In a post several months ago, I mentioned that a group of people from the Calguns.net forum had placed a group buy order of Dracos from Lancaster Arms. This was back in late August of 2009. True to form, Chet Durda of Lancaster Arms LLC promised these guys the sun and the moon. As is typical of Mr. Durda and his toadie Shane, these guys told the members of this group whatever they thought the group wanted to hear in order to get the sale. And of course, Lancaster required the money up front.
From what I read, this group was initially told they would get their Dracos within a couple weeks. They did get a few of the pistols after a month and a half. I’ll spare you all the details of what happened after that since, if you’re a regular reader of this blog, you can probably guess how this ended. After about two months, people started growing impatient and suspicious. Lancaster missed several delivery deadlines, employed their usual arsenal of stall tactics and excuses as to why they hadn’t delivered, and to this day – over a year later – Lancaster has STILL not delivered all of the Dracos for which members of this group have paid.
If you have an hour to kill, the entire fiasco is laid out in great detail here.
If you’re one of the victims from Calguns.net and you’re reading this right now, understand that if you haven’t received your gun by now, you never will. You have essentially been defrauded by Chet Durda and Shane. Lawyer up or, better yet, just file a theft report with the Goodyear, Arizona Police Department. And if you’re not willing to do this, then just kiss your money good-bye, and understand that your failure to take action will only embolden Durda to do this again to someone else. In other words, if you have not received your gun, you have an obligation to take action so that others are not conned by Chet Durda like you were. If you need help finding a lawyer or dealing with the Goodyear Police, contact me and I’ll be happy to assist.
For everyone else, yes…this is typical of how Lancaster Arms operates. I don’t know of a more shady, dishonest seller of AK rifles out there than Lancaster Arms. Chet Durda’s refusal to run his business in an honest and ethical manner is now common knowledge amongst the firearms community. If you need other reasons to avoid Lancaster, just read the rest of the blog to learn about the dozens and dozens of people Chet Durda has conned and/or ripped-off.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Monday, November 8, 2010
Lancaster Arms No Longer Selling To Public?
Lancaster Arms recently announced that, as of January 1, 2011, they will no longer be selling firearms direct to the public. Whether this is actually true or not remains to be seen, since - as those of you who follow this blog already know - you can't really believe anything Lancaster says anyway.
But if it is true, one can only wonder: "Lancaster, what took you so long?"
Those who have had the unfortunate experience of dealing with Lancaster Arms during the last two years are keenly aware that Lancaster was never set-up or equipped to do business with the public; a point enforced by the fact that even though Lancaster Arms' victims were often promised ship times measured in weeks, in reality it often took months to get a rifle shipped. The buffoons who work at Lancaster Arms, headed by Chief Buffoon Chet Durda, couldn't seem to do simple stuff like, oh, I don't know...remember to actually build and ship the rifle after they were paid for it?
This new situation at Lancaster (again, assuming it's true) should solve one of Lancaster's problems. That is, the problem of pissed off retail consumers who were systematically lied to by Chet Durda. Now, Chet will have to lie directly to FFL holders, who I suspect (and hope) will be less tolerant of his mountains of pure, unadulterated bullshit.
Does this all mean I might now by a Lancaster Arms AK rifle?
Not just "No.", but "Hell no!" With this change, I still expect that Lancaster will continue to over-promise and under-deliver. The only difference, is that there will just be a new middleman (the buyer's FLL or dealer) involved now. I still don't trust Lancaster's products, many of which have proven to be shoddily built. And I for certain still don't trust Chet Durda. He is in this business strictly for the money, and if that means you might get a crappy AK because he doesn't want to spend the money on building it correctly, he doesn't care. (Those of you who want an example of this, need only look at the post below, where one of Lancaster's AK's blew itself apart due to sub-standard build quality.) As far as I'm concerned, doing business with Lancaster Arms is still a huge, huge gamble and mistake .
