First let me say this is not about Matt at all. I have nothing but respect and good feelings for Matt. No issues whatsoever before or since with him and I am glad to see him here re-affirming his belief in the product. It was his usage and endorsement that led to my involvement with the product last summer.
Next, I am trying to be real careful here, to keep this on a reasonable level, following the TT rules. As I have said in the past, I consider this a public forum, certainly not a bully pulpit for pilkguns, so we only post when we feel we have something to add to a conversation or when I see something that is wrong or harmful. And this was my intent with my first post on this subject. I tried to keep the information to the level of warning without getting into all the details, known or suspicioned. It seems that Scott Schaffer has not been content to leave it at that level and has even made some accusations against me and now I must go into a little more detail. A lot actually, so be prepared to read awhile if you want to know the story. This is being done from memory, because I am not home to check specific dates because actually I am down in Savannah, Georgia with my family doing some National Guard duty and I can tell you answering this is not high on my list of preferred activities at the moment…. And ALSO I hate to see airing of “dirty laundry” on a public forum, and dislike having to take up space on TT for that reason, but since statements have been made, I will post and let you see that I was behaving in a reasonable manner at all times.
Anyway, PCE, LLC paid for the first two GS ads in USAS News. Mr. Schaffer had agreed to pay for half of the ad cost by supplying me with product to sell equal to our agreed on wholesale price, so I should have got over $400 worth of retail product. (Imagine my surprise today when I read that he only sent me $180 worth of product.!!!) I did the ad creation and graphics over and above the cost of the ad insertion.
Several months go by, so sometime in December, I complain that I have not gotten any product to cover the agreed on half cost of the $600 I have spent out of pocket for ads, nor do I have any to sell if someone calls wanting to buy it (fortunately no one has yet called) . I also do not have any to evaluate to offer a first hand opinion to Anschutz about at the upcoming SHOT show at the end of January (Mr. Shaffer was desirous of having GS becoming a OEM product with Anschutz rifles). I finally receive the agreed on product about the 15th of December. No check was found nor expected as the product was to be the payment!!!!!.
Fast Forward to early February a few days after getting back from the SHOT show.
Well first, take a look at the GS website, about where Mr. Shaffer endorses Steve Moore’s gunsmithing services.
http://gunsnot.com/serv01.htm
Here is an excerpt from the e-mail,( a couple of paragraphs are removed as not being related to subject at hand but I assure they in no way change the meaning of what is said, in fact, quite the opposite, but again I am trying to keep this on civil level)
“””””””. At SHOT, I learned several things, some I need to follow up on more. A guy from Raytheon came by and was telling Warren that perflouriante (SP) was not good for steel, would accelerate rust, had no anti-friction properties and would not stay in one place, that it would run everywhere and had nothing to do with Teflon. I was totally blown away. I have the guys card and am supposed to follow up with him this week.
Steve Moore was by and seemed surprised and put-out that you had a thing about him on your website, that implied endorsement of GS. He highly recommends something else, and said he would send me some to test. I am planning a doing a factory grease evaluation, one with with Steve Moores lubricant and one with Gunsnot, and proceed from there.
Anschutz did not really want to discuss GS, especially after this Raytheon guy was in the booth.”””””””””””
Mr. Shaffer replied later in the day with this shocker.
“””””””””””””””I was very disturbed with our conversation today and of course the outcome of the Shot Show. I was asked by 4 firms to take Gun Snot to the show but I gave it exclusively to you. You assured me that you had access to Anschutz to tell the Gun Snot story as no other person in the US could do because of your personal relationships with them. To hear that none of the pre-show objectives were accomplished but rather reversed in a negative way was a disaster. You could have called me from the show when the false issues with Raytheon or Steve or Matt arose, but chose not to and the opportunity with Anschutz was lost.
We agreed to use Pilkguns as a distributor to distribute the product, which your firm has failed to demonstrate a desire to do. You have yet to place it on your website as a new product and as of today you are planning a comparison to Mil-Spec TW25 for some reason that escapes me. I paid for the second USAS ad placement even though we were only to have done one and sent you free stock to get you going. I would like to request that stock back as well as any unused sales literature. We further request that you cease and desist in using the name Gun Snot™ on your website and sales promotion along with the name or image of Matt Emmons in connection with it as a distributor.
If you have any questions please feel free to contact me.
