Fotios Rouch Posted November 10, 2011 Share Posted November 10, 2011 What is the reason, I wonder, when modelers buy from pirates to save a buck or two and have the original master makers fold. I mean, where is the logic? Kill the master for a few bucks of discount by a pirate and then when the master maker is gone out of business what happens? The master is out and the pirate is out since there is nothing to pirate from. Not exactly the perfect symbiotic relationship! This is close to what is happening to one of the best master makers I know of. One guy puts his dreams in a box comes to the US, legally with his family, sets up shop and sees his dreams go under due to piracy... Just great. This is not what he thought the American dream was. Who am I to explain that with what I see. I had many hopes for www.dmold-modelworks.com and the powerhouse potential of this venture. It is irrelevant what I post here when he tells me that a huge chunk of his sales get pirated. How sad. I am really not sure for how long he will be here in this country. He will not quit the business but he will not be at the source of where the aircraft are and take measurements and absorb them and compare plastic to metal. Maybe it is me and I was hoping for but I had great dreams for us modelers. Fotios Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bigjugs Posted November 10, 2011 Share Posted November 10, 2011 And the basis for the allegation? I have not come across pirated D Mold stuff. Perhaps he expected more from the US economy than should have been. But then again, I remember accusations about the same person making money off coming up short on a mold he did for a company and then coming up with a correction. Odd that no other US based resin company has made similar accusations about piracy. Just wondering in the absence of facts. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
KursadA Posted November 10, 2011 Share Posted November 10, 2011 (edited) OK, wait: did he really come to the US with the expectation that it would be possible to earn a living only by making and selling resin scale model aircraft accessories? In 2011? In today's economy? I hope that is not the case, because it does not seem very realistic to me. I hope he reconsiders his decision and stays in business, though. Edited November 10, 2011 by KursadA Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Koen L Posted November 10, 2011 Share Posted November 10, 2011 Bigjugs, untill very recently Dmold was Russia based so your 'Odd that no other US based resin company has made similar accusations about piracy. ' doesn't really make sense. If I'm not mistaken there have been illegal copies of Neomega products as well. People probably think that since they're in Russia there's nothing they're going to do anyway... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Two Mikes Posted November 10, 2011 Share Posted November 10, 2011 OK, wait: did he really come to the US with the expectation that it would be possible to earn a living only by making and selling resin scale model aircraft accessories? In 2011? In today's economy? I hope that is not the case, because it does not seem very realistic to me. I hope he reconsiders his decision and stays in business, though. I ave been at it going on 4 years here in the states and there is a reason I still have a 9-5 "real life" job. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
DonSS3 Posted November 10, 2011 Share Posted November 10, 2011 I think a lot of times (in the case of resin bits and even kits in our hobby) the buyer doesn't know that he's buying a pirated copy of something. I don't know how many times posts have been made questioning the parentage of certain kits, and then a few weeks/month/years down the line, someone will again ask about said kit… Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bigjugs Posted November 10, 2011 Share Posted November 10, 2011 Bigjugs, untill very recently Dmold was Russia based so your 'Odd that no other US based resin company has made similar accusations about piracy. ' doesn't really make sense. If I'm not mistaken there have been illegal copies of Neomega products as well. People probably think that since they're in Russia there's nothing they're going to do anyway... The original poster seems to have tied the issue to the USA. I quote: "One guy puts his dreams in a box comes to the US, legally with his family, sets up shop and sees his dreams go under due to piracy... Just great. This is not what he thought the American dream was." Russian pirates, Somali pirates, Pittsburgh Pirates? Seems he was a US resin company, based on the facts presented. He should have talked to Mike of Two Mikes or Mike West of Lone Star about making a living from resin. Perhaps, resin does not become gold in the USA. Love to know the details, rather than empty allegations. I too hate pirates. Unless it is Captain Hook, he was just misunderstood. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Dave Williams Posted November 10, 2011 Share Posted November 10, 2011 And the basis for the allegation? I have not come across pirated D Mold stuff. Perhaps he expected more from the US economy than should have been. But then again, I remember accusations about the same person making money off coming up short on a mold he did for a company and then coming up with a correction. Odd that no other US based resin company has made similar accusations about piracy. Just wondering in the absence of facts. I suspect the basis is these threads: http://s362974870.onlinehome.us/forums/air/index.php?showtopic=228880&st=0&p=2183320&hl=rhino&fromsearch=1entry2183320 http://s362974870.onlinehome.us/forums/air/index.php?showtopic=239521&st=0&p=2280894&hl=rhino&fromsearch=1entry2280894 You can read all the gory details yourself and make your own conclusions. There is also a thread over a Z5 where Dave Roof compares the Rhino 1/48 Hornet intakes are compared to the SS intakes, and they are not copies. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Spongebob Posted November 11, 2011 Share Posted November 11, 2011 Well, DMold is great stuff, but his prior lack of a website to order directly from, lack of stock at Victory Models (which isn't that large or widely known a distributor in the US -- Sprue Brothers should have been a must) and now a general lack of stock on his website has really hampered by ability to throw my hard earned ducats his way. And I'm dialed into the community and support many of the smaller (and more creative) vendors. Heck, I think I made a car payment for Mike of Two Mikes. Someone less so would never find his stuff. Additionally, and this is probably just me, but with a few exceptions I've been disappointed with crap service/delivery from some of the garage shops and prefer to buy from a larger distributor where I know I'll get what I pay for in a reasonable amount of time. FWIW, ebay provides some protection in that regard and scores good points for availability. So, although pirated goods are bad, it means there's a demand in the market that the original creator isn't meeting and in the resin world it's typically availability. I'd bet that 80% of the folks who buy pirated stuff on ebay have never heard of the original vendor. I think if Dmitri got his stuff out and around more with better supplies, you'd see this problem disappear as the pirates would have to undercut him on price which wrecks their business model. For as much as people hate the proprietor, CE/Meteor pretty much showed how it can be done effectively. Just my $.05. Spongebob Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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