Lancaster Arms has essentially lost the trust of the AK community, and if you doubt that, just go to any of the major AK forums and mention Lancaster Arms. On nearly every forum, you'll hear variations of the same thing: "Those guys went downhill bigtime!" "They have a history of ripping people off." "Don't believe a word Lancaster tells you!" "Lancaster's guns are bottom of the barrel, perhaps even worse than Century." "Avoid at all cost!"
Whatever you do, don't be lulled into a false sense of security that because you ordered your Lancaster gun from a dealer, you won't have any problems. The same person is still in charge at Lancaster. As long as he is running the show at Lancaster Arms, then a Lancaster Arms rifle simply won't be worth owning. Any questions?
But if it is true, one can only wonder: "Lancaster, what took you so long?"
Those who have had the unfortunate experience of dealing with Lancaster Arms during the last two years are keenly aware that Lancaster was never set-up or equipped to do business with the public; a point enforced by the fact that even though Lancaster Arms' victims were often promised ship times measured in weeks, in reality it often took months to get a rifle shipped. The buffoons who work at Lancaster Arms, headed by Chief Buffoon Chet Durda, couldn't seem to do simple stuff like, oh, I don't know...remember to actually build and ship the rifle after they were paid for it?
This new situation at Lancaster (again, assuming it's true) should solve one of Lancaster's problems. That is, the problem of pissed off retail consumers who were systematically lied to by Chet Durda. Now, Chet will have to lie directly to FFL holders, who I suspect (and hope) will be less tolerant of his mountains of pure, unadulterated bullshit.
Does this all mean I might now by a Lancaster Arms AK rifle?
Not just "No.", but "Hell no!" With this change, I still expect that Lancaster will continue to over-promise and under-deliver. The only difference, is that there will just be a new middleman (the buyer's FLL or dealer) involved now. I still don't trust Lancaster's products, many of which have proven to be shoddily built. And I for certain still don't trust Chet Durda. He is in this business strictly for the money, and if that means you might get a crappy AK because he doesn't want to spend the money on building it correctly, he doesn't care. (Those of you who want an example of this, need only look at the post below, where one of Lancaster's AK's blew itself apart due to sub-standard build quality.) As far as I'm concerned, doing business with Lancaster Arms is still a huge, huge gamble and mistake .
Lancaster Arms has essentially lost the trust of the AK community, and if you doubt that, just go to any of the major AK forums and mention Lancaster Arms. On nearly every forum, you'll hear variations of the same thing: "Those guys went downhill bigtime!" "They have a history of ripping people off." "Don't believe a word Lancaster tells you!" "Lancaster's guns are bottom of the barrel, perhaps even worse than Century." "Avoid at all cost!"
Whatever you do, don't be lulled into a false sense of security that because you ordered your Lancaster gun from a dealer, you won't have any problems. The same person is still in charge at Lancaster. As long as he is running the show at Lancaster Arms, then a Lancaster Arms rifle simply won't be worth owning. Any questions?
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Thinking of buying a Lancaster Arms rifle? Think again.
For those new to this blog (there are many of you), please read this ENTIRE blog before attempting to buy anything from Lancaster Arms. They have a terrible habit of taking your money, and then not delivering product as agreed-upon. This blog contains complaints from dozens and dozens of people who, over the last 18 months, have been burned by Lancaster Arms and its owner, Chet "The Pathological Liar" Durda.
Lancaster is still apparently refusing to provide refunds on orders that are months overdue, as evidenced both by an email I received this week (where the victim literally had to call the police to get his refund), and recent posts like this, where a guy had to do a chargeback because he still hadn't received his refund more than a month after Chet Durda promised it.
Even worse, Chet Durda knows this blog exists, and he knows that when he lies to people it is going to be broadcast to the entire Internet...and yet he still does it! Folks, that's the sign of a person who is recklessly brazen, and who just doesn't give a damn about what he's doing.
