Quantcast

Scammed by Nemesis Project Bikes

Status
Not open for further replies.

sokoloka

Monkey
Sep 14, 2005
160
1
San Diego / London
See this link in the Bad Seller forum for more information: http://www.ridemonkey.com/forums/showthread.php?t=229526

While posting what can be considered a private issue on a public forum is the last thing I wanted to do, I feel as if I've run out of other options.

Disclaimer: If you want to get a long story short version, I'll stick a brief abstract at the bottom.

Until about 3 months ago, Brad and I have maintained what I considered a pretty good friendship over about the past year and a half; corresponding through emails and over the phone at least once every two weeks if not more.

Our "business" relationship initiated in late November of last year when I purchased a tuned z.1 from Brad. We arranged all the details over the phone, and I sent Brad the money immediately through PayPal after we finished our conversation. Brad mentioned that he was experiencing a bit of a time crunch with his Christmas orders, and I told him I had no problem as long as I got my fork before I had to return to school at the end of Christmas break. When I'm at school, I don't have have easy access to specialized bike tools so getting the fork later than that really wouldn't work too well. To Brad's credit and even with all the delays, I did end up receiving the fork the day before I returned to school for the spring semester.

So I did get the fork when all was said and done, and while the timeline did leave a little to be desired, I had no complaints as I was up and riding for the majority of the semester. Fast forward to what I believe was mid-March, when I placed another order with Brad for a set of his raw proto 22.2 Folsom Prison bars. Like before, I sent Brad the money through PayPal, and even though I really didn't give Brad a timeframe on the bars - I didn't see them until about the middle of May, right about 2 months after I ordered them.

I didn't really think too much of it at the time, especially since they were just an impulse buy, but in retrospect I guess it was clear sign of things to come.

Finally, fastforward to early July this summer - I called Brad up and after about an hour's worth of chatting we came up with the plan for a Raw, Guideless, Secret Agent with a Euro BB and a Pressfit headtube, kitted out with profile cranks/hubs, with a 6spd rear and a non-disc 20mil front.

I sent Brad a $400 downpayment on the frame/component combo sometime in the next two days following the conversation, with the promise and delivery of more money in the near future. Taking into account my past experiences with Brad's usual delays, I placed what I considered to be a relatively simple order with a deadline over a month away, on August 15th. I chose August the 15th for the same reasons that I chose the deadline for my previous fork order - I was driving back to school on the 16th and would no longer have access to the necessary tools to put the bike together leaving me with a pile of parts that I couldn't ride.

I left for Poland on July the 12th. While I was in Poland I emailed Brad two or three times to ask how things were going, which he replied that the frame was underway; and I also asked for some progress pictures, which he promised - yet I never received. As soon as I returned to the states 17 days later on the 29th, I gave Brad a phonecall and sent him the next installment of $600. During that phonecall we worked out the details of the Profile order, which to his credit he did place; as well as him telling me that he had completed the front triangle of my frame and was waiting on some chainstays to be bent if I remember correctly. Once again I asked for some progress pics, which were promised, yet never received.

Around the time my Profile order arrived, I sent Brad another payment bringing the total money recieved in the range of $1100 total. This is also around the time I began asking him when he expected my frame to be done, which he replied that he'd need about a week more to get the frame to be clearcoated, and then it'd be out in the mail.

That week passed and I didn't hear anything from Brad so I called him again. He said there had been a delay so things were going to take a little longer than expected.

I called Brad again on either August 14th or the 15th, which was the DEADLINE. I asked him what the delay was this time, his response was that "he was waiting to weld on the cable guides before he could send it to clear" - a little fishy considering we had agreed that there would be no cable guides on the frame that I ordered.

It is at this point in time that I simply gave up, waiting for him to contact me when he actually had the frame done. To this day, I have YET to see any proof that he's actually made me a frame, much less one anywhere near to being within the month+ deadline that we set for the entire deal to go down. It was about a week and a half after I returned to school that I began having to deal with some relatively serious personal/family issues, so I brushed the fact that I was out $500+ in return for NO product to the side to take care of what really is and still was important.

While I have been waiting to hear from Brad that he's finally finished my frame - instead I've received three "threatening" voicemails in the time since then and now.

As of right now, I've sent Brad $1100+ dollars and he returned the favor by giving me excuses for why he couldn't meet an already generous deadline, and then leaving threatening voicemails shortly thereafter. When I didn't respond to that sort of childish un-businesslike behavior, he dropped down to calling me a drug user both on public forums and over the phone; kind of ironic considering the reputation that Brad has established for himself over the years. Keep in mind that until this day, today, January 1st, 2008, almost 6 months since I initially placed my order and sent my first payment, I still haven't seen a picture of the frame the frame I ordered or anything close to it.

This entire situation is slightly ironic, looking back at my rather short RideMonkey posting history, as a good number of my posts on here have been supporting Brad, but apparently I was the one who was misguided at the time.

Brad has all together stopped returning any correspondence - instead I've been writing back and forth with another mutual friend, Garson Fields, in an effort to get this situation sorted out. Garson has on several occasions asked Brad to get back to me, or to sort this situation out, but to no avail as of yet.



Abstract/Long Story Short:
I'm out $500 on a frame that to the best of my knowledge was never built, and Brad has shown no intention of returning one cent of the money he's essentially stolen from me.