Regards
Scott
¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤
Scott Shaffer
Gun Snot, LLC
www.gunsnot.com
AOL IM frustrateddad1
"A clear conscience is usually the sign of a bad memory" “””””””””””””””””””””””””””””
my first thought was “if you can’t stand the heat then get out of the kitchen”. My gracious, I asked some serious questions about his product and want to do a test comparison against other lubricants and now he wants to drop me! If his product will not stand up to a test against any other lubricant at the same or lower price level, then for sure it does not meet my “Quality has no regrets” motto. Also, I though the signature line was very telling to the core of Mr. Shaffer’s character. Anyway, I replied to his e-mail with this one. NOTE,, I am adding **** before and after my comments in his e-mail, it clear in the cut and paste, but not sure it will translate on TT.
**********Well Scott, if this is your response based on yesterday’s conversation, then for sure I and my firm do not wish to represent your product. It certainly smacks to me of the old saying , If you can’t take the heat, then get out of the kitchen. If you cannot answer legimitate questions about your product, then for sure I am not going to use my name and reputation to endorse it. I have a slogan that I created and I believe in both in products I purchase for myself, and products I sell in my business, and that is QUALITY HAS NO REGRETS. When a man comes up with valid industry credentials such as Raytheon and makes extremely negative comments the intents and uses about the major ingredient in your product, it is only to be expected that I would follow up to see what your side of the story was.
Other comments will be inserted as necessary below.**********
-----Original Message-----
From: Scott @ Gun Snot
Sent: Tuesday, February 08, 2005 9:20 PM
To: 'Scott Pilkington'
Cc: 'gina1'
Subject: Distribution
Dear Scott
I was very disturbed with our conversation today and of course the outcome of the Shot Show. I was asked by 4 firms to take Gun Snot to the show but I gave it exclusively to you.
*******Well I cannot vouch for the validity of this either way, but if you thought that you had a better firm to market your product to this market, then you should of chosen to do so.*******
You assured me that you had access to Anschutz to tell the Gun Snot story as no other person in the US could do because of your personal relationships with them.
********This is certainly twisting the truth. Sometime early in January you told me that you did not need me to even say anything at the SHOT show to Anschutz because Matt had it all sewed up with them. I in return said that I knew Matt had told them about the product at Athens, that I had followed up with Anschutz with my suggestions in late August, at which time I had no experience with your product. The outcome of my conversation with Anschutz at that time was that I was to try it out and evaluate it, and let them know the results of my 5 month long test at the SHOT show. I then said that Matt’s relationship to Anschutz was very good obviously because of his shooting credentials, but that I had been working with Anschutz at gunsmith level for 15 years, and as a dealer level for 6 years and was even sharing booth space with them so I thought that I had more than my fair share of creditbility with Anschutz myself AND I still did not have any product to evaluate or say I had personal experience with, so at best, we were going have 20 day evaluation period prior to the SHOT show conversation with Anschutz, not the anticipated 5 month one. Your failure to get me product over a 4 month period had far more to do with SHOT show outcome than anything I did or could have done, **********
To hear that none of the pre-show objectives were accomplished but rather reversed in a negative way was a disaster.
********I am not sure what pre-show objectives were planned that did not get met other than my photo essay that I planned to make for my website on how to use the material. This could not have had effect on SHOT show results in any way*********
You could have called me from the show when the false issues with Raytheon or Steve or Matt arose, but chose not to and the opportunity with Anschutz was lost.
*******I really thought it strange that you wanted to make this connection with Anschutz, yet, were not willing to take time to come and talk to them personally. My time at such an event is valuable, the SHOT show is a busy place, and I did not see that any of the issues mentioned above warranted a phone call to you during that period. Whether any of the three issues above are false or not, I don’t know, and apparently based on this e-mail I will never know for sure, but based on your reaction, I can only draw one conclusion.*****
We agreed to use Pilkguns as a distributor to distribute the product, which your firm has failed to demonstrate a desire to do.
*****I spent over $600 in advertising your product , plus ad creation time, without any compensation from you and only finally received the agreed on product for your half of the ads after my complaints to you about lack of payment, and running short of time to evaluate the product for the Anschutz discussion. A conversation BTW, which would have netted me nothing in return, since all your sales to them would have been direct without need of a retailer like myself. *******
You have yet to place it on your website as a new product and as of today you are planning a comparison to Mil-Spec TW25 for some reason that escapes me.