So, if you ignore the warnings on this blog, and decide to order from Lancaster Arms anyway, understand that you do so at your own very significant risk! I can't tell you how many emails I've received from people who state, "I wish I had found this blog before I ordered from Lancaster! They've had my money for months now, and all I can get are empty promises, excuses, and the constant run-around."
Caveat Emptor.
Lancaster is still apparently refusing to provide refunds on orders that are months overdue, as evidenced both by an email I received this week (where the victim literally had to call the police to get his refund), and recent posts like this, where a guy had to do a chargeback because he still hadn't received his refund more than a month after Chet Durda promised it.
Even worse, Chet Durda knows this blog exists, and he knows that when he lies to people it is going to be broadcast to the entire Internet...and yet he still does it! Folks, that's the sign of a person who is recklessly brazen, and who just doesn't give a damn about what he's doing.
So, if you ignore the warnings on this blog, and decide to order from Lancaster Arms anyway, understand that you do so at your own very significant risk! I can't tell you how many emails I've received from people who state, "I wish I had found this blog before I ordered from Lancaster! They've had my money for months now, and all I can get are empty promises, excuses, and the constant run-around."
Caveat Emptor.
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Fail: Lancaster Arms Rifle Blows Itself Apart
I hadn't planned on putting up another post so soon, until yet another defective Lancaster Arms rifle caught my attention today.
Apparently, the rifle in the picture below was being used in a tactical course when the top cover blew off of it. Being a tactical rifle course, the operator of the rifle did what he might need to do in a "real" tactical situation: he tried to make lemons out of lemonade, and unwisely fired the rifle again.
BOOM!!!
This rifle essentially blew itself apart. The entire story on what happened to this rifle can be seen here. Apparently, this was not an old or high round count rifle. So why did it do this? While we can't be sure just yet, AK expert Jim Fuller of Rifle Dynamics thinks this catastrophic failure was probably the result of Lancaster using "substandard rivets" to build this firearm.
And while Lancaster recently had a significant batch of rifles recalled for overdrilled gas ports, this particular rifle was not on the recall list. Which makes the failure even more scary. How many other Lancaster AKs are out there that were built to this same, low standard of quality?
I wish I could say I was surprised. But to any of you regular readers of this blog, you already know what I think of the owner and management of Lancaster Arms. Due to their extensive, documented history of engaging in questionable business ethics, I don't trust any of 'em as far as I can throw them. The fact that they've now also put out rifles (with both known and, apparently, uknown defects), only solidifies my extremely low opinion of Lancaster Arms.
As always, Lancaster...you are free to comment here if you'd like. I will not edit your comments in any way (although I will most certainly respond in-kind).
Apparently, the rifle in the picture below was being used in a tactical course when the top cover blew off of it. Being a tactical rifle course, the operator of the rifle did what he might need to do in a "real" tactical situation: he tried to make lemons out of lemonade, and unwisely fired the rifle again.
BOOM!!!
This rifle essentially blew itself apart. The entire story on what happened to this rifle can be seen here. Apparently, this was not an old or high round count rifle. So why did it do this? While we can't be sure just yet, AK expert Jim Fuller of Rifle Dynamics thinks this catastrophic failure was probably the result of Lancaster using "substandard rivets" to build this firearm.
And while Lancaster recently had a significant batch of rifles recalled for overdrilled gas ports, this particular rifle was not on the recall list. Which makes the failure even more scary. How many other Lancaster AKs are out there that were built to this same, low standard of quality?
I wish I could say I was surprised. But to any of you regular readers of this blog, you already know what I think of the owner and management of Lancaster Arms. Due to their extensive, documented history of engaging in questionable business ethics, I don't trust any of 'em as far as I can throw them. The fact that they've now also put out rifles (with both known and, apparently, uknown defects), only solidifies my extremely low opinion of Lancaster Arms.
As always, Lancaster...you are free to comment here if you'd like. I will not edit your comments in any way (although I will most certainly respond in-kind).
Lancaster Screw You Over? Here's How To Deal With Them:
I continue getting emails on a weekly basis, and this blog continues getting user posts, where current Lancaster Arms customers are claiming some familiar things: Either they ordered their rifle months ago and it still hasn't been delivered (even though they were given a delivery date of weeks instead of months), or they called Lancaster to get a status update, were told "Your rifle is shipping tomorrow", and then 3 weeks later they still mysteriously don't have this rifle. In other words, nothing of substance has changed at Lancaster. Still the same ol' BS.
Since I am getting a lot of "What should I do???" emails, here is what you should do if you have become one of Lancaster Arms and Chet Durda's most recent victims:
1. IMMEDIATELY call Lancaster and demand that your money be returned to you within 48 hours. Explain to them that you are a reasonable and patient person, but that you don't appreciate being blatantly lied to, and that Lancaster will need to return all of your funds without further delay.
2. At this point, Chet or Shane will themselves immediately switch into damage control mode. Chet or Shane will try to "feel you out" on the phone, and will tell you whatever they think you want to hear so that you don't cancel your order. They will throw out every excuse in the book..."the CNC machine is broken", "everyone has the flu", "the wood isn't finished yet", "the dog ate your AK", "blah blah blah".
But don't buy any of it...Chet's word means nothing, and Shane isn't much better. At this point, they will take one of two tacts with you: either they will continue trying to "sweet talk" you into waiting just a little bit longer (they'll give you another empty promise of a delivery date they again won't meet), or they'll be outright rude and tell you that you can't cancel, or in some other way they'll cop an attitude and try to bully you. Don't fall for either of these tricks! A person who has already lied to you once, will have no problem lying to you again. When dealing with Lancaster Arms, don't forget this! Chet knows that you probably still want the rifle, and he will use your own emotions against you. He's very manipulative like this. But make peace with the fact that you've been screwed over and lied to, and demand your money back. Not doing so, only sends the message to Lancaster that "Yes, in fact, you CAN get away with lying to your customers!". That is not the message Lancaster needs to hear. Stay strong. Do not "wimp out". Get your damn money back! (And BTW, document this phone call you make to Lancaster. Note the time, who you spoke with, and the outcome. You can even use a cheap service like SpoofCard.com to record the phone call. It's completely legal to do, and I would advise that you do it so that there's no "confusion" later on as to who said what.)
3. If you were smart enough to have paid with a credit card, call your credit card company 48 hours after your phone call with Lancaster, and make sure your money has been refunded. If not, do a chargeback. Your bank will credit you the money, and will notify Lancaster of what has happened. (Lancaster will lose its ability to accept credit cards if they get too many chargebacks. And in fact, Lancaster currently claims they won't take credit cards...although at least one person has told me they will if you demand it.)
If you were foolish enough to have sent a check or a money order to Lancaster, things will be more difficult, as Lancaster knows your options are more limited. They HAVE been known to tell you "We'll refund your money", only for weeks or months to pass by with no refund in sight. Here too, if Chet Durda's mouth is open...he's probably lying. So, again, give them only 48 hours to have a check back in your hands. Notify Lancaster that if this does not occur, you will immediately contact law enforcement. And do NOT, under any circumstances, accept any excuses from Lancaster.
4. If you were told you were getting a refund and it doesn't appear, or if Lancaster refuses to give you 100% of your money back, your next step is to contact the Attorney General's Office in Arizona. I've spoken with them myself, and unfortunately, they are already familiar with Lancaster Arms. Nonetheless, they will help you get your money back if Lancaster exercises its common habit of not doing what they say they're going to do.