What's the next step I can take to get this situation resolved?

I've tried contacting him directly for several months now, but clearly he has no intention of simply returning the money he's taken for a product he never delivered. I screwed up by giving him the benefit of the doubt and not filing a PayPal claim within their short deadline - but I did manage to save a record of everything in relation to this transaction, so when it comes to the burden of proof I feel as if I have more than enough in my favor.

What's the next step?

Plain and simple, I just want my money back. This is absolutely ridiculous behavior from someone who claims to run a reputable business - and I know that I'm not the only one who's ever had an issue with Brad's business "practices"


Be a man Brad, admit that you didn't deliver and give me my money back.


Cross posted in the BMX/Street/DJ forum under this link:
http://www.ridemonkey.com/forums/showthread.php?p=2781949#post2781949
 

binary visions

The voice of reason
Jun 13, 2002
22,092
1,132
NC

muddy beast

Turbo Monkey
Nov 26, 2005
1,815
0
It's post like this that make me happy I decided not to purchase a fork from Brad. I remember you posting awhile ago about some issues, and that rang in my head when I talked to Brad about getting a fork...I decided to order a fork threw my shop.

Sorry to hear about all your problems man! But, I think as long as you stay calm like this, and post, you'll get your money back...or Brad will lose A LOT of business.
 

Evil4bc

Turbo Monkey
Jun 17, 2005
1,080
1
Nor-Cal
Hmm interesting

Eric frame was and has been built .
We clearly told him that I would NOT ship ANYTHING to any more customers until ALL invoices are paid in full .

Upon completion of Eric bike within the time frame discussed , HE disappeared , I tried numerous times to get ahold of him to clear up the $150 left on the invoice for his bike . I didn't hear anything from him for well over 3 months , during this time there were other accusation by other RM users about Eric credibility .

Now without contacting me directly , and instead trying to contact me throughout friends who live on the other side of the country and now this ??

come off it Eric

We went thought this already after other people ruined "friend credit " I NO longer send bike out until they are 100% paid in full .

there is NO other bike company i know off that sends bike out without full payment .

When you pay for your frame , it will ship ..VERY SIMPLE

Stop crying to the internet masses , pay your invoice of you want your bike.

-Brad
 

Evil4bc

Turbo Monkey
Jun 17, 2005
1,080
1
Nor-Cal
FYI, there was one other (now resolved and deleted) thread about Nemesis Project in the Bad Sellers forum, and these threads in the BMX forum with some (also partly deleted and edited) story:

http://www.ridemonkey.com/forums/showthread.php?t=183972
http://www.ridemonkey.com/forums/search.php?searchid=1825308

Sorry to hear about your troubles. I certainly wouldn't do business with Nemesis after hearing all these problems.
Well Due to lack of proper moderation problems like this happen.

Very simple Eric has never finished paying the invoice for his frame . We do not ship product out until it paid in full.

This has been clearly discussed with Eric but he fails to understand this . Now he results to posting blatant lies on fours .

This is udder BS .

Once the bike is paid in full it will ship.

Very simple

-Brad
 

binary visions

The voice of reason
Jun 13, 2002
22,092
1,132
NC
Lack of proper moderation :rofl:

Brad, your idea of lack of proper moderation is the fact that I wouldn't delete all the complaints about you on your say-so.
 

sokoloka

Monkey
Sep 14, 2005
160
1
San Diego / London
Very simple
There's something to be said about saving emails.

On multiple occasions now I have made the offer that if you could show me ANY proof that you've built me a frame, I'd pay the remaining $100 and take the frame off your hands - the most recent example being sent on the 25th of November as shown below.



After throwing $1100+ at you and then watching you push back the deadline and NEVER show any of the proof that you had even started my frame as you promised on several occasions, there's no chance in hell that I'd throw another cent towards something I'd potentially never see.

In the off chance you forgot, my paypal address for the refund is knah44@yahoo.com
 

Evil4bc

Turbo Monkey
Jun 17, 2005
1,080
1
Nor-Cal
Eric
Your invoice is $150

This has been very clearly explained to you.

It's not $100 , it's $150

Funny how you mention lack of correspondence but your the one who continues to post lies and not answer your cell phone when I called 2min ago .

Pay your bills

Happy new year

-Brad
 

sokoloka

Monkey
Sep 14, 2005
160
1
San Diego / London
Funny how you mention lack of correspondence but your the one who continues to post lies and not answer your cell phone when I called 2min ago
Show me any proof of you attempting to write anything back to the email quoted above.

If you were really this willing to resolve this situation, you'd think you'd write back and say *something/anything* especially if you think that I owe you $150 instead of $100.

I've offered to pay the remainder multiple times if you could just show me ANY proof of actually having some product to exchange for my money.

6 months later, still nothing. Give me my money back.
 

blue

boob hater
Jan 24, 2004
10,160
2
california
Given the amount of unhappy and pissed off customers Nemesis has, I'd be inclined to side with sokoloka. I feel his pain. I'm currently going through much the same thing with a local car tuner shop that was eHyped to no end, much like Nemesis, by a few loyal fanboys. I eventually realized I'd been screwed to the tune of four grand and had a worthless engine sitting in my half-assedly finished car. Not only that, but as soon as I voiced my complaints in the local community, previous people the shop screwed came out of the woodwork with horror stories. I dislike the concept of vigilante justice online, but had the customers the shop screwed not kept quiet about their experiences, I would've steered clear of them...

