Adam Pritchard
44 posts
Dec 20, 2014
5:06 AM
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Firstly, may I wish everyone on this forum a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Secondly I apologise in advance to the forum moderators if this post is frowned upon, however I can no longer, in good conscience, remain silent about the custom harp case builder Slim’s Custom Cases and feel I need to speak out to prevent others being duped by this guy.
At one time, I’ve no doubt Slim (aka Christian Adam Jackson) was an honest guy trying to make a living by building quality custom harp cases. There are many high profile players and members of this forum who have posted videos or messages endorsing him and his products, and it was these endorsements that gave me the confidence to trust Slim and pay him £240 for a custom case order back in June this year. I wouldn’t normally consider paying such a ridiculous amount of money for a harp case, however my wife wanted to get me something special for my Birthday and persuaded me to treat myself.
At the time of order, and still on his website today, Slim was advertising build times of up to 60 days. So I waited patiently for the 60 days to pass before making contact to politely enquire when my case would be ready. Since that day I have contacted Slim on numerous occasions by e-mail or phone and on each occasion Slim has made up excuses as to why my case was not ready: “yours is in the next batch I’m about to start”, “I’ve been sanding cases down tonight”, “My girlfriend’s been very ill” etc. (By the way Slim, I’m sorry your girlfriend has been ill and I hope she’s now feeling better).
Eventually Slim ran out of excuses and it has now become apparent that there’s simply not enough money in custom harp cases for him so he’s not going to build any more until, in his words “we see a steady stream of sales coming in”.
At this point I asked for a full refund, as having paid up front I’m not willing to wait indefinitely for enough guys like me to part with their hard earned cash before Slim is prepared to honour his commitment to his customers. Slim of course has not refunded me and now ignores my attempts at further contact.
I have been prepared to give this guy the benefit of the doubt throughout this sorry episode as I know how hard it can be for a start up to get things going. However, I’m sorry to say that for whatever reason, Slim’s Custom Cases is still open for business and taking people’s money with no apparent intention of honouring the orders placed.
To those of you who have posted videos or messages endorsing Slim’s Custom Cases, I implore you to take these offline. You are unwittingly supporting a guy who is essentially stealing from other community members like myself who placed orders in good faith on the back of those endorsements and recommendations.
For those looking for a custom harp case, I recommend you look elsewhere.
Last Edited by Adam Pritchard on Dec 20, 2014 5:07 AM
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poitouharpin
14 posts
Dec 20, 2014
9:11 AM
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Firstly may I reiterate Adam's comments and wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year whatever your traditions permit.
I too, like Adam came unstuck when dealing with this trader. I sincerely hope that this thread is permitted to continue and not blocked by the moderators as mine was. I tried to inform the harp community in early September but was censored. Some months later Slim is still taking monies under false pretences and many of his customers have come forward having paid substantial amounts of money up front without receiving either the goods or a full refund. Adam, and others, are at best being ignored, at worst they are receiving abusive and insulting emails.
In the UK, taking orders to support previous clients/orders is an illegal practice and known as "trading whilst insolvent". If the trader is subsequently made bankrupt either by a voluntary agreement or by the courts enforcing an application from a third party then the penalties are likely to be greater in these circumstances. If you have a complaint against a UK based trader then make your complaint to the Trading Standards Authority via the Citizens Advise Bureau. Herewith the link to their online complaint form.
https://ssl.datamotion.com/form.aspx?co=3438&frm=citacomplainform&to=flare.fromforms
If you are waiting for a case from Slims Custom Cases you will see from his web site that he is now pushing his guitar case products. For those of you who have endorsed Mr Jackson's products, I too, implore you to reconsider your recommendation and what affect this may have on your own reputation.
As Adam P says above this may break forum rules and for this I apologise. I have been fighting for a refund for a year. PEOPLE NEED TO KNOW THE TRUTH!
Tim
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zackattack
8 posts
Dec 20, 2014
7:16 PM
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I will also add my voice to this thread, having now waited ten months in vain for the case I paid for from this crook. He has now sworn that he won't make the case I paid for because I am "blackmailing" him by posting updates to my wait for a case! While it appears that my money, and others money, has been irretrievably lost, at least we can warn others of Slim's illegal, unethical and immoral business practices to limit the damage the the musicians community.
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RippinRonny
4 posts
Dec 20, 2014
7:45 PM
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Hey guys I'm fairly new here and didn't mean to go out of bounds on forum protocol but when I asked about the cases made by Slim I really didn't know or expect this response. I have to say that I'm pretty cautious when ordering product on line and luckily I've never been burned but if not for this forum and my inquiry I would definitely have become a victim because I was very close to ordering a case from this guy. I really appreciate the candid replies and feel there is nothing wrong with this harp community helping each other out since I would like to believe that we are here to advance the harp experience and joy of playing. Thanks again and Merry Christmas.
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PropMan
30 posts
Dec 20, 2014
9:19 PM
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I've been waiting since May. My last contact was 4 weeks ago when he said he might build me a case one day but not in the near future. $250 down the drain .
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2plankr
70 posts
Dec 20, 2014
9:53 PM
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Looks like poituharpin was right all along. Thank you. I was very close to ordering a case from Slim but thanks to your tip I will look for another dealer. Sorry you had to deal with the personal attacks but I am very glad you persevered. If it wasn't for you many more of us would be victim's of this dubious dealer. You deserve an apology from those who attacked and censored you.
