maldar
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Posts posted by maldar
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Here are pics of the samples that the mint emailed me. The samples should be in my hands by the end of next week if all goes well, the begining the the week after that otherwise.
I would like people to vote for their favorite 2 platings and explain why.
There is one more plate they are doing, Antqiue Gold. I don't remember asking for it, but she said that it was still being finished. I think it will look much like the Antqiue Copper.
Can the Mod change the name of the thread to: "10 Commandments, choose your colors. See post #31."
Thanks for everyones help. If all goes well I will start taking pre-sales at the end of the month.
My choices are the Antqiue Copper and Antqiue Silver for the regular edition. Silver for LE and Gold for XLE/AE.
Thanks again,
maldar
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My policy is that I don't take a coin from my own cache unless I'm asked to do so by the coin owner. That has only happened once and the coin was in there for some time. I don't go to caches I have previously visited to claim a coin either. If I go caching I will try for caches with coins in there before other caches that are in the area.
maldar
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I have had a coin sitting dormant in the hands of a cacher since last November; not a long time I know, but still........ I have sent him a few notes through the mail asking if it has been 'lost' but I never have received a reply. To have a coin go missing from a cache is one thing; to know that your coin is sitting in the hands of another cacher who ignores your requests for information is very frustrating.
I am pleased to say all of my other coins are moving through-out the Geocaching community! 
This has happened to me also. I started a coin in a local TB hotel and the first person to pick it up never logged it. I have contacted them, but they have not contacted me back, not have they been to GC.c since Feb. Grrrrrr......
I think that right now only 2 of my 6 travelers are acounted for at this time.
maldar
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What changed your mind? I remember the first time, when you were selling yours.
maldar
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I cannot wait any longer!!!!!
AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.......!!!!!!!!
LOL
Want cute coin, me do.
maldar
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Paula, you need to get over yourself, set your ego aside, and step up to the plate and do some serious damage control if it isn't to late to do so. You need to do this for your personal reputation as well as your business reputation if you don't want this issue to spill over to your "own design" coin sales. As someone already mentioned negative word of mouth fads much slower than positive word of mouth. Rather than putting the blame on the customer and making excuses deflecting your own culpability you should have immediately came out with a simple statement of sorts saying that you got in over your heading and it overwhelmed you. That you didn't want to disappoint your customer but you were afraid to come forward and admit this shortcoming and it snowballed out of control and you are very very sorry to those who were hurt or words to that effect........you get where I am going. As good PR you should have given a 100% refund and the art work completed to the OP for making him wait for over a year and to smooth things over. I suspect the OP would have been thrilled and despite a year long wait I suspect he would have had good things to say about how you dealt with the situation. I say these things to you because I like you not because I want to hurt you.
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Peace People
This right here is what I was trying to say. I'm just not as good with words as some
maldar
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So if Paula tells you she is sorry for not getting your design done in a timely manner that you will forgive her and do business with her again?
I think I need to make one thing clear before people assume too much. Paula and I have no relationship.
That being said. A heartfelt apology would do much. At this point I would have to think long and hard about continuing such a relationship. As I stated in my post you quoted, "I would have been happy if she told me after the fact if she told we that she broke it as was sorry she was not up front about this fact in the begining."
Apologies, as long as they are Heartfelt, can go a long way. It would still help, even this late in the game. That is what people really want; as well as their money or product. I truely believe that she is in the wrong and needs to fess-up to what happened. Much of the tention would dissipate with an apology.
These are just my thoughts about the matter.
I have found that it works when I need to apologize for something.
maldar
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I have been reading this from start to now and, for one, is amazed that they are letting it get this dirty. I think some of the people throwing the most mud probably has never done buisness with this person, they are just jumping on the band wagon. I really don't know Paula or even done business with her either. I looks like you are all wanting her to say sorry but it don't look like it is going to happen. What if she says sorry, is it going to get dropped? I doubt it. What else needs to be said there that hasn't already been addressed?
I hope this will still aplly as ON TOPIC.
joranda and everyone else that thinks an apology know is not worth it,
I have to use an example of what happened to me, NON COIN RELATED, a few years ago.
I was renting a room from a lady and had a toolbox stored in the garage. I came home one day and found the toolbox out on the porch and it was broken. When I asked the lady about it she told me she had no idea what happened. Come to find out she took the tools out not knowing they were mine and was looking for a tool to use. When she placed everything back she broke it trying to close it.