There you have it, folks. If you're tired of excuses and lies from Lancaster Arms and Chet Durda, the above steps are what need to be done to get your money back. And I can't emphasize enough: When dealing with Lancaster Arms, do not let Lancaster call the shots. After all, trusting Lancaster is what got you into this mess to begin with. Do not try to be a "nice guy" when dealing with Lancaster, as Chet Durda will smell your weakness a mile away and will play it for all its worth. Do what you need to do, and send a message: "Lancaster, you can't expect that when you repeatedly lie to customers and constantly give them the run-around, that those customers are simply going to put up with it." No more.
Since I am getting a lot of "What should I do???" emails, here is what you should do if you have become one of Lancaster Arms and Chet Durda's most recent victims:
1. IMMEDIATELY call Lancaster and demand that your money be returned to you within 48 hours. Explain to them that you are a reasonable and patient person, but that you don't appreciate being blatantly lied to, and that Lancaster will need to return all of your funds without further delay.
2. At this point, Chet or Shane will themselves immediately switch into damage control mode. Chet or Shane will try to "feel you out" on the phone, and will tell you whatever they think you want to hear so that you don't cancel your order. They will throw out every excuse in the book..."the CNC machine is broken", "everyone has the flu", "the wood isn't finished yet", "the dog ate your AK", "blah blah blah".
But don't buy any of it...Chet's word means nothing, and Shane isn't much better. At this point, they will take one of two tacts with you: either they will continue trying to "sweet talk" you into waiting just a little bit longer (they'll give you another empty promise of a delivery date they again won't meet), or they'll be outright rude and tell you that you can't cancel, or in some other way they'll cop an attitude and try to bully you. Don't fall for either of these tricks! A person who has already lied to you once, will have no problem lying to you again. When dealing with Lancaster Arms, don't forget this! Chet knows that you probably still want the rifle, and he will use your own emotions against you. He's very manipulative like this. But make peace with the fact that you've been screwed over and lied to, and demand your money back. Not doing so, only sends the message to Lancaster that "Yes, in fact, you CAN get away with lying to your customers!". That is not the message Lancaster needs to hear. Stay strong. Do not "wimp out". Get your damn money back! (And BTW, document this phone call you make to Lancaster. Note the time, who you spoke with, and the outcome. You can even use a cheap service like SpoofCard.com to record the phone call. It's completely legal to do, and I would advise that you do it so that there's no "confusion" later on as to who said what.)
3. If you were smart enough to have paid with a credit card, call your credit card company 48 hours after your phone call with Lancaster, and make sure your money has been refunded. If not, do a chargeback. Your bank will credit you the money, and will notify Lancaster of what has happened. (Lancaster will lose its ability to accept credit cards if they get too many chargebacks. And in fact, Lancaster currently claims they won't take credit cards...although at least one person has told me they will if you demand it.)
If you were foolish enough to have sent a check or a money order to Lancaster, things will be more difficult, as Lancaster knows your options are more limited. They HAVE been known to tell you "We'll refund your money", only for weeks or months to pass by with no refund in sight. Here too, if Chet Durda's mouth is open...he's probably lying. So, again, give them only 48 hours to have a check back in your hands. Notify Lancaster that if this does not occur, you will immediately contact law enforcement. And do NOT, under any circumstances, accept any excuses from Lancaster.
4. If you were told you were getting a refund and it doesn't appear, or if Lancaster refuses to give you 100% of your money back, your next step is to contact the Attorney General's Office in Arizona. I've spoken with them myself, and unfortunately, they are already familiar with Lancaster Arms. Nonetheless, they will help you get your money back if Lancaster exercises its common habit of not doing what they say they're going to do.