Last Edited by 2plankr on Dec 20, 2014 10:15 PM
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jbone
1837 posts
Dec 21, 2014
6:03 AM
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Gip that can be sticky because of locations. If a guy in one state does fraud on people in other states it's hard to get and action in a given state. If the fraud isn't worth a lot of $$ fed agencies probably won't look to hard either.
Take a look at the B Radical fiasco a few years ago for some insight. In that instance I myself willingly fronted $200 to a guy who never delivered and has sunk out of sight, having got away with a lot of $$ from fools like me.
My best suggestion if you have sent Slim money is, LEARN FROM YOUR MISTAKE. I will not front money again unless it's a reputable dealer like Rockin' Ron or Greg Heuman. In those instances the vendors are well known and I have good results.
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http://www.reverbnation.com/jawboneandjolene
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000386839482
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbTwvU-EN1Q
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Gipsy
119 posts
Dec 21, 2014
7:27 AM
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@jbone. I so agree with your point about being careful in choosing your supplier. I'm thinking that those peeps who have lost out to this guy placed a great deal of trust in the positive feedback received by this supplier prior to the current car crash situation, and that's why they are asking for the positive reviews to be removed/edited.
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zackattack
9 posts
Dec 21, 2014
9:53 AM
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You are right, Gipsy. Jason Ricci's review convinced me to purchase a case from Slim. Nice photos and reviews on Slim's website sealed the deal.
Some of us dissatisfied customers have been in contact with each other and have all been treated similarly by Slim. The troubling thing is that it seems as though he intends to simply shift his customer base over to guitarists and keep operating in the same manner as he currently is.
Attempts to initiate some kind of criminal or legal action are very difficult when a vendor is outside the U.S. and the customer is inside.
It is reassuring to hear from some posters that they were alerted in time to avoid my mistake.
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Adam Pritchard
45 posts
Dec 21, 2014
12:59 PM
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@zackattack. Exactly my point. We were all encouraged to put our trust in Slim as a result of the positive reviews from other harp players both on this forum and in video reviews on YouTube and his website.
Whatever great service he provided his customers in the past, I'm sure if those guys knew that Slim was now taking money off people under false pretences (i.e. with no intention of delivering their cases) then they would feel compelled to remove their reviews and endorsements.
Not only is Christian Adam Jackson stealing other people's money, he is also doing an injustice to any honest guys trying to start up a harp based business by sowing seeds of mistrust in what is a relatively small community. I hope everyone will join in condemning Slim's illegal and immoral actions, and I for one will do my damnedest to make sure no one else throws their hard earned cash away on a Slim's Custom Case!
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nacoran
8171 posts
Dec 21, 2014
1:14 PM
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poitouharpin, you were allowed to speak your piece, and CAJ was allowed to say his peace. The reason we told you to stop posting about it was because you kept bringing it up over and over. We aren't jurists here, or detectives. We don't have the resources to investigate claims to see who is telling the truth. Since we can't verify the claims one way or the other all we can do is let both sides have their say and let people decide for themselves. At the same time, if it turns into a bickering match we have to issue warnings. Like I said, we don't have the resources to be detectives, so we can't know for sure who is telling the truth. We are therefore left with the job of letting people know there is a dispute without turning the forum into a battleground.
You were allowed to have your say, and in the context of someone else making a complaint, it's fine for you to say, 'Hey, yeah, I had a problem to, here is the link to the thread'. It was explained to you then why the thread was locked.
Guys, there will be times when people have bad transactions, and if you have a bad experience with a vendor, it is, after you've tried dealing with it with the vendor directly, okay to give your side of the story here. If the vendor is a member they are allowed to post their side. That's it though. Other people can weigh in with their experiences. It is not alright though to continue the argument on the forum. That serves no useful purpose.
poitouharpin, you have 14 posts. How many of those have been about this? There is a difference between trying to warn people and trying to get even. One is allowed, the other is not. Keep that in mind.
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Nate
Facebook
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First Post- May 8, 2009
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SuperBee
2292 posts
Dec 21, 2014
1:31 PM
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i dont understand why you would single poitou out, nate. poitou has posted one time in this thread, understandably enough as backing up the OP. another time he posted some contact info to help others who may be in the same boat...as there clearly are others. on one other occasion he asked to be allowed say more in response to caj, and permission was denied. iirc, he took that rather well. he was paid out on by a couple other members...quite uncivilly and in breach of forum creed. other members have supplied stories of very similiar experiences, and yet no one has told them to stop whining and suggested they be removed from the forum.
this whole thing is pretty distasteful. if it was untrue, defamation action would likely be casting a big shadow right now...caj has lots of people vouching for him...but there are 5 members here i think who have mentioned bad results...
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poitouharpin
15 posts
Dec 21, 2014
1:49 PM
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I would just like to say many thanks to all of those who have supported me and I am sorry that there are more people who have been duped by this trader.
I have told nothing but the truth and simply tried to prevent others from losing hard earned cash. It appears that there are those who just don't want to hear both sides.
@nacoran I think you misunderstood the link because it does not take you back to my previous post!
Tim
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nacoran
8172 posts
Dec 21, 2014
2:53 PM
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SuperBee, I was just addressing the issue of censorship. Poitouharpin was allowed to post but we eventually locked the thread and told to drop the issue, at which point he immediately started another thread on the same topic.