When I discovered the truth I was even angier than I was when I found it broken. She never came forward after I was told the truth by someone else. If she would have told me upfront I would have told her, "That's alright, it happens." I would have been happy if she told me after the fact if she told we that she broke it as was sorry she was not up front about this fact in the begining.
An apology can go a long way. Even now it has a chance at easing some of the anger. The longer one waits the worse it gets.
By the way, the lady I was renting from was someone I called a friend. Someone I thought I could trust and we worked well together at our place of work. Never would I have thought she would have thought she needed to lie to me. There are other things that lead to our parting ways, but that was the begining.
I hope my example proves helpful.
maldar
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In that example (and I know you said it's not perfect) the 99 miles were delivered.
I'll give you another example...If I told the teacher that the dog ate my homework, so I won't give her anything to show that it was done, but I did do it, so I expect to still get a "C" on the assignment.
That doesn't cut is in my book.
Would you pay any money at all to a photographer who shot your wedding, but would not print the images, or even show you any proofs, or even allow another photographer to print from the negatives.
I was of the understanding that some part of the artwork was delivered. Know in the case you state I would have to agree that there is nothing to show for it so nothing should be expected in return.
So to clear things up, in the example I gave I think they should get something. While with the example you gave I think they should get nothing.
maldar
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I don't know about real contracts, but an "almost finished" geocoin is likely to need to be finished by another designer - the coin design purchaser is unlikely to have the software or know how to get it mint ready. so, another coin designer will need to be hired, and will likely have a hard time modifying someone elses artwork.
Currently I'm using Adobe Photoshop. It is not that hard to crop parts of the image and create them into layers. An experianced graphic artist would be able to do that in a heartbeat. I'm not that experianced so it took me a half hour to figure it out on the design for one of my coins. If I had my Jasc PaintShop Pro from the 90's installed I could have done somethings quicker.
I'm not saying for the purchaser to do the work, but the first designer should be willing to pay the new designer's fees.
maldar
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I see trackables as things to move. My personal policy is that I don't revist a cache just to log a trackable. I will on the other hand go and find a cache I have not found to get the trackable. The only time I have ever gone to pick-up a trackable from a cache I own or have found previously is when the owner contacts me and ask me to do such. The reason I do this is to keep my numbers pure to the way I play the game. I have thought to open a second account to do those moves in so they don't mess with the way I track my information. The only time I use the discover function is if the coin is a special "Meet and Greet" coin that the owner uses to track the people they have chatted with at events, or TBs that are cars and the like. Discovering coins just for the icon has no interest for me.
maldar
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I pretty much know what these two have gone through in the past year, and what they are going through now. I am impressed that they even have the fortitude to reply to this thread publicly.
All they had to say to the people they were paid to design coins for is, "Sorry, we are experiancing personal issues and will be unable to deliver the design as promised. We will refund you an amount appropriate to the amount of work unfinished as well as send you the work we have completed."
That right there could have saved much time and frustration for both parties; and everyone would have been fine with it and there would not be this situation.
maldar
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Firstly..."Work that has been done..." should only need to be paid for if it is delivered. I don't care if someone has spent 1000 hours working on my design. If you deliver me NOTHING, then I should pay NOTHING.
I have to disagree. I'll use an off the wall example.
You are contracted and paid to pave 100 miles of road. Of said road you finish 99 miles, but that last mile you are frustrated and stress that you are behind schedule and leave the last mile unfinished.
So you are saying nothing should be paid? Like I said the example is totally different, but I think it illustrates the point. Sure there should be penalties and all that. Even pay the artist that finished the work. But if someone receives a design that is almost completed and just needs alittle tweaking here and there, I think something should still be paid. $5 is better than nothing.
That is my I suggest the agreement form. Something that sets a timeframe, but if timeframes are not adheard to there is a list of agreed upon penalties for each infraction. The up side could be a free coin or two as a bonus.
maldar
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Don't know how that Dbl Posted
maldar
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And I'd like to say for anyone out there considering a coin project that Sharon at Hogwildstuff has been a complete joy to work with. I know there are other great companies out there too, but being new to all this she really took a lot of time to help guide me through the process and never once lost her patience with me and all of my questions - hundreds of questions.
Communication in this type of business is obviously key. When it is lacking - there are bound to be problems like those described on this thread. When it's consistent and reliable, then that makes all the difference in the world. Maybe that is the take-home message here.
LOL. I'm sorry but I cannot help but laugh. Try dealing with the mint and explaining what you mean, so much is truely "Lost In Translation."
maldar
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At this point, I will treat this experience as I would any other buying/shopping horror and avoid purchasing any coins designed by her. I'm only an army of one but that is all I can do.
