An open apology

[contender1]

I want to openly apologize to a member here.

I saw a WTB ad,, and had the item in question. I replied,, and a deal was made. It was a small, simple item,, a sizer die. In my initial reply, I mentioned it was used & not marked with a maker's name. It was for a 450.
For many years,, I had a pair of 450's & purchased many sizer dies,,, many "just in case" due to different guns & bore or throat sizes. For instance,, I have or had .450, .451, .452, .453, .454, & .455 just for 45 caliber guns. Some,, never got used,, and heck,, I even purchased some w/o double checking to see if I already had it.
Well, several years ago,, I got a deal on a Saeco,,, and soon after,, a deal on a Star.
My 450's were sold. And I still had a box of sizers & punches.
I put many up for sale here,, and when I listed them,, I put too many in my ad, exceeding the number of items allowed. I got scolded by the Mods,, and as such,, I never put them out for sale again. I still have a box full.

Well, a WTB ad prompted me to look and see I had one that was needed. And the trade was made. When the buyer received it,, it was missing an O-ring,, and he says it wouldn't work. I IMMEDIATELY offered a refund,, (A full refund,) and said I always want a happy person in any of my trades. I try hard to be honest,, and in general,, so do most of the fine folks here.
I get a PM saying he had already packed it up for return, and was taking pictures "in case I tried to sell it as a working die." His tone in his PM suggested I was trying to swindle him or would try to do so to someone else.

I explained (again) to him I could not recall using that die & would gladly issue a full refund. I also would NOT sell anything knowing it wouldn't work.
I made a mistake in that I had it, it's marked with caliber size, and it was in my box of 450 sizers.

MY OPEN APOLOGIES TO THE BUYER, AND TO ANYONE ELSE WHO MAY BE OFFENDED BY A MEMBER HERE MAKING AN HONEST MISTAKE.

[richhodg66]

Sounds like an honest mistake to me and that you were straight with the guy. If he's butt hurt and can't accept that, he's the one with the problem. Sounds like someone I'd not do business with in the future.

[RED BEAR]

Nobody is perfect . You did all you could to fix the situation. The worst an honest man can do is make an honest mistake. It is big of you to apologize.

[swheeler]

I don't think you did anything wrong, actually seem quite honest about what happened. Your sizer die sounds like old Lyman #45 die? We all make mistakes from time to time, it's called being human!

[DocSavage]

How hard would have it been for the buyer to go to a hardware store and spend the 10 t0 20 cents for a new O ring. No apology need on your part you did the right thing. Had it been me off to the hardware/auto parts store for an O ring.

[jmort]

If you cannot roll with things or admit mistakes, life will be sub-optimal.
What richhodg66 said.

[jsizemore]

I used to not make mistakes. And then I was born. Some folks just can't recognize that other folks ain't perfect like them. It ain't worth getting yourself knotted up with folks like that.

[Three44s]

Contender1,

You have a long record of helping members here and I believe other forums with class and humility. That alone speaks volumes. Your offer for full reimbursement should not be met with anything but graciousness from your buyer.

Over time I have found myself in some Doo Doo on this purchase or that and for the greatest part of them the sellers on this forum or others have also been gracious and supportive. When I am met with support the last thing I think of doing is to lash out at them and accuse them of wrong doing or ill intent.

My motto is that if I am met half way, I respond back 5/8’s and we end up being friends and things work out even better.

Three44s

[myg30]

Your a good man contender1, I prolly send him a bag of orings ! I’ve received same years ago w/o an orang only to find the local store had them fer cheep and I picked up a few spares Incase.
Some folks don’t realize that most members here are all honest,great folks, most been around many years and have lots knowledge to share. Some of us are seniors too and have been using sizer Dies that don’t have orings on them so it’s not a big red flag to us as quick.
I also remember receiving a sizer Die w/ hard lube on it as stated in the ad, but when I cleaned it the pusher rod was very much “ undersized” and I really didn’t want to deal with the mess. I put it away found another and as it turned out I needed it later on as a push thru sizer and rod was not needed.

Please don’t let this discourage you for future sales. You made it right. Buyer jumped the gun and was to quick to imply a swindle.

Be safe, keep yer powder dry,

Mike

[Winger Ed.]

