fettpride
Well-Known Hunter
Hi Everyone,
First, I want to apologize for having to take the time out to
address matters like this. As busy as things are right now,
I'm sure my time would be better spent doing what I should
be doing, and that certainly isn't writing novels.
As many of you have probably seen, yesterday I found that
my Nemrod V.1 SideArm Holster Replica has been recast.
Unfortunately, it appears to have been a misunderstanding
across the board as to the "who, what, where, and how".
Initially, it appeared to have been our own "Stormrider".
As more developed, it became clear very quickly, that Mike
"Stormrider" was mislead and was caught in the middle of
a misunderstanding he didn't even know the half of, until
now.
So before I get to the bones of the matter, I'd like
to extend a Public Apology to Mike (Stormrider), who I
do not believe had any unscrupulous intent in mind.
Along those same lines, Mike was buffaloed into a project
that he headed whole heartedly into and was taken advantage
of. He did not realize he was recasting a copy of my work.
As an act of good faith to him, and to help him recover his
monetary losses, I am extending him a public offer to
continue forward with the sales of his holster replica to recoup
his lost investment with my blessing. This offer however has
strings. All I would ask, is that Mike sells enough of the castings
to recoup his investment, and that he does NOT sell the mold
but instead after the run is finished, to send me the depleted
molds. After his investment has been made back, I would ask
that he ceases further production permanently.
I want Milke, as well as the rest of the community to know,
that I am not the demon some of you make me to be. It isn't
always about money. In a case like this, one of our own members
was hugely taken advantage of and he shouldn't be forced to
eat it. Especially in times like this. So Mike, if you're reading
this, have at it brother. Just let me know the specifics in terms of
how many of these you need to sell and keep me in the loop as
far as how it all goes.
To the matter at hand :
What this thread IS about, is the deplorable behavior of those in the
communities we call re-casters. It's a blanket term, that most of
us are all too familiar with.
I am NOT here to debate what a re-caster is, and isn't. It was made
very clear, again, what this membership's stance is on the matter.
(this is an excerpt from another thread about Mike, before Mike's
name was cleared and only used to reiterate the Administrations
stance)
Now that it is clear what the rules are, you all need to be made aware that we
still have a re-caster in our midst.
In researching this matter it came to my attention that the holster that Mike (Stormrider) procured, was from our own Fettdad (Darrel Sanderson). Wether
or not it was actually a copy from my molds, or not, it became clear that it
was Darrell that had actually been recasting my holster.
Apparently he's been selling them for some time @$165. How long is unclear.
But the first thing to consider, is that Darrell purchased at least 3 of these holsters
from me personally. All of a sudden he's producing his own
Whereas that isn't enough evidence in of itself, it gets clearer. So bear with me.
In my poking around threads, I found that there were references all over the place that he has been selling holsters. But unlike ANYTHING else he sells, he NEVER advertised in the cargo hold for it. All sales have been handled on the QT in PM.
That raises many flags.
I come to find out that the holster that Darrell sent Mike, was broken, shattered.
It appears to have been broken in a molding mishap. Still, not enough.
So I put out feelers for individuals to come forward with any information about
Darrell, his communications with them, transaction histories, or pictures. It
only took a few moments for me to find all of the evidence necessary.
I have contacted Darrell in regards to this matter. So there is nothing left to the
imagination here, I am going to post it publicly.
As harsh as it may seem, I'm am absolutely done with this kind of behavior.
So many times, I've had to deal with things like this, and it's always said
that "the proof is the burden of the accuser". So I eventually, and begrudgingly
started putting signatures in my work. In this particular case, some of these
signatures weren't purposeful, but necessary to complete the task.
The original holster that was used as a master, was in poor condition. Outwardly
it seemed to look ok, but it turned out to be so brittle from age and salt water
exposure, that it started to crumble. Literally. Portions of the holster had to be
rebuilt. In doing so, a whole new master had to be made to allow for this as the
original holster is made of a vinyl material that nothing will stick to. In making
this new master, some aspects of it had to be rebuilt/re-sculpted. Whereas it
turned out to be one hell of a replica, it was not an exact replica. Which is why I recently abandoned it and started to finish off my V.2 holster project, which IS an
exact replica.