That said, this is a new thread, Poitouharpin, I don't have a problem with you participating. I think it's important to share customer experiences. Taking one by one they don't mean much, but taken together they gather weight. I just wanted to make it clear why we shut down the previous thread so everyone knows the parameters.
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Nate
Facebook
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First Post- May 8, 2009
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Gnarly
1191 posts
Dec 22, 2014
7:13 AM
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This reminds me of the old saw about a life of crime--it's not that there is no money in it, it's that there are lots of easier ways to get money.
Not too many harmonica guys on Shark Tank--
I am sorry to hear that Slim is having trouble fulfilling his obligations, and hope things clear up for him.
Good luck to him, and the customers who depend upon his services!
"Good name in man and woman, dear my lord,
Is the immediate jewel of their souls.
Who steals my purse steals trash; 'tis something, nothing;
'Twas mine, 'tis his, and has been slave to thousands;
But he that filches from me my good name
Robs me of that which not enriches him,
And makes me poor indeed."
Last Edited by Gnarly on Dec 22, 2014 7:14 AM
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florida-trader
580 posts
Dec 22, 2014
8:29 AM
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I have had no dealings with Slim nor have I ever recommended him or his cases. From that perspective I am far removed from this specific conversation. However, as it relates to vendors in general, it is something that is relevant to me and anyone else who offers products or services on this forum.
I’ve been hanging out on the various harmonica related websites for about five or six years. In that time I can personally recall 8 or 10 instances of some vendor accepting advance payment and then failing to deliver the product. The most famous of them, of course, is Harrison Harmonicas. But other than Harrison, let’s face it – the aftermarket harmonica business is very much a cottage industry. We can come with nice little names like Blue Moon Harmonicas or 1623 Custom Harmonicas but the fact is you’re not dealing with a huge corporation. You’re dealing with an individual who, for whatever reason, has decided to get into a harmonica related business. And very few of these individuals are engaged in the harmonica business as a full time profession. We know guys like Joe Spiers, Richard Sleigh, Joe Filisko, Sugar Cain and a few others are full time guys. But for the rest of us, our harp business is a sideline business that is an expression of our passion for the harmonica and enables us to pick up a little extra cash. The harmonica business is not a huge money maker for us part-timers. Personal money and harmonica business money are often co-mingled. So whenever you have vendor-gone-bad, it is pretty easy to figure out what happened. A customer sends; let’s say $500, to a “customizer” for 2 or 3 harps. Unfortunately, at that particular moment in time, the “customizer” is a little short on cash and has some bills to pay – electric bill, car payment, insurance – whatever. He’s just trying to keep afloat. So the $500 is misdirected. Perhaps he has “borrowed” a customer’s money away from the business before and gotten away with it when he was able to “catch up”. This only encourages him to do it again. But then things turn south and there is no catching up. The hole gets deeper and there is no way out. I think that’s a pretty fair assessment of what has happened in most cases. And to be fair, you can have a certain amount of sympathy for guys when this happens – unless you are one of the victims.
(By the way, for the record, in "real life" I am a Registered Rep. I sell securities and insurance. That being so, I am required to fully disclose all sources of income to my Borker/Dealer. So Blue Moon is set up as an LLC and I do file a tax return for the business.)
In the case of Slim, apparently, if he is still accepting orders and blatantly not delivering orders for which he has been paid – that’s a different story. You cross the boundary from an unfortunate chain of events to an intentional act of theft.
The OP, in my opinion, nailed when he said:
“To those of you who have posted videos or messages endorsing Slim’s Custom Cases, I implore you to take these offline. You are unwittingly supporting a guy who is essentially stealing from other community members like myself who placed orders in good faith on the back of those endorsements and recommendations.”
Notice that there is no bitterness in these words. It is a Public Service Announcement.
Looking at the big picture, this forum is arguably the biggest and best harmonica forum on the web. As active participants we are able to tap in to cutting edge information. We get the latest on music, equipment, news, maintenance and repair, tips and tricks, etc. etc. etc. There is a wealth of information available to us – not to mention an all-star cast of world class talent that regularly contributes to the content. I read posts on Facebook all the time that can only be considered “old news” to me because it was something that was dissected on MBH months or years ago. When Slim was doing his thing and actually delivering cases – he was a hot ticket and there were a lot of positive reviews on this forum. Now that things have changed, once again, we are, more or less, the first to know.
Conclusion. I think is totally appropriate to call someone out on this forum if they fail to deliver a product or service and compound the problem by refusing to communicate. The moment you choose to accept money in exchange for goods or services you become fair game. Do a good job and people will spread the word and help you build your business. Do a poor job and these same people will help destroy you. It is the Free Market System and Capitalism at its best. I’m sorry to hear about anyone getting ripped off. I’m sorry that it is a sensitive subject that is sort of off topic from what we would really like to talk about. But we are a community that has a duty to look out for each other. I think it is fair to say that anyone who has been following this forum for any length of time has benefitted immensely. I know I have. I am more knowledgeable about every facet of the harmonica – building them, playing them, microphones, effect pedals, amps, etc. etc. as a direct result of being a part of this forum. For that I am grateful. If we have to air a little dirty laundry along the way, as unpleasant as it may seem that is a benefit to us as well.
