Mclaneinc Posted August 22, 2019 Share Posted August 22, 2019 I guess he has a selection of customers that are 'knowns' to him and he relaxes a bit more with them and of course if you be civil with him he's more likely to be the same, a kind word never hurt anyone. Sadly as the various Best groan threads throughout the years its seen he can be a little awkward. Also I guess your turn of phrase / manner may play a part, if your manner of talking is curt some people take that as abrasive when its usually isn't meant that way. There's no doubt his warehouse is a little unkempt as seen by a person who called on him and he isn't a spring chicken these days so maybe keep that in mind when talking to him but he can be a royal pain when he wants to especially with order quantities as seen numerous times. The limiting he has been seen to be doing at times is a pain but I get the idea he wants to keep some so not to be out of stock while the person ordering may want to get it while they can. I'd urge people to use him while he's there although it must feel like voting with your feet and trying elsewhere but as seen, elsewhere is getting harder to find.. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KLund1 Posted August 22, 2019 Share Posted August 22, 2019 I got blackballed from him. I forgot to pick up a $4.00 800 speaker from his 'office' a couple years ago. It was an honest mistake. Things got very busy at work and it just left my head. A lot of months went by and I emailed him to order more parts. No answer. more emails. no answer. He had always answered before. I call. He asks my name and recalls the forgotten sale. Then says the 'fulfillment department' dose not tolerate such behavior and will not take my order. I kindly offered many apologies, and that I will only ask for shipped items, no pickup. He says 'they' will think about it, and call back in a few days. I waited a week, called back. He says 'they' would rather no take my future orders. What a pain. Now it is hard to get parts. I can't wait until he is too old to run things and has to sell. Hopefully to someone here that want to do it well. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Nezgar Posted August 22, 2019 Share Posted August 22, 2019 56 minutes ago, DavidMil said: Also I'd like to know what is the lowest Customer Order Number out there. Mine starts with BT06... Anyone got a lower number? My first order ever was April 2018, customer # FN2837 Wonder what the letters mean. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trellot Posted August 22, 2019 Author Share Posted August 22, 2019 18 minutes ago, Nezgar said: My first order ever was April 2018, customer # FN2837 Wonder what the letters mean. ROFL! Now let all the creative juices start flowing to begin to understand their meaning! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trellot Posted August 22, 2019 Author Share Posted August 22, 2019 (edited) 1 hour ago, KLund1 said: I got blackballed from him. I forgot to pick up a $4.00 800 speaker from his 'office' a couple years ago. It was an honest mistake. Things got very busy at work and it just left my head. A lot of months went by and I emailed him to order more parts. No answer. more emails. no answer. He had always answered before. I call. He asks my name and recalls the forgotten sale. Then says the 'fulfillment department' dose not tolerate such behavior and will not take my order. I kindly offered many apologies, and that I will only ask for shipped items, no pickup. He says 'they' will think about it, and call back in a few days. I waited a week, called back. He says 'they' would rather no take my future orders. What a pain. Now it is hard to get parts. I can't wait until he is too old to run things and has to sell. Hopefully to someone here that want to do it well. Yeah, I remember once he responded back to me regarding a stock check request of Atari 2600 carts. He had them all; but I then inquired about the availability of one more title. He jumped on me quick and responded back saying that they were were very very busy and a second stock check like that, after an initial stock check was already performed, could take up to 3 weeks time...?. Bahahah! Then in closing he said that they had more Atari orders than could be shipped out by the end of the month. I've seen that one in other complaint posts here as well. Sounds like some boiler plate text to me and maybe a keyboard combination to summon it forth at will in an email lol. So perhaps I am blacklisted as well, but for what I have no clue. I did send multiple emails regarding the same order, but days apart. But that doesn't explain his first non-response to my initial request. Thinking about it now...that stock check scenario I shared above...I never did make the purchase because I needed the items within a week for a birthday present and I took his word when he said they had more orders than could be shipped before the end of the month. So I left it at that and said no more. Might that have made him mad enough to kick a cat...idk... ? Edited August 22, 2019 by Trellot Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kyle22 Posted August 23, 2019 Share Posted August 23, 2019 Simply treat him with respect. I have shaken Brad's hand personally, and he it a great guy. Most of us know this. If you tell him a certain time, he will be there at that time. If you are not there @ that time, then shame on you. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Stephen Posted August 23, 2019 Share Posted August 23, 2019 6 minutes ago, Kyle22 said: Simply treat him with respect. I have shaken Brad's hand personally, and he it a great guy. Most of us know this. If you tell him a certain time, he will be there at that time. If you are not there @ that time, then shame on you. Speaking of - when the hell did punctuality become a long forgotten skill? Few things piss me off more than this. I've got some long term buddies. They tell you to "we'll get together at 6PM" and you may not see them until 8:30PM, or hell, maybe not for 3 weeks. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kyle22 Posted August 23, 2019 Share Posted August 23, 2019 (edited) Yeah, my 'employer' (slave master) says he'll be back in 2 hours usually means four. Customers come in the store looking for him. I tell them he will be back in 2 hours, and he's not, THEY get mad at me. If I tell them my best estimate is four hours, (and he finds out about it), HE gets mad at ME. It's a lose - lose situation for me. Most people do expect promptness. It's only polite. If you can't make it on time, GIVE THEM A RING. Come on now. This is simple common sense. Edited August 23, 2019 by Kyle22 Clarity 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mclaneinc Posted August 23, 2019 Share Posted August 23, 2019 (edited) Like earned respect, punctuality is a lost art now, admittedly life is busier now and more is expected of us in a day but when you have the time meet the commitment you made... As for Mr Koda, like Kyle I've met the man way back at a UK PCW show and shook his hand then and the as I took a catalogue he immediately said £5.00 please (or was it 10?) to which I declined with a smile, I thought they were free like most places.. Despite all that has been said about Brad, he's been there for the Atari community over the years, yes he can to some be a pain with some and I'm sure some were a pain to him but at the end of the day he's been there serving us lot with parts and I hope he keeps it up for as long as possible. Whatever you think of him he's earned the respect of most of us and been an important part of our world..Bradley, Da man... Edited August 23, 2019 by Mclaneinc My spalling...Yeah, its a joke.. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S1500 Posted August 23, 2019 Share Posted August 23, 2019 17 hours ago, KLund1 said: I got blackballed from him. . He says 'they' would rather no take my future orders. What a pain. Now it is hard to get parts. I can't wait until he is too old to run things and has to sell. Hopefully to someone here that want to do it well. No Atari for you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trellot Posted August 23, 2019 Author Share Posted August 23, 2019 (edited) 6 hours ago, Mclaneinc said: Despite all that has been said about Brad, he's been there for the Atari community over the years, yes he can to some be a pain with some and I'm sure some were a pain to him but at the end of the day he's been there serving us lot with parts and I hope he keeps it up for as long as possible. Whatever you think of him he's earned the respect of most of us and been an important part of our world..Bradley, Da man... I agree with this, which is why I will be willing to call in my order in small quantities so that I can continue to do what I enjoy. He has the goods and the way...well, ok! Edited August 23, 2019 by Trellot Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KLund1 Posted August 24, 2019 Share Posted August 24, 2019 12 hours ago, Mclaneinc said: Despite all that has been said about Brad, he's been there for the Atari community over the years, yes he can to some be a pain with some and I'm sure some were a pain to him but at the end of the day he's been there serving us lot with parts and I hope he keeps it up for as long as possible. Whatever you think of him he's earned the respect of most of us and been an important part of our world I would agree with this. His knowledge about all Atari systems is hard to beat. From Pong to Falcon, he knows it all. His catalog is always near at hand for reference, tips, and general info about stuff. In fact it is looking a bit taddy, dogeared, post-it noted pages, etc. I wish he could be a bit more forgiving, and learn to embrace the modern internet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+mytek Posted August 24, 2019 Share Posted August 24, 2019 Not to make any one feel bad, but I just placed an order this morning via email, and got a fast response as well as no reduction on my order quantities. My email (subject line: Atari Parts Order)... Hi Bradley, I hope you are doing well with the heat we've been experiencing lately, looks like Indian Summer is coming around the corner. Anyway I was wondering if I could purchase the following (see list below). Still loving that XDM121 printer I got from you, but getting tired of feeding it each sheet individually, and noticed you listed a sheet feeder in your catalog. I didn't see it in your latest on-line addendum so I'm hoping you still have one. Price was taken from the paper catalog, so I will expect to see an adjusted price. QTY P/N DESCRIPTION PRICE EXT 1 CB102024 Single Sheet Feeder for XDM121 printer $49.95 $49.95 2 CO12296 ANTIC (NTSC) $5.00 $10.00 2 CO14887 ANTIC (PAL) $10.00 $20.00 2 CO14805 GTIA (NTSC) $5.00 $10.00 2 CO14889 GTIA (PAL) $10.00 $20.00 2 CO14806 CPU (SALLY) $8.00 $16.00 2 CO12298 PIA 6520 $1.95 $3.90 Total= $129.85 Payment will be by PayPal as usual, and I'll pay the final invoice you send with the added shipping and sales tax. Thank you, -- Michael St. Pierre Here was Bradley's response... OK Michael here is a complete break down of costs for your Atari PayPal order: 1 Atari XDM121 Single Sheet Feeder for XDM121 printer U$D 49.95 (last one Michael) 2 Atari ANTIC (NTSC) CO12296 U$D 10.00 2 Atari GTIA ANTIC (NTSC) CO14805 U$D 10.00 2 Atari ANTIC (PAL) CO14887 U$D 20.00 2 Atari ANTIC (PAL) CO14889 U$D 20.00 2 Atari Custom CPU CO14806 U$D 16.00 2 Atari 6520 PIA CO12298 U$D 16.00 CA Sales Tax U$D 11.69 Shipping to CA 95403 U$D 10.85 Insurance U$D 3.50 ------------------- Total U$D 167.99 Michael our PayPal account number is at the end of this E-Mail. Please cut and paste the above Atari order break down of costs into your PayPal payment. Regards Bradley Koda The only change was the price of the PIA chips, which has gone up significantly. And it was kinda sad that I got the last XDM121 sheet feeder . I was hoping that there would be more available for other people that might be interested after reading my recent review on the printer. I just sent off the payment . This really is business as usual for me and Brad... I send an email with a list of what I need, and he always gets back to me the very same day with an email response like the one posted above. I always try to keep my order emails brief and to the point, while making the effort to create a neat easy to read list of what I want including both a part number and description, as well as the pricing I found. And I treat him kindly as he has always done for me. BTW, that revision 10 catalogue is worth every penny he's asking for. It is a fantastic reference book of everything Atari has ever produced. I enjoy leafing through it all the time. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_The Doctor__ Posted August 24, 2019 Share Posted August 24, 2019 when you receive the sheet feeder, inspect every aspect of it, box, papers, the unit itself... certainly the identity will be revealed and folks might be able to source their own elsewhere, if you share what you discover. Kind of believe that combined with other mentions of such here on AA will nail it down. seems very familiar... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+mytek Posted August 24, 2019 Share Posted August 24, 2019 5 hours ago, _The Doctor__ said: when you receive the sheet feeder, inspect every aspect of it, box, papers, the unit itself... certainly the identity will be revealed and folks might be able to source their own elsewhere, if you share what you discover. Kind of believe that combined with other mentions of such here on AA will nail it down. seems very familiar... Yes I plan on doing that, and posted as much in the XDM121 review thread. Let's keep our fingers crossed . 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mclaneinc Posted August 24, 2019 Share Posted August 24, 2019 (edited) Satisfied customers...Always good for ALL to hear that... Update: There's just one little thing I'd love Brad to get done and that is a digital version of the catalogue, the cost of getting one to the UK is simply extreme, I'd happily pay almost the same as a paper one just to have it as digital.. Edited August 24, 2019 by Mclaneinc 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flashjazzcat Posted August 24, 2019 Share Posted August 24, 2019 I wish he'd allow someone to help him (possibly for free) with a CMS and online store. That would be awesome. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mclaneinc Posted August 24, 2019 Share Posted August 24, 2019 That would be great but you get the idea that he's stuck in his ways, mind you I wonder what his stock system is, just boxes all over the place with no system and possibly no actual quantities of items? At least an ordering system as you say and a better all round system would be good. The catalogue as dig would be nice because I just want one as reference, I don't really order much...50 dollars + for a catalogue just makes it not justifiable... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+mytek Posted August 25, 2019 Share Posted August 25, 2019 I just got a confirmation from Bradley on my order that it shipped out yesterday. He also said there was a miscalculation by the Atari accounting department on the price of the PIA 6520 chips, and that I would be getting a refund of $12.10 which brings it inline with what I had priced them at from the Best website. That refund was received a bit later that evening via PayPal . 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brentarian Posted August 25, 2019 Share Posted August 25, 2019 I bought a couple of 1200XL mylars and the rev.10 catalog in early July and had no trouble at all. I had called and left a message, and followed up with an email later that day. Bradley replied with a quote for my order and instructions to pay via PayPal. He also said he prefers that I email future orders. I have no problem with that. By the way, like Michael said, the Best Catalog is a good tool to have. It brings tears to my eyes though when I see those low prices and that I didn't make some purchases when items were still available. (Like the 1450XLD motherboard.) 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Robot Posted August 25, 2019 Share Posted August 25, 2019 Does anyone know, are the 800XL mobo's from Best (P/N CA061854) socketed? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muzz73 Posted August 26, 2019 Share Posted August 26, 2019 It's kind of the "luck of the draw", I think. I bought two NIB 800XL mobo's a few years ago and both are fully socketed, but I remember seeing a post somewhere that another user called on the phone to ask that very question and waited while they opened several of them up to find that none of those were socketed. :^\ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trellot Posted August 27, 2019 Author Share Posted August 27, 2019 (edited) On 8/23/2019 at 5:25 PM, mytek said: Not to make any one feel bad, but I just placed an order this morning via email, and got a fast response as well as no reduction on my order quantities. I'm glad @mytek that it went well. My troubles continue however. If you read back you'll see a post of mine where I called in and reduced my 9-piece order to only 2 of the most needed items. He took all of my information, double checked the credit card, etc. That was last Wednesday and to this day no charge attempt has been made on my CC account and no package. I'm really flummoxed. Did he recognize my order as relating to the emails I sent? IDK. I was never rude to him and my order email was similar to yours straight to the point and I had item descriptions with part numbers. I never get rude or nasty with anyone, the only thing I can think of was I had him check on some 2600 cart availability last winter and when he got back to me I had asked about one more title not included on the list. He got a little snappy and mentioned that stock check requests after initial stock check requests could take 3 weeks time; then he said he had more orders than could be shipped by the end of that month. Well, I needed those games for a birthday present sooner than that lol. I never made that purchase as a result of his last comment to me about the backup in shipping. That is THE ONLY thing I can imagine might have caused him to snub me, if he has. Maybe I'm just getting very unlucky...believe me, it's a thing with me...I don't gamble as result lol! This is too bad really, since I purchased a busted old Atari 400 hoping to restore it and yet now it sits... Makes one just want to drop the hobby. Ugg Edited August 27, 2019 by Trellot Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gilsaluki Posted August 28, 2019 Share Posted August 28, 2019 Don't drop the hobby. There are many alternatives. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adam1977 Posted August 28, 2019 Share Posted August 28, 2019 Why don't you put an ad in the wanted area of the forum? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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