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  • Hey all, just changed over the backend after 15 years I figured time to give it a bit of an update, its probably gonna be a bit weird for most of you and i am sure there is a few bugs to work out but it should kinda work the same as before... hopefully :)

Sergey Kravchenko lomo update

Robert Horwell said:
I just heard from dvxuser. They have done the right thing.
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FWIW Robert, with all due respect:
1. You got the lenses you bought, albeit delayed.
2. You booked jobs for equipment you did not have in your possession.
3. You decided to buy from Russia because of the savings the deal offered but were not willing to deal with the (typical) drawbacks related to purchasing equipment in Russia. This indicates unrealistic expectations. And that includes the condition of the lenses.
4. You are now trolling against Sergey because the deal did not go the way you hoped for.
That's not fair to him IMO. He did not get the chance to respond here.
There are companies on this board that took peoples money and ran. For years. Did not deliver squat. He did deliver. Not Arri quality, fair enough. You get what you pay for.
By the way I never met him or bought from him. Never recommended him.
Suck it up Princess and move on:wink5:
In my 25 years of fixing lenses I've never seen a set from there that did NOT need work to bring it up to our standards. That's just the way it is. Next time do better homework and you won't be (as) disappointed.
My two Russian kopyeikas:wink5:
 
OptiTek said:
FWIW Robert, with all due respect:
1. You got the lenses you bought, albeit delayed.
2. You booked jobs for equipment you did not have in your possession.
3. You decided to buy from Russia because of the savings the deal offered but were not willing to deal with the (typical) drawbacks related to purchasing equipment in Russia. This indicates unrealistic expectations. And that includes the condition of the lenses.
4. You are now trolling against Sergey because the deal did not go the way you hoped for.
That's not fair to him IMO. He did not get the chance to respond here.
There are companies on this board that took peoples money and ran. For years. Did not deliver squat. He did deliver. Not Arri quality, fair enough. You get what you pay for.
By the way I never met him or bought from him. Never recommended him.
Suck it up Princess and move on:wink5:
In my 25 years of fixing lenses I've never seen a set from there that did NOT need work to bring it up to our standards. That's just the way it is. Next time do better homework and you won't be (as) disappointed.
My two Russian kopyeikas:wink5:
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With all due respect?....I don't see any respect in your post.

1. 10 weeks, you call that delayed for a set of lenses that where pictured in the initial post.

2. I booked jobs on the basis of trust after being told they had been sent. When they had NOT been sent.

3. Have you read the initial post where the lenses were for sale? I did not make any savings. 2 sets of lenses sold here in the uk for less than half the price I paid. I paid over the odds because I was told they were AS NEW. During the time I bought the lenses from Russia I also bought lenses from Korea and south Africa both sets of lenses arrived in less than 10 days, not 10 weeks. I can only base my expectations on what I am told to expect. The way you talk You make Russia sound like a 3rd world country.

You get what you paid for?. I paid the same price for these 4 lenses that I paid for 5 new lenses from Cooke. You really should get your information straight before you start shouting your mouth off.

By the way I never met him either.

Suck it up Princess......are you sure? What sort of statement is that? You obviously have never met me as you definitely would not be calling me a princess. BTW, what's your problem with princesses, is it something you need to talk about?

I am not trolling. There are others who have emailed me who have been and who are right now in a similar situation, many are afraid to speak out. I am not.

In my 26 years in the business, I've never been treated like I have been by Sergey.

I find your post rude, insulting and provocative. During this process I've had some very helpful people hailing from Russia contact me, you seem to fall into the other category. Maybe you get to IBC or some other trade show jacek? Maybe you could make some insulting comments to my face, I look forward to that. :yikes:
 
Lighten up Robert.
I apologize if you felt insulted in any way. I thought the emoticon gave it away- if not- it was a joke:beer:
Your experience is not unlike others- shipping delayed, lenses in worse condition than expected.....
I get lenses straight from Russia for revamp, I hear that story quite a bit....
Their standards are not the same as here, NOS(new old stock) lenses need overhaul to work properly after 20+ years in storage no matter what.
Maybe not as much work as with used lenses but still need it.
That's my experience and I'm the guy that does the work...
Out of curiosity, what exactly would you do if I said that to your face Robert?:wink5:
 
"Their standards are not the same as here"

So outright lies about condition of lenses, outright lies about shipping when they hadn't been shipped, not shipping everything paid for, and ignoring emails from customers whose money you have whilst still touting for business from new suckers - sorry, customers - all these are down to 'different standards'?

They're the standards of crooks, fraudsters and con men, plain and simple. I'm a Scotsman. In England they say 'call a spade a spade'. In Scotland we're even more plain-speaking, we say 'call a spade a f**king shovel'.

