Crowbear problem

[Malcolm]

It would appear that from information on American Forum that Crowbear has been involved in a large scale scam.It is reported there that he is the subject of six different complaints to police of selling guitars taking money and not delivering guitars to customers, according to reports the value involved is said to be around 13000Euros.According to reports he has disappeared off face of earth and a private detective is involved in looking for him.
Got to admit it came as a shock to me, although have had no personal dealings with him, always thought he was an alright guy from what I had seen written about and by him on both here and US forum.So sad to see fellow steelers ripped off and even sadder to see a fellow steelers go off the rails like this if these reports are true.If anyone has any info on him I am sure the guys who posted on US forum would appreciate any help that could help them get their cash back.

[Zumbilly(Murdoch)]

Some time ago I asked the Question "Where is Crowbear?"I eventually received info that He was in the Dominican Republic.
He and I spoke often By e mail and By telephone in past years. I did get an e mail from C.B. thanking Me for My concern and telling Me that everything was "cool"
I have not yet read the post on the U.S. Forum.
I always took Him to be a decent guy.
Billy

[Malcolm]

Yep, bit of a shock Billy, if true, but on first look it would appear to be.

[Ken Byng]

Gobsmacking news. I knew that CB was able to lay his hands on some pretty impressive guitars, but this news is a real thunderbolt.

The only people that I would ever deal with are Ted Nesbitt and Damir Besic. Our Ted is as straight as a die, as is Damir. If these two guys describe a guitar as being in mint condition you can guarantee that it will be in showroom condition. If you sell them a guitar it had better be in very good shape. You will always be guaranteed to get your money.

James Crowbear Schmitt was always friendly to me on-line, so it is a massive shock to hear Malcolm's news.

[Ted Nesbitt]

Thank you Ken for the very nice words. It pays dividends to be straight and honest with people
who spend their hard earned cash on a steel guitar, or any item for that matter. Over the past years
I bought and sold a lot of guitars with Jean-Marie Schmitt, better known as Crowbear. Never had a problem
with payment, nor he with me. It came as a shock to hear he has "Done a Runner" oweing European
steel players 16,000 euro. Man, an experience like that would give anyone a lot of sleepless nights. I feel
so sorry for the guys who have been conned. I hope there is a happy ending to the story.

[Will C]

I wonder what has happened in his life to "turn him to the Dark Side"? Illness, money trouble? Doing a runner to another country smacks of huge debt or tax problems. So sorry for the people who have been conned.

[Malcolm]

Got to agree with Ken, we are lucky to have someone like Ted to deal with, you can always depend on Ted in any deal you do with him, not only that but on a personal level he is a great guy.I have had no dealings with Damir, but if Ken says he is a straight up guy then That is good enough for me.Hope there can be a satisfactory outcome to this for all concerned, but got to say it looks unlikely..

[Ken Byng]

Got to agree with Ken, we are lucky to have someone like Ted to deal with, you can always depend on Ted in any deal you do with him, not only that but on a personal level he is a great guy.I have had no dealings with Damir, but if Ken says he is a straight up guy then That is good enough for me.Hope there can be a satisfactory outcome to this for all concerned, but got to say it looks unlikely..

Poor Damir got badly scammed in the States over a year back. http://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopi ... highlight=

I wrote a thread on the USA forum called Why Buy Unseen? b0b made it a sticky and it has had over 100k views. The key thing is this. One man's 'immaculate' or 'great condition' is another man's tatty. Quite often I have known a deal to go wrong due to an inaccurate or embellished description of condition, only discovered once the buyer has received it. A pedal steel is a heavy beast to ship back to the seller, and consequently many buyers have had a quiet grumble and put up with something that they are not happy with. This can be avoided if the seller takes good quality, hi def digital photos of the instrument in question, and is totally honest about the condition. Any marks should be highlighted by close up photos, both to the metal work or the cabinet. Marks should not just be dismissed as fair wear and tear. A tatty, worn guitar is fine for some people - not for me I might add - but the poor condition should be reflected in the price.

Some guys have no conscience when it comes to offloading an inferior guitar onto an unsuspecting buyer - often a newbie who is desperate to get their hands on a pedal steel. This site has been interesting to me sometimes. I have seen guitars bought at reasonable prices, given a quick clean and then re-presented for sale at several hundred quid more. Nothing wrong with that in principle, but if any of you are looking to buy, keep a regular eye on the 'for sale' section or on eBay as some real bargains can be had. Just ask loads of questions of the seller and get those hi-def photos.

Ted Nesbitt is the ultimate retail source of pedal steel guitars in my humble opinion, and I have been around them for many, many years. Anytime I need a guitar worked on, I give it to master mechanic Ron Mawn, another guy who is 100% trustworthy.

Finally, Crowbear can't feel comfortable in his new life of exile. He loved to participate in steel guitar discussions and private emails. He will now feel like a leper in the steel guitar community, and that is really sad for him and those that he has scammed.

[SHAKEY]

Well I do know he ripped me off good and proper, believing him to be "ONE OF THE BOYS," I did get the guitar (a PRO1) from him at one hell of a price, that is to say all the extras that he didn't tell me about and when I got it, it was more holy, (holey) than the Pope. It was riddled almost like woodworm. I challenged him but he didn't give a S**te. Anyway my loss, but I really feel sorry for those who lost a lot more than me.

[Dave Nutt]

Never been one for hitting a man when he is down, all I will say is 'James Crowbear was not a honorable man'