Needless to say, I'm now suing the bejesus out of them. I guess what I'm trying to say is that Brad et al. will post that you shouldn't be so mean to his business on the internet...but for the good of those who come after you and might be considering a NemPro, I encourage it.

Sorry for the novel off into other tangents. For recovery, I'd suggest the following:

1) Did you pay Paypal with a CC? If so, see if they will file a chargeback. Evidence is helpful in this regard.

2) Wait for external pressure to force a refund...if enough people yell at Brad, he might give it up. Many times a decision passed in the court of public opinion will break the will of a small business dying for a good reputation.

3) Last resort: Check into CA small claims. This could get hard and not be worth it, but if you have friends that live near where NemPro is based, it could be easy. No lawyer will pick up a $500 case. Also call CA AG's office and CA BBB.

I'm not sure if this applies here, but I've noticed a lot of small businesses with not-so-reputable practices will only accept Paypal, check, or cash. I guess it's an attempt to shield themselves from the wrath of the likes of AMEX.
 

Evil4bc

Turbo Monkey
Jun 17, 2005
1,080
1
Nor-Cal


Eric here are the pictures of your bike , your's is the one sitting in front with no cable guides.

These are the pictures that have been posted on my Hcor galley since completion of your bike in early sept.
I dont see how you can exspect me to do anything else unless your willing to complete payment of your invoice.
-Brad
 

sokoloka

Monkey
Sep 14, 2005
160
1
San Diego / London


Eric here are the pictures of your bike , your's is the one sitting in front with no cable guides.
You mean the frame with the internal headset and what appears to be a spanish BB?

Funny considering I ordered a frame with a Pressfit headset and a Euro BB.

And Brad, we both can see that NONE of those frames have cable guides.

Also interesting to see how a frame that was supposedly sent to get clearcoated in early August took until early September to complete as well.

I don't doubt that you have lots of photos of lots of frames Brad, but if you're going to try and pass a photo off as something that it's not, at least make sure the differences aren't obvious.

I'd still like my money back please :)
 
welcome to the fun little world that also ended the "friendship" between brad and myself(along with countless others). not to mention any future business transactions or reccomendations i would have given out to nemesis project cycles. brad is a straight shady business practicer who is constantly lying to the costumer with whatever he thinks they want to hear. anyone else should be very aware of what they are getting into with a very immature garage company. the problem between brad and i was also documented in these forums...

i undersand what brad is saying about unpaid invoices though, it was hard for me to keep up with mine the way he constantly increased it on me...

normally i keep my mouth shut as he spouts off how well he is doing, but it sucks to hear that brad still hasn't learned the proper way to conduct business and keeps giving others the same run around when everyone would be happy if he just told the truth...
 

Bullitboyz

Monkey
Mar 12, 2003
371
0
CT. USA
i have to voice my support of Eric on this one, based on my personal experiences with both RM members.. Eric's ALWAYS delivered items or payment exactly as planned and it's never been a problem to transact with him in any way..
much to the contrary with Brad as I was put on a similar 'runaround' over a set of Profile cranks i had 'purchased' from him from a 'for sale' ad on MTBR last year. i use the term 'purchased' loosely as I PAID $150 for them and never got them... got a few runaround stories, never the cranks or a refund. I even suggested he just give me credit towards some of his product (lowering kit or whatever) just to resolve the issue. bottom line, i'm STILL out that $150.
I've always been a fan of the Nemesis stuff... just not a real cool way to gain customers...
 

Evil4bc

Turbo Monkey
Jun 17, 2005
1,080
1
Nor-Cal
You mean the frame with the internal headset and what appears to be a spanish BB?

Funny considering I ordered a frame with a Pressfit headset and a Euro BB.

And Brad, we both can see that NONE of those frames have cable guides.

Also interesting to see how a frame that was supposedly sent to get clearcoated in early August took until early September to complete as well.

I don't doubt that you have lots of photos of lots of frames Brad, but if you're going to try and pass a photo off as something that it's not, at least make sure the differences aren't obvious.

I'd still like my money back please :)
Eric

Please stop trying to change the subject.
It was and has been made VERY clear to you your bike was completed on time per your request .

Once you finish paying for the bike and stop making a fuss in the public forum your bike will ship.

If you disagree , follow the proper steps through Pay-Pal and file a buyer dispute.

I'm not going to re-hash this online any longer.
Grow up handle this like an adult and stop crying online.
Pay your bills your bike will ship.
 

binary visions

The voice of reason
Jun 13, 2002
22,092
1,132
NC
I don't think calling you out on a lie:

your's is the one sitting in front with no cable guides.
...is changing the subject, nor is requesting real pictures of the frame you built for him.
 

v-digit

Turbo Monkey
Apr 3, 2006
1,218
0
Brooklyn, NY
It's really simple. You make sure your credit card is the source of funding for Paypal, and simply get them to take back the $ from the deadbeat merchant. Then see how fast you get called or emailed. :D
yea, unfortunately paying through a CC when dealing with paypal is key.
nothing to do with brad, but years back i purchased from a small business that wouldnt ship me my product on time.
a month went by instead of a week, and i heard nothing - i made a claim to my CC about this - i had my money back within 24hrs - $400.

few days later i received my product and the merchant was the one who was out the product AND 400$. thats when i started to get emails and phonecalls. being a nice person i gave the 400$ back.

moral is - one can never be too safe nowday.

