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Kolibri and Sport Copter
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Since a blatantly false and slanderous accusation is still being alleged by JV, I need to finally address it publicly.
In 2019, Xenon gyro in Poland notified us that an anonymous person had emailed them offering Sport Copter CAD files for sale. JV and his secretary seemed to wonder if I had done so, which I had not. First of all, even though some CAD files went through me to issue parts P.O.s, I did not copy and keep them. Such files were not my property, and keeping them would have been unethical. Secondly, even if I had kept CAD files, I never would have offered them to any 3rd party at any price or terms. Such would have been rank betrayal, not to mention a felony. Finally, even if I were such a person to proffer CAD files, I never would have sent them to Xenon, a competitor that I knew to be friendly with Sport Copter, who would be reliably expected to notify Sport Copter (which they did). I assumed I had convinced JV of my innocence back then, as he turned his suspicion to an outside parts fabricator company's foreman, and personally met with that company's owner to air out his suspicions. JV said nothing more to me about it since 2019, so I was stunned to learn that since I quit in 2021 he's been telling people behind the scenes that I was the 2019 industrial espionage culprit. It can't even be creditably alleged that I was shopping around their designs because of my never-received M2, for the matter happened very early (9/2019) before the M2 wasn't even flying for another year (thus before I was cheated out of my own M2 as part of my negotiated compensation package). What makes that vindictive accusation so pathetically untrue is that I'd have been fired in 2019, vs. being allowed to stay on for two more years until I quit in 9/2021. Also, CAD files were never subsequently denied me 2019-2021 as they were continually sent to me whenever I needed to construct a P.O. for the outside fabricators. Does that sound like JV really thought I was the culprit? I have recently contacted JV to have him cease and desist this false accusation, and to retract it. I grieve for what his family is going through, and his company situation, but trying to falsely smear me as a company thief to distract attention from his own troubles is something I will not tolerate. _________________ Famous-Infamous for speaking the truth on "the other forum" from 2014-2019. Last edited by Kolibri on Fri Apr 26, 2024 2:34 pm, edited 3 times in total. |
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| Sat Mar 16, 2024 1:35 pm |
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 Joined: Tue Nov 05, 2013 9:30 pm Posts: 1228 Location: UP A GUMTREE Has thanked: 1881 times Been thanked: 1632 times
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The cockroaches of bad-business practices - love to attempt to turn the tables on those who shine the light on situations that innocent newcomers need to WARNED ABOUT!
Cheering you on Eric( & Eric G )...been there ...watching my spouse go through the legal wringer with a sociopathic CROOK & CHEAT - was just AWFUL!   _________________  |
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| Mon Mar 18, 2024 9:37 pm |
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Theres two sides to every story, and we only ever hear this one .Repeatedly.....
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| Mon Mar 18, 2024 10:16 pm |
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Henry Bowman wrote: Theres two sides to every story, and we only ever hear this one .Repeatedly..... Which side of this do you hear, repeatedly? Yes, there are two sides to every story...and often one of them is generally a lie. I.e., somebody tells the truth, and the other side tells a story. _________________ Famous-Infamous for speaking the truth on "the other forum" from 2014-2019. Last edited by Kolibri on Fri Apr 26, 2024 2:15 pm, edited 1 time in total. |
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| Tue Mar 19, 2024 1:50 am |
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Dropbear wrote: The cockroaches of bad-business practices - love to attempt to turn the tables on those who shine the light on situations that innocent newcomers need to WARNED ABOUT! Cheering you on Eric( & Eric G )...been there ...watching my spouse go through the legal wringer with a sociopathic CROOK & CHEAT - was just AWFUL! Thanks, Friend. Sociopaths are the scourge of society. Fake humans, cannibalizing real humans. I'm thinking of starting a "Yelp" on them. Had I any warning of a certain fellow's history on stiffing 1990s customers out of their machines and deposits (anyone remember Lee Nilson of N928LN, or Clint Martindale?), I never would have moved to Oregon for a futile 3 years, much less recommended his covertly failed company to my friends for a $3m investment. Jim Bede, Larry Neal, Dennis Fetters, etc...we've all seen this aviation Ponzi Scheme before. _________________ Famous-Infamous for speaking the truth on "the other forum" from 2014-2019. Last edited by Kolibri on Fri Apr 26, 2024 2:29 pm, edited 2 times in total. |
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| Tue Mar 19, 2024 2:02 am |
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The other lies JV has been telling about me is that I "got physical with" or "roughed up" a customer. Gawd, what a pathetic claim. This was me blocking the shop door of a competitor's partner (Greg) who was the CFI/safety pilot for a newbie SCII owner flying cross-county. He was trying to snoop around the shop floor unescorted when we were still developing the M2. He tried to muscle past me, and I wouldn't let him pass by because we weren't ready for him on the floor. That's it. That was the "roughing up".
