Anyone heard from Urze lately?

[soup55]

I am writing this message because I not only feel obligated, but also, because I would like to offer an apolgy to everyone following this thread. After some deep thinking, but most importantly, after some really good 'talks' with Triggerhappy69, this will be my last post in this thread.

 

I am doing this in part because of a rather nasty message left by someone. Thankfully Acedy edited out the offending remarks. Since the thread was re-opened speculations concerning Urze have run rampant. This is wrong. And I feel in part responsible for this happening because I have been the most 'vocal' person in this thread. And I let my frustrations, and yes, at times, anger, get the best of me. When that occured I wrote some rather nasty speculations labeling Urze, among other things, a scammer and thief. That was totally uncalled for, and, I believe, only helped to 'fuel the fire'.

 

Anger is a basic human emotion. We all experience it, but, it is how we deal with it that matters. So setting my emotions aside, I read Triggerhappy's post again. This time I understood the point he was trying to get through to "all of us". I also knew my 'gut reactions' to be inappropriate.

 

I then spent a good deal of time reading many of the 'hundreds' of posts written by Urze, (a great deal of them in Triggerhappy's popular thread; " Uuuuaaah..! I have started building now..!" In all of his messages he offered his knowledge, help, and assistance to many members of this forum, (myself included). And as I read them I also gathered the joy Urze has with this, (our) hobby. He has helped many people, and, made many friends in the process. So I can see how it is indeed puzzling for him to suddenly stop communicating.

 

Over the past several days I have been in contact with Triggerhappy. I told him I now understand the point he was making, and, I apologised for my shortsightedness. We have been trading some really good talks back and forth, and, I have made a new friend. So thanks Triggerhappy, and, definately +1 rep for him!

 

In closing, I would like to thank all of the people who have offered their assistance to me. I do hope one of Urze's friends is able to contact him, and, I do hope all is well. Of course he is not a scammer, and, he didn't run off to some exotic island. It isn't THAT much money. It also makes no sense whatsoever. My final thought is that perhaps this thread should be closed. It is serving no purpose other than people speculating. But it was one thoughless, cruel speculation, (edited out) that has made me re-think everything. So this will be my last post in this thread. I wish everyone 'good flying', and, thank you.

[JimMack]

Thank you soup55 for such a mature and considerate post. Urze's family and friends have been trying to contact him for the last 3 weeks. It is very clear that something has happened to him and when we find out we will notify the community, if it is appropriate. Certainly from my experience of knowing him for 3 years, he is absolutely honest.

 

I am writing this message because I not only feel obligated, but also, because I would like to offer an apolgy to everyone following this thread. After some deep thinking, but most importantly, after some really good 'talks' with Triggerhappy69, this will be my last post in this thread.

 

I am doing this in part because of a rather nasty message left by someone. Thankfully Acedy edited out the offending remarks. Since the thread was re-opened speculations concerning Urze have run rampant. This is wrong. And I feel in part responsible for this happening because I have been the most 'vocal' person in this thread. And I let my frustrations, and yes, at times, anger, get the best of me. When that occured I wrote some rather nasty speculations labeling Urze, among other things, a scammer and thief. That was totally uncalled for, and, I believe, only helped to 'fuel the fire'.

 

Anger is a basic human emotion. We all experience it, but, it is how we deal with it that matters. So setting my emotions aside, I read Triggerhappy's post again. This time I understood the point he was trying to get through to "all of us". I also knew my 'gut reactions' to be inappropriate.

 

I then spent a good deal of time reading many of the 'hundreds' of posts written by Urze, (a great deal of them in Triggerhappy's popular thread; " Uuuuaaah..! I have started building now..!" In all of his messages he offered his knowledge, help, and assistance to many members of this forum, (myself included). And as I read them I also gathered the joy Urze has with this, (our) hobby. He has helped many people, and, made many friends in the process. So I can see how it is indeed puzzling for him to suddenly stop communicating.

 

Over the past several days I have been in contact with Triggerhappy. I told him I now understand the point he was making, and, I apologised for my shortsightedness. We have been trading some really good talks back and forth, and, I have made a new friend. So thanks Triggerhappy, and, definately +1 rep for him!

 

In closing, I would like to thank all of the people who have offered their assistance to me. I do hope one of Urze's friends is able to contact him, and, I do hope all is well. Of course he is not a scammer, and, he didn't run off to some exotic island. It isn't THAT much money. It also makes no sense whatsoever. My final thought is that perhaps this thread should be closed. It is serving no purpose other than people speculating. But it was one thoughless, cruel speculation, (edited out) that has made me re-think everything. So this will be my last post in this thread. I wish everyone 'good flying', and, thank you.