Some people are never happy, and nothing is ever good enough, or cheap enough for them.
I've had to change O rings on my own sizers, with a used one- I'd just plan on getting a new O ring for it.

[jonp]

I've got 2 boxes of mixed sized O rings in the garage. Cost $2 at HB. I doubt I'd get all hot and bothered over something that trivial. Not sure what that person's problem is considering your response.

[Brassduck]

I pulled wrenches for over 40 years and had to deal with the public. their are people that can tear up an anvil with a rubber hammer and the always get the lemon. than you have the person that no matter what you do for them they are never happy. sad that he couldn't see that he needed an o'ring to make the die work. different strokes for different folks.

[rockrat]

I sold an XS sight for a Marlin to a guy. Was about half what you could get it for and told him the screw heads were kind of buggered up. What was his complaint once he got it, the screw heads were "buggered up" therefore it was unusable!!

Some people, if they can't find something to complain about that day, they are unhappy!!

[bedbugbilly]

Let's see . . . over a 1,000 posts on here . . . been a member since 2011 . . . . I doubt that 99.9% of the members here would have responded that way .to you . . stuff happens . . . . I applaud you for your apology as that just goes to show the man you are . . . I also applaud your response to a member that was seeking an item that you thought you had that would work for them. Don't let it get under your skin . . . some folks just are "that way" . . . always have been, always will be . . . and heaven forbid if they ever make a mistake . . . and like someone said . O rings are cheap. If the die didn't work for his needs . . . the least he could have done was behaved like a man instead of making a big deal out of a very small thing, just kindly notified you that it wouldn't work and ask if he could return it. Have a cup of coffee, relax and don't sweat it . . . there are bigger things in life to worry about. My best to you and the other fine members on this site who go out of their way to help others . . . .

[EDG]

Some size dies made for use in the older Lyman 45 sizers do not have an O ring groove. For those dies there is no such thing as buying another O ring. I have have had people sell me sizer dies with no O rings because the die never had an O ring. If you are going to sell an item be sure that you know enough about it to properly describe it.

One of my beefs about eBay is peddlers there often qualify their offering with "I am not a reloader, I am not an expert about all the things I sell. Be sure to ask any questions you may have."

[nun2kute]

I'm a firm believer in KARMA ! ... Some People call it "The Golden Rule" ... maybe that's why He's angry and you're not.

[country gent]

Personally I look at O-rings most screws gaskets shims and some other things a expendable items. They are going to wear or have other issues and need replaced. Hence I keep a supply on hand. Nit picking over a .10 $ just isn't worth it to me. You did what you could to make it right with the buyer.

Years ago in a small job shop I re worked the hub on a tractor for an area farmer. 10 hole bolt pattern for the dual rim. rotated it redrilled and tapped the 10 holes on location. Plugged the previous. He screamed and cried the biggest tears when charge roughly 250.00 for the job. Never mind the new hub was close to 2000. Never mind I had to set up indicate hub in in all 3 axis and then drill and tap holes then make and install the plugs. Had close to 5 hours work in that job for the 250. The point is some people are never pleased with what they get.

[jmort]

I'm a firm believer in KARMA ! ... Some People call it "The Golden Rule" ... maybe that's why He's angry and you're not.

Karma, by definition, is played out in your next reincarnation. Not now. Pop culture created something called "instant karma" and that is not a real thing, but probably what you are refering to. If you think this is a one act deal, you can never go wrong following The Golden Rule.

[Echo]

How hard would have it been for the buyer to go to a hardware store and spend the 10 t0 20 cents for a new O ring. No apology need on your part you did the right thing. Had it been me off to the hardware/auto parts store for an O ring.

Ditto...

[fatelk]

When you take pride in honest and fair dealing, it really stings, leaves a bad taste in your mouth to be accused of crooked dealings. At some point you just have to realize you've done what you can to be fair, and let it go.

One time in my years here I had someone accuse me similarly. I sold something that I knew was perfectly good. The buyer sent me a nasty-gram because it wasn't quite what he was expecting. He was mistaken and had bad info, but I readily offered to take it back for a refund. He said it wasn't worth sending back, that he just wanted to "let me know what he thought of my lack of ethics".

Yeah, that burned me up, almost made we want to never sell anything again. Then I had to remember the dozens upon dozens of excellent transaction. Occasionally you run into a jerk. Just do your best and don't let them get to you.