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Tom Halchak
www.BlueMoonHarmonicas.com
Last Edited by florida-trader on Dec 22, 2014 8:38 AM
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KC69
418 posts
Dec 22, 2014
8:59 AM
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Well said Tom !!! Thanks for your prudently spoken words !!!
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And I Thank You !!
KCz
Backwoodz
Bluz
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zackattack
10 posts
Dec 22, 2014
10:51 AM
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nacoran, please allow me to respond. I think that the reason that this thread has persisted is because the vendor, at least until now, has continued to tell us that the case is "in progress" or "being sanded" or "almost ready to ship." Had he just told us all that he spent our payment and couldn't build the cases it might have died out after a few posts.
To be fair, each of us still awaiting delivery would be happy to announce to members that we had received our case and to report on its quality, etc. I have told CAJ that I would be willing to do that several months ago, hoping it might spur the delivery of my case. It didn't.
Since the vendor has recently told me directly in a Facebook message that, "You are never going to get a case from me, you...," It would be irresponsible of me to not warn my fellow posters that this could happen to them. I would feel horrible reading additional posts of others who were also duped had I not posted my experience.
This is a thread that none of us is comfortable with and, if the vendor were not still taking orders from others while not delivering to paid customers, this thread would not be necessary.
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Moon Cat
477 posts
Dec 22, 2014
2:46 PM
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Hey everyone: I actually came here today to post on this subject and unfortunately, really not to much surprise, found this thread already in progress.
History: Slim contacted me a couple of years back with an offer and suggested an endorsement deal (free case for videos, use and plugs etc). A bunch of my friends already had them and they were pretty rad so I agreed. My pleasant experience at that time was the same as everyone else I knew: Fast, great communication and a finished, excellent product. So it seemed like a fine idea to help the little guy out and get a great, individualized case which I will always love and it was for a while all those things. Around the time, a few months ago, when people first started complaining my immediate instinct was to defend Slim based upon my own personal experience and the little bit I knew from him surrounding a series of unfortunate events that had happened to him and those closest to him. So I did. I too though after that, was really unable to get much contact from Slim. Being no stranger to sudden hard times/bad luck and trouble, I wanted still, to give Slim a chance to pull out of it as so many of my family, friends, employers and some of you did with me. I tried to Skype and chat with Slim through Facebook and BEGGED him only to COMMUNICATE with all of you. I told him if he ever wanted to just talk, that I knew a few things about some of what he was dealing with and could be a good ear, NOT a beacon of advice or any of that BS….I had a very brief communication with Slim right after the first posting/defense on this board and some on Facebook but he hasn't yet written back pertaining to the issues at hand or skyped me I am sorry to report. I have heard from his wife once and she basically confirmed all the unfortunate and real problems but not many solutions other than "everyone will get their cases".
At this point I HAVE taken the youtube promo video/endorsement down AND the link to slim on my website is down until I know Slim has fixed this issue with ALL of you. I have received as many emails as there are posts here or more all saying the same thing as all of you all have. I have responded to every single one of them to my knowledge. There is no reason until this is straightened out for me or anyone else to be involved with this vendor. Slim IS a great guy, really... I had a few fairly profound conversations with him over the years outside of music etc… I like him, his wife and this very post pains me to make. I do think these cases are worth waiting for and I do think it's possible he may finish them, the problem is I don't really know and more seriously he hasn't told me anything. THERE IS REASON TO WORRY from where sit. I do truly know this was NEVER his intention and was NEVER a "scam" but none of that matters to the consumer (AND SHOULDN'T) who does not receive their product. I very sincerely sorry and feel somewhat responsible here obviously.
I have always tried to support small business, my whole life. Even as a child I never flocked to brand names and valued character and unique creations somehow more than hype, brand names and trends. I don't know why…My brother is the opposite... Often supporting smaller business is a good stance. The community prospers, we receive hand made quality value products and the bigger companies take note and actually improve their products or team up with the little guy as a direct result of the influence of these smaller businesses Obvious examples in our own market include people like: Joe Spiers, Filisko, Brendan, Sleigh etc.. AWESOME. Unfortunately There are always risks when dealing with smaller, newer, less financially sound and PROVEN individuals or institutions.
