Well, I was gonna let this drop. I probably shouldn't have mentioned the eBay transaction with JCO, but his incessantly rude and abusive posts here just got me to the point where I felt that, if I showed him that his method of communication here is similar to what I experienced in doing business with him, JCO _might_ see what I, and others, have been complaining about. I really did not intend for this to get so out of hand.
Anyway, JCO listed a K50/1.4 on eBay and described it as being in perfect shape. I'd been looking for just that lens for quite some time, and actually had been trying to contact Mark Roberts about one that he'd offered to the list around that time. Some people here know how difficult it can be to contact MR by email. Anyway, after several attempts it became clear that, for whatever reason, I wasn't going to hear from Mark and that I should keep looking for a good example of the lens. I bid on and won the lens. I don't recall if the auction was BIN or not. I paid promptly, JCO shipped the lens promptly, and I received it in a timely fashion. I did not have a chance to look at the lens for three or four days. When I did, the front was loose and wobbly. I told JCO and the first thing he did was jump on my ass for not contacting him sooner, and suggested that, since I didn't contact him upon receipt of the lens, perhaps I had caused the problem. His method of communication was similar to that which he uses here, accusatory, YELLING, and so on. He did say that he would refund in full, although I don't recall any offer to pay postage both ways. I really wanted a K50/1.4, there were none other on eBay that seemed acceptable for any number of reasons (price, condition, terms, etc.), so I took his offer of a partial refund. It was not what I wanted, but of the options then available it was the most acceptable. By that I mean it was the only way, _at that time_, I could have gotten a K50/1.4. By accepting his offer does not mean that I was satisfied or pleased. It meant only that, after weighing the options, the partial refund was acceptable, or, to put it another way, it was the least unacceptable. My experience with JCO was not a pleasant one, and, because of that, I will not do business with him again. As an eBay buyer - especially one dealing with a fellow list member - I don't want confrontational and accusatory emails. Sh!t happens, and there's no reason not to be pleasant about such things. Did JCO rip me off? I don't think I'd go so far as to say that. Of course, I never did say that in any message posted here or to him at the time, contrary to JCO's ranting. Did I receive the lens in the described condition? No, I did not. I did not leave him any feedback - good or bad. I felt that leaving positive feedback would not have been appropriate, and, based on how he responded when I told him the lens had a problem, I felt that leaving negative feedback would have just caused more vitriolic comments and created more problems than it was worth. As for his accusation here that I've slandered him, that's complete nonsense. The truth is not slander. Nor was (or is) it my intention to ruin his business. I just wanted to point out _to him_ that his behavior and style goes beyond what he writes on this list, and that it _does_ affect how others relate to him. At least it affects how I relate to him. Oh, as for the lens itself, I had to send it out for repair. I neither had the tools nor the skills to fix it. It would not have been a simple repair for me. In the end, it cost me more than the $15.00 that I got from JCO to fix the lens and make it right. So, my apologies to the list for stirring up another hornet's nest. I honestly didn't think my offhand comment to JCO was such that it would create so much of a commotion. I will, however, stand by my comments above wrt JCO's behavioral and method of communicating, which is what this was all about, not so much the quality of the goods he was selling on eBay. That would be in another thread, at another time, in a galaxy far, far away. Shel > [Original Message] > From: John Forbes < > He wanted a lens (or whatever it was). Not hassle, rudeness, and a refund. > > Or can't you see that? > J. C. O'Connell wrote: > > > Just ask him if I offered him a full refund > > Including two way shipping costs? I did. And that > > Pretty much will end the story and define who > > Is the guilty party. -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List [email protected] http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net