[thereminqblank]

Urze's family and friends have been trying to contact him for the last 3 weeks.

 

Now that really is worrying. I hope he is okay!!

[Flim]

So you are telling us that his family doesn't know where he is! That seems like a police case to me.

[hitman]

So you are telling us that his family doesn't know where he is! That seems like a police case to me.

Please refer to this post again.

http://forums.eagle.ru/showpost.php?p=629227&postcount=19

It clearly states he cant possibly answer all your emails at once, and your probably not the only one, with over 200+ emails. Dont be too quick to judge simply because he has more on his plate than he can handle. The best thing to do right now is to wait until Airway comes back from LLTM with good or bad news.

[kaiserb_uk]

Please refer to this post again.

http://forums.eagle.ru/showpost.php?p=629227&postcount=19

It clearly states he cant possibly answer all your emails at once, and your probably not the only one, with over 200+ emails. Dont be too quick to judge simply because he has more on his plate than he can handle. The best thing to do right now is to wait until Airway comes back from LLTM with good or bad news.

That was 3 months ago. If I have a week off work I come back to ~300 emails.

 

I think you'll find there's a few of us being VERY patient, and waiting anxiously for word of Urze.

Edited April 3, 2009 by kaiserb_uk

[Flim]

So has anyone found this dude yet?

[Airway]

I am back from LLTM and met several guys from the Il-2 community I usually am in.

Who I didn't found there, was Urze.

And that was no surprise because his attendance was cancelled:

 

http://www.lowlandtigermeet.com/2007/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=193&Itemid=95

 

I'm sorry for all who had hope in this day and my try to get some information.

 

 

I remember when my brother had a very heavy accident and we were informed the same day by authorities that he was flown into hospital and where we could find him.

In case Urze has had an accident, I would think the same would happen with his relatives.

So I wonder his family is simply not knowing where he is. Or not caring?

It seems there is no missing record of his person too.

His Youtube account was used inbetween too, by whomever.

His answering machine seems to have several Gigabyte of memory 'cause it never fills to an end while there are some people are trying to contact him.

 

There's a small possibility this could all be explained with a reason - but this possibility has fallen under 1 % in my view.

 

I myself don't see a single reason why it should not have been possible at least to post a two-liner here, that he is ok, busy but working on the things or that he can't fulfill his job and going to refund the people.

Even a very small note is always possible.

While loading a Youtube video maybe ;) So people don't worry, about Urze and about their money.

So people were not bothered like some are now - understandable.

[Flim]

it doesn't make sense! The guy would have made a lot more money if he had stuck with his business!

 

Now he is gone? Disappeared? I'm sure our money is gone by now!

[Slayer]

I remember this same thing happpened with some guy who was making F16- cockpit seats. Person comes up with a great idea...but just bites off more than they can chew and spends the money in the meantime :/

 

The best thing to do for people who don't have the skill to build their own cockpit is to have the seller list it on ebay or something. Something with buyer protection. At least this way the builder would have 30 days to deliver and the buyer can cancel or get ebay involved if its approaching 30 days and there is no product....

 

Sorry for your guys loss :/

[hitman]

Agreed, and I think thats what exactly has happened here. 200 emails a day, assuming that even 1/4 of those were customers, thats about 75 products that need to be built by one person, which would take about 24 hours at least of straight work to build just one, and doing this on someone elses time frame and working a full time job at the same time. If thats the case, then he should have limited the number of products to build (or at least inform people of at least a 60 day wait period).

 

Im sorry for everyone elses loss, but still, dont be too quick to judge a persons character until all the factors are known. I will admit his lack of response to people here on the forums is a bit discouraging, but I would wait. Theres nothing really much you can do about it until an official word comes from Urze. I think its a 90 day waiting period before you can get INTERPOL involved if such an issue is deemed fraudulent.

[soup55]

I said I would not post in this thread anymore, so, first let me apologise for breaking my word. I just felt in the light of things I would like to add a little. First off I have learned a lesson. And thank you Slayer for your insight. I could not have said it better, and, maybe others can learn from this situation. I can tell you it has been over 90 days. I do know a little more about this than some other members. If you look back you will see Urze stated he would stop taking orders, and, only fill those that were paid. That was 2 months ago. Also from what I know from other members in my situation who have stayed in contact with me, there were only several orders to fill. I will also put forth this statement, knowing that I will get my a*s reamed out by Urze's friends. If you were starting a business, and, suddenly found out that because of lack of time, parts, help, funds, etc., why would you keep accepting payments, and also, would you not return money to those who have paid? I know I would! And I would simply state that because of unforseen circumstances, I am unable to fill your order at this time. That did not happen. Hitman is also right in saying that there is not much you can do. At this point I don't expect to get my money back. And as always I do not now, and, never have, wished any ill will against Urze. I'd like to think I can rise above that, and, not let anger 'rule the day'! I thought I had finally put it all behind me. And then one person left a message telling me and others out of money to "chill". Chill? We've been waiting 3 months now! Chill? And then I felt the anger rising again. It is so easy to sit back and say something like that, especially not knowing the whole story, and, what I have been through. I think that is what prompted me to write this message. It does suck losing money, but, please don't fan a fire that was out by leaving messages like that. It's almost like people are making out me and others out of money to be bad people. Finally,(whew), I would like to thank the new friends I have made in this forum who have helped me, understood my frustrations, and made a lousy situation easier to get through. I also learned some valuable lessons from these new friends. One being, try not to be angry or bitter because nothing good comes from it. I'll take these friendships, over lost money, any day! Thank you.