MOST of you that ordered Harrison Harmonicas know of small business disappointments and pitfalls all too well and most of you know I was THE partner in that company with Brad the first few years. That decision was made because I wanted, like Brad, to help make the best ever diatonic harmonicas. I wanted to play an instrument that I cold say was the SAME as the one you bought. We wanted this simple thing together... Not a customized, hard to acquire, hot rodded, boutique harp with a waiting period and/or a clique involved. From the companies inception Brad and I tried HARD and we had our differences surrounding how we wanted to make it happen. Everything from the reed profiles, to the material, to the shapes and biggest of all: WHERE we would make them was argued, experimented with and tried at GREAT cost to me and MOSTLY Brad. I left... Thankfully before things got bad or when the first "pre-order" option was posted. What I lost (money,time,reputation, hope) far exceeds the losses ever felt by any simple customer but that doesn't begin to lessen the responsibility I STILL feel for every lost purchase to any customer and this is not in any means an excuse and I still have very present resentments towards Brad and the company and how how Harrison went down. The reason I left H.H. was simple: I had early doubts we were going to be able to make all the keys we had said or even ONE and I didn't yet have a single working Harrison Harmonica at the same time I was pushing them. Making these in the USA seemed impossible to me and STILL do unfortunately. Watching that company fail with or without me was one of the greatest disappointments of my life and is the primary reason today I will NEVER again be part of a start up or small harmonica company. Suzuki, the company I turned down years ago to work with makes amazing instruments and has the money, technology, market research, intelligence, man power and history to continue doing so. I am very happy and fortunate to now be experiencing a second chance with Suzuki Harmonicas. I am thankful I got out of Harrison Harmonicas the before bad things happened with Brad and all of you. I will say like Slim, Brad ALSO NEVER MEANT for this to happen and had nothing INITIALLY (while I was there) but the BEST of intentions for all of us. I am bummed that I stayed with Slim this long, ignored warning signs and now have to write this letter. I do sincerely wish Slim a speedy recovery with his home, himself and his loved ones, I understand first hand the pressures surrounding his situation. I made the decision to come here and write this warning when he failed to post a public OR private apology for the late cases and THEN proceeded to advertise for orders for additional guitar cases. Everyone here has every right to be worried, distressed, angry and vocal! I am truly sorry that I have influenced sales for Slim and have contributed to lost money and justified frustration by associating myself with Slim's Custom Cases. Truly sorry. I will continue to make free youtube lessons and am open to any other ideas presented here or else where on ways that I can continue to make amends for pairing myself with Slim's Custom Cases. Best of luck to everyone including Slim for resolution here for our industry and personal lives as well. Sincerely Jason Ricci
www.mooncat.org
Last Edited by Moon Cat on Dec 22, 2014 3:15 PM
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pharpo
753 posts
Dec 22, 2014
8:26 PM
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M.C. - In my mind, there are no amends needed. You backed a product that had been in production, had some very happy customers, and then for more than one reason, hit the skids. Hopefully he will get his act together, and HE can make amends. If not then this forum has warned us about the guy.
PS......glad things are better....hope to catch you on the road !
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Procrastinator Emeritus
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zackattack
11 posts
Dec 22, 2014
8:40 PM
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Moon Cat, I want to thank you for standing up for yourself in this matter. I stand in awe of your musical ability and have utmost respect for your current letter as it must indeed have been difficult to write. At this point I think that those of us out money and without a case have essentially written this off. I think that the most difficult thing for me were the posts disparaging those of us who dared to complain about our missing cases. My intent all along was simply to present the facts and then let others decide if they were willing to take the same chance with their money.
Our concern, as is yours, is that other may be falling into the same situation. This seems immoral to me, and it disturbs me every time I see his FB page advertising custom guitar cases, while the harmonica cases have mostly disappeared.
Thanks for stepping up.
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Moon Cat
478 posts
Dec 22, 2014
9:09 PM
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Zack Attack: Yeah writing this sucked and I put it off for too long... I think the dynamics you pointed out are VERY real and sad. Even today when I shared this post on Facebook I was attacked by a few for being heartless and kicking someone while they were down etc…i can only imagine the pressure of silence the customers are experiencing, especially given the underlying truth of the proverb: "you catch more bees with Honey"... All the same, the discussion needs to be had for would be buyers and fellowship amongst those who have already paid. The Guitar cases were the catalyst for me too man and thank you for the kind words!-J
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www.mooncat.org
Last Edited by Moon Cat on Dec 22, 2014 9:11 PM
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Adam Pritchard
47 posts
Dec 23, 2014
4:54 AM
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@MoonCat. Thank you for your eloquent and thoughtful post. Thank you also for taking down your video recommendation for Slim’s Custom Cases.
I don’t in any way hold you, or anyone else who has endorsed Slim’s products in the past, responsible for the predicament of Slim’s current customers. The fault lies entirely at the door of Slim himself. You have personally done more than most in forwarding this instrument and in helping others in the harmonica community and you should feel rightfully proud of that.
Whilst I’m pretty angry about what Slim has done, I’m able to take a fairly philosophical view on this (perhaps as I was one of the lucky ones who did in fact take delivery of their B-radical). When you pay a small independent internet business up front for a product that has yet to be built you are taking a risk. In most cases that risk pays off, but in others you lose out. I can fully understand the difficulties of trying to run a small, specialist business and have already cut Slim a lot of slack on that basis, but the final straw for me has been the fact that he is now marketing custom guitar case builds when he has a string of unfulfilled, paid up orders for harmonica cases which he appears to have no intention of honouring. As other’s have already pointed out, this is an illegal practice in the UK and Slim needs to be stopped.
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Moon Cat
479 posts
Dec 23, 2014
9:03 AM
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Slim has gotten very angry at me for this post and has stated somehow that I have threatened him, attacked him and slandered him here and on face book now. Seem so be par for the course with this fella. Any and all MBH members wanting to see this can visit and comment on the thread on my public page Facebook.com/therealjasonricci these actions speak loud enough on their own and don't need any further comment. i will cease further comment on this as I have better things to do and do not wish to upset or bother forum moderators.
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www.mooncat.org
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Greg Heumann
2921 posts
Dec 23, 2014
9:32 AM
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Both this and the HHD (Harrison Harmonicas Debacle) -- and the internet storm that surrounded it -- are examples of how important it is to set customers' expectations and do what you say in this business. The old adage that "bad word of mouth travels 100 times further than good" has never been more true than with the internet.
