally.

But I do tell the truth as best I can.

So this whole episode has been a mess from the very beginning and has ended badly for almost everyone involved.

Let's take care of each other, sure. I'm a big believer in that. But let's not purposefully set out to violate dealer agreements or try to make some quick money off a fellow forumite while clearly and willfully doing something that you bloody well KNOW would not be looked upon kindly by the company on the masthead. It just isn't worth it.

The person left without the guitar he wanted and out some cash probably would have been taken care of in broad daylight and in the correct way, no subterfuge needed.

It's a learning opportunity. It's going to be painful for some but its serves as an object lesson for the rest of us.

Jack

 

[brentrocks]

holy crap!!!

that was a real "downer" story

 

[robelinda2]

To all concerned.

I sincerely apologize for my part in this mess, I hold my hand up and admit I have done the wrong thing, and am very upset that i have pissed off the people who make the guitars I love. I offer no defence. Hopefully in time you can forgive me. The lure of a DD AL was too great for this huge AL fan. I hold no grudges with those involved who also did wrong. However let me state that I would never and have never personally sought out a way to circumvent the dealer network.

Rob

 

[Sub1 Zero]

Sure has been a lot of strange happenings lately.....

 

[Big Poppa]

Rob
Here is why we always say you are on your own when you bootleg our stuff. You couldnt have picked two bigger winners than you did to undermine us..

Has the greedy forumite reimbursed you?

I really enjoy your presence and passion and have no further problems and accept your apology except to say that you knew what you were doing and it was wrong. If you didnt seek out ways to circumvent us then who did? It reminds me of the kid saying "Johnny told me to". the response is 'If johnny told you to jump off a bridge.... would you?

I am not forgiving with NorM. He actually tried to profit off the back of another forumite and then lied to all of us. He roped in innocent members whilst still not telling the truth. His excuse for using an assumed name was an insult to everyone in our family. When I offered him help he should have come clean then. He is officially banned.

Rob and all I do whatever I can for you guys. As Mike not Fat...Ask Travis...Ask tiffles ask Jack ask lisais, Chuckles, Koogs.. Those are just a few. There are many ways that I have behind the scenes helped out whenever I can. Next time just ask ok? It may not be possible but all of us will try to find a way.

Also the last bit of unsolicited advice...when you get in a situation that stinks it usually doesnt get better. Stand up and fix it as the truth has a habit of rising to the top.

Your PaL,
POPPA

 

[robelinda2]

No excuses here on my part BP, i know what the deal is. Live and learn.

I didnt know a profit was being made from me, interesting.

 

[lock-ny]

In Robs defense the guy owns 7 or so Als, plus other MM guitars and hes a contributing member of the forum that I enjoy, I think the guy deserves his AL somehow, flame away at me but it wasnt a malicious deed, we all know that Rob is one of the nicest dudes on the net and he clearly spends all his spare time and coin on MM stuff -my 2 cents -I hope it works out OK -

 

[Big Poppa]

on with the show....... Lets have fun and I hope that you get your money back. There is no reason why you should have been out the money.

 

[roburado]

All I can say is I'm shocked.

Poppa, thanks for doing what you do for us, whatever it is you do for us behind the scenes.

 

[Sigmunds Couch]

Pete,

Call me or e-mail me..

 

[Ripper]

^Awright..the chase for that last DD AL has just begun. Woohoo!

 

[Elmer Imperial]

Wow, what a bizarre story. Sounds like a bad made for TV movie.

^Awright..the chase for that last DD AL has just begun. Woohoo!

Oh hell yes! I sent Pete an email about an hour ago... may the best (or luckiest!) man win!

 

[kissmyaxe]

^Awright..the chase for that last DD AL has just begun. Woohoo!

haha see there can be a positive thing from this.... someone will now get a very rare AL. Now who can get to it first, am giving it 36 hours before it is gone.

 

[roburado]

Consider me out of the chase. In my mind it'll always be Rob's, and I'd feel like I was profiting of him too. I'd feel bad about having it. After all, he did pay for the thing and he got neither his money back nor a guitar--if I'm reading this situation correctly. That is, I'll feel that way unless he gets his money back. If he got the guitar and sold it to me, that would also be another story. I don't want Pete to have to eat the cost of the guitar, though. So, if anyone wants it, hey...it's business. Go ahead. Let Pete make the money he deserves.

 

[phatduckk]

the DD AL in Pete's hands is equipt w/ MM90s FWIW

There's been a ton of badness re: the DD stuff mentioned above. that sucks. this was all a huge gift from the EBMM crew and you know what they say about the whole "a few bad apples" thing.

im sure there's been some emotional not-so-awesomeness that was felt by the folks that got the gears rolling on the DD idea -> production. id be bummed if i went out of the way to do something rad for my fans/friends and had that all followed up with crap and lies.

now - just to be clear FWIW Rob im not pissed at you or any of that. im just making a blanket statement here saying that BP, Dargin and the MM crew should have had a better experience than they had. it flat out sucks that they went on a limb and were taken advantage of, lied to and generally disrespected

they deserved a better "THANK YOU" than this ordeal has offered