I call a crook a f**king crook.

Mike
 
I just reread the first post.
The problems described aside of the lens caps problem are pretty typical for lenses that have been in generic storage for a long time.
The backlash is typical for Russian workmanship. I deal with it on most lomos.
I would like to thank Robert for sharing his experiences. Not kidding. This is what one should expect.
And you probably don't want to use their lens support anyway, no offence but these things are pretty crude...
Buyers beware. Either accept it if the lenses are useable for ones purposes or prepare to spend more to bring them up to snuff. I recall Matt's posts about it.
Don't get me wrong- I'm not saying this is the way it should be or right for that matter, just that this is the way it is....
With almost every set of lomos I have seen.
BTW I would not send my money to Russia- too much of a gamble for me. This has nothing to do with the honesty of Russians- I'm sure it's just like with any other nation. I just don't want to deal with the headache related to paying so much for something I have not seen...to a foreign country.
Maybe that's why I don't complain. Who knows...
And one more thing- the"lens bubble" caused just insane run on lenses- no matter new or old. Seems like if it looks like a lens these days it's worth its weight in gold. Maybe this thread will cool it down a little and keep the prices in check knowing that each lens will need at least additional $400-500 of worth in labor to work properly.
 
That all pretty much echos what I was trying to say. Also, just because he says he mailed it on such and such a day and it isn't stamped till weeks later doesn't mean it wasn't sent on the day in question. You are dealing with biblical level red tape and government employees who really do not care at all. That's what I mean when I say business culture is different there. Just because you mailed it doesn't mean it's going to arrive in any type of known time. I am currently waiting from a package in the Ukraine that "should have been here last week". The tracking numbers that the russian post puts on stuff don't relate to anything. They are meaningless. But that doesn't mean that they are fake. If you mail a package, they give you a number. It just isn't tracked.

As Jacek said, and I and others have said, you can't buy lenses from that part of the world and have western expectations about the shipping, the lenses, or anything else. Sergey will be the first to tell you he is not a lens tech. I am pretty sure he has never worked in the film industry. Always get lots of pictures and ask very very specific questions.

This isn't really aimed at you Robert, and again I am sorry for your situation, it's more for anyone thinking about buying lenses from the former soviet empire. Be they cookes or lomos.

I basically always asume that I am going to get a box full of moldy busted glass, and then I am pleasantly surprised when it turns out better.

Nick
 
Mike 'Fireman' Ross said:
"Their standards are not the same as here"

So outright lies about condition of lenses, outright lies about shipping when they hadn't been shipped, not shipping everything paid for, and ignoring emails from customers whose money you have whilst still touting for business from new suckers - sorry, customers - all these are down to 'different standards'?

They're the standards of crooks, fraudsters and con men, plain and simple. I'm a Scotsman. In England they say 'call a spade a spade'. In Scotland we're even more plain-speaking, we say 'call a spade a f**king shovel'.

I call a crook a f**king crook.

Mike
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Mike, spoken like a true Scotsman . Couldn't have put it better myself. Thank you.


Jacek, I'm a fairly straight talking bloke. I'm rediculously patient as others this forum who know me will tell you. But like all people, I have my limits. In this situation I have been pushed there. I can honestly say , hand on heart, I have given Sergey every opportunity to put this right and he has refused. I even suggested he put this right so I could post and tell other potential clients that he had sorted it, he still refused,he even sent me one email that just said "looser" . I call that rubbing salt into wounds.

Incidentally, and only as you asked, no other reason. If you insulted me to my face. Very quickly and very quietly, I'd put you out. :yesnod:
 
im just writing something , so it stays hi on the new posts ..
i bought almost 20,000 sight unseen from australia , and did ok
but i was always a bit nervous sending money .. im so sorry
your trust turned into a nightmare
 
Nick Gardner said:
That all pretty much echos what I was trying to say. Also, just because he says he mailed it on such and such a day and it isn't stamped till weeks later doesn't mean it wasn't sent on the day in question. You are dealing with biblical level red tape and government employees who really do not care at all. That's what I mean when I say business culture is different there. Just because you mailed it doesn't mean it's going to arrive in any type of known time. I am currently waiting from a package in the Ukraine that "should have been here last week". The tracking numbers that the russian post puts on stuff don't relate to anything. They are meaningless. But that doesn't mean that they are fake. If you mail a package, they give you a number. It just isn't tracked.

As Jacek said, and I and others have said, you can't buy lenses from that part of the world and have western expectations about the shipping, the lenses, or anything else. Sergey will be the first to tell you he is not a lens tech. I am pretty sure he has never worked in the film industry. Always get lots of pictures and ask very very specific questions.