There you have it, folks. If you're tired of excuses and lies from Lancaster Arms and Chet Durda, the above steps are what need to be done to get your money back. And I can't emphasize enough: When dealing with Lancaster Arms, do not let Lancaster call the shots. After all, trusting Lancaster is what got you into this mess to begin with. Do not try to be a "nice guy" when dealing with Lancaster, as Chet Durda will smell your weakness a mile away and will play it for all its worth. Do what you need to do, and send a message: "Lancaster, you can't expect that when you repeatedly lie to customers and constantly give them the run-around, that those customers are simply going to put up with it." No more.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Lancaster Arms "Complaints": A Day Late and a Dollar Short
While I was thinking the other day about the disaster called "Lancaster Arms", I decided to visit their website to see if anything had changed on it. I didn't notice much. Their website was still promising that they would provide details on their "Black Widow" rifle on July 4th. (Keep in mind, this was on August 29th. Whoops.) And then I saw that they added a new section to their website called "Complaints". LOL!
Funny, how after over 18 months of screwing people over, they finally decided to make at least SOME effort to acknowledge the fact that over the last 18 months, they have completely, utterly decimated their own reputation with an avalanche of lies and piss-poor customer no-service.
So, I clicked on this link, and what I read was utterly predictable. Chet had posted a few hand-selected complaints, none of which addressed the dozens of people who feel like they've been thoroughly screwed by Lancaster.
As for delivery date issues, Chet predictably attempts to pass the buck by saying they've made changes in the "Personnel Department". This is comical on several fronts. First, Lancaster's "Personnel Department" consists of whoever happens to answer the phone. I can certainly understand Chet trying to puff his sad company up however, making it sound like they're so big they have an entire "Personnel Deapartment". Nice one, Chet! But more funny is the notion that someone ELSE at Lancaster - people who are now ostensibly gone - are the ones responsible for the rampant lying on the telephone, when in fact Chet Durda himself was/is the biggest culprit at Lancaster when it comes to sandbagging customers. Here too, this is completely in-line with Chet refusing to own up to his outrageous dishonesty. But never fear...Lancaster nows says they're going to check their email twice a day! But wait a minute...if you have an entire "Personnel Department", wouldn't they be checking the email every few minutes instead of only twice per day? And what was that "Personnel Department" doing up until recently, that caused them to only check email once every other day?!? Hmmmm...once again, when Chet opens his mouth, things don't really add up.
Chet hilariously goes on to finish that first complaint with, "Complacency has no place in this Economy". LOL! Chet, when you typed that, did you immediately look upward to ensure there wasn't a bolt of lightening about to strike you? "Complancency" has defined Lancaster Arms for the better part of the last 18 months. Well that, and raw, outright dishonesty. The audacity of this guy is mind-blowing.
Chet then goes onto a few other complaints, including posting one where a Florida man allegedly complained about Lancaster stealing his rifle. While Chet doesn't reveal why this guy would come to that conclusion, I suspect it probably had something to do with Lancaster telling him his gun would be returned in a week or two, and then the customer still not having the gun months later. To be sure, similar reports can be found on the Internet. Either way, anytime a customer feels like they have to write an email accusing you of theft...you have a severe customer service problem. Big time.
If I didn't know the things about Chet Durda that I do know, I might be fooled by this new "Complaint" section. I might think, "Wow. This company has made some mistakes, and now they're fixing them. Good on them!"
But here's the thing...the fundamental problem with Lancaster Arms isn't "personnel" who are now gone, or unreasonable customers who falsely accuse Lancaster of stealing firearms. No, the problem with Lancaster Arms is that the company is run by a guy who is completely, thoroughly untrustworthy. To believe that Chet Durda has "seen the light" after he has ripped off and lied to as many people as he has (read the rest of this blog for details), might as well be to believe in Santa Claus while you're at it. A leopard doesn't change it's spots, and a shady businessman doesn't all of the sudden recognize the error of his ways, and become an honest businessman. That might make for a nice Hollywood movie, but real life is somewhat different.
If you wish to understand why I've come to this conclusion, just read this entire blog top to bottom. (Or really, bottom to top.) The unfortunate details of how Lancaster Arms runs its business are all here, in plain sight. No sugar-coating or excuses required.