Eric - so did you get your profile stuff already and you're just out the $ for the frame?
Brad, i say since he wants a refund, you send him a refund. I dont think he wants to ride your frame as much as you dont want him to ride your frame after all this, since you pride yourself in your work.

Hope all works out without a small claims court.
 

ufdff15

Monkey
Apr 13, 2004
809
0
Central Massachusetts
I really didn't want to get involved with this. And let the record state that i'm not picking a side i'm just bringing forward the info I have.

I received a pm from brad 9/26/07

"Jay
Whats up with Eric right now , he has a Secret Agent sitting here with $150 left on it ??

Last I herd from him he was at his siters weding and thats when he tole me he was sending out the $$$ for the bike and we were done , now it's been 2 months and NO word .

I've called and no reply , I figured he was busy with school but I'd hoped he might call or email by now ??"


Eric, Brad I really hope you two can settle things up.
 

snaky69

Monkey
Feb 10, 2007
188
0
Quebec, Canada
I ordered my bike in september, paid in full right away(had some trouble setting up paypal so I paid a few weeks later, Brad also agreed to getting paid in CDN) I told Brad right away it would be a frame for the summer after, since the off-season was close.

I asked if it was possible to have it before or around Christmas, got a positive answer. Brad ended up changing the design of the rear stays for the batch my bike was in, so there was a delay(we're still inside the loose deadline). I even got to get a slightly shorter TT because well, I'm short.

After that everything went fine, progress pics were sent, I knew they were mine as my name was sharpie'd on the TT. My bike was completed mid-december. Powdercoater was on vacation(understandable, it was the holidays by then) Bike went out to powdercoat on december 30th according to my emails, where it stayed untouched for the new year's then did get PC'ed about a week later. I received completed and painted pics on January 19th, the day it shipped out. Received it 10 business days later.

Then I ordered him a DJ3 crown for a buddy, as he had bought off my old one when the steerer was cut too short. Along with the crown, a Tuned Z1, and 3 t-shirts came in the mail on March 22nd, and completed my bike build(it was the last bit I needed). Brad said it was his way of saying sorry about the delay.

I was also looking for higher rise bars on my bike to compensate for the low front end by the end of the summer, and Brad beat me to it telling me he had reserved stem #069 for me, with a set of bars, all nice and black.

I find that it really sucks the OP is having trouble like that with Nem Pro, and I took the time to write an e-mail to Brad to give him my take on it.

I'm not taking sides, just stating that positive experiences can also exist.
 

Stray_cat

Monkey
Nov 13, 2007
460
0
Providence
Hopefully you two can sort everything out. I don't even want to speculate what the f*** is going on. My experiances with Brad have been pretty positive. I have an older steet fighter, which the first time it went through paint came out a rather neon green as opposed to the forrest green I was looking for. Brad had the frame re-painted for me, and it looks great.
 

binary visions

The voice of reason
Jun 13, 2002
22,092
1,132
NC
I'm going to share a little story that just went down a couple hours ago:

I ordered an item for my dad for Christmas. The company didn't inform me it was out of stock until I called a week later, and through a series of problems, it's 3+ weeks later and I still don't have it. The problem, though, wasn't the delay, it's that they didn't communicate with me, wouldn't return messages, screwed up the shipping options, and generally made a mess.

I sent a frustrated, angry email to customer service letting them know what happened, dates everything happened, and why I was mad. I just got an email back from their head customer service guy saying he was refunding me the entire cost of my order, and he hopes I enjoy the product and he's very sorry things went badly.

No excuses. No "but..but.. this happened and that happened and you should have done this other thing." Sorry, sir, we done fvcked up and here's what we're doing to make it better. The small cost of that item means nothing compared to the large cost of a single customer being unhappy with a small business.

I wonder how much it's costing Nemesis to delay repeatedly and respond in an angry fashion to customers who feel wronged? I'm going to take a shot in the dark and suggest it's more than $150.
 

Castle

Turbo Monkey
Jun 10, 2002
1,446
0
VA
I have limited experience with Nemesis Project Cycles but I'll share.

I picked up a used 2007 Nemesis Tuned Z.1 from DukesofTahoe (Kris @ nemesis cycles) recently from a ad posted here on RM. I payed for the fork and I received product in a reasonable shipping time. No complaints.

My other experience was with Brad through inquirey about a lowering kit to take said Nemesis tuned z.1 from 100mm to 80mm's..... Brad could've sold me a lowering kit. Instead he told me the fork wont ride right at 80mm's as they were not able to achieve proper progressiveness when lowered to 80mm. It was the only z.1 done from that year model because of that. Point being he could've sold me a lowering kit but didn't.

(edit) not taking sides either, just sharing my experience with Nemesis Project Cycles.

In general the situation sucks for both parties, Brad is losing customers left and right while Eric is sitting at home pissed without a bike or money.
 

sokoloka

Monkey
Sep 14, 2005
160
1
San Diego / London
Please stop trying to change the subject.
It was and has been made VERY clear to you your bike was completed on time per your request .
Please show me how and/or where?

After 4.5+ months, you can't even show me a picture of a frame with the same specs as the one I ordered, much less actually prove that it's the one that was "built" for me; yet I'm the one acting childish and changing the subject?