Slim has nobody to blame but himself.
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***************************************************
/Greg
BlowsMeAway Productions
See my Customer Mics album on Facebook
Bluestate on iTunes
Last Edited by Greg Heumann on Dec 23, 2014 9:33 AM
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DannyRanch
25 posts
Dec 23, 2014
9:50 AM
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Well
Since I saw Jason's video a couple of months I wanted to give it a shot with the Slim cases, but I was just browsing his site and seeing all options but then decided to wait till I have way more experience (and more harps) to get with a custom case
Considering I actually had to do some savings since it is kinda pricey (of course it is worth it (if you receive it of course lol) )
But since I would have it requested to be shipped it overseas it would be more I suppose
Well it honestly sucks, I hope the business can be fixed up and all of you fellas can get the cases or money back.
As for me I will continue using the case that came with the crappy blues bands lol
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poitouharpin
16 posts
Dec 23, 2014
10:41 AM
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Thank you Jason for your initial post above and for pulling down your recommendations of Slim. As the person who first posted on this matter at the start of September I fully understand how hard it was to do. I await to see if any others have the good character to do the same.
I posted my initial comments only after 9 months trying to come to an amicable agreement with Slim and was only trying to alleviate others from being duped by him. I can now say that, despite having had to endure an initial avalanche of abuse from various forum members and Facebook posts and having had my own reputation brought into disrepute by Slim himself and others, it is heartening to know that it was not in vain and the truth is finally being heard.
However, I cannot agree that it was not Slim's intention to "scam" his customers as he has clearly stated recently to several people still awaiting their cases that he will not be supplying them but still he continues to operate a live web site with an active order page and regularly edits his Facebook page to remove derogatory reviews. To me this is clearly operating with intent to fraud.
I doubt if any of us will see our monies again, but one lesson learnt I shall be very suspicious in future of any website with only positive reviews. As they say around here 'Tant pis, c'est la vie'.
(Tough and that's life!)
Tim
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Adam Pritchard
49 posts
Dec 23, 2014
11:08 AM
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OK, this is my last post on this subject. Firstly, @Moon Cat. I read your facebook messages and I'm truly sorry that you had to put up with that from Slim. What you wrote was completely reasonable at all times.
Secondly I want to say that despite what was said by Slim on those messages, the only contact I've ever had from him regarding my case was as a result of me making contact with him. He has never once pro-actively contacted me to inform me of his situation.
To avoid any doubt, here is the last message I received from him after I'd asked for a refund and my subsequent reply (apologies for the length, oh and I've not been refunded)....
--------------------------------------
SLIM's RESPONSE TO MY REFUND REQUEST: --------------------------------------
Sorry for the delay, we are currently working hard to rectify some issues with building products and materials to make the product we produce of a higher standard and as such it has been a long process, not to mention i had some really bad problems at home with my partner stacie being very ill, as one guy it is very hard to keep this company going, i have no other income at the moment other than cases sales, we have tried really hard this year to expand our market to other instrument cases with little success so far but we are hopefull that 2015 will be the year we finally get the company some good press and we can take it forward into a fully functioning company.
at the moment though i have had to delay all case builds until we see a steady stream of sales coming in.
the bad press of a couple of people has been a real pain and i appreciate all the other people that have contacted me and are happy to wait for there cases as we get the company to a point were it is viable to continue.
I hope you understand my position and can be patient a little while longer and i promise you the wait will be worth it as the end product will be a lot better and worth more than you invested.
---------------------------------------------
MY REPLY
---------------------------------------------
Thanks for replying. I can assure you I would much rather have the harp case I ordered than my money back. I'm also very sorry for your partner being very ill and I hope she is recovering.
However it concerns me that you say you have had to delay all case builds until you see a steady stream of sales coming in. What exactly does this mean? Considering I paid for my case up front 6 months ago I think it's reasonable for me to expect not to have to wait for you to get more orders in before you build it. Also, what if you don't get the company to a point where it's viable to continue? Does this mean you walk away and keep my money? I understood you built these cases yourself by hand so what exactly are these issues with building products and materials that are preventing you from continuing to build cases? To be honest Slim it sounds to me like you have spent the money from existing orders and now have to wait for more people to pay you their hard earned money so you can get enough together to buy the materials you need to fulfill your orders.
You can't possibly be surprised that some people are giving you bad press when your website still quotes 'up to 60 day build time', you take peoples money up front, then fail to keep them informed of what's going on long after the 60 days has past. This is not the definition of good customer service and tends to make the buyer think they have been the victim of a con artist. It's only the fact that you have had recommendations from people you have built cases for in the past that makes me believe this is not likely to be the case. Perhaps you should think about changing your quoted build time to set appropriate expectations. Had you said 6 month build time in the first place I might still have placed the order and we wouldn't be having this e-mail exchange.
Whilst I don't want to one of those giving you bad press, I'm afraid I can neither afford to throw away £240 nor do I have the patience to wait an indefinite amount of time for a case that may never materialise. I repeat that I would like to cancel my order and for you to refund me my £240 in full. Please can you take action on this as soon as possible otherwise I regret you will be adding another to the list of those recommending people avoid your business.