As for Lancaster Arms, Chet's latest attempt at damage control is a day late and a dollar short. Now, whenever Lancaster is brought up on forums, the consensus is usually, "You don't want to do business with them." And look at their complaint site and tell me...do you really want people building your rifle, who aren't even professional enough to use a spell-checker on their own marketing website? If they can't even be bothered to pay attention to obvious details on a simple web page they use to market their business, what on Earth makes you think they're going to pay any attention to details with the rest of their work?
Maybe they can get one of the millions of people who work in their "Personnel Department" on that right away! If they can get the "Personnel Department" to now answer emails twice a day, perhaps there's hope that a third-grade level of proficiency in the English language won't be far behind!
Funny, how after over 18 months of screwing people over, they finally decided to make at least SOME effort to acknowledge the fact that over the last 18 months, they have completely, utterly decimated their own reputation with an avalanche of lies and piss-poor customer no-service.
So, I clicked on this link, and what I read was utterly predictable. Chet had posted a few hand-selected complaints, none of which addressed the dozens of people who feel like they've been thoroughly screwed by Lancaster.
As for delivery date issues, Chet predictably attempts to pass the buck by saying they've made changes in the "Personnel Department". This is comical on several fronts. First, Lancaster's "Personnel Department" consists of whoever happens to answer the phone. I can certainly understand Chet trying to puff his sad company up however, making it sound like they're so big they have an entire "Personnel Deapartment". Nice one, Chet! But more funny is the notion that someone ELSE at Lancaster - people who are now ostensibly gone - are the ones responsible for the rampant lying on the telephone, when in fact Chet Durda himself was/is the biggest culprit at Lancaster when it comes to sandbagging customers. Here too, this is completely in-line with Chet refusing to own up to his outrageous dishonesty. But never fear...Lancaster nows says they're going to check their email twice a day! But wait a minute...if you have an entire "Personnel Department", wouldn't they be checking the email every few minutes instead of only twice per day? And what was that "Personnel Department" doing up until recently, that caused them to only check email once every other day?!? Hmmmm...once again, when Chet opens his mouth, things don't really add up.
Chet hilariously goes on to finish that first complaint with, "Complacency has no place in this Economy". LOL! Chet, when you typed that, did you immediately look upward to ensure there wasn't a bolt of lightening about to strike you? "Complancency" has defined Lancaster Arms for the better part of the last 18 months. Well that, and raw, outright dishonesty. The audacity of this guy is mind-blowing.
Chet then goes onto a few other complaints, including posting one where a Florida man allegedly complained about Lancaster stealing his rifle. While Chet doesn't reveal why this guy would come to that conclusion, I suspect it probably had something to do with Lancaster telling him his gun would be returned in a week or two, and then the customer still not having the gun months later. To be sure, similar reports can be found on the Internet. Either way, anytime a customer feels like they have to write an email accusing you of theft...you have a severe customer service problem. Big time.
If I didn't know the things about Chet Durda that I do know, I might be fooled by this new "Complaint" section. I might think, "Wow. This company has made some mistakes, and now they're fixing them. Good on them!"
But here's the thing...the fundamental problem with Lancaster Arms isn't "personnel" who are now gone, or unreasonable customers who falsely accuse Lancaster of stealing firearms. No, the problem with Lancaster Arms is that the company is run by a guy who is completely, thoroughly untrustworthy. To believe that Chet Durda has "seen the light" after he has ripped off and lied to as many people as he has (read the rest of this blog for details), might as well be to believe in Santa Claus while you're at it. A leopard doesn't change it's spots, and a shady businessman doesn't all of the sudden recognize the error of his ways, and become an honest businessman. That might make for a nice Hollywood movie, but real life is somewhat different.
If you wish to understand why I've come to this conclusion, just read this entire blog top to bottom. (Or really, bottom to top.) The unfortunate details of how Lancaster Arms runs its business are all here, in plain sight. No sugar-coating or excuses required.