I've offered to pay on more than one occasion if you would just provide any of the pictures that you had promised me way back when; now I just want my money back.

How about you man up, admit that you didn't deliver for whatever reason, and give me my money back?

I like how in the email you sent me you act like you're the one in the position to make demands. You don't condone my use of a public forum to express my general disdain for your business practices?

Newsflash, I don't care, and it's well within my rights. It's not like I'm using this as a means of extortion - I gave you money in exchange for a product, and you didn't hold up your end of the bargain. I was willing to drop all this LONG ago simply for the return of my money; but now the situation has changed.

When I was just trying to keep this private, between me and you like it should have been all along, you couldn't even be bothered to return my emails; now that your image is on the line everything has suddenly changed? Cute.

While we're on the topic of spreading the word, http://www.ridestreet.co.uk/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=6848

You're only hurting yourself by dragging this out longer and longer I'm afraid.

You're 20 years my senior; how about you act like it, nut up and return my $500.
 

mikeG

Chimp
Nov 14, 2004
77
0
Menlo Park, CA
I bummed to see post like this. I can only speak from my own experience with Brad but I have had nothing but great customer service and he has always taken time to answer my questions about stuff. More importantly he knows how to build great products IMO. My Secret Agent is my favorite bike to date.

Hopefully both parties can work something out w/o it getting any uglier.
 

DirtyDog

Gang probed by the Golden Banana
Aug 2, 2005
6,598
0
I think someone mentioned that they ordered one of these bikes after seeing an ad for them here on Rm? Was that in the classifieds?
 

muddy beast

Turbo Monkey
Nov 26, 2005
1,815
0
Seems like Brad doesn't want to lose possible customers...but wont help this guy out, it confuses me. Here's a PM he sent me...(Sorry Brad, but if you send a PM like this and don't help guy's out publicly, its bound to go public)

Hey
I wanted to tell you this , but didnt want to go tthrought and poat it directly.

ERIC has known his bike has been done .
He chose not to return my calls for 3 months at a time , I left messages and not response.
Flat out he needs to finish paying for his bike and he doesnt want to .

Both me and a our mutal friend Garon have been trying to contact Eric , he refuses to even try to understand this matter and continues to push this matter.

When I orignally set this deal up with Eric , I flat out told him his bike would not ship untill is was100% paid for and he and both joked about how he woulnt be one of thoes customers .. now this ?

I'm a honest bike builder who has been E bullied on this fourm before and now Eric is flat out iieing to make this look bad .

Notice how he hasent replied since i posted the photos ?
If you EVER have any ?'s about me , my business or my bike
Please let me know .
All the people who ride my stuff here on these fourms have been 100% happy .
I try to go out mf my way to help people get the bike they want and unfortunitly some people take advantage of this .

Happy new year
-Brad
And while every one's on the subject of giving their opinion of what a business SHOULD do...here's a summed up story.

A guy comes into a shop with a beat up bike claiming he was sold the wrong bike and was mad that it couldn't "handle" what he was told it would. It was a Specialized Hardrock purchased for a 100lb kid (2 months prior to the complaint). The bike was WAY beyond what I could do to any bike, even by throwing it off a 100ft bridge. Regardless, the manager took it in and said he would see what he could do. Well a week before Christmas (and 2 months after he complained) the guy decided he wants a Trek Jack 3 for his kid for Christmas, and he wanted it right away. So, the manager gets him the bike Christmas eve, literally drives around for hours looking for the bike, and gave the guy the Jack at a RIDICULOUS (Seriously less then any shop employee could get it for) price and even got it built up super fast just before they closed. Because of this sale, the shop made NO money on the bike, if anything they lost money having to put the bike together for them.

Bottom line, all customers need to be satisfied, even if they are wrong. So Brad, hook the guy up already! At this point, you've been shot down so much and you look so bad you may as well send him his bike regardless of the money he owes you.
 

blue

boob hater
Jan 24, 2004
10,160
2
california
HI

I just read your post on the Bad Sellers forum and I felt inclined to give you some back story on this matter , I for one am not a shady bike builder. Nemesis Project is a honest company.

Plain and simple Eric has never made any atempt to finish paying for his bike.

Eric is the one who will not return calls and choses to not answer his phone for 3 months at a time. Again tonight I personally tried to Call Eric as he was posting lies on this very forum , I have his bike right here and it will ship as soon as his invoice has been paid .
As a small business owner I can't do anything else but this.

In the past i have been "E bullied " by the RM masses into issuing refunds for customers who "just made a fuss"
there was Clem who bought a Roco shook , this shook was sent back and forth for months then in the end RM made me give clem a refund and I never got the Roco back.
From all records it was delivered , then clem e bullied me into giving him $250 back.

2. WCH all chrome bike , another situation were a customer purchased a bike , received the product with $700 left on an invoice that eventually was played off to the messes here on RM and I never got paid.
I even-have direct Email with WCH saying he was planing on paying but the thread let him out of it.

Tomorrow I'm sending a marzocchi 4x fork to a guy I met on VW Vortex .
He needs it by Thursday so he can ride Rays , his payment cleared through Monday morning , UPs was closed for pickups monday and closed for the holiday Tuesday , so to get his fork there in time I eat the Next day air cost.
I cant tell you how many times we do this for customers .
Again , please look at both sides before you bash my bike company .
There a reason my current custom bike client list is :Kid-Robot
Disney Block 28
Fat Lace and Nike SB

These are all the companies we are currently building bikes for .
Shady people dont have this client list.