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BigBlindRay
244 posts
Dec 24, 2014
8:43 AM
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Hi MBHers
I've been dealing with Slim (Christian) since he started his business (I've also posted a video on a case I received from him - which I paid for mind you) and for the record, I still think he is a great, stand up guy. Sure he is going through hard times but at the end of the day there are three sides to a story, His, Yours and the Truth.
I'll be keeping my Video up. I have no need to waffle on and provide a diatribe about the mystical journey of how I got to know him. I just did, and hes alright with me.
I don't know who Adam is or who Poitou is or who the other guy is who got stung. Maybe they're stand up guys who have a lot to contribute to the community, maybe they're total whack jobs with a vendetta, who knows?
I got stung by the whole HH issue - learnt from it - moved on - blah. Sure I was pissed - Didnt feel the need to do a witch hunt online - But thats me.
In summary - Chris is a good bloke going through hard times and I hope that these issues get resolved in a positive way.
But ill happily +1 on his work and keep my review up as a matter of principle as I don't kick a good person in the guts when they're down.
P.S: There are other custom case builders out there who would charge a hell of a lot more than what slim does (for the record)
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- BigBlindRay
BigBlindRay website
Like me on Facebook
Listen to my music here
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zackattack
12 posts
Dec 24, 2014
9:51 AM
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BigBlindRay, you are right that you don't know Adam, Poitou or me. You probably don't know Sam, or John, or Patrick or the other people who got burned either. But we know each other and have all been communicating with each other, as well as some of us posting to this forum. All of us became victims this year. All of us have received varying assurances from CAJ regarding our cases. None of us, to my knowledge, has gotten a case, or even an expected delivery date. I have been told directly that I will never get a case from him, directly contradicting his statements on Jason Ricci's FB page.
There are not three sides to this story. I will send you the ongoing thread of my conversations with CAJ if you like, which will illustrate the problem - lying to your customers. You will be able to see the contradictions, the obviously false statements as to the status of the order, and finally the ugliness in his words. You miss the point. Slim has stiffed numerous customers, yet he is taking orders from new customers, as indicated on his website. He has made no effort to put together a plan to satisfy past customers, except to keep promising them that someday they will get a case. Yet he told me directly that I would not get a case.
What will you say when someone contacts you, as many did with Jason, to say that they ordered and paid for a case based on your recommendation and then got stiffed? I'm retired, living on Social Security and $350 is a lot of money to me, and I don't take losing it lightly.
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poitouharpin
18 posts
Dec 24, 2014
10:09 AM
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Hear, hear Zack.
But perhaps we need to remember the old adage:-
There are none so deaf as those who won't hear
And none so blind as those who won't see.
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Littoral
1180 posts
Dec 24, 2014
1:55 PM
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Adam Pritchard: "Firstly, @Moon Cat. I read your facebook messages and I'm truly sorry that you had to put up with that from Slim. What you wrote was completely reasonable at all times."
I read them too and I really couldn't believe the responses JR got given how kind he was about the whole thing. Sorry, Slim, get it together and don't hurt anybody else in the process. BAD medicine
And, to all, make your own case, it's fun, easy, and a lot cheaper.
Last Edited by Littoral on Dec 24, 2014 1:56 PM
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zackattack
17 posts
Jan 16, 2015
10:36 AM
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Just a quick update - I just passed the eleven month mark in my wait for delivery of my custom case. For the whole story in verse go to my audio post on reverberation called "Slim To None," by Michael Zack.
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doc0839
1 post
Jan 17, 2015
11:06 AM
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I too have been ripped off,I ordered a case from slims custom cases over a year ago and all I've recived are excuses and spin. I paid him nearly 600$ up front. I heard all about his sick partner and how he's backed up ect ect ect.. I'm sorry but we all have problems however my land lord won't wait a year for my rent...totally pissed off.
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doc0839
2 posts
Jan 17, 2015
11:24 AM
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Just a side note when I saw he was now offering guitar cases for sale after telling many that he is behind and out of materials I saw red I'm not a sugar coater it is what it is (theft plain and simple. I've spoke my piece ive warned everyone in the harp community that I could. If anyone had similar issues please feel free to email me @ gw0839@gmail.com
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Harpaholic
584 posts
Jan 17, 2015
2:30 PM
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I agree you don't kick a good man when he's down, but a good man wouldn't keep taking money from hard working people with no intention of ever building their case or refunding their money, a low life P.O.S would.
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doc0839
3 posts
Jan 17, 2015
2:30 PM
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I contacted PayPal and there is nothing that can be done after 6 months other than reporting him and red flagging his account buyer beware.
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doc0839
4 posts
Jan 17, 2015
2:38 PM
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That was an expensive lesson I will never pay for sonething up front unless its from blows mexaway productions Greg has been fantastic.
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doc0839
5 posts
Jan 17, 2015
3:00 PM
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I bought a great gig bag that holds all if my gear at a fraction of the cost of a Slim's case and its working out great. Its called a maxpedition bag and it cost me around a hundred bucks..sorry about the others getting stiffed I guess we live and learn but it no fun to feel the burn.
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eharp
2252 posts
Jan 17, 2015
9:40 PM
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doc- which maxpedition bag are you using?
Got any pics of your set up?
If not, at least describe the bag and how you set it up?
What holds the harps?