The funny thing is, a typical person doesn't know, and cannot tell the differences.
But they are glaring to the two guys who worked their asses off bringing this
replica to the community for the first time in the history of TDH. And these signs
and tells are irrefutable. But your average sleezy re-caster won't consider that
they might be playing with fire.
I don't call Darrell out on this to be a jerk. Some of you would ask, why would I even care since I've nearly abandoned it for V.2 ? Because it's principal. Wether a found part or not, it was "I" that spent 8 weeks trying to figure out how to even make
a mold of something so complex. I invested $1000 in materials for 3 failed experimental molds before I was able to make this happen for you all. What this
is about is exhaustion. I have continuously put out for this community. I can't go
on being stabbed between the shoulder blades like this. It's disheartening, disenchanting. And frankly, between my being called out continuously about members fears of my running off with their money, and people continuously taking advantage,
I can almost assure you, that my time with this community is now limited. I just can't give anymore. I have absolutely no life, for the cause. You all seem to think I make a fortune at this. Maybe even live some lavish lifestyle. Carefree and oblivious to those
around me that seem to think I look at them like the peasants of the costuming community. If that is the opinion any of you have formed of me, you are diluted. There seems to always be someone right around the corner that wants to be the next big Fett maker, with delusions of grandeur, and wanting to walk all over my ***. And use me as their shortcut. Or criticize me because I'm not doing enough, or that I'm not doing it fast enough. The truth is, no matter what I do, it is never enough. It is indeed a dog eat dog world, and I for one am not going to tolerate it anymore.
What I am going to do at this point, is hold back on the exact evidence that I am referring to until Darrell comes forward. The reason for this is to not show all
of my cards. But I can say, there is a major tell in the Nemrod Logo that I am prepared to expose foremost. But I'm not about to speak of it until his side of the story has been given. I will of course provide it to the Administration in the meantime. I wouldn't make these claims openly, and publicly and risk my own reputation if I wasn't absolutely sure.
I can tell you all how incredibly, sickly tired I am of this. For the moment, I leave you with the photo of a "Fettdad" Nemrod Holster Replica ..
Thank you all for your attention to this matter. I would ask, if you have any respect for me, or my work ... not to patronize sellers of my recast works. The vast majority of the time, what you will receive, albeit faster likely, is a cheap imitation. For not much less money apparently. By buying from these people, you promote them.
And above all, ask questions. That is the key. For your sake as well. How many of you have been taken advantage of because you were an unsuspecting buyer? If in doubt, post publicly about it here. Ask about "who, what, where, how, and what quality". It protects us all. And this shouldn't be taken as my wanting to monopolize any particular part or component. If someone can do it better, and more efficiently, I will celebrate them, not be bitter. Remember, I'm the one who sells my molds to carry on pieces to the community that I simply have no more time for. If it was all about money to me, I would grub my molds, or destroy them when I'm finished. Not allow someone to carry on my pieces.
First, I want to apologize for having to take the time out to
address matters like this. As busy as things are right now,
I'm sure my time would be better spent doing what I should
be doing, and that certainly isn't writing novels.
As many of you have probably seen, yesterday I found that
my Nemrod V.1 SideArm Holster Replica has been recast.
Unfortunately, it appears to have been a misunderstanding
across the board as to the "who, what, where, and how".
Initially, it appeared to have been our own "Stormrider".
As more developed, it became clear very quickly, that Mike
"Stormrider" was mislead and was caught in the middle of
a misunderstanding he didn't even know the half of, until
now.
So before I get to the bones of the matter, I'd like
to extend a Public Apology to Mike (Stormrider), who I
do not believe had any unscrupulous intent in mind.
Along those same lines, Mike was buffaloed into a project
that he headed whole heartedly into and was taken advantage
of. He did not realize he was recasting a copy of my work.