Take care
Happy new year
-Brad
Yeah.

Whatever, dood. The shop that screwed me had a feature in Eurotuner (and the fanbois toot this horn whenever someone comes out and says "They screwed me out of thousands"). Doesn't seem to make a difference. As long as you can please the high rollers/fanbois that won't order more than $50 worth of junk from you, you think you're all right?

And MB, I think the issue at hand is that there is NO frame made. Brad is dodging the question and lying about it. Maybe he couldn't get the right tubing from a supplier, but had already spent Eric's money and couldn't take a $500 hit. It seems like with places like these, it's take and spend the money first, figure out what we're going to do about fulfilling the customer's order next. Then there's always the guilt trip, or the attempt to paint oneself as a "nice guy". I remember the last time I saw car shop boy, he kept saying he was just trying to help me (and his wallet) out and do a nice thing. Sketch.
 

sokoloka

Monkey
Sep 14, 2005
160
1
San Diego / London
It's interesting to watch Brad go through seemingly incredible amounts of effort to PM people who have been posting in this thread - when he couldn't even be bothered to get back to me over the past few months.

Since the very beginning, I've tried to settle this in private and with just Brad. I've explained my reluctance to take this issue to the message boards time and time again, but with his lack of response, I was left feeling like I had no other options - and now he's trying to play it up like he's the victim.

For all of Brad's claims, take one glance at the sent email I posted on the first page. I never received any response towards one of my many offers to finish paying for the frame if Brad could just get me at least one of the many pictures he's promised - so I could be sure I'm paying for a product that at the least actually exists; but what do I get? IGNORED.

Take it to the message boards, and Brad finally posts a picture; but it's something that's clearly NOT MY BIKE. The frame in the foreground meets none of the original order criteria for goodness sake! This is quite possibly the shadiest thing I've seen for a long time. Brad, I ordered a bike from you with specifications, you think that if you post a pic of "my frame," I'm not going to look for them? Your only attempt at a defense so far has been a LIE.

Instead of mass PM'ing people to try and clear your name, how about you do the right thing and return my money; because right now your actions are definately speaking louder than your words my man. Just admit you screwed up and stop digging yourself a deeper hole, because after 4.5 months of being led on, I'm definately not going to rest until I get my $500 back.

While we're on the topic of writing PM's to sway opinions, does anyone know the username of the gentleman who provides some of the financial backing for Nemesis Project offhand? I think it's Prana_Ferox or something similar - maybe he'd be interested in seeing how his business partner is handling himself.
 
Sep 20, 2007
443
0
Champaign, IL
While I am not directly involved with this situation, this sounds nothing but out of character for NemPro as I have nothing but good things to say about them. I contacted Brad just over a week ago with nothing more than questions on fork tuning that he did. As a shop employee I was in a bit of a "cheap ass" mindset and Brad still managed to hook me up with an amazing deal. I paid for 3 day express shipping Champaign, Illinois (funny that sokoloka and I go to the same school) with the hope that it would be here in time for me to leave for Ray's. Well as it turned out he couldn't ship it the day he was hoping because UPS was closed. I was expecting to have to pay more or not get my fork. To my surprise he shipped it out next day air instead. My fork should be at my door today.

Thats my personal experience and I will not bash a product or company until I have first hand had a problem with them or personally know others that have had such experiences.

Dan
 
... My fork should be at my door today..
Ahahahaha! now there is a little comic relief for us all...


my guess (since i had been told several times my package had shipped only to find out about a week later everytime, that was not the case. i even got tricked into making an out of town trip (at the cost of several hundred extra bucks) to pick up a bike i was told was waiting for me, only to find that he had less than 1/2 of the actual parts i was told) is that your fork will show up in a few weeks...
 

Tetreault

Monkey
Nov 23, 2005
877
0
SoMeWhErE NoWhErE
i can feel for both sides on this one, from what i know brad is a straight up guy, he has answered many questions for me when a buddy of mine was trying to lower his marzo by himself and i have considered many times in buying one of his frames, this whole argument is not going to change the way i feel about nemesis. i have experiences similar to this when i was buying my frame from dobermann 2 years ago, i told them i wanted a euro bb because at the time they had planned on only making them with a american bb, i had contacted them in late november after i saw interbike pics of the frames, and got all the plans worked out and was told i would have a mid january delivery. sure enough i kept in contact with them but the dead line kept getting pushed back and back further even though i had already paid a 50% deposit way back in december. sure enough may came and the frame arrived but as it turns out they did not test the frames for clearance with fox forks so the adjustment knobs hit the down tube, sent the frame back a TWO DAYS LATER a new perfect one arrived via express mail. lesson is small companies take a long time because they dont have machines or mass amounts of people making their products, they have other things to deal with.

