Dear List; It is with great sadness and reluctance that I wrie this reply to Lee's distorted airing of what I intended first as a only slightly miffed private ist inquiry and which, due to Lee's unexpectedl and highly undeserved, in my opinion, reaction, quickly escalated into a tempest. Back near the beginning ofthe year, as a new DMCer I wa excited at discovering, thru Lee's posts that there might be a vacancy inthe heretofore completely subscribed kit paid group of purchasers. ( I later learned that there were indeed either many kits avaiable- through defetion due to simliar experiences or exasperation with Lee as I now have experienced? I dont know, were many kits avaiable all along? Anyway, I spoke with Lee and he told me that my kit should be ready about 30 days after I sent him my credit card # for payment in full at a quoted figure. When I got my credit card statement he charged more but so what, I was getting a kit. Since March, even though I read many posts about frustrations and inquiries about kits, both here and on Lee's site, as well as Lee and Lee's wife's posts about the numerous delays, I remained silent and supportive of Lee even though I had never pai a complete sranger 100pecnt in advance wih my credit card #. as well based on a promise which was this month was 6or700 percent overdue. I was prepared to wait even longer( although Lee seems to admit he has been forced into other refunds for failure to deliver) even after he theatened to raise prices etc when he got mad before (apparently unjustifiably based upon the reply I read here from the alleged wrongdoer). What prompted my private e mail below is stated, as well as his unexpected punative bully like reply, which also follows in its entirity' Lee punished me for daring to call into question his priorities, commitment to promises made,etc/ I was expecting either an apology, explanation or both. My fault, from what I had read to th is point, I should have known who I was dealing with.I hope the moderator will afford me the same rights that Lee was given when he was allowed to quote one of my three private e mails to Lee out of context when he conveniently neglected to mention how this whole thing started, that I didnt ask for a refund, that I didnt ask for an special consideration or priority in getting my kit, didn't call him a cheat , a fraud , a thief or imply any of these.... only maybe that he was neglecting those that had stuck with him without question ( as to time of delivery of the kits only! in favor of the new project of selling, in wholesale amounts a new product- lit key assemblies. My " legal " responses were only prompted by his highhanded treatment of a benign private critic; I wasnt, and wont let him either push me around based upon him controlling the means of production of something I wanted> I also wont let him misrepresent was was said in private betwwen us, on the List as a reading of all the emails both below and in my following supplimental posts containing both his email first offering me and then, in the same email again taking away my kit, as well as my last comcillatory message which was answered with his preemptory strike on the list , BTW Lee never really answered what first asked. He cant because it now seems there is no defensable answer. If your interested, read it all and deside, as I did after reading the reply of the last poor soul who Lee maligned on the List.Also BTW I only signed my email to him in that imperial manner to gently lobby him to discontimue his heraldic closings on the List . Moral : he's "fed up" and he"doesn't care" anymore as he states Dont question him or perhaps worse will happen to you as he states me will not refund anyone else and has "no idea when the kits will ne completed. Lee remember it was you who decided to go public with this. I started and stayed private , Lee,?Its not my fault you got to this state, whose fault is it? Michael Solomon #2904
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- From: Jeff <jthiel@xxxx>
- Date: Wed, 06 Oct 1999 03:28:56 -0700
At 10:14 PM 10/5/99 -0400, you wrote: >Lee, >I note with some interest that you are now marketing, both wholesale and >retail, several types of keys on the DML. >I paid you for my kit last March and still have no idea when I will have >it. You promised it to me by May . You and your wife have repeatedly >posted your various reasons and excuses for slow production and until >now I have benn silent in my patience, but how and why do you have time >for the keys at the expense of my kit that you have had the benefit of >my $$ for 7 months? > > Your problem is easily solved. I am sending you a full refund as of today. I note that you failed to include your Reservation number which is 032/61. You noted that there have been many excuses for delays, I disagree with your term excuse. I have repeated many times that this project to do a limited edition model commission has turned out to be far more time consuming than I had originally thought it would be and have shared the reasons with every one publicly. Creating the kits is not now and has never been a profit making venture. It is a pastime which I do when I have the time, just as I do with the keys. I still have to work like every one else. Keys take an hour each not including the handling and shipping, kits take several days each over a period of 7 to 10 days of curing and assembly of parts. The entire process is by hand, and every imperfect part is discarded and re done. I posted recently that because an owner attempted to defraud me of a kit selling a second kit requested to replace a lost in shipment kit on e-bay for $400+ That the only way I could deal with this was to, stop shipping as the kits were completed and hold them all until all were completed, then ship every remaining kit with new updated shipping fees and adult signatures required to prevent a reoccurrence of the attempted theft of a kit. At this point I really don't know when I will get all the kits done, when they are then and only then will I start shipping again, and even then only if the shipping charges are paid in full. Of course all this is now moot in your case. Your refund is on it's way. Lee support@xxxx
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