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HarveyHarp
630 posts
Jan 17, 2015
10:46 PM
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I don't have a dog in this fight, but it does make it hard for the good businessmen that are on this forum, which is most of us. Personally, I do not ask for money up front. I keep some new harps in inventory, and what I do not have, most people buy it from Rockin Ron, and have him ship it to me. When I am done, and ready to ship, I will contact you and then you pay and then I ship.
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HarveyHarp
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Popculture Chameleon
1 post
Jan 24, 2015
8:12 AM
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I myself am having the same problem with Slim's Custom Cases- I have waited now nearly 7 months for a case I paid for upfront. Although I knew the wait was 80 days I also knew that he may have had other orders to fill before mine so I was more than willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. I made my payment back in June of last year I waited till the beginning of 2015 to email him. I posted a direct message on his facebook page and sent him several emails being as nice and as professional as I could to inquire about a possible date to have the case sent to me. He has not responded to a single email I have sent. I honestly am at a lost as to what to do now. His twiiter and facebook account has been inactive since December and when I bring up his main website now I can do is bring up the home page. Every other link I try including the contact us page has come up 404 page not found. Now I can be very patient- I waited 5 years for a heart transplant-but not even returning a customers inquiry about an item that has already been paid for is very rude and unprofessional. Im not sure what kind of actions I can take legally because Im in America but Im beginning to to wonder if I should look into it.
I don't like slamming people online or making complaints but reading some of the other problems from a few of the readers on this forum is very disconcerting
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PropMan
36 posts
Jan 24, 2015
9:56 AM
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Slim has had my money since May. I've written it off. We will never get our money back and I'm 99% sure we will never get our cases. Too bad - I think he made a nice product but it now buried so deep in prepaid orders with no financial resources to complete them that there is no way he can ever make good.
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poitouharpin
22 posts
Jan 24, 2015
12:06 PM
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It would appear Slim hasn’t updated his web site or his face book page for some time now. He has however made a recent post on Face Book under his Stage name of “Slim Joe Jackson”. Prior to Christmas one of his last posts on SCC was to push his guitar case products and to claim to be officially linked to Godin Guitars. Having contacted Godin’s UK distribution company (440distribution.com) this was their reply:-
“This guy has nothing to do with us & I we've not dealt with his company or product”
This has since been removed as have all the posts requesting information about delivery of orders and complaints. For the last 3 days only his web site home page has been available all other links defaulting to “error 404”
When this subject was originally brought to light back last September the moderators of this forum invited Mr Jackson to respond directly to issues raised, which he did. It would be interesting to know if they have again asked him to respond to this thread and if so, have they had a response.
To those of you who have lost money and are resident outside of Europe, it is likely that you will have little recourse since any legal action will most likely be more expensive than the initial outlay to Slim. You are however able to make a complaint to the UK Trading Standards Authority via the Citizens Advise Service. I have posted the link to this before but I include it here for completeness. Not much solace for those who have already lost money but at least will help prevent others from falling into his web.
https://ssl.datamotion.com/form.aspx?co=3438&frm=citacomplainform&to=flare.fromforms
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Popculture Chameleon
3 posts
Jan 24, 2015
1:14 PM
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poitouharpin not even I knew about that thanks for the link- since this has started happening to so many people I keep wondering if everyone who got taken by Slims Custom Cases should post a you tube video warning people to stay away from ordering any products whatsoever from his website. It was YouTube reviews that got most people aware of his cases. Even now Jasson Ricci- a harp player I admire (and even have a couple of his albums on my own ipod) has taken the video of his review down and within the past couple of days Will Wilde has done the same thing making it a private video. Will saw my post about not receiving my case yet asking another commenter if he had gotten his yet-and he said he would try to see what was going on. He never wrote me back -I only discovered today that the video was private. He said himself he would take the video down if the problem wouldn't resolve itself. Is there anything legal he could do about a viable customer complaint from outside the UK?
I have seen others post complaints up about certain website services before which is why I ask.
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SuperBee
2354 posts
Jan 24, 2015
3:17 PM
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yeah i dunno, defamation is a potential problem, but truth is a valid defence, so if you are careful you may be ok. you would really need to get good advice though, so you'd just spend more money. reminds me of the crusades a bit
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Kyzer Sosa
1091 posts
Jan 25, 2015
4:00 PM
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I'm thinking of throwing my name in to the custom case 'hat'
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Kyzer's Travels
Kyzer's Artwork
"Music in the soul can be heard by the universe." - Lao Tzu
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poitouharpin
23 posts
Jan 26, 2015
12:09 PM
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For those interested there are some interesting new posts on Jason Ricci's FB page.
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nacoran
8232 posts
Jan 26, 2015
2:18 PM
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Kyzer, with your artistic talents you could be a real contender!
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Nate
Facebook
Thread Organizer (A list of all sorts of useful threads)
First Post- May 8, 2009
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easyglider
4 posts
Apr 03, 2015
7:35 PM
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I too dealt with Slim trying to get a case I had ordered and paid for. I opened a PayPal case against him, wrote negative reviews in several forums and basically became a pain in Slim's butt. I eventually did get the case, (it was a premade one.) The first time I took it out the handle fell off.
My dealings with Slim tell me that he is a con man and probaly is dealing with substance abuse issues. I never believed the multiple, silly excuses he made for not delivering my case in anywhere near a timely manner. At the same time, I realize he has personal problems and I do have compassion for him as a human being. But I also understand the anger of those who paid for a case and never received.
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