I know id be advised against, but im going to order a hull from Chris at FineDesign

[nichismo]

Ive read countless horror stories now (and for every few, ive read a good one here and there) about FineDesign and just overall conniving behavior discussed here on OSE. I didnt think I would end up placing an order after hearing all this, but earlier today I sent Chris an email regarding a hull I have been in search for.... a Hydro & Marine T4 hydroplane to be specific. I didn't expect to hear back from him but I figured it was worth it a shot, as I was close to ordering directly from H&M in Germany despite my dreading the long shipping. But Chris gave me a phone call not long ago and I talked with him for about 15 minutes, he seemed very friendly, and helpful in getting my up and running with my boat. He told me that he doesn't have any wing kits or decals, but he should be getting some new wings in about 3 weeks. Also he told me that he had recently helped a gentleman whom lives in the same state of Washington as me and helped this man with his boat of the same T4. If I want the boat I could simply Paypal him and it would ship with Fedex ground on Monday, and that he can send me pictures as such around that time as well.

Im very aware of any potential underlying motivations that may be at play, but I have been using Paypal for a long time now and I trust in their protection and security. I hope posting here and using a little caution can lead to a real and smooth transaction....

thoughts?

[urbs00007]

:popcorn2:

[JimClark]

Good luck

Remember that hull will most likely not fit within the dimensions to make it legal to Race 1/10th scale

[Spartanator]

I am interested to see how this one turns out, I found a hull that I like that he has.

Keep us updated buddy, hopefully you won't need luck on this order.

I pretty much trust PayPal as well. They have helped me deal with a few naughty sellers with all positive outcomes.

[nichismo]

Good luck

Remember that hull will most likely not fit within the dimensions to make it legal to Race 1/10th scale

Oh I know, thanks though I appreciate the heads up :)

this is actually my first FE build, and im pretty excited, i am going to be showing it to friends and family more than anything.


I am interested to see how this one turns out, I found a hull that like that he has.

Keep us updated buddy, hopefully you won't need luck on this order.

I pretty much trust PayPal as well. They have helped me deal with a few naughty sellers with all positive outcomes.


thank you very much, I hope so too ;)


the funny thing is that ive actually called and emailed several sellers. Ive called Phil Thomas, ive emailed Craig Bradshaw at Westcoastcustomboats.com (hes actually local as well), ive called twice and emailed RCboatcompany.com, and ive also emailed twice Hydro & Marine directly and guess what? I havnt heard back from any of them..... which to me is ridiculous considering what im trying to purchase. Ive actually spoken with Mike over at ML and he was extremely helpful, I actually asked him if he would assemble a 1/10 scale hydro if I paid him extra for labor just now, im waiting to hear back from me. Of all those people however, Chris at Fine Design was the first to call me back.... I really want a 1/10 scale, but they are difficult to find, almost everything is 1/8 scale which is going to be a big freakin boat for electric.

[nichismo]

i also said id Paypal him tonight, but i think im going to wait until I see pictures. I dont want to get this hull and it be clearly used, It needs to be brand spankin new

[tlandauer]

He is usually quick to call back, it is the follow ups that he is not known to be on top of his game. Choose wisely and avoid any second thoughts on your part and you may luck out. I have, every time....

Although I have not bought from him after discovering OSE, forgot to clarify that.

[ReddyWatts]

Make sure its in stock.

[nichismo]

Make sure its in stock.

absolutely, thats the whole reason I emailed him in the first place. I was going to call but I figured if I instead waited for one then it would say more, I honestly wasn't expecting it to be him when I heard the phone rang, given all the calls to all the other hull makers I just listed.

I will be a very happy camper if I am able to get the hull smoothly and its new as it should be.

Has anyone here spoken with Oliver S or ordered directly from Hydro&Marine in Germany? I really like their T5 hull, its also 1/10 but represents a more typical modern Hydroplane, and it comes in white so I could choose my color. They look great, however Im worried about the shipping time and the apparent lack of detail and communication with their website and items... Not to mention the one piece of information I found on this hull, the person whom did their build and took pictures looked like the hull wasn't the best build quality. I would hate to wait as long as it would take then be unsatisfied with the purchase....

Looks that the hull isnt very smooth or nicely finished on the edges of the boat:
http://www.hydroworld.de/vb/showthread.php?8209-Hydro-amp-Marine-T5-1-10-Hydroplane

[kfxguy]

From what I've seen, he is there for you all the way before the sale but after he gets your money, good luck getting him on the phone again. I don't care what he has, how cheap it is and it could be the last one on this earth, he would not get a dime of my money. He is consistent at doing poor business. Unless of course all the people that have had issues with him are just making it up and conspiring against him. I think not. Good luck to you.

[JimClark]

I will get Craigs phone number for you. I am close too in West Seattle

[nichismo]

I will get Craigs phone number for you. I am close too in West Seattle

Thank you Jim, I really appreciate that. I really dont even have a set model or year of design in mind, I would really go out and pay for anything appealing that presents itself, from the style in the early 80s like the Atlas and American Speedy Printing, all the way a 2000s bud and oberto. Really anything but a shovelnose, those have not been hard to find.

[siberianhusky]

Try to find out if he REALLY has it in stock, quite a few years ago was looking at buying an H&M mono, could never get a straight answer if he actually had one in stock. Didn't buy the boat. I didn't think it was that hard to tell somebody yes I actually do have one in stock.
Then talked to H&M in Germany, shipping was a killer.

[Heath M]

I recently ordered direct from H+M, email correspondence was great as it took me about 3 weeks of gathering info from them before i committed to buy. Shipping to Aus took about 3 weeks, but the boat was well packed and turned up in perfect condition. Whoever, the instructions they sent were in deutsch and when i emailed and asked for an english version i got no reply, oh well not the end of the world.

[nichismo]

Thanks for all the replies and information guys, I really appreciate it.

But unfortunately (or rather, fortunately? whatever lol) I am not going to proceed with this transaction, so the outcome that im sure some of you were curious of will not happen. I ended up just biting the bullet and purchasing a T5 scale Miss Bud from Phil Thomas, so although I had to dish out extra $, ill have no worries whatsoever, and even better, an absolute beautifully ideal hull of my dreams :) cant wait to finally get it on my doorstep.

I could really use some help with the setup, as its my first electric build. I already made a thread if anyone is interested:
http://forums.offshoreelectrics.com/showthread.php?50920-Starting-1-8-scale-T5-build-need-critique-of-my-proposed-setup&p=618387#post618387

[kfxguy]

Thanks for all the replies and information guys, I really appreciate it.

But unfortunately (or rather, fortunately? whatever lol) I am not going to proceed with this transaction, so the outcome that im sure some of you were curious of will not happen. I ended up just biting the bullet and purchasing a T5 scale Miss Bud from Phil Thomas, so although I had to dish out extra $, ill have no worries whatsoever, and even better, an absolute beautifully ideal hull of my dreams :) cant wait to finally get it on my doorstep.

I could really use some help with the setup, as its my first electric build. I already made a thread if anyone is interested:
http://forums.offshoreelectrics.com/showthread.php?50920-Starting-1-8-scale-T5-build-need-critique-of-my-proposed-setup&p=618387#post618387


Good deal. You just dodged a bullet.

[JMSCARD]

I will say if you are close to Middletown NY ( I am within about 4 hours, and sometimes go by there when I travel other places as I've lived in Vermont, and Maine) then you will be fortunate to be able to buy directly from Chris Fine at his shop directly... then I would buy from him no question. I have visited his establishment and will say he has a lot of nice boats sitting on the shelves no question... his shop is chuck full..... problem is definitely when ordering, and some of his people skills are to be admired at times... but again, if you're ever in the area of his shop I still recommend stopping in... hes not opposed to wheeling and dealing on his boats, and for the most part his RTR boats are built very well.... not sticking up for him as I know a lot of you have had bad dealings with him... maybe its because I'm close and can pay him a visit, but back in the day (7 years ago or so) I bought a few boats from Chris and had good outcomes... I would myself only buy from him if I stopped in, saw the merchandise and left with it :)

[ray schrauwen]

H&M is dealing with some pains from updating their website and they have gotten backlogged since. I think Oliver is a bit overwhelmed at this time.

[fidelity101]

Ive read countless horror stories now (and for every few, ive read a good one here and there) about FineDesign and just overall conniving behavior discussed here on OSE. I didnt think I would end up placing an order after hearing all this, but earlier today I sent Chris an email regarding a hull I have been in search for.... a Hydro & Marine T4 hydroplane to be specific. I didn't expect to hear back from him but I figured it was worth it a shot, as I was close to ordering directly from H&M in Germany despite my dreading the long shipping. But Chris gave me a phone call not long ago and I talked with him for about 15 minutes, he seemed very friendly, and helpful in getting my up and running with my boat. He told me that he doesn't have any wing kits or decals, but he should be getting some new wings in about 3 weeks. Also he told me that he had recently helped a gentleman whom lives in the same state of Washington as me and helped this man with his boat of the same T4. If I want the boat I could simply Paypal him and it would ship with Fedex ground on Monday, and that he can send me pictures as such around that time as well.

Im very aware of any potential underlying motivations that may be at play, but I have been using Paypal for a long time now and I trust in their protection and security. I hope posting here and using a little caution can lead to a real and smooth transaction....

thoughts?

I made the same mistake so I know exactly where you're coming from. I stood up for him on several forums and it took less than 3 months for me to deeply regret that decision. That being said, follow the advise of others and document, document, document! Don't send a penny until you know exactly what you're getting and make sure it's in writing. If something gets damaged in shipping, be prepared for a lot of nasty/poorly written emails. If you have questions post sale, be prepared to wait unless it involves another possible sale. If you didn't receive all of the pieces/parts you were expecting, be prepared for a lot of hostility if you ask about them.

As jmscard pointed out, going in person and haggling may be a good option provided you live in another state...but I would still avoid it.

[Pedro Ramos]

i just ordered two boats from Chris, one at a time and he was very helpful during the selling process, he also came thru after the sale with tracking numbers and follow ups to see how me and my son we were doing with the boat. I was so pleased that I end up getting a second one.
I also heard so bad news about him as well but so far he has 100% of my present business and 100% of my future business as well. No more proboat or aquacraft for us.
Another this is his craftsmanship is extremely good, I'm very demanding when it comes to my hobby and specially after spending over 1k for a rtr boat but on this case, I'm 100% satisfied. IMHO.