While I understand where you are coming from, I think this hurts the owner of the coin more. I buy coins based on if I like the design; and while she made the design, it was the one that comissioned the artist that provided the idea.
I don't know if I'm making any sense, I hope I am; as I see someone that has all these coins that are not selling questioning whether (sp?) or not to have more coins made. This could prevent someone from making what could be a awesome coin. I would not like to have that happen.
If anything, you should just not buy coins she is selling herself or having someone sell for her. Don't punish the client, punish the artist. I really hate to say that, but it is the better way.
maldar
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While I'm not a person involved in this, I do have a couple things to say.
If there was no timeframe set, that is the fault of both parties, but mainly the customer.
Where time frame have been set, then the artist needs to be upfront about what is happening as said dateline approches, or worse, passes.
In many business where there is a deadline the person doing the work normally has to refund a portion of the payment back for each agreed upon time unit that has past.
Work that has been done should be paid for, though at an agreed upon discount if a timeframe was involved.
As some of these transactions took place via PayPal there might be a form one can file. I don't know how their policy works for things like this.
It an artist is going to push back current projects to work on something from a new client then they need to contact their current clients and seek permission from them first.
The artist also needs to know their limit; how many projects can you handle at one time?
Those are a few things I thought should be said.
Now here is another:
Does anyone want to help draw-up an artist/client agreement form? Something that each party can use to protect themselves when things like this arise? It would not be something manditory, but may help in the future. This would only be an agreement between the artist and client. Groundspeak/Geocaching.com would have no liability, nor anyone assisting in creating the fill-in the blank form.
maldar
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Dude,
Go to ebay, that type of shipping charge does not fly here. A flat rate box with insurance cost a third of what your asking.
maldar
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Thanks for the info on the word false. I also noticed that they used a period instead of a comma else where in the coin.
I read through the thread and didn't see much information so here goes:
(1) what do you want to do with the coins, sell them, trade them, leave them in caches?
(2) trackable or non trackable ~ minimum 100 trackable or no limit on non trackable
(3) 250 for a custom icon, 100 for a generic icon
The last two questions have been answered. Still good questions.
1) I will need to sell most I think to cover the expense as I don't have the money to do it otherwise. It would be nice to just make what I want and trade, but I cannot. I don't think I would make a coin that was not trackable at this point.
2) The thread has a second picture where it shows the placement of the Trackable information.
3) 250 is the minimum I got qoutes for, because I would like to have a custom Icon.
Thanks,
maldar
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Check with your minter to see if there is a price break after a certain number of coins. I have heard that 300 is the magic number, but really have no idea.
You should be able to get quotes as to different quantities made and may even want to ask about a certain number when a pricebreak may be avail. Shoot if it is at 300, then youd be paying significantly less for the extra 50 and may be worth the little bit extra they may cost...Dunno
Other than that id say 250 is a good place to start.
Thanks for the info. I asked for quotes on every 50 past 250 through 500.
maldar
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Hello again everyone,
Here is the effection picture I just received from the mint.
They will be working on the dies and I hope to have the samples in hand next week if all goes as planned.
Maldar
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Are you planning on making this pin trackable? If not, we can't allow it to be discussed/sold here.
I was considering it, but I'm not sure if there was enough interest nor enough space for the wording on the back of the pin. I need to check with some pin makers about that, but it is still the weekend.
If I have to I can take it off site.
maldar
Edit: Spelling
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Is there any way to get single tracking numbers and activation codes to add to homemade items?
Easiest thing to do is get some Travel bugs and use those tracking numbers.
Doh, there is that too.
maldar
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I think you should check with GC.c first about placing a number on a homemade item. If it is alright with them, there are coin makers that buy numbers in bulk and might be will to sell a few to you. I'm not sure how that works though.
I am pleased to say all of my other coins are moving through-out the Geocaching community! 
Delays, Delays, Delays
in Trackables
Posted
I'm doing my first coin and have samples enroute. For me I will be doing a Pre-Sale on this coin. I have no other option at this point as I cannot afford to pay it all up front and that I'm not 100% on the number of coins to have made. The number of coins I have made will be based on the pre-sales of the coins. I don't know if I would do reservations as I have done that with other things and had a hard time selling what people promised to purchase and never followed through. I have also been on the other end where I paid up front and had to wait longer than it should have taken to produce an item. If the mint comes back to me and says that there is a delay then I will post it here and on my website. I do hope in the future to not have presales, but at this time it is just a matter of fact for my situation.
maldar