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[SOLD] Weaver Steadman 2-axis Fluid Head

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kirk_fraser

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I am selling my Weaver Steadman 2-axis fluid head. Can be mounted upright or in underslung position for ultimate flexibility. It has cosmetic wear, but in great working condition. Selling for $2,500 with case included.
 

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****Fellow Redusers Buyer beware!!!****

Kirk sold me a lens full of fungus and crap I can't even describe. Bernie over at Super 16 Inc. took care of me, but I have spent nearly $1,000 trying to bring the lens back to spec. I NEVER would have tried to get the lens fixed at an additional cost but this guy sweet talked me into it over the phone, saying he was going to pay for all the servicing costs, shipping, etc. He is real buddy buddy until it's time to pay for the servicing costs. Like a fool I believed him.... anyways it has been a hellish nightmare dealing with him.

I would avoid buying from him like the plague!!!!!!!! I hope this keeps another well standing Reduser member from being played by this guy. We need to out all of these scammers. Kirk Fraser of May 3rd Films certainly played me like a fool.
 
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Hey guys, I'm pretty sure I have done business with both of you in the past and you both seem like great people. It pains me to see a dispute between two people that I know. Whatever dispute you guys have, try to find some common ground here and resolve your differences because I know both of you care about preserving reputations. If there's anything I can do to help, please don't hesitate to contact me. jason@CinemaOxide.com
 
At this point I'm just looking for him to cover half on the lens service cost. I still hope we can get this done and put behind both of us.
 
@Adam Johnson, if your going to post anything. Please post the truth. Correct, I sold you a lens, that needed service, as all lens do. Obvious you haven't been in the business as long as I have. All lens needs to be service after awhile. I sold you a Cooke Lens 20-100mm. As I told you I haven't used the lens in over six years. I sold it to you for $3,500. The lens is worth a whole lot more then $3,500. Any one in the film industry knows that all lens needs to be service. Let's remember the only thing you did was service the lens, NO REPAIRS, just SERVICE. Please pull your dress up and act like a man. 120 character online. @Jason, yes we've done business together and thank you for your kind words, but just like everything else in the world we do have Bitches out there too. @Adams Don't buy things you can't afford to service. Check my resume then come correct.
 
HERE IS THE PURE TRUTH. And I have all the emails and text messages to backup it up.


I purchased a Cooke 20-100 lens from you based on your personal testimonial via email that the lens was in “top condition” as stated to me in email. Here is what you said in two different emails to me after I inquired about the condition of the lens before purchasing it from you: “…Lens is super clean and there's no scratches on glass”. “…Also it's in top condition, there's no fungus or dust. It's clean and well kept in service. Everything moves smoothly, Iris, focus, and zoom”.

So based on your advertised claims, I purchased this lens with the full expectation of receiving a Cooke 20-100 lens in “top condition” and ready for production work; and as a result I sold all of my prime lenses to pay for the Cooke 20-100. As you know I received the lens and it was not as described. In actuality it was in extremely poor shape and in unusable condition. I have all the emails, texts, and images to backup my claims. This is the TRUTH bud.

We communicated back and forth for several days. I had to prove to you that the lens was in fact loaded with internal fungus, dust, and other junk. Eventually, you came to the realization that not only was this lens in bad shape but that another Cooke 20-100 lens that you owned and stored in the same dark closet was the culprit for infecting this lens. You never once told me that it was being stored in a dark closet for 7 years until AFTER I paid you $3,600 AND sent you pictures of the internal fungus and other junk.

Eventually, we talked over the phone and you suggested that we go ahead and send it in to a professional cinema lens technician to see if it can be repaired and saved from the fungus. During our conversation you assured me that you would cover the repair costs if the lens could be fixed and brought back to life.

You asked how much it would cost to get the lens serviced and I told you the quote I received said that it could cost up to $800. Which was by far the best price I was quoted. After reviewing the assortment of images and detailed descriptions, most lens technicians I spoke to gave me the same response; the internal fungus may have permanently damaged the lens. Either way, it will take a lot of costly work hours to totally disassemble the lens, clean it, disinfect, collimate, lubricate, etc. The other quotes ranged from $1,500 on up.