*******Because someone whom you apprarently put great stock in, Steve Moore, as endorsed on your website, who does not recommend Gunsnot or feel it’s the best product on the market, DOES recommend and endorse TW-25. I thought a 3-way test, the factory lubricant , Gunsot and TW-25 would make a fair comparison, but your fear of my doing this test is certainly indicative of product’s abilities.********
I paid for the second USAS ad placement
******I am unaware of you paying for any ad to USAS, as we were invoiced and paid for the first two long before I got any payment from you. If you have paid Sara directly for an ad, then you need to clear this up with her, but its strange that it has not been mentioned before now. Even more so you have illustrated what kind of person you are by your conversation yesterday about the 3rd ad invoice that I received yesterday, something to the effect about “you did’nt authorize the third ad and I did’nt authorize this ad, so they will just have to eat the payment”, Screw USAS in essence. That is a poor way to do business when apparently you were the one who did not cancel or contact Sara as you told me you were going to do.*****
even though we were only to have done one
******this is a lie, as you were involved in the discussion for the second one, since we had to blur the medal images to satisfy USOC, and you even sent e-mails to Bob Mitchell pointing out other advertisemtents that were using the Athens medals.*****
and sent you free stock to get you going.
******You sent me stock to PAY for my agreed on share of the ads, only I after I complained of lack of payment and product in a e-mail dated Dec 12th, and even then it took several weeks to get the product here.******
I would like to request that stock back as well as any unused sales literature.
******Upon receipt of a check for your half of the ads, I would be glad to return the product. Make it $305 to cover return shipping*******
We further request that you cease and desist in using the name Gun Snot™ on your website and sales promotion along with the name or image of Matt Emmons in connection with it as a distributor.
*****This should is not a problem since as you have complained about above, we’re are not promoting it******
If you have any questions please feel free to contact me.
******No, I think you have answered any questions I might have had about you or your product.
Scott Pilkington****
Now, the really WEIRD thing happens. I receive a FAX of an E-Mail from Scott Shaffer. A fax on my fax machine, but I never, till this day, have received this e-mail by via e-mail. VERY STRANGE. My response to this faxed e-mail was e-mailed back to Mr. Shaffer, and you can read next. This is e-mail was sent to Scott Shaffer, his wife. Gina, my wife Rhonda, and my partner Warren. I also CC’ed Matt Emmons. At no point did I ever BCC anyone, although at this point everyone can see the paranoia being expressed, and the reason for wishing to distance myself from
“””””””””””All, (with my apologies to Matt for having to be drug into all this)
I received a fax just now from Scott Shaffer of an e-mail titled Check 1310 that shows to have been sent to me at 11.14 AM, yet at this moment 12.04 PM I have not received this e-mail in my inbox.
The e-mail states:
You were sent Dec 13th Check number 1310 the amount of $300 = the free stock. You cashed the check Dec 18th
End of e-mail
Rhonda has just checked our records and we have no knowledge or record of such a check being used or cashed. Scott and
Gina, If you have evidence otherwise of this or any other check being cashed through us, I sure want to know about it.
Scott Pilkington””””””””””””””””
I did not get an immediate response to this…. About a week later on FEB 15, I sent a follow-up e-mail with this question “””””””””””What are your plans regarding the merchandise? Are you sending a check to cover the ad so that I can return it to you or shall I special it off? What happened about this alleged check and deposit? If such a check was processed through here, I want to know about it, when and what bank processed it?. “””””””””””
I received this reply from Mr. Shaffer later in the same day
“”””””””The check was in the package of supplies that I sent and it was check 1310 for $300. I remembered seeing it being cleared on the 18th, but all my year-end stuff is at the accountant so getting my hands on it right now is impossible without causing a mess with them. It was not a fictitious event and not said in malice, and spreading such a note around the countryside to dis-interested parties, putting the words of ‘screw USAS” into my mouth was not appreciated as it went to the core of my character and is contrary to my dealings with USAS at all levels. It was sent with the supplies. If you all did not in fact cash it, and I suggest that you do, then so be it. I am moving on.”””””””””””””
Very interesting that Mr. Shaffer changes his story about the check within just a few sentences. Therefore, IT INFURIATES ME THAT HE WOULD MAKE THIS PUBLIC ACCUSATIONS about said check!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Sooooooooooooo, that’s it besides a bunch of research I tried to do about PTFE, perflorinated and Teflon (not necessarily all the same as I now understand, but I am for sure not a chemical engineer) and trying to research some of the credentials of both of these “industry professionals. My decision not to continue to sell this product based as much on the reactions of Mr. Shaffer to some honest questions, as well as my research about his product AFTER the fact, when I did not get the answers from him.
And if anyone desires to see the originals of these e-mails, you are welcome to contact me. Oh and one more thing, the name thing, I never really liked it either, but as God is my witness, I never made the gross connection of “GS, the one champions pick” in the ad till someone pointed it out to me at the SHOW show. Must of have been left over from the anesthesia. I can't believe I missed that.....