Eric is at fault for not paying the remaining amount of money
Brad is at fault because he should have showed pictures

So the way i honestly see it, eric put down a deposit on the frame, if the frame is honestly built right now eric owns it and should pay the remaining $150 for it, if he doesn't want it he looses his deposit
 

v-digit

Turbo Monkey
Apr 3, 2006
1,218
0
Brooklyn, NY
So the way i honestly see it, eric put down a deposit on the frame, if the frame is honestly built right now eric owns it and should pay the remaining $150 for it, if he doesn't want it he looses his deposit
loses his deposit? jesus!what a hell you talking about?

brad should have sent eric pictures months ago. its not hard to do at all. takes 2 seconds. if the frame is really ready that is - why not send a pic to show pride in your work? at this point its pretty obvious eric doesnt want the frame. if nemesis wants to protect their reputation and make the customer happy, they will refund the $ and sell that frame to someone else. easy does it. :)
 

binary visions

The voice of reason
Jun 13, 2002
22,092
1,132
NC
So the way i honestly see it, eric put down a deposit on the frame, if the frame is honestly built right now eric owns it and should pay the remaining $150 for it, if he doesn't want it he looses his deposit
Somehow I have a tough time holding Eric to a contract for a frame that was delayed multiple times, given the run around and then lied about.

Maybe that's just me.

I still think it's amazing that Nemesis is willing to tolerate so much bad publicity over what will essentially be no loss for them if they just refunded the money and resold the frame.
 

Tetreault

Monkey
Nov 23, 2005
877
0
SoMeWhErE NoWhErE
i forgot to add in my original post that if the frame isn't made right now then yes the money should be refunded, but u have to think from brad's side as well, what if eric paid for the frame and then decided that o **** thats not what i wanted, i want my money back, well you cant just do that either (not saying this is the case just a hypothetical situation)
 

sokoloka

Monkey
Sep 14, 2005
160
1
San Diego / London
i forgot to add in my original post that if the frame isn't made right now then yes the money should be refunded, but u have to think from brad's side as well, what if eric paid for the frame and then decided that o **** thats not what i wanted, i want my money back, well you cant just do that either (not saying this is the case just a hypothetical situation)
Not the case whatsoever. Read the email posted on the first page of this thread, it's one of many that stated that I was more than willing to finish paying for the frame if he would just provide some sort of proof that the bike was actually done, like one of the many pictures he had promised.

I was ignored. 4.5 months later now, there's no chance in hell I want this frame anymore. I just want my money back. Had I known that I'd be waiting 4.5+ months for a frame there's no way I would have entered into this deal to begin with.

Somehow I have a tough time holding Eric to a contract for a frame that was delayed multiple times, given the run around and then lied about.

Maybe that's just me.
Bingo.

When I'm told the reason that my frame has been delayed numerous times because Brad needs to "weld on cable guides" when I specifically ordered a frame WITHOUT cable guides, I begin to lose any faith I had in the manufacturer to begin with. Look at the picture he posted - that clearly shows Brad's attitude towards this entire ordeal.

The frame he claims is mine doesn't even have disc mounts for christ's sake!

so sokoloka, what is the resolution - you MUST have gotten your $ paypal'd back to you by now, right?
Nope!

Just an email demanding that I have this RideMonkey thread deleted before Brad even considers giving me my money back. And ironically enough, still no pictures.

I wrote back to Brad offering to close this thread with a successful resolution when I get my money back rather than deleting it sight unseen, but apparently he's too busy PM'ng various other posters in this thread to respond to that email either. :plthumbsdown:

Ironically enough, there was still no mention of pictures, and his email was titled "my offer to a peaceful resolution" or something inane.

Please return my $500, that's all I'm asking for. I think it's pretty obvious that my "completed frame" doesn't exist - otherwise why would he be holding back the photos for four and a half months?

Let's say Brad was confused and accidentally posted the wrong picture right? Do any of you honestly think in a situation like this where Brad would want to prove his honesty and sincerity, he wouldn't take the extra precaution of making sure he posted the correct picture? Even after the fact, had he realized his mistake, don't you think he'd correct it? Instead of telling me that I'm "changing the subject"? He still has not even so much as offered to take a "corrected" picture, if a mistake was the case, even though he has taken the time to write me an email outlining his demands for me.

This whole situation is absolutely ludacris.

Give me my money back.
 

Tetreault

Monkey
Nov 23, 2005
877
0
SoMeWhErE NoWhErE
so then i guess brad should just give him the money back, and if the frame is made he should have no problem selling it, it sounded like it would be an awesome frame! so then eric what frame are you going to be looking into now
 

alltimepimp

Chimp
Nov 7, 2006
11
0
So I have read every post on this thread and it is clear that this Brad guy is giving Eric the run around , and this is not the first time he has done this.
A guy I know from the are (Truckee/N.lake Tahoe) by the name of MJ had dealings with Brad years ago when MJ was going to have Brad make a prototype frame for MJ's company Liberty Bikes. MJ sent alot of money to Brad and never received anything except the run around and an empty wallet.
If this is not enough talk to Dave Weagle the mastermind of E13 and Evil and Ironhorse and Indy Fab.Brad told Dave that he could make frames for him ,Dave sends material and money to Brad and the frames never get made , Dave has to threaten legal action for the material back and money .
A semi local kid named Andrew wants a Nemisis frame and orders one waits for 3 months after numerous calls and emails Brad decides it is time to deal with him and tells him he owe another 100 bucks for a frame that Andrew had already paid for in full , Andrew's Mom is seeking legal help to get the money back from Brad now.
It is no wonder people get a bad taste in their mouth Brad is doing real shady business and the only way to stop this is to not do any business with him . Plain and simple.
I suggest to Eric and anyone else that is awaiting a refund to go to an Attorney and seek legal help because it seems that Brad has not made the frames and has spent the money , (maybe on his stupid racecar) .
And Brad if you are so into cars maybe you can go make products for them instead of Bikes, none of the people you have burned will mind.
 