Moreover, after talking it over on the phone with you, you agreed and encouraged me that we should try and save the lens. You said we should give it a shot and see if Bernie at Super 16, Inc. can fix the lens. You said you would cover all the repair costs and shipping throughout the process.

So as agreed upon between both of us over the phone, I sent the lens in for repair to renowned industry lens expert, Bernie O’Doherty, Super 16, Inc.

The day I shipped the lens with UPS I informed you via text message that the lens had been shipped and the total cost for shipping the lens through UPS. Since you originally agreed to pay for all the repair and shipping expenses involved, I wanted to make sure you knew the amount owed to me for shipping the lens to the lens technician. So, I asked if you could refund me the shipping charge and you said via text message: “lets just add all the total together.” And so again I trusted that statement as it made the most sense to me as well.

It was a two-week process to ship the lens to Super 16, Inc. and for Bernie to get a chance to disassemble the lens and to take a look at the delicate optical elements inside the lens to see if it could even be cleaned and fixed.

After disassembling the lens, Bernie called me and assured me he could in fact totally fix the lens and get rid of all the fungus, but it was going to cost a little bit more than his original ceiling quote of $800.

He said it would cost $875 instead of the initial quote he gave me as there was quite a bit wrong with the lens; it had to be completely disassembled, optics thoroughly cleaned, rebuilt, collimated, and greased back to spec. In Bernie’s own Irish words: “this lens is totally fucked up!” Bernie informed me that the condition of the lens was far worse than what he had imagined and that it was going to cost a little more than his original estimate for the cost of repairs. So that is why the total repair costs increased to $875 as opposed to $800. In addition, the total round-trip shipping charges were approximately another $100. I have those receipts on file as well as the invoice from Super 16, Inc. that I sent you.

Once again, our agreement was to get the lens repaired based on the original estimate of repairs costing up to $800 in total repairs. Since you highly encouraged me to go ahead and get it serviced by Super 16, Inc. based on the original quote of $800, I was confident you were going to cover up to $800 and the shipping charges as discussed.

When I informed you of the total amount owed you said you would only be willing to cover half. I have this all in text messages from you. That was after our agreement and after the lens was already serviced and being shipped back to me. We went back and forth via text message about you not wanting to pay the total amount. You said you could do $600, but not $800. I was not satisfied with that because $800 was the agreed to maximum amount. Eventually, you said before committing to refunding me the $800 you wanted to see an invoice from Super 16, Inc. As requested by you, I sent you the invoice from Super 16, Inc. on several occasions to confirm the total costs of the lens servicing.

I have spent a significant amount of my time and resources to get the lens repaired. None of this would have been necessary if the lens had been in “top condition” that you claimed it was in when I was trying to decide to purchase the lens in the first place. Obviously, if I had known that the lens was in fact in extremely poor shape optically I never would have purchased it to begin with at the $3,500 + $100 for shipping, as I do not have the luxury of being able to afford fixing up a lens. You are right, standard servicing is one thing. But this was FAR FROM THAT!!!

I fulfilled my purchase obligation based on the expectations of receiving a lens in the condition you described to me via email “…Lens is super clean and there's no scratches on glass”. “…Also it's in top condition, there's no fungus or dust. It's clean and well kept in service. Everything moves smoothly, Iris, focus, and zoom”. Then I entrusted you that you would in fact pay for the servicing of the lens after telling me you would over the phone, you even encourage it again in text message.
Whether you like to hear it or not this is dishonest and BAD business on your part. In addition, this whole ordeal has created a significant hardship on me. You may have that luxury with your IMDB track record, and that’s great. But I am not at that “level” yet. It takes a lot to make an honest living in this industry and that goes with buying/ selling gear. I NEVER expected this kind of mess from an individual with your filmmaking track record. I figured this would be a smooth transaction for the both of us.

I have been extremely patient in waiting for you to make this as we agreed, right. Attempting to communicate with you over the past two months has been a struggle to say the least. I understand you are extremely busy traveling and working. But it shouldn’t take this long to settle a financial agreement with me. I have waited on numerous occasions for you to uphold conference calls with me, not only were you late, but you never attended any of them after committing to them. In each case you told me that you were in meetings and needed “a few.” That is totally understandable and respectful, but at the very least you could have let me know that you would be unable to commit or needed to cancel due to work obligations. Instead, you simply neglected me for the remained of the evening and into the next day. It wasn’t until I asked what had happened and when we could talk that you would reply…then the whole process started over again. When I did get a hold of you it was full of vulgar language and telling me that everything needs to be serviced. Well, why in the first place did you even tell me that the lens was already serviced and had nothing wrong with it!?!?!?!

If you are not being fraudulent and dishonest in your claims with this product you sold me then I am sure you will want to immediately make this right and come to a settlement on the servicing cost with me. I am willing to accept half of the damn servicing cost now. That is like $450. That is fair as hell if you ask me.

If I am one of these “bitches” out there for being upset about this transaction and the way it was handled by you then I guess most people are bitches then because NO ONE should stand for this kind of business transaction. Not cool man…stay classy though.
 
@Adam please pull your dress up!
 
Adam,
I'm not supporting anyone here.. but just sharing a very common story.

I bought a lens from ARRI MEDIA London.. They said it was serviced, clean etc etc etc... But when it arrived, it needed a service, and it had fungus in it. :( We had to service it and it cost over $1500 for the job. We copped it on the chin as we paid about 3000 under market expectations...

But the fact was that I was purchasing a 20+ year old well used lens. it was never going to be perfect and it was silly of me to think it was going to be.
6 years on, i sold the lens. (only because we bought a newer ,better more expensive version)

Anyways .. i sold it as is, it may have needed a service, it may have regrown fungus... ??? had know idea. I was selling it cheap and it was still working perfectly for me.

So what happen was, i sold the lens on, ( I even shot multiple test shots for the new purchaser exactly as he requested ) he was happy with the image quality.. yet a week after he received it, he emailed me a horrid very rude letter, stating he was going to sue me, wanted his money back, said the lens was shit, called me a few names, anyway it all got very silly.... Stupid thing was, I just finished a 1/2 million dollar car commercial using it for a majority of shots and it was pin sharp, smooth and didn't miss a beat. ?? So to this day, I'm still unsure what he expected for the money he paid. ? And this is the big question. Was he expecting the quality of a $60k brand new late model version? from a 8K 26 year old lens? .. I think he did.

So to keep this story short... You shouldn't hold huge expectations from an old lens. Most of these old bottles have had their day, some fair better the others...some don't. But at the end of the day most of these are old and well used bottles, never ever had great coatings on them, most have never been serviced as much as they should, most have been working hard for over 2 decades or more, you have know idea of its history... and at $3500 dollars for a 20 year old lens thats seen many days in the field.. is ok buying. So don't think you have been ripped off.
I sold one of my 18 to 100 cooke classics for $15,000 and it was great condition.... perfect condition... (for an old lens) $3500 is 1/5th the price, meanin you may end up with 1/5 the quality? unsure how you measure it.


Anyways... Similar story to yours...
So I suggest you clean the lens up, use it for a few years, try to make your money back on it as we did (which you should do) and move it on for a $2500 dollars 5 years from now... and you wont have lost a cent. Pretty simple.

Chin up mate.

Move forward. :)
 
Hi Mark,

Thanks for chiming in. I totally see your side and Kirks. But the main issue is this: It was advertised to me as being fungus and dust free, serviced, and in top condition. Those are his words, not my expectations...until I read that. If he was selling the lens in "As-IS condition" and "OK shape" then I wouldn't be expecting it to be in "top condition" lol. Thats where the immediate dishonesty and frustraiton started. Our first conversation over the phone was great. Kirk seemed like he wanted to make things right. He told me he honestly had no idea that stuff was in there and he was sorry. He said lets send it to Bernie and bring the lens back to life. He assured me that he would cover the costs. I told him it could cost up to $800 to get serviced, etc. He still insisted we go that route. Anyways I trusted his word and judgement.