This isn't really aimed at you Robert, and again I am sorry for your situation, it's more for anyone thinking about buying lenses from the former soviet empire. Be they cookes or lomos.

I basically always asume that I am going to get a box full of moldy busted glass, and then I am pleasantly surprised when it turns out better.

Nick
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Nick this isn't just about tracking numbers. The lenses were never posted. When they eventually were posted, after weeks of searching again for him, they were Eventually traceable. I actually spoke to EMS in Russia, the parcel had not passed through their office. The paperwork that came on the parcel when it arrived was dated weeks after the original date I was told by Sergey , the dates weren't changed on the paperwork, they simply had not been posted, he had been blagging me the whole time, lying. This is nothing to do with beaurocracy , or red tape, it's just outright deciet on every level. Like many others, I buy large amounts of kit every year. From all over the world. The set of K35's that came from south Africa, were exactly as described, including the bad as well as good, but I was told about it before hand. I've bought glass from all over the world, every corner. Why should Russia be the exception?.why should we make allowances for this behaviuor because it's from Russia. This isn't about the country, it's about the individual. I'm sure you wouldn't send the amount of money i sent and be happy to expect a Box of mouldy old glass. I'm not unrealistic, if I send a couple of thousand quid for a lens I'm not expecting miracles.
In Russia, Sergey is registered as a dealer of optical equipment, he tells me he sells optics wholesale to china. It doesn't take a genius to turn the focus barrel on an optic and know that backlash is not acceptable, or look into the barrel and see oil every where, or dirt, or send the correct focus gear on the lens, or at least tell me it's there so we can discuss a price for that lens, but to lie,to tell me they are perfect, in-used prior, in pristine condition, well that's another matter, especially when ou are taking the sort of money that pays for the pleasure of receiving a pristine product. Dress it how you will, call it what you will. Mike hit the nail on the head "a crook is a crook" .
 
OptiTek said:
I rest my case
(sorry, couldn't resist):laugh:
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LOL...I knew what you were up to....i suppose i couldn't resist either.
 
I Think that this thread is becoming rather bogged down.
Some years ago I attended by invitation the Optical factory in St Petersberg where many different Optical products we use every day were being made. The work Standard was excellent and the final QA was as good as I have ever seen.
The names engraved on the products were unexpected and a surprise to me.
The companies at that time who were having products made in Russia were going to receive a superb product for selling onwards.
BUT that was not used equipment bought and sold onwards as new. It was New.
It is NOT IMHO enough to say "what do you expect fom Russia" . Thats far to big a generalisation.
It takes all sorts of opinions to make the world go around, but to say or imply that its Bobs fault for expecting a high degree of service that was promised and not delivered is just a very strange way of thinking.
Why argue against facts that are true. This is not a problem of bad reporting as in a Daily Newspaper . Its true, and so take heed and dont make excuses for a problem that has occurred many times previously.
If you are a Dealer and a problem occurrs it is normal to either, fix the problem, Offer to refund or work with the client to achieve satisfaction.
Bob has only received bad mouth with no offers or any recompense at all.
Good news is not worth a mention but Bad Dramatic news always hits the headlines and even when its true, Lberal minded people always jump to defend the impossible.
Enough Already!
Tony Covell
London.
 
Jacek, you're quite obviously provoking the situation here and getting some enjoyment out of it. If someone had screwed me over like this and acted in such a way, I'd also be pissed off too. And rightly so. So yeah, if someone like you came along and called me a princess and started bitching at me, I'd spark you out in an instant.

He's not bringing this to everyone's attention without reason. Sergey is a fraudster, hence the reason my bank here in Austria stopped me from sending funds for a lens.

So glad you spoke out Robert. Hopefully it will prevent this from happening to anyone else.
 
Richard_JP said:
I'd spark you out in an instant.
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Oh grow up already.:wink5:
I thanked Robert for this thread just as well. For the same reasons.
Again: Do not expect lenses from The Soviet Union to be up to par any conventional brand.
Provide enough (unspecified) time for shipping and for Gods sake- do not book jobs until you checked them and prepped OK.
The booking part bugs me- how many times was it mentioned?!!! On this board? with RDC products?
And be prepared to spend more upon receiving lenses for service (before you rent them out)
Negotiate the prices accordingly.
I feel like these guide lines have been discussed here plenty.
Robert, once again, thanks for starting this thread and sorry about your ordeal-that's why I don't do it...
 
I think this thread is way passed its sell date. There has been very good advice given here from people who deal in used equipment internationally all the time. Showboating and blowhard comments are hardly helpful to what is actually a pretty helpful set of information. In the end, Bob got his lenses and a useful (if painful) lesson. He got to rant about Sergy. Let it go.
Rob
 
I hate to say I told you so. But I did warn everyone about Sergey over a year ago. Search for my thread. I bought a whole set of round front anamorphics and when I paid him he wanted more money or I wasn't going to get the lenses.

I contacted westpac which is my local bank right away and showed them the emails and it took a month but I got my money back.
 
Adam Eden said:
I hate to say I told you so. But I did warn everyone about Sergey over a year ago. Search for my thread. I bought a whole set of round front anamorphics and when I paid him he wanted more money or I wasn't going to get the lenses.

I contacted westpac which is my local bank right away and showed them the emails and it took a month but I got my money back.
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Adam, i didn't know that. If that thread had been available somewhere i would have thought twice about doing business with him. I did search Sergeys name on reduser and didn't find that thread. There have been many people who have contacted me during this process, most of whom still remain anonymous for their own reasons. Some are still in a sticky situation either trying to get lenses sent from sergey or repaired.
 
Robert, I think you did a great service to everyone by speaking so openly about your experience. I'm glad to see you finally got the lenses, even though they weren't quite what you expected. Here's hoping they serve you well in the future and bring enough joy (and money) to compensate for all your troubles.

As for Sergey, it looks to me he either sold the "new" lenses to someone else or used photos of lenses in better condition to lure in buyers, and then spent a few weeks sourcing replacements at a much lower cost to himself. A crook, no matter how you slice it.

Jacek... dude, that was like taking a piss on a beaten man you found lying in a pool of his own blood. Not cool.
 
I've really been resisting posting on this thread, but the clear double standards are amazing!!!!

1) I feel for Bob, he got screwed by a person that was dishonest and rude.

2) People keep defending Sergey, when the facts clearly state that he lied. I understand defending a friend/business partner against false or unproven accusations, but if I had a friend lie about something and deceive someone in a business dealing? Sorry buddy, you're on your own. Bob seems to be a very methodical and fair guy. He is keeping quite the record of emails, phone calls and dealings, and is choosing to post a small portion of those on this forum partly to document it publicly so this guy can refute it, and to warn others.

3) There are folks screaming our about not grouping all Russian business/peoples under the surmise that they are unreliable/dishonest. But then they also say that this unreliable/dishonest attitude is expected from Russia!

4) The lenses in the photos need to be the ones shipped. No question. These clearly weren't. That is dishonesty defined. I even get miffed at people that offer used items for sale but post photos of the items from the manufacturers website. Its irritating. I want to see what I'm buying.

5) Bob has clearly made some risky decisions, and he paid for them. Lets not kick him when he's down. Maybe he shouldn't have booked the jobs before he got the lenses, that's his business decision. He paid for that decision by loosing the gig. Again, the loss of income as we all know is enough of a kick in the gut without someone else standing on the side lines shouting out "Told ya so!"

6) Sergey certainly has some questionable business practices, and can choose to run his dealings however he wants. If its wrong, it will catch up to him. Maybe that explains the multiple visits to the hospital after each sale :)

7) I agree that this thread has run its course, and while its been an interesting read, I suggest to let Bob lick his wounds, hope he can find more work for the lenses once they are fit to use. Bob has the right (some say the duty) to post this stuff out there where people can research and read about the positive and negative aspects of dealing with this guy, and make their own decisions. While I can't speak for him, Bob has most certainly made some decisions about who he will and won't buy from in the future, and I think its not limited to just Sergey. I have as well. There have been some enlightening posts recently that have made me question my own purchasing options for the future. And I must say that posting controversial, rude, provocative and somewhat ass-hole-ish remarks under one's own business user can have detrimental effects to the prospects of that company in dealings with potential customers. And you will certainly send your marketing person into vapor lock.

That's it, I'm done. I will continue to read along with interest, and I hope the best for Bob and his business. I sincerly hope the best for Sergey, in that he will do what he can to rectify his dealings. That being said, in response to the people that say "You can't have western expectations in dealing with businesses in Russia", I say from a business perspective, if you want to do business in the west, you need to make sure you are up to "western expectations". Or that business will go elsewhere.

Cheers!
 
You are obviously missing my point completely. That's fine, maybe here in Hollywood the perspective on things is different.
Go ahead and expect every obscure seller from God knows where to give you Amazon service. You are going to be surprised, again and again.
Every set of lomos from the Soviet Union is like that, steady flow for 5 or so years now, why the drama all of the sudden?
OK I'm done, my apologies to the ones that I upset, albeit did not mean to.
Peace....
 
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