As for Lancaster Arms, Chet's latest attempt at damage control is a day late and a dollar short. Now, whenever Lancaster is brought up on forums, the consensus is usually, "You don't want to do business with them." And look at their complaint site and tell me...do you really want people building your rifle, who aren't even professional enough to use a spell-checker on their own marketing website? If they can't even be bothered to pay attention to obvious details on a simple web page they use to market their business, what on Earth makes you think they're going to pay any attention to details with the rest of their work?
Maybe they can get one of the millions of people who work in their "Personnel Department" on that right away! If they can get the "Personnel Department" to now answer emails twice a day, perhaps there's hope that a third-grade level of proficiency in the English language won't be far behind!
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Lancaster Arms Called Out on Youtube
Well folks, nothing ever seems to change for the better at Lancaster Arms. Chet Durda, Shane, and the rest of the schmucks at Lancaster continue ripping people off left and right. Yes, the Internet continues to be filled with stories of people who are having very significant problems with Lancaster Arms. These people send money to Lancaster, are told their rifle, repair job or product will arrive in just a few weeks, and then MONTHS later they are still waiting.
"MrLockandload", who is a well-respected and popular firearms commentator on Youtube with over 2,000 subscribers, even got so pissed at Lancaster Arms and Chet Durda that he had to make a 10-minute video just to shame Lancaster into returning the money that he sent Lancaster back in March for 10 barrels. Shane at Lancaster told MrLockandload that he'd send a check three weeks ago. But that's what Lancaster does. Even though they don't send product when the promise they will, they tell customers "the check's in the mail". (Literally, in this case!)
Given the way Lancaster has been operating during the last year or so, I wouldn't be at all surprised to find out that some kind of ponzi scheme is going on. In fact, one of the leading builders in the AK industry has suggested that that's exactly what's going on at Lancaster...that Lancaster is using money from new customers, to pay for and fulfill orders for customers who have been waiting for many months.
Whatever the case, one thing is for certain. Chet Durda, the owner of Lancaster, can't be trusted as far as he can be thrown. Based on my own personal dealings with him, I know Mr. Durda to be a man of extremely low character, and extremely low integrity. Given the way he attempted to defraud me (see the story elsewhere in thsi blog), at this point I'm somewhat surprised Lancaster Arms is still in business. Especially given the way word is rapidly spreading about Lancaster Arms and Chet Durda's questionable business practices.
As I say at the end of almost every post, if you know what's good for you, do NOT do business with Lancaster Arms. In my opinion, it's just a matter of time before they go under. They've simply screwed over too many people at this point.
"MrLockandload", who is a well-respected and popular firearms commentator on Youtube with over 2,000 subscribers, even got so pissed at Lancaster Arms and Chet Durda that he had to make a 10-minute video just to shame Lancaster into returning the money that he sent Lancaster back in March for 10 barrels. Shane at Lancaster told MrLockandload that he'd send a check three weeks ago. But that's what Lancaster does. Even though they don't send product when the promise they will, they tell customers "the check's in the mail". (Literally, in this case!)
Given the way Lancaster has been operating during the last year or so, I wouldn't be at all surprised to find out that some kind of ponzi scheme is going on. In fact, one of the leading builders in the AK industry has suggested that that's exactly what's going on at Lancaster...that Lancaster is using money from new customers, to pay for and fulfill orders for customers who have been waiting for many months.
Whatever the case, one thing is for certain. Chet Durda, the owner of Lancaster, can't be trusted as far as he can be thrown. Based on my own personal dealings with him, I know Mr. Durda to be a man of extremely low character, and extremely low integrity. Given the way he attempted to defraud me (see the story elsewhere in thsi blog), at this point I'm somewhat surprised Lancaster Arms is still in business. Especially given the way word is rapidly spreading about Lancaster Arms and Chet Durda's questionable business practices.
As I say at the end of almost every post, if you know what's good for you, do NOT do business with Lancaster Arms. In my opinion, it's just a matter of time before they go under. They've simply screwed over too many people at this point.
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