As an act of good faith to him, and to help him recover his
monetary losses, I am extending him a public offer to
continue forward with the sales of his holster replica to recoup
his lost investment with my blessing. This offer however has
strings. All I would ask, is that Mike sells enough of the castings
to recoup his investment, and that he does NOT sell the mold
but instead after the run is finished, to send me the depleted
molds. After his investment has been made back, I would ask
that he ceases further production permanently.
I want Milke, as well as the rest of the community to know,
that I am not the demon some of you make me to be. It isn't
always about money. In a case like this, one of our own members
was hugely taken advantage of and he shouldn't be forced to
eat it. Especially in times like this. So Mike, if you're reading
this, have at it brother. Just let me know the specifics in terms of
how many of these you need to sell and keep me in the loop as
far as how it all goes.
To the matter at hand :
What this thread IS about, is the deplorable behavior of those in the
communities we call re-casters. It's a blanket term, that most of
us are all too familiar with.
I am NOT here to debate what a re-caster is, and isn't. It was made
very clear, again, what this membership's stance is on the matter.
(this is an excerpt from another thread about Mike, before Mike's
name was cleared and only used to reiterate the Administrations
stance)
We do not allow recasts of other member's work, even if it is from a found part without that member's approval.
I am not sure when or where our stance on this became confused, but for the sake of clarity, let me quote our official position:
I am assuming the confusion came from the part which states: "recasting another member’s creation without consent is not supported by this community" and someone took 'creation' to mean original sculpture. This is not the case.
While you may be ok with this type of recasting on a personal level, as a community, we don't support it. If you brought us evidence of a member recasting either your Webley or HiC, we would stop them from actively selling it here and/or at the RPF.
There is no need for you to disappear. There was clearly a misunderstanding due to you being given some bad information and the situation was exacerbated by the previous issues you and FP have had with one another. While I am sure it is frustrating and I know you are out $$$, we can't support you selling these here as they are recasts of Chris' work.
Now that it is clear what the rules are, you all need to be made aware that we
still have a re-caster in our midst.
In researching this matter it came to my attention that the holster that Mike (Stormrider) procured, was from our own Fettdad (Darrel Sanderson). Wether
or not it was actually a copy from my molds, or not, it became clear that it
was Darrell that had actually been recasting my holster.
Apparently he's been selling them for some time @$165. How long is unclear.
But the first thing to consider, is that Darrell purchased at least 3 of these holsters
from me personally. All of a sudden he's producing his own
Whereas that isn't enough evidence in of itself, it gets clearer. So bear with me.
In my poking around threads, I found that there were references all over the place that he has been selling holsters. But unlike ANYTHING else he sells, he NEVER advertised in the cargo hold for it. All sales have been handled on the QT in PM.
That raises many flags.
I come to find out that the holster that Darrell sent Mike, was broken, shattered.
It appears to have been broken in a molding mishap. Still, not enough.
So I put out feelers for individuals to come forward with any information about
Darrell, his communications with them, transaction histories, or pictures. It
only took a few moments for me to find all of the evidence necessary.
I have contacted Darrell in regards to this matter. So there is nothing left to the
imagination here, I am going to post it publicly.
fettpride said:Darrell,
It saddens me deeply that I am actually sending you this message.
As we all know, shady things always find a way to surface, especially
when you don't trust the right people.
It came to light yesterday that Stormrider recast my Nemrod Holster.
But when I pulled the string and started to unravel this mess, to my
dismay I found out that you've been selling holsters on the sly as well.
Right before I found that out, I found out that it was you he got the
casting off of to recast. So technically, he recast me, through YOU.
And to think, I hung him out, when the fact is, he didn't even
have a clue.
It's fairly pointless for me to approach you with any shadow of a doubt.
You seem to think that you'd reproduced a "found item" from the real
world. But there is one thing you didn't consider buddy. I've been around
a long time. I put major tells in my work. Because I expect this sort of
behavior, and I want to call people on it when it happens. The only thing you
did to it, was mold in the strap. Did it ever occur to you that you had no idea
what you were fooling with ?
I certainly didn't expect this from you, Darrell. You offered me support in
my darkest times. You were always a great guy to me. It hurts me deeply,
that it had to be you.
I have forwarded all of my evidence to Art Andrews, and I will be submitting
a thread to address this matter. There is no way this could have been a simple
mistake man. You bought how many holsters from me ?? Do you even remember?
So, very sad. And for your efforts, I will make absolutely sure your business on
TheDentedHelmet.com is brought to an abrupt end.
Chris
As harsh as it may seem, I'm am absolutely done with this kind of behavior.
So many times, I've had to deal with things like this, and it's always said
that "the proof is the burden of the accuser". So I eventually, and begrudgingly
started putting signatures in my work. In this particular case, some of these
signatures weren't purposeful, but necessary to complete the task.
The original holster that was used as a master, was in poor condition. Outwardly
it seemed to look ok, but it turned out to be so brittle from age and salt water
exposure, that it started to crumble. Literally. Portions of the holster had to be
rebuilt. In doing so, a whole new master had to be made to allow for this as the
original holster is made of a vinyl material that nothing will stick to. In making
this new master, some aspects of it had to be rebuilt/re-sculpted. Whereas it
turned out to be one hell of a replica, it was not an exact replica. Which is why I recently abandoned it and started to finish off my V.2 holster project, which IS an
exact replica.
The funny thing is, a typical person doesn't know, and cannot tell the differences.
But they are glaring to the two guys who worked their asses off bringing this
replica to the community for the first time in the history of TDH. And these signs
and tells are irrefutable. But your average sleezy re-caster won't consider that
they might be playing with fire.
I don't call Darrell out on this to be a jerk. Some of you would ask, why would I even care since I've nearly abandoned it for V.2 ? Because it's principal. Wether a found part or not, it was "I" that spent 8 weeks trying to figure out how to even make
a mold of something so complex. I invested $1000 in materials for 3 failed experimental molds before I was able to make this happen for you all. What this
is about is exhaustion. I have continuously put out for this community. I can't go
on being stabbed between the shoulder blades like this. It's disheartening, disenchanting. And frankly, between my being called out continuously about members fears of my running off with their money, and people continuously taking advantage,
I can almost assure you, that my time with this community is now limited. I just can't give anymore. I have absolutely no life, for the cause. You all seem to think I make a fortune at this. Maybe even live some lavish lifestyle. Carefree and oblivious to those
around me that seem to think I look at them like the peasants of the costuming community. If that is the opinion any of you have formed of me, you are diluted. There seems to always be someone right around the corner that wants to be the next big Fett maker, with delusions of grandeur, and wanting to walk all over my ***. And use me as their shortcut. Or criticize me because I'm not doing enough, or that I'm not doing it fast enough. The truth is, no matter what I do, it is never enough. It is indeed a dog eat dog world, and I for one am not going to tolerate it anymore.
What I am going to do at this point, is hold back on the exact evidence that I am referring to until Darrell comes forward. The reason for this is to not show all
of my cards. But I can say, there is a major tell in the Nemrod Logo that I am prepared to expose foremost. But I'm not about to speak of it until his side of the story has been given. I will of course provide it to the Administration in the meantime. I wouldn't make these claims openly, and publicly and risk my own reputation if I wasn't absolutely sure.
I can tell you all how incredibly, sickly tired I am of this. For the moment, I leave you with the photo of a "Fettdad" Nemrod Holster Replica ..
Thank you all for your attention to this matter. I would ask, if you have any respect for me, or my work ... not to patronize sellers of my recast works. The vast majority of the time, what you will receive, albeit faster likely, is a cheap imitation. For not much less money apparently. By buying from these people, you promote them.
And above all, ask questions. That is the key. For your sake as well. How many of you have been taken advantage of because you were an unsuspecting buyer? If in doubt, post publicly about it here. Ask about "who, what, where, how, and what quality". It protects us all. And this shouldn't be taken as my wanting to monopolize any particular part or component. If someone can do it better, and more efficiently, I will celebrate them, not be bitter. Remember, I'm the one who sells my molds to carry on pieces to the community that I simply have no more time for. If it was all about money to me, I would grub my molds, or destroy them when I'm finished. Not allow someone to carry on my pieces.