Two and a half weeks later I received the lens back clean as a whistle after Bernie did his magic. I asked Kirk if I could get reimbursed now for the servicing costs and he only wanted to cover half of it. That frustrated me because I thought we had a clear agreement and I felt like he was tyring to stick me with the bill. Anyways, lots of back and forth for 2 months and still no resolution.

Like I said, and this point I am only looking for him to cover half which he originally offered. If he did that I would let bygones be bygones....
 
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Kirk, if he has all this proof, why is your only defense to call him a "bitch" and to "pull his dress up?" Why not just do the right thing to rectify the situation? Stick up for what you say and at least cover half of the repair. Your resume means nothing when selling gear and misrepresenting it. Honestly, it makes you look bad and unprofessional. Maybe you honestly didn't know what fungus looked like and didn't see it. Okay cool, but it's there and was verified by a lens tech. All I'm saying is do the right thing to resolve the situation rather than resort to name calling. Because honestly it makes you look bad and I'm sure your really a good guy. What you do here to rectify the situation will show your true character and your professionalism.

I hope you guys can get this taken care of in a reasonable time frame. Call it what it is, but it needs to be handled respectfully. What's $450 compared to a scarred reputation? Is it worth it? Man up and do the right thing and follow through with what you say or your word means nothing.
 
Thanks Ryan - couldn't have said it any better than that! You are a true gentlemen sir :-)

Kirk - All I'm asking is for you to cover half ($450). No more going back or forth. You do that and we are square mate. Plain and simple
 
I'm still trying to work out what Kirk's resume has to do with all this. is he under the impression that only inexperienced film makers wander Reduser?

As for the dispute, I feel bad for Adam, and totally agree with Mark. I cannot say I would never purchase from Kirk based on the misunderstanding, but the "pull up your dress" comment did a fine job of making sure I never buy from him.

The smart move here would have been to throw Adam a little coin to keep him quiet and them simply not sell to him again.

Either way looks like no one wins in this situation. That's too bad
 
@Adam Johnson, if your going to post anything. Please post the truth. Correct, I sold you a lens, that needed service, as all lens do. Obvious you haven't been in the business as long as I have. All lens needs to be service after awhile. I sold you a Cooke Lens 20-100mm. As I told you I haven't used the lens in over six years. I sold it to you for $3,500. The lens is worth a whole lot more then $3,500. Any one in the film industry knows that all lens needs to be service. Let's remember the only thing you did was service the lens, NO REPAIRS, just SERVICE. Please pull your dress up and act like a man. 120 character online. @Jason, yes we've done business together and thank you for your kind words, but just like everything else in the world we do have Bitches out there too. @Adams Don't buy things you can't afford to service. Check my resume then come correct.

WOW You really are an arrogant jerk. I would never buy anything from you. And yes, and I am a very experienced film professional, and we buy about $50 000 a year of gear. Old Jewish proverb: Best way to punish a jerk is let him go bankrupt, alone. That's what I and anyone who reads this will do, I think.
 
Rob - We may disagree on camera technology at times, but you nailed it with that statement!

Life is way to short to deal with these type of people. My advice is keep your eyes pealed and if it seems to good to be true it probably is! And if you ever get scammed on here definitely warn us. The worst thing you can do is not speak up. Thanks guy's for the support, but I think we can finally turn the page on this bad read :)
 
Rob - We may disagree on camera technology at times, but you nailed it with that statement!

Life is way to short to deal with these type of people. My advice is keep your eyes pealed and if it seems to good to be true it probably is! And if you ever get scammed on here definitely warn us. The worst thing you can do is not speak up. Thanks guy's for the support, but I think we can finally turn the page on this bad read :)

Looks like Kirk was eventually banned from Reduser, so I guess the mods weighed in definitively on his behavior.
 
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