The other common lie told about me was that I was once "rude to a customer". Here's what happened: after work I was at my hangar, on the ladder inspecting my RAF/SC rotorhead prior flight, and some stranger walks up (vs. drive or taxi) and without introduction or greeting starts poking his head in the cabin asking gyro questions. WhoTF is this? I wondered. (Our hangar row recently had suspicious people wandering about, snooping around.) I wasn't not in the mood for this, and grew arctic on this guy. He got the message and walked off. A hangar neighbor across the way was also suspicious about him, and asked if I knew him. I didn't, and texted JV that some guy was headed his way. I drove over to the shop, and learned to my surprise that it was a former customer of ours, in town, just dropping by. I apologized for not recognizing him (I'd met him only once, many months prior). He could have laughed the incident off, but chose to remain offended. Last one: when I first started at SC I wore my handgun and fixed-blade knife there (as I always did in life), and some customer made a remark about it to JV. So, thereafter, I wore a vest to work to conceal it and "not frighten the horses" as we say in the shooting world. But, JV has made a needless smear story out of that, too. What kind of businessman would allow a man who allegedly frightened customers, roughed one of them up, and stole SC technology for resale to continue working there for three years? This all would be funny if it weren't so moronically ad hominem. While we're on the topic of moronic, anybody ever heard of the "Iraqi Dinar revaluation" hoax? (You can look it up.) Iraqi Dinars are essentially worthless at 1200 to $1, but some tragic people believe that Trump was going to magically revalue them at US$ parity, 1:1. Guess who had paid thousands of dollars stocking up on IRD and betting on reval lunacy to pay off his $4m debt, and also expand his company into production? Mmmmm, hmm. To my horror, I learned this after I'd relocated for what I believed was a creditable career change where I could help make an exciting difference in aviation. Damn right I'm "disgruntled"...but I am neither a liar nor thief. _________________ Famous-Infamous for speaking the truth on "the other forum" from 2014-2019. Last edited by Kolibri on Fri Apr 26, 2024 2:16 pm, edited 1 time in total. |
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| Tue Mar 19, 2024 2:35 am |
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I am not going to mince words with you.
We have met and you kindly let me try out your Moto Guzzi which I appreciated. So thank you. My comment is directed at the fact that since you joined the Skywolverines, you have used the forum to frequently denigrate Jim and Sportcopter for a failed business relationship between you two. I had a business and still do, you are NEVER going to please everyone. That is a fact of life. But when you come on the board and drag my friends name and reputation through the mud KNOWING that he will not come on a forum, not this one or the other one, to stick up for himself well honestly it gets to be rather tiresome. Now I know your a sharp guy, as are all Skywolverines, so read what I wrote and do not make up meanings that are not there, I am and will always be Jim's friend, I DO NOT KNOW if you OR he is more correct in your versions of what happened and do not care as I am not involved and do not wish to be! But he has a business and some fame in this industry and has been doing it for decades, while other than a handful of folks, who knows who you are? Your relentless attacks MAY BE TRUE but if they are or aren't Jim and Sportcopter are the only ones who suffer from your comments....You can come on a forum like this and say WHATEVER you wish without any form of reprisal because you are not representing anybody but your own interests. I am not telling you that you don't have the 1st amendment rights to say what you feel, BUT there are also things like libel and slander. Yours is not a debate. It is a one sided mission to punish a company you feel did you wrong. Put it another way, if you manage to scare off 3 or 5 interested parties from buying a Sportcopter by claiming they did you wrong, how does that "help" you redress your grievances in any way? None that I can see other than being petty. But the financial effects on a small business could be severe. A lot of your posts are interesting, and you should really stick to other material as this continued bashing doesn't portray you in the best of lights. Comparing Jim and Sportcopter to Drop Bears situation with Larry Neal sounds great when you looking for commiseration but it's my understanding the situations are not at all similar. And no that was not an invite for pages of hand wringing and verbal parrying to "prove me wrong"....I won't play as I am just not that interested. I doubt most others are either... |
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| Tue Mar 19, 2024 12:14 pm |
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Quote: I DO NOT KNOW if you OR he is more correct in your versions of what happened Thanks for that, Benry, at least you didn't call me a liar. Quote: I am and will always be Jim's friend, It is right to stick up for one's friends. It's quite another to protect their ruinous egos. Benry, I worked along side JV for over 6,000 hours. I spent many holidays at his home, and went on double dates with him and Kelly. Do you have such experience with JV or SC? I know JV much better than you do or even that you think you do. Quote: Your relentless attacks MAY BE TRUE but if they are or aren't Jim and Sportcopter are the only ones who suffer from your comments....You can come on a forum like this and say WHATEVER you wish without any form of reprisal because you are not representing anybody but your own interests. If this were only about my own interests I'd have gone public back in October 2021, but I didn't. I kept quiet and instead helped my friends try to collect on their $3m principal + interest (which still has not been paid in full, or even close to it). Only after I kept hearing about newly disappointed M2 deposit customers (as well as the dozens of previous ones) that I felt I had to step in and help stop the carnage. Who I am "representing" are the faces that still haunt me, the excited middle-aged men who made the pilgrimage to SC, got a factory tour from me and immediately cut a check for an M2 deposit which I increasingly believed would not be fulfilled. When JV and Trenna by Summer 2021 were claiming to customers that initial production would be 10 M2s/month (more volume than Magni!) I knew that I had to quit out of ethical concerns. JV/SC may differ from the Larry Neal saga, but he doesn't differ much from the Jim Bede saga and how it generally should be resolved: $9m in deposits undelivered, and the Federal Trade Commission had to step in and prohibit Bede from taking kit deposits for 10 years. (NOTE: that was not the same thing as prohibiting sales, just taking deposits.) Quote: Although the company was effectively bankrupt at this point, work on the BD-5D continued for some time. The bankruptcy became official in 1979, by which point the BD-5 project was dead. During the bankruptcy proceedings it was learned that the money ostensibly being used to build kits was instead spent on a variety of projects, $9 million having disappeared in the process. As a result, Bede entered a consent decree with the FTC to no longer accept deposits on aircraft for a period of ten years. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Bede Quote: C-2934 Bede aircraft, Inc., et al. Ordered to place itself under the control of a trustee to serve the twofold purpose of protecting consumers as well as preserving options for the continued viability of this small business, an order which was designed to provide consumer redress of about $9,000,000. If the M2 were independently flight-tested and favorably reviewed, and reliably available from production, I'd have nothing negative to say about it...just like I don't say anything negative about the excellent M912. Quote: there are also things like libel and slander. Indeed, but such doesn't seem to bother you when it comes from JV. JV can publicly retract his numerous slanders that I offered SC technology to his competitors. This was textbook defamation of character, and I am inclined to sue even if I don't receive any restitution. Quote: We have met and you kindly let me try out your Moto Guzzi which I appreciated. So thank you. I enjoyed your company, though we never explored our vast experiences with guns, etc. Perhaps, when all this SC stuff is resolved, we can pick up from there. Meanwhile, a virtual hand-clasp across the Pacific. Be well and fly safely! _________________ Famous-Infamous for speaking the truth on "the other forum" from 2014-2019. Last edited by Kolibri on Fri Apr 26, 2024 2:18 pm, edited 1 time in total. |
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| Tue Mar 19, 2024 2:32 pm |
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Jim and I go way back and his family is my family.
My business dealings with him have been related to Gyros and other businesses as I am sure your aware. I have worked at SC and even prevented a fire from possibly destroying the factory when the oven baking composites caught on fire at 1 am... In all of our time and dealings togther,Jim and his family have always been above board, and even though we used to joke about "Vanek" time....stuff always got done. I am not upset with your opinions, I am merely suggesting that this is not the right place for it. It is a shame you don't share my opinion of Sportcopter. I've said my bit. I will not belabor it any further. Hafa Adai |
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| Tue Mar 19, 2024 2:55 pm |
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Were you there for 3 full years, as I was? My opinion is much more recent, and thorough.
I'm glad you had many good times there; so did I...for a while. Quote: I am not upset with your opinions, I am merely suggesting that this is not the right place for it. You're welcome to suggest another or better venue. My time here is not dedicated to JV/SC, as many of my other posts have shown. Kolibri out. _________________ Famous-Infamous for speaking the truth on "the other forum" from 2014-2019. Last edited by Kolibri on Fri Apr 26, 2024 2:19 pm, edited 1 time in total. |
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| Tue Mar 19, 2024 3:11 pm |
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  Joined: Thu Nov 07, 2013 12:56 am Posts: 2984 Location: VERY LOW LOW LOW EARTH ORBIT Has thanked: 2833 times Been thanked: 3657 times
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Kolibri wrote: Were you there for 3 full years, as I was? My opinion is much more recent, and thorough. I'm glad you had many good times there; so did I...for a while. Quote: I am not upset with your opinions, I am merely suggesting that this is not the right place for it. You're welcome to suggest another or better venue. My time here is not dedicated to JV/SC, as many of my other posts have shown. Kolibri out. OK GUYS KISS AND MAKE UP ALREADY  BUGGERY AND REACH AROUNDS OPTIONAL  |
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| Tue Mar 19, 2024 8:27 pm |
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As Adlai Stevenson once quipped, "I offer my opponents a bargain: if they will stop telling lies about us, I will stop telling the truth about them."
After 2.5 years, JV has condescended to contact me. In our exchanges he confirmed that he owes me an engine-less M2 gyro as part of my compensation package, but I've seen no effort to fulfill such (or equivalent value) since 2020 or even the past week. In my last email to him: Quote: As I wrote, I'd like a very prompt and widely circulated retraction of your accusation. That, or just file criminal charges, and then my attorney can subpoena [the email service] for the IP, customer info, phone # and back-up email of the user "________". We'll not only prove it wasn't me, but who it was. I doubt that the 2019 culprit took extensive precautions, and I'd really like to uncover who it was. I have my theory who did it. _________________ Famous-Infamous for speaking the truth on "the other forum" from 2014-2019. Last edited by Kolibri on Fri Apr 26, 2024 2:19 pm, edited 1 time in total. |
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| Sat Mar 23, 2024 5:36 pm |
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Here was a helpful insight for me in Summer 2021.
It's probably the most flattering take possible, nonetheless sufficiently alarming. You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post. _________________ Famous-Infamous for speaking the truth on "the other forum" from 2014-2019. Last edited by Kolibri on Fri Apr 26, 2024 2:20 pm, edited 1 time in total. |
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| Sat Mar 23, 2024 9:18 pm |
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Joined: Thu Nov 07, 2013 12:56 am Posts: 2984 Location: VERY LOW LOW LOW EARTH ORBIT Has thanked: 2833 times Been thanked: 3657 times
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Ken Brock walked into our Hangar at Corona, I was working on the Sikorsky and he walked by with a few wrenches and a smile.
Estafen had his gyro in the back and Ken walked out with a set of rotor blades over his shoulder "Have ole Steve call me" Steve came running in saying "Oh shit Oh shit" and he exited just as fast... Ken got his money and Steve was flying the next day. Amazing times |
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| Sat Mar 23, 2024 11:44 pm |
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Before a customer plunks down tens of thousand$ on a gyro kit deposit, some due diligence is highly recommended.
Personally visit the company and learn the below for yourself:
— actual production (Busy shop teeming with people? Parts amassing? Gyros on dealer floors? How many flying?) — independent flight reviews (Do not trust company joy rides, as they know what to mask, such as MGW performance.) — actual wait time for kits (>6 months is suspect!) — how many deposit customers in front of you (Crucial information to help judge delivery timeline.) — proof of your actual position for delivery (Deposit customers should be listed with initials by date.) — ethical contract language (Beware "Heads I win—Tails you lose" clauses.) — deposit refund (Should not depend on new deposits!) — management (Do they exude order, efficiency, & success? Or, do they have a litany of excuses for delay?) — finances (Well capitalized? Pay bills on time? No big debts?) — reputation from past customers (Was anybody ever stiffed on their gyros or refunds? The correct number is zero.) Real production means at least 2 kits/month. Anything less is lame-ass, IMO. If you are not satisfied, yet the company tries to convince you otherwise...watch out. Beware of Bill Paxton True Lies "Hey, because it's You!" promises of your cutting in line with an extra $40k. (Skip to 5:53 below) https://youtu.be/SUHWyZCrFto?t=353 Be especially wary of any moribund company which alleges that "big funding" is imminent. Wait and see. No evidence of production + pressure for a deposit could = fraud. What is fraud? "Fraud is an act of deliberate deception with a design to secure something, which is otherwise not due. The expression “fraud” involves two elements, deceit and injury to the person deceived. It is a cheating intended to get an advantage. Fraud is proved when it is shown that a false representation has been made:
(ii) without belief in its truth, or (iii) recklessly, careless whether it be true or false." Many movies exist about a lone inventor in a garage having a eureka moment, but almost none about manufacturing, so it’s underappreciated by the public. Compared to the insane pain of reaching high-volume, positive-margin production, prototypes are a piece of cake. ~ Elon Musk, https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1773451340548870364 Yes, in Life "You pays your money and you takes your chances"...but there's no reason to be foolish about it. Never ask the barber if you need a haircut. Do your own homework. Ask questions of many in the gyro world. Investigate. Good luck, and safe flying! You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post. _________________ Famous-Infamous for speaking the truth on "the other forum" from 2014-2019. Last edited by Kolibri on Wed Apr 03, 2024 12:10 pm, edited 1 time in total. |
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| Fri Mar 29, 2024 2:20 pm |
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If you don't know what a "Narcissist" is (and it's way beyond just somebody who talks only about themselves), then you are a Narcissist's possible prey. Narcissists are not merely conceited people, they're evil and dangerous. They cause incredible social and financial damage.
Are you familiar with the below concepts?
Narcissistic Supply Narcissistic Rage Flying Monkeys Do 5 minutes of online research on any of these concepts, and you'll be stunned. Perhaps start of with the below video: 10 Signs of a Covert Narcissist https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5C1XtvAo2Yk _________________ Famous-Infamous for speaking the truth on "the other forum" from 2014-2019. |
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| Thu Apr 04, 2024 6:13 pm |
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Joined: Thu Nov 07, 2013 12:56 am Posts: 2984 Location: VERY LOW LOW LOW EARTH ORBIT Has thanked: 2833 times Been thanked: 3657 times
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Kolibri wrote: If you don't know what a "Narcissist" is (and it's way beyond just somebody who talks only about themselves), then you are a Narcissist's possible prey. Narcissists are not merely conceited people, they're evil and dangerous. They cause incredible social and financial damage. Are you familiar with the below concepts?
Narcissistic Supply Narcissistic Rage Flying Monkeys Do 5 minutes of online research on any of these concepts, and you'll be stunned. Perhaps start of with the below video: 10 Signs of a Covert Narcissist https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5C1XtvAo2Yk Shit! That video describes my Evil Twin... |
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| Thu Apr 04, 2024 8:32 pm |
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