Home Forums Gear Free Classifieds The Safariman Experience

Ladies and Gentlemen:

One of my favorite tactics when I was practicing law, was to let a witness babble on, while on the stand until they found out they had just BS'd themselves into a corner.

Mark Claiborne (aka Safariman) has just done that.

Now for some facts:

1. On Thursday, December 13, 2012, Mark Claiborne (the seller) and I (the buyer) verbally agreed to the sale of a Winchester Model 71, long tang pre-WW-II rifle for a total price, including shipping of $1,000.00 (the "rifle") (the "contract").
2. On Thursday, December 13, 2012, I mailed check number 450 to Mark Claiborne in the amount of $1,000.00 ("check #450") as full payment for the rifle.
3. Check #450 was received by Mark Claiborne on Saturday, December 15, 2012, according to a private mail that he sent to me on Monday, December 17, 2012.
4. Mark Claiborne talked with me on Monday, December 17, 2012 and described his circumstance at the time. He said that he was dead broke, the $1,000.00 check that I sent to him was a God send, since both of his two automobiles were inoperable, and that he had no money to repair them. He also told me that he was in such poor health that changing the serpentine belt on his wife's car (she is the sole breadwinner, according to him) so that it would operate might be beyond his ability.
5. Previously, Mark Claiborne told me that he had done some repairs to the Model 71 (after I sent the check), and that one of the pins "was still proud", in his words. These repairs were not revealed to me when we formed the contract.
6. Later, Mark Claiborne revealed that the rifle was so dirty, that he would send it to a local gunsmith, and have it thoroughly cleaned at his expense. This from a guy, who just told me that he was dead broke, and could not afford to have his automobiles repaired. This appeared to be a delaying tactic.
7. Mark Claiborne told me via private mail on December 17, 2012, that he could not ship out the rifle in a timely fashion, because his automobiles were inoperable, but that check #450 for $1,000.00 would really come in handy. So, he could not ship the rifle out, but he could deposit the check?
8. Mark Claiborne breached our December 13, 2012 contact doubly, first, when he said that he could not ship the rifle in a timely manner, and second, when he revealed repairs to the rifle and the necessity for cleaning that were not revealed to me prior to the formation of the contract.
9. Since Mark Claiborne could not or would not perform under the contract, I was relieved of my duties under that same contract.
10. Therefore, at 4:00 p. m. EST on Monday, December 17, 2012, I stopped payment of check #450, and informed Mark Claiborne on that day, that I would no longer be purchasing the rifle and to not attempt to cash check #450.

As to the second rifle, the Savage 99, he is correct. I changed my mind, told him that I would not be purchasing it and apologized.

Sincerely,

Chris Bemis

GFY!

+1

You're a fugging Classifieds Cowboy bitching about a long time, well respected member here.

I'd happily deal with Mark any time. You, not so much.

To reiterate, GFY!!

Completely opposite of my dealings with Mark. As far as my experience he's one of the good guys.

I would like to hear Mark explain his way around this. After all there are two sides to the story and Mark has told it his way before we got the other side. Now I want to hear the rebuttal.
Tim

You'll have one HELL of a challenge in attempting to cast even the slightest bit of shadow upon the character of safariman. He's about as quality of a man as you'll find anywhere.

Your post only makes me question your integrity...

Yalie, I don't know exactly what happened with this particular transaction but I will say you won't be making many friends around here by bad-mouthing Mark Claiborne. Too many folks around here, myself included, have had nothing but excellent dealings with him. I'd have no problem sending him anything I own on just his word that the check is in the mail.

safariman may well be one of the most polite and well respected people I have come in contact with here on the fire.....either he had a lapse in judgement, or you are full of sh#t.....i would lean towards the latter, however I try not to pass judgement.

The rifle was new to me, but the original owner allowed as how that particualr rifle had always been very stiff to operate which is not how typical older Model 71's run. So, after Yalie and I made a deal for it that I discovered it had a pin in the lever mechanism that was slightly 'proud' from the factory and making the rifles operation a bit sticky. Also that the rifle appeard to be dirty inside from carrying it or having been taken hunting more than once (Imagine that) so yes, I did tell Mr. Yalie or Chris that the money was a Godsend and very much needed due to our dire financial difficulties and TWO cars breaking down that very weekend. Stressed as we were (and largely are) I do not knowingly send out rifles that are not as near to perfect as I can so I advised Yalie that the shipping of hte rifle would be delayed a few days while a nearby gunsmith and good freind of mine dissasembled the rifle and polished down the overly long lever pin and thouroughly cleaned the rifle. This was in no way an attempt to delay a shipping in any nefarious manner, but only to make sure the rifle was in the best working order when recieved by Chris. If Chris had insisted on an immediate shippiing I would have honored that and refunded him whatever the cost was at his end to accomplish the cleaning and polish a pin down. Also, had Chris CALLED me or PM'ed me or E-MAiled to discuss matters we could have come to a gentlemanly agreement. Even if he decided at that time that he did not want the rifle, it would have helped me immeasureably to know that the check was not going to be honored BEFORE I WROTE CHECKS for bills and to other people whom I owed money too. I certainly would have done that for someone else, especially if I knew they needed the money so badly and were counting on that for living expenses. Note that I did not WANT to sell this wonderful rifle, I have always wanted one but life has thrown me some curves. Communication, especially after I had tried many, many times to call and find out what the issue or problem was, would have been imeasureably helpful and proffesional.