[bumfire]

If anyone paid Urze by credit card then conact your credit card company and tell them that you think you have been ripped off, as they can and will help in the majority of cases, I have seen it a hundred times before where people got ripped off on ebay or paypal and never got what they ordered/bought and they then contacted their credit card company and they came through for them and refunded their cash, also they will pursue Urze for that money and make life even worse for him and block him from getting loans and credit in the future, nobody likes to be blacklisted in this day and age as everyone needs credit at somepoint as the world revolves around it.

 

But the main thing is, if you paid by credit card, which I know some of you did, then your credit card companies should refund you if you provide them with all the details, because credit card companies have whole departments dedicated to this type of thing.

 

Even link your CC company to this thread for that extra touch of proof if needed, but for those that have paid by CC, dont delay any further if you havent already contacted your CC company, do it today!

 

I think now is the time for all of you who got bumped, to contact the police department nearest Urze's house to let them know, the more people who call/email or whatever and complain the more likely they are to do something about it, I have also seen this happen before where someone was ripping people off on the internet and lots of people contacted his local cop shop and eventually the police were obligated to do something, even if its only to find out where he is and make sure he isnt a "real missing person".

 

Dont get me wrong, I dont want anything to happen to the guy, but he just isnt playing fair for the "supposedly" great guy that he is and, as others have said it REALLY does look like he is deliberatly dodging everyone, so it is only fair to get the police involved now and if you ask me it should of been done a month ago, because think of it this way, you pay for something upfront at a store, they give you an rough date and in some cases an actual date that you will get your goodies, then the owner goes awol and isnt returning your calls,emails etc and you find out that your not the only one who is owned money or items, wouldnt you call the cops ? I sure as f00k would especially since its months and months ago that most of you paid him, 2008 if I recall.

 

The people here are right to be mad with Urze and I really think that now is the time that he gets banned, I mean, its OBVIOUS he isnt coming back and leaving his account open is basically giving the signal to him and others that "Its OK to use our forums to find customers and then rip them off as nothing will happen to you or your account" ( rest assured that is what he has done, no matter how it started, it has now ended up as him ripping those people of ) if he does come back I am sure an email to a mod or whoever can unban him so he can post to explain to all why he went missing which I really think is very unlikely ever to happen.

 

To the people that think he isnt ripping people off, open your eyes, what planet do you live on ? lets see, his youtube account was being used until it was mentioned on here that he was using it, then mysteriously it is stopped being used, his answer machine never seems to be full, hmmm, who could be listening to all those messages thats being left for him ?

 

Close thread, ban urze, contact CC companies and get police on him., thats what any sane person would/should do, regardless of who here it might upset because urze is their friend, in my mind, Urze is nothing but a thief, even if he does come back with a sob story and proclaims that he is sorry and that he will pay everyone back, he will still be remembered as a thief because that is EXACTLY what he has done, stole their money.

 

If the mods ( no doubt some of them wont like what I just said ) but if the mods dont like what I said, then no doubt you will delete it so that Urze can continue to be looked upon favourably by certain people on this forum. Rest assured many people have noticed the bias their is towards urze from the members who run this forum, which personally I find disgusting, just admit it and get it over with, urze ripped these people off, the sooner you all admit it to yourselves and the sooner action is taken against urze's account the quicker this thing will be put to bed...

[soup55]

I have good news. Just now I received in the mail a letter from my credit card company informing me that they have recovered my $220.00 from Urze. I strongly urge others to contact their CC company. Now I can lay this matter to rest once and for all. But a hard lesson learned. YES!!! But that is just good news for me. Their are other members whom I spoke with today that did not use a CC for purchase. So this is still an ongoing situation. I offered these members any kind of help I am capable of. And as a community I feel we should all offer support, and, if possible, help, whatever that might entail. Perhaps time to stop feeling bad for, and, comeing to Urze's defense. It SHOULD be the other way around.

Edited April 6, 2009 by soup55
new news

[JaseGill]

Im really upset now.

I didnt pay by credit card so cant get a refund there. Does anyone know if the money can be reclaimed via PayPal?

I havent tried yet, and was putting it off as long as possible, but Im at the end of my teather. I heard PayPal can onlyr efund if they can get the money back off the person, anyone know if this is true?

Jase.

[Airway]

Here’s how it works:

 

• Visit the Resolution Center and open a dispute within 45 days from the date you sent payment.
  
• PayPal encourages both parties to communicate directly with each other to amicably resolve the dispute.
  
• If you are unable to resolve the dispute, the next step is to file a claim within 20 days from the date the dispute was opened.
  

https://www.paypal.com/us/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=xpt/Marketing/securitycenter/buy/Protection-outside

[kaiserb_uk]

Unfortunately 45 days passed ages ago - Jan 10th was when I paid :(

[hitman]

Contact paypal customer support and explain to them what happened. Doesnt hurt to try, you know...

[crazysundog]

Im really upset now.

I didnt pay by credit card so cant get a refund there. Does anyone know if the money can be reclaimed via PayPal?

I havent tried yet, and was putting it off as long as possible, but Im at the end of my teather. I heard PayPal can onlyr efund if they can get the money back off the person, anyone know if this is true?

Jase.

 

 

caveat emptor...

[JaseGill]

caveat emptor...

 

Well thats a useful adittion to the conversation SunDog.

The buyer was well aware, of the very good reputation, at the time, of the seller, and trusted his good name and feedback, here and elsewhere within the community. Its oh so easy to be a latin spouting muppet with 20/20 hindsight isnt it?

One assumes that you arent out of pocket?

[PoleCat]

Guys, really sorry to hear that this is working out so badly. There but for the grace of God go I, as I was ready to purchase myself but had not quite made the decision yet when I saw this horror show thread some time ago.

 

This is a very modest offer but any of the people here who have ordered these Mods for a Cougar I would like to provide free of charge a small Mod that replaces the screws in the joystick handle with alan head screws that really hold well. I bought these screws in 100pcs each packages and have quite a few to spare.

 

This is a small and inexpensive mod but if you pm me your address I will send these out to you for free along with a link to instructions on how to install. I will pay postage to anyone in the USA and if not too much money across the pond as well.

 

Again very sorry that this has turned out so badly for so many and I will keep hoping against hope that it works out for all of you in the end.

 

This is for the most part an excellent community of people who help each other out all the time and this is my very small gesture to try to give a little bit back to those that have given so much and been left hanging in the breeze.

 

Out

Edited April 18, 2009 by PoleCat

[crazysundog]

Well thats a useful adittion to the conversation SunDog.

The buyer was well aware, of the very good reputation, at the time, of the seller, and trusted his good name and feedback, here and elsewhere within the community. Its oh so easy to be a latin spouting muppet with 20/20 hindsight isnt it?

One assumes that you arent out of pocket?

 

I was very nearly out of pocket, so it seems....

 

but I guess since I didn't lose any cash, I am just a latin spouting muppet with 20/20 hindsight; albeit one that is still holding his cash!

[soup55]

Polecat, Even though I have recovered my money, it was a 3 month horror show. I can tell you that your gesture is worth much more than the price of some small screws. When I was down about the situation, there were some really fine members of this forum that would PM me almost weekly and helped me more than they will ever know. They are now good friends and we still stay in contact. That is what makes this a community, and, your message and offer shows that there are people who care and make this a good community. Crazysundog, I do not understand why you would post such a message, other than to bait people who are already at wits end over the situation, and, get them madder. Why would you do that? It almosts seems you think it funny. That's just plain wrong and uncalled for.

Edited April 18, 2009 by soup55

[crazysundog]

sorry for offending anyone, i see now the comment was rude...

 

I do not think the situation is funny whatsoever, like i said in my previous post, i was very close to sending my money as well...again, sorry for the rude post.

[soup55]

To those still trying to recover their money. I was able to because I used a credit card, but, the CC company worked with PayPal to "contact the merchant on your behalf". That is how it was stated in the letter I received. So please don't give up! Perhaps if you could somehow get together, and, collectively try to reach someone with authority at PayPal, they still may be able to assist. Again, I think you must be pro-active in this situation. There may be other avenues to pursue also. If I can be of any assistance to any member still trying to recover their funds, please feel free to PM me. I will try and help in any way that I can, whether it be answering questions, or, offering advice. I know that I got quite 'vocal' at times in this thread, (at times drawing a little heat), so, I definately know how you are feeling. Also, I almost forgot, +1 rep for PoleCat for his generous offering, and, being a 1ST class person! :thumbup: