MONACO diorama w/ electric WHIPLASH WHIPS! official thread. get on the LIST.

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I'd like to share my situation with this project as I think it could potentially affect others on the list that preordered.

On May 29, 2012, I PM'd Ben and kindly asked to opt out from this project. It has been over a year since I originally agreed to be included in this project.

Unfortunately for me, financial situations have changed, and so I asked what he thought about dropping me from the list and refunding my deposit back to paypal.

Now, Ben has made it clear that time has become an issue. Completing this dio for everyone on the list appears to have become a burden. We are now over a year from originally paying our deposit and I believe only the 1st member on the list has his dio, which had to be rebuilt due to the product sustaining damage during shipping. Not Ben's fault, but it caused further delays in completing the project for the remaining members on the list.

I thought, that by omitting my order from his list, it would help me as well as Ben. That's one less dio that he has to spend time on. Two more members after me on the list will get bumped up, of course.

Now here's what concerns me:

Ben has agreed to refund my deposit, but stated he does not have the necessary funds at this time.
If funds are not available, how can supplies/materials be purchased to complete the dios for the other members on the list?
And, what timeframe can they expect their dios to be completed?

Many of us are in a similar situation with Ben on another custom project-

https://sideshowcollectors.com/forums/showthread.php?t=99871&page=12

Sorry to see the same thing happening here. My sympathies man... Good luck!

Sallah

Same situation as you guys but in my case with the MOTU greyskull. Anyone else effected feel free to PM me would be good to discuss next move if there even is one...

Hey guys. In doing my best. I do plan to pay those who want it here their deposit back. It just wouldn't make sense to start doing so until I had enough to refund everyone who wanted it. I am also just having a hard time keeping up with both of these forums, here and the heman one, so please don't ever fake my delayed response as me having disappeared or anything like that. Its 5 am here and i just noticed all these responses ao I knew I had to come by and say something. I'm on my phone most of the time and not a computer, and it's very difficult to do. That being said I'll post here what I just posted at heman.
"Yes. The Monaco project is one that I tackled alone without ben a. And it's even more behind. Dealing with many of the same snags along the way. I'm in the process of having to re do the mold on that one, which is expensive and time consuming. I have communicated with them just as I have here, so no one should think I'm trying to pull te wool over anyone's eyes. It's just what I've been saying this whole time, the fortress is not the only thing we have going on, we both have several other jobs being working artists, and for me these two in
Particular are very challenging, and honestly, I don't think it's any secret, we underestimated the difficulty of the whole process. But we are working on it, and figuring it out as we go. We have never done something this large and everything about it is a learning experience."
So that's what I posted there, for those that aren't a member. Also for the Motu people here, I have not been pod about updating the sideshow thread. I'm sorry. Te heman one has lots of info though and will answer a lot of questions.
The Monaco project is one I took on alone, a little before we started the fortress. The fortress is a project I'm doing with a. Friend with many years mold making experience. And he has been able to help me as well with my questions on Monaco.
They ate both getting done. It's just taking forever. I know this. And don't blame anyone for getting mad. It's something new at every turn. Just like shipping. Can't believe that thing busted. And now geil and I are dealing with the back and forth of international postal claims. Something I never expected to eat up time when I could be working on both of these projects. Just an example of things along the way that Happen that you don't anticipate. There are a million of them.
For Monaco I will continue to keep working and plug ahead on it. And those that want their deposit back, just let me know, like centurion. That's fine, and I'll come up with it, but everyone's goin to have to CONTINUE (thank you ) to remain as patient as possible. I'm trying. I don't think I've kept that a secret. Thanks guys.
 
Also. I'm away until Monday. So I won't be able to respond until I'm back. So it's not me ignoring you. Please feel free to send me questions and I'll dedicate some time to responding when I'm back. If you could though, please send them to my personal email [email protected] so I can keep everything in order. Thanks!
 
Ben,

Thank you for answering questions and following up on your projects. I'm sure all involved here and in your MOTUC thread appreciate that.

I'm looking forwad to your next post, hopefully with some good news.

As for the others here who have paid a deposit or paid in full, I think it's a good idea to let Ben know your intentions so that he can plan accordingly.
 
In fairness to Ben, he genuinely intended to make these for those who asked. The difficulties he's had have been entirely out of his control - if it's too cold for resin to set, there's not a lot you can do, and he's had other stuff to deal with which could not have been foreseen and has to take precedence. Yes, it's unfortunate that it's taking so long to get things done, but don't accuse the poor chap of greed and ineptitude when this couldn't be further from the truth
 
In fairness to Ben, he genuinely intended to make these for those who asked. The difficulties he's had have been entirely out of his control - if it's too cold for resin to set, there's not a lot you can do, and he's had other stuff to deal with which could not have been foreseen and has to take precedence. Yes, it's unfortunate that it's taking so long to get things done, but don't accuse the poor chap of greed and ineptitude when this couldn't be further from the truth

It was too cold to set back in winter time. That was an understandable excuse... but we are months into Spring/ Summer now... shouldn't the priority be to jump right back in on projects that you've accepted A LOT of money for already?

I am more involved in the Fortress project myself, so I have a lengthier reply there... but I really think it is time to start offering folks more than just "we are working on it, please continue to be patient".

Sallah
 
I am compiling a list of people who are waiting on items from Bishart. If that is you, please PM me for details.
 
Hey guys. In doing my best. I do plan to pay those who want it here their deposit back. It just wouldn't make sense to start doing so until I had enough to refund everyone who wanted it. I am also just having a hard time keeping up with both of these forums, here and the heman one, so please don't ever fake my delayed response as me having disappeared or anything like that. Its 5 am here and i just noticed all these responses ao I knew I had to come by and say something. I'm on my phone most of the time and not a computer, and it's very difficult to do. That being said I'll post here what I just posted at heman.
"Yes. The Monaco project is one that I tackled alone without ben a. And it's even more behind. Dealing with many of the same snags along the way. I'm in the process of having to re do the mold on that one, which is expensive and time consuming. I have communicated with them just as I have here, so no one should think I'm trying to pull te wool over anyone's eyes. It's just what I've been saying this whole time, the fortress is not the only thing we have going on, we both have several other jobs being working artists, and for me these two in
Particular are very challenging, and honestly, I don't think it's any secret, we underestimated the difficulty of the whole process. But we are working on it, and figuring it out as we go. We have never done something this large and everything about it is a learning experience."
So that's what I posted there, for those that aren't a member. Also for the Motu people here, I have not been pod about updating the sideshow thread. I'm sorry. Te heman one has lots of info though and will answer a lot of questions.
The Monaco project is one I took on alone, a little before we started the fortress. The fortress is a project I'm doing with a. Friend with many years mold making experience. And he has been able to help me as well with my questions on Monaco.
They ate both getting done. It's just taking forever. I know this. And don't blame anyone for getting mad. It's something new at every turn. Just like shipping. Can't believe that thing busted. And now geil and I are dealing with the back and forth of international postal claims. Something I never expected to eat up time when I could be working on both of these projects. Just an example of things along the way that Happen that you don't anticipate. There are a million of them.
For Monaco I will continue to keep working and plug ahead on it. And those that want their deposit back, just let me know, like centurion. That's fine, and I'll come up with it, but everyone's goin to have to CONTINUE (thank you ) to remain as patient as possible. I'm trying. I don't think I've kept that a secret. Thanks guys.

Ben, looking forward to hearing back on any news you may have.

.
.
.
.
.
 
As a "customizer" myself (ok not really as I only make rectangular boxes out of acrylic) I found myself underestimating the workload even when only making panels and boxes with straight lines LOL Even the packaging turned out to be challenging and the first shipment I ever made for my now friend Ro here on the board ended up taking 4hrs and weighting an extra 30lbs but at least it made it safely.... All this even when I had a bit of help too as colleagues from my dayjob would advise me on packaging and shipping etc
All I can say is every single step in getting a custom item into your hands represents a challenge. Some will do better than others but all will have to overcome many hurdles. I am not making an excuse for anyone but throwing a different POV and hope both sides can work towards the common goal of getting something worthwhile. Communication is key and Ben has to be very disciplined about it. Patience is what you get back in return which will then be rewarded with a custom piece. You do have to remember the moment money exchanges hand you are doing a job and you need to be disciplined about completing it. We have seen many fail midway and throwing in the towel for one reason or another but also some succeed.

Maybe we should start a help section where other customizers with experience are willing to assist in the more logistic related challenges.
On a side note I still remember when a member here tried to ask me for advise on how to do it himself when I had all the info and my experiences in my blog only to then laughed in my face saying that I overcharged and yet ...... I wonder if he ever ended up making any......
 
Well said geil. My project is killing me due to time money and material availability.

Yeah sometimes our very own ambition gets the best of us. I remember having spend over 2K on tools and materials in my "R&D" by the time I sold my first case LOL. I count myself lucky not having to deal with any damage so I feel for Ben. But it is very easy to underestimate the risk in that last stage until you youtube some videos of deliveries made ;)
 
Not all but A LOT of customizers take on too many projects at one time. Realistically, with work, family and responsibilities, there's only so many hours available in a day. As an architect, we use a rule of thumb that if you estimate a project is gonna take, say...10 hours, you best double that number to be anywhere. Ear accurate.

I would guess doing custom work is similar. If it takes you 4-6 hours to complete one order, it would be best to double that time and multiply it by the number of commissions.
 
Has anybody received any updates? Are these shipping? Is money being refunded????

I just got my refund for the Fortress today... Not sure if anyone on the Monaco project has gotten anything as of yet though.

Sallah
 
All people who asked for a fortress refund got one today. Lots of money! Same will happen with Monaco for those who have asked me. The others can still expect a great piece. Thanks for your patience.
 
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