As to my wife being the only bread winner, that is mostly true. I now have some of my retirement coming to me under a medical waiver as well as a small amount of money coming in from the renewal of insurance policies I wrote while I was still healthy and in business. I inherited Polycyctic Kidney Disease from my m maternal great grandfather and grandfather. Both of them died from this at exactly age 54, and I will be 53 in a couple of weeks. I am experiencing now the same suffering that I remember seeing my grandfather go through including daily nausea with exhaustion and extreme fatigue, headaches, malaise, and painful gout in my joints from my kidneys only working at about 1/3 capacity and allowing much poison to remain in my bloodstream. My Kidneys are full of cysts, which makes me feel like I have kidney stones all of the time. Very painful. I wear a TENS neural stumulator most of the time to try and innterupt the pain signals to my brain from my low back and kidneys, and I have on hand several leveal of Opiate based and other strong pain killers of which I take at least one every four hours of my life inlcuding Lortab, Norco, Ultram, Dilauted and Oxycontin. I also have nasty tasting lolipops that slowly leak pain killer into my system through my mouth and Lidocaine patches that I wear on my spinal column to ease my pain. So yes, I can no longer work and have to relay on my wifes meager income and this is very hard on my emotionally as well as financially. I used to be one of the top insurance salesmen in the NATION. Earning huge commisions each and every month and travelling the world to hunt the biggest and baddest of game animals. My new reality has taken much getting used to, and even typing this stuff right now (Which I should not have been coerced into doing, but I feel neccesary now) is upsetting me not a little.

Between the poison in my system from my failing kidneys and the constant barrage of painkillers my cognition is also suffering and this causes me great distress as my IQ at one time was 148, but is probably no where near that of late. I and my longsuffering wife are noticing that my ability to "Track" conversations and directions ncluding while driving is not so good of late nor is my short term memory very good any more. Writing this explanation is taking a long time, and requires much concentration and thought.

So, now we have it. Yes, Yalie bialed on another deal before and has addmitted to it, and I am still holding onto a check that he wrote me for a deal he made me and then reniged with NO CONVERSATION BEFOREHAND OR EXPLANATION BEFORE OR AFTER UNTIL TODAY! A check that I thought, since it was in my possesion, I could then write checks upon for bills and such the weekend I had it before I got the brief, terse notice that payment had been stopped with no explanation as to why. I do not ocnsider this to be a proffesional or reasonable to conduct onesself in this or any other forum and I have been warning my freinds here to simply use caution if dealing with this self absorbed "Yale Graduate" classifieds only poster and 'contributor.

I'll stand by Mark in a firefight to the death, with whatever faults he might have, and throw that lawyer straight into the fiery furnace, one piece at a time. I hate guys like that that feel like documentation of an event justifies acting like a complete dickwad. I'd like to see this crankbait exposed in the town he lives in for his petty little mindset. Who knows him or lives nearby that can make this buttzit pay? If he had a fraction of a brain he'd honor the check, buy the gun, show some charity to a wonderful man, and apologize for his incredibly misguided attack on Mark.

One more thing. Mark, I need your address, I've got some 250 Savage ammo that I want to send you as a gesture of goodwill to hopefully restore your faith a little bit for this BUTT ZIT calling you out. It's time for men that know mark to stand up.

So Yalie, by his admission, is a lawyer....nuff said.
Mark is a man of honor and character.
Lawyers have a way of twisting the truth since they are unable to accept, or recognize the same.
Will Rogers never met a lawyer......

Great post FB!

I'd like to whip that guys azz just to watch him grovel.

Typical Callout thread. Classifieds ranger calls out well respected forum member. Mark like others have said you have nothing but my respect and admiration. Yalie can foad as far as i'm concerned.

BTW Mark, sent you a PM on that Model 71

DID YOU NOTICE THAT MARK NEVER CALLED THE DICKFA%E OUT THAT RENIGED ON HIM? IM WITH MARK ON THIS ONE...NUFF SAID

Possibly good guys on both ends but we're talking about a model 71 here. Seems to me ANY alteration to the gun should have been worked out between the parties before it was touched by anyone, including the seller. We all have our personal issues, health, financial, etc. none of which is relevant here or makes 2 cents difference in a gun deal.
Communication is often the problem in deals gone bad here in spite of all the best intentions.

I have a feeling Yalie wrote this great post sitting in some whitey-tighties sipping red wine by a fireplace with his pinky out.

GFY.