Strauss

Monkey
Aug 22, 2007
111
0
Please return my $500, that's all I'm asking for. I think it's pretty obvious that my "completed frame" doesn't exist - otherwise why would he be holding back the photos for four and a half months?

Let's say Brad was confused and accidentally posted the wrong picture right? Do any of you honestly think in a situation like this where Brad would want to prove his honesty and sincerity, he wouldn't take the extra precaution of making sure he posted the correct picture? Even after the fact, had he realized his mistake, don't you think he'd correct it? Instead of telling me that I'm "changing the subject"? He still has not even so much as offered to take a "corrected" picture, if a mistake was the case, even though he has taken the time to write me an email outlining his demands for me.

This whole situation is absolutely ludacris.

Give me my money back.
1. You are too caught up on this picture/no picture thing. Honestly, if I were him and you were bullying me like this, I wouldn't comply either.
2. Stop trying to convince us. You're last paragraph, and many of your posts are directed towards the audience, its usually only your last sentence that is directed at Brad. If you really take a step back outside of this thread, where has it gotten you? You said you really didn't want to "take it there"... but you did, and now where are you? IMO Brad is doing the right thing by keeping this to PM's and not posting more FUEL for you to bend, shape, ship and slander how you please.
3. You do still owe money DO YOU NOT??? Money talks. YOU OWE.
4. Stop trying to convince us. What you are doing is what is called a "smear campaigne" and its nothing more than political. There is absolutely nothing to be gained by this thread. You will not achieve a resolution in this manner.

And you whine about the time frame. Honestly I see your point I really truly do, but, EVERYONE in this industry wanting a bike like this has a wait, unless you are riding a walmart bike. I waited for my mass produced Eastern Nighttrain for a hell of a lot longer than you did for your frame. I got a pair of bar plugs as a consultation.

Many things you need to consider when delivery dates get pushed back is Brad does not own a factory, he does not do everything "in house" and everyone has to get paid before Brad gets paid by YOU. He also has to wait on all those people to do their jobs before he can finish his (i.e. deliver the product).

I happen to know Brad is not shady. Do you honestly think he would take your money and not begin production on a frame? What do you think he would do with it? Just not produce a frame you paid for while he continued to build frames for other people? That doesn't make sense, and I'm absolutely sure we are not getting the entire story out of this thread.

I see a lot of your complaints, and they are valid. But you need to leave them at that, list your complaint and be done with it. DO not fill in the lines with your own thoughts, assumptions, stories, tales, lies and/or exaggerations. You are on the internet telling everyone, really assuming with words like "At this point I think it is fairly obvious that my frame doesn't exist at all". What the hell kind of thing is that to say unless you are trying to rally the audience behind your cause?

I know I really sound like I'm defending Brad here... take that as you will. But from someone with a little bit more experience on this end of things, you sir are handling this entirely wrong. What you are doing, with a thread like this, is largely unfair.

I hope you all read this entire thread, and then realize before you jump on the "hate nempro" that throughout this entire thread, regardless of how many times they say Brad changed his story... it still comes down to this guy owing Brad money. HE OWES MONEY. I've read the entire thread a couple of times and I don't see anywhere where Brad changed his story.

Dude, you owe money. You are using this picture as an excuse not to pay... and thats just BS. He *could* show you a picture..... I'd probably tell you to go F yourself.

Everyone in this thread is completely ignoring anything positive that has been posted about NemPro or the situation. What about the post where the guy pasted a conversation *FROM* Brad back in September asking about Eric's whereabouts? That went ignored.

What about the numerous occasions of excellent customer service posted by other members of RM? Nope - those were quickly shot down by WCH. Why did he shoot them down? SLANDER. He had no reason to other than trying to run a smear campaign against NemPro.

I agree that if Brad gives you a refund, you SHOULD delete this thread. It's full of crap, its full of post's of 15 year old kids talking smack, and it is full of misguided truths.

Hell I'll pay the extra 150 to get your frame... sounds nice.
 

binary visions

The voice of reason
Jun 13, 2002
22,092
1,132
NC
^ Without typing fifteen pages, there's no good way to respond to your entire post.

Suffice to say, if you've carefully and critically read the thread, it does not just come down to him owing money, nor does it come down to a basic set of manufacturing delays, and if you're a business owner with an unhappy customer and you've promised pictures numerous times, to not send them on principle of feeling bullied makes the business owner a moron. Okay? There's no easy way to say that. If you refuse to make a simple concession to satisfy an angry customer who feels cheated, then you're an idiot. Not directing those names at Brad, by the way, I have no idea why he's not providing pictures, but there it is.

Plain and simple.

As far as the rest... Well, he's welcome to present his case as he sees fit. It's a public forum, if Brad had an appropriate, well thought out and reasoned response, he can post it. Unfortunately, he's not posted anything - in any of the problems that have been brought up with his company - that have made his case appear valid.

It's pretty ridiculous to make a blanket statement that "Brad is not shady." I could easily make a blanket statement that "Brad is a crook" but neither would be fair or accurate. People have different experiences with the same business.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.