In late 2012 we had discussed the possibility of me doing a few mods on lights for him in exchange for a few batteries. At some point in that exchange we provided addresses.
It never came to pass and I decided to simply order the batteries.
Hi guys, it’s best to not post anybody’s personal details online. I don’t know anything about Bob’s whereabouts either, but in general please try to avoid posting email and residential addresses here in the public forum. Thanks!
My order was on Feb. 4 2013. I lost $37.32 dealing with him on my last order.
I don’t know this guy, and never bought from him. His presonal life and issues aside. Had I paid someone for goods or service that I never received I would want my money back.
I ordered 4 x 3400 panasonic 18650’s from him and they were delivered quickly and arrived in great shape. He worked with me on shipping to a US address to save me duties and brokerage.
Lets hope that he gets whatever issues he has going on sorted and everyone owed batteries or money is reimbursed appropriately.
Remember some time ago we had a local BLF member go and check on Bob. It had seemed he was in the hospital as if dealing with/recovering from some illness. EDIT - here is the link to that thread.
I had one small order with him and it went fine.
-Garry
batteries from Bob on 3-4 occasions.Batteries were always wrapped so well,it took me a little to get them open.As I
remember, he forgot about the last order of mine until I reminded him and the batteries came within a couple of days.
I also never was asked or did I use the gift option.My 2 cents.
Posts cleaned up, my apologies…
Hmm?
You never posted his address.
+1
Two friends were diagnosed with cancer under the brain about 7 weeks ago. Both started almost daily radiation and chemo treatment immediately. One of them reacted horribly and passed away last week, the other looked fantastic at dinner Monday night ago … I hope Bob has his health if nothing else.
Sorry for your loss. 
That’s seemingly the quandary right there. No one wants him to be sick, but if he’s not sick, then he’s likely defrauded people as a thief. We don’t want to think him crooked, but if he’s an honest guy, then he’s likely suffered/suffering some sort of terrible ailment.
Just don’t see a way that this plays out good at this juncture. I’ve not purchased anything from him, but I recall following a couple of the threads when people started questioning the disappearance.
Exactly.
As I wrote in the OP, he seemed to be doing just fine as of August 2013 so why has nobody heard from him?
Here’s the excerpt again from his profile on http://diydrones.com:
“I am interested in rotor-craft and fixed wing aircraft and am in the process of learning about the field and intend to incorporate FPV in my activities.
As a serial entrepreneur, I may also be interested in exploring the related business opportunities.”
By the time Kumabear was selling batteries, I had more 18650s than a sane person should have, so I didn’t order any. There is really nothing anyone can do except write it off as a lesson learned.
If I had been one who got cheated, I would probably lurk around where he lurks and shine a light on him if he decides to be a “serial entrepreneur” again. Just for spite.
Shoot, I might do it anyways. :cowboy_hat_face:
Maybe someone can hop over and try talking to him at that forum?
You really can’t disappear in a public forum.
I looked at the diydrones profile, I see two posts, Aug 24 and Aug 25, I don’t reference to the year of post, maybe I’m missing something.
This post got my interest up again, after all I am out a few bucks. So I did a little poking around.
Robert’s LinkedIn profile lists him currently as President and Founder of R. Mark Solutions Ltd.
The only reference I found on a quick Google of R. Mark Solutions Ltd. was on Amazon.
The Amazon storefront is “temporarily unavailable”.
There are only 16 seller ratings, most recent dated January of 2012.
Most reviews are good with the exception of two in November of 2011. Robert replied to one of them stating “…I was forced to spend some time in the hospital…”.
Back to the LinkedIn profile, Robert listed his time at MIT as 66-72 and among his work experience “Self Employed Technology Consultant” from 69-70.
Assuming this information is accurate it appears Robert is older than he appears in his photo, most likely in his mid 60s. Not that old mind you (I’m not far behind) but old enough to believe he may have had some health issues. His Amazon ratings (and response) seems to indicate the same.
As IndyArcher said, it’s a bit of a quandary.
One possibility is Robert was a well intentioned entrepreneur trying to provide a quality product while making a buck but his health failed him. If that’s the case I wish him well.
The other possibility is that he was a scam artist, repeatedly setting up shop, gathering the trust of a community then running with the cash. If that’s the case I hope it catches up with him as some point.
I choose to believe the first scenario, not much supporting evidence but it looks like Robert had some health issues. I hope he makes a full recovery and becomes active once again here on BLF, we can always use another state-side battery distributor.
Yeah, if you go a little further and actually look at the comments he posted, they were August of this year.
Well, that changes things a bit doesn’t it?
Didn’t he once ask people to guess why he looked so happy in his picture…?
I had a guess that I didn’t post. :cowboy_hat_face: