QTH.COM Swap Chat

Bought HF transceiver from subject. Overstated condition as one scratch I would not notice if looking at the front of rig. Dirty, dented,scuffed,scraped and DOA!!! NO TRANSMIT!

1. Why would you get flame mail?
2. Is there any reason that you should be flamed?

I just read this post with amazement. I heard about it on the air this morning. (7235) I have dealt with Sammy before and he has never mis-represented any piece of equipment to me. I've met Sammy at several ham fest and have talked to him on the air many times and can only say good things about him.
Not that it matters, What kind of rig was it?
I'm sure that there is another side to this story.
Jimmy
N5IFI

This is in response to Sammy Piraino's post in ANNOUNCE area of classifieds. Stating "Beware of......." Keep in mind, I am the buyer. Beware of ME?


Why not use my call and email in my post? I am not interested in your buddies opinions of you filling my email box. Bad sellers were good sellers before they did their first bad deal. Maybe this was yours?
Here are the facts...... Fact 1:You dumped a junk radio you got on a trade on me. Fact 2:What did you gain? My money! Fact 3:You overstated the condition and the radio does not transmit. Fact 4:Your Texas tough guy attitude is pathetic. "Its your radio, it worked when it left here, I offered no warranty". Fact 5: You offered me a PARTIAL refund, 2/3 to be precise. Fact 6: The radio will be serviced and the problems found will be posted. Fact 7: You said... " take it up with the guy I got the radio from because HE said it was working". Fact 8: This is nothing but the TRUTH! Fact 9: YOU ARE A BAD PERSON TO DO BUSINESS WITH!

Marc WR2I
wr2i@yahoo.com

Are you replying to my post Marc,Ivan or wr2i ?
I've never heard Sammy on 7235. He doesn't talk there as far as I know.
If you are answering my post then it should be obvious why I did'nt use your name or call. I didn't know it. I'm not really sure I can believe who I'm writing to now. Why would you use so many aliases? I maybe naive, but I usually just stick to n5ifi and jimmy.(JimBeau)
Are you saying ,my deal with Sammy was this only good one, the fair one, his only good deal before he went "bad"? Well maybe you're right. I've only had one deal with him. I don't owe Sammy anything. I simply replied to a post about him. I would do the same thing for anyone else that I had good deals with including you if that was the case. I simply believe that there is more to the story than you are telling and the FACT that you didn't answer my questions didn't make me feel any different about your situation.

1. What kind of radio did you buy?
2. How much did you pay for it?

73's
Jimmy - n5ifi

No Jimmy. I was replying to Sammy's post that was in the announce list of the swap area. Scott deleted that post, so you can't view it now. I explained twice why I did not want to use my name call etc;. I have used it now, so I don't see the need to explain it further.

The other item I don't understand is what I need to explain to you. This post was simply to warn others about this bad deal. I was not seeking any mediation from you or any other party. Regardless of your opinion of Sammy, I was ripped off by him. What side of the story is there? I answered his ad, I ,spoke with him on the phone, we discussed the subject radio, I sent him money and I received junk. and he would not make good on a radio that was to be in good working condition.He would not return my phone calls and has a cavalier attitude about this. I would never do business the way he did. I have people on QTH that have done business with me many times. Nothing like this has ever occurred.

Thanks for your input JimBeau,

Marc WR2I

This Icom HF transceiver sold to me with the premise of being in good working order by Sammy Piraino had the following issues.

Unit was dropped on rear evidenced by fins broken off of heat sink, bent PA cover and shield, dented corners on top and bottom covers, and FAN UNIT fan blades pushed back into motor caused from the fan being pused into the FILTER unit. This was preventing the fan from operating. NO BROKEN HEAT SINK FRAGMENTS WERE FOUND IN THE PACKING MATERIALS. This would indicate the radio was damaged BEFORE shipment.

Unit also had LIQUID DAMAGE on PA UNIT AND FRONT UNIT. The liquid was a BROWN substance like TOBACCO JUICE. The liquid caused malfunction of the PA which was intermittant. The microphone was also caked with a BROWN CRUD.

All boards were removed and washed in solvent bath removing any possible shorts caused by galvanic corrosion from the BROWN LIQUID. All joints resoldered on PA, RF and Filter units Front panel and knobs were removed and cleaned. The display window was removed and polished since you could not see through it due to crud. All controls required flush and clean/lube as they were intermittant. Unit required alignment.

Unit is now checking to specs and required many hours of labor to repair.

Sammy,

You should be banned from selling on these boards. You knew this radio had issues BEFORE you put it in the box with your used plastic bags(I even have your hamfest price tag for an Icom 271A two meter all mode for $345.00). Even if the unit did get damaged in shipping, you didn't meet UPS packing guidelines nor did you honor my request to use bubble wrap. You didn't even give me the courtesy of looking at the radio to see if it was indeed damaged during shipment. You Quickly said it was it's my radio and not your problem. Thanks for nothing......

Marc WR2I

I just read the accusations about the sale of the IC-751A to Ivan. Although I wasn't aware of the sale, I can vouch for the proper performance and condition of that particular radio. I am the guy who sold the radio to W5DPP about 6 months ago. He has used it nearly every night on 3870 khz and on 7235 and 7245 khz on weekends. I sold it to W5DPP in working condition and I know it worked fine at least 2 days prior to his sale because I heard it on the air. The physical condition of the radio front panel could be listed as a 9+ if you were looking straight at the front panel but it has scratches on the outside trim ring and a major paint chip missing on the top right side of the radio trim ring. I don't really remember what the rest of the cabinet looked like but I don't remember anything particularly significant in the way of excessive wear other than normal wear. The important thing to remember is that W5DPP sold the radio at a price well below the normal price I see them sell for ($400-550 average and he sold it for $325) and it was in working condition. He told the man about the condition of the trim ring and priced it accordingly. I have known W5DPP for many years and he is a straight shooter and very honest. If the radio didn't work when it got there then something must have happened in shipment and a claim should be in order. I wish the purchaser should be a little more honest about the original deal. W5DPP told me the purchaser says he buys IC-751A's all day long for $300 in excellent condition. Huh?? I'd like to know where so I can get in that deal too. I think we have a case here of mistaken identity, slander, and sour grapes. I hope it all works out.

My name is Marc not Ivan. Please explain why the tobacco juice stained front cover of the included manual has the call sign W5VLT and the name Bernie on it? Not WA5MOE?

This radio was abused, dropped, banged and broken end of story. The display window has a small crack, the PA heatsink is broken and bent, the top cover is scratched and scuffed, the bottom cover is bent at the feet, the top and bottom cover have indented all corners, the display glass was totally crudded and was not clear. READ THE ABOVE TECH REPORT! You sure this is the same radio you sold? A claim? This jerk would not even entertain the fact that it may have been shipping damage. He couldn't be bothered......HE SAID IT'S YOUR RADIO I OFFERED NO WARRANTY..... Do you think he could have used some bubble wrap? UPS will never pay any claim on this due to the way it was packed. READ THE UPS SHIPPING GUIDELINES.
You want to talk about price? This was a STOCK radio. NO OPTIONS. Look at the ads here on QTH. The last 751A listed was from KU7I last week.

RADIOHF - Very Nice Icom 751A w/PS-35 $415 shipped
Very nice icom 751A with internal PS-35 supply, hand mic, and manual. Works great. $415 shipped lower 48. Email only. Lane Ku7i San Diego
Listing #355841 - Submitted on 05/01/03 by Callsign KU7I, Web Site:

Price $415 shipped INCLUDING THE PS-35. I would be willing to bet it was clean and worked. The one I bought before Sammy's junk box was from QTH as well. $460 SHIPPED including the PS-35, UX-14 , CR-64 a mint mic, a clean book a mint dc cable and a clean radio to boot. Too bad it was not packed properly and was damaged in shipping. The one I bought before that was $400 shipped including the PS-35 and FL-52A.....should I keep going?

You say you "sold" (Sammy says he traded a Henry 2K-4 for it. and a dual bander...sounds like a deal huh) the radio to him six months ago.....he used it everyday for the past 6 months (you said... 7235 on weekends...see N5IFI's post above). How do you know what he did to it in the past 6 months. Sammy also has an IC- 765. Are you saying he never used it in the past 6 months? Maybe he had this 751A mounted in a box on his tractor (possible from the way it looked) he used it everyday while mowing his pastures. Now that would explain what the brown crud is.

Bottom line is, all he had to do was be a gentleman. But he wasn't. All I asked for was a refund.

Get real......

W5DPP is a ripoff artist.

Marc WR2I

Mark;

You just made the point I was trying to make about you, ..... sour grapes. You obvoiusly don't have anything else to do but moan to the world all day and distort facts. I told it like it is, the radio worked. Stain on the manual??? You mean he actually gave you the original manual? I'd have sent a copy only and whited out the big ole juicy tobacco splat that I put on the front cover when I was plowing the field and using it as a spittoon target. BTW, I want in on the $300 IC-751A's you're getting that are in excellent condition. Pretty please??? I'm sure the rest of those who read the comments here can figure this deal out pretty easily. Get a life, pal.

WA5MOE,

The only thing that is distorted is your choice of friends. I have already discredited your statement numerous times as noted above. You want in on the deal? Read the copied ad above. I am going to Dayton this morning, and will let you know how many $300 751A's I bought when I get back. If Sammy was going to get someone to back him, he should have picked someone that could do a better job. You have offered nothing factual to this thread. You have no idea what that he sold me, so stick to the facts and MYOB.

Stop wasting bandwidth here with your mindless banter.

Marc