[SPRiT] R1 R2 (Shipping 92% Completed)

[Magna224]

I'm not even waiting on PCBs just a 87% case.

[WiNloSt]

Waiting for 87% case and pcb. Last time I hear my name on top of the list was probably a few months back.

[jlor]

If it helps, I put an order in for a case in early June. I'm real sorry for those of you have been waiting ages and have yet to receive anything :[

Not your fault. Sprit apparently just has preferential treatment. :-)

I think it's more like he only has 60% boards/cases available. Does anyone actually remember a 75%, 87% or 110% order being filled out? My guess is that something went wrong with those boards and it wasn't worth reordering them due to lack of interest (and it's obviously lossy for him to pay for another batch out of pocket). That's obviously not OK and he's a **** if that's the case. And even if that's _not_ the reason, he's still a **** for making us wait for 2 years instead of just telling us to **** off. I think at this point he's basically just waiting for people to forget. Because, well, we will right? What do we get by going to this thread? There's no benefit to us if we keep waiting, and he'll get prodded less and less until it's "over". It's ****ed up, but he's still providing a service to a lot of members who only want 60% boards so it's not like the mods will do anything either

Indeed.. I think it's far more likely Sprit messed up all orders above 60% (or just simply postponed them). He should have never started providing PCBs above 60%!

I'm in for a 100/110% PCB. He said it was ready (without soldering) last december:

Hello! 
110% PCBs' controller parts installed and firmware test done. Only need to solder diodes for 110 Switches. 
Its quite simple job but takes a couple of hours time.
So sorry for that ! 
If you are OK for solering diodes, i am shipping enough 2 types of diodes with PCBs.

Since I've basically not heard anything about my order. I'm slightly annoyed that he took my money and waved a completed product in front of me, only to stop giving any update for 10 months.

We wont accomplish anything inside this echo chamber of a thread, however I feel justified to inform everyone else on this board, on deskthority and on /r/mechanicalkeyboards how Sprit operates.

[_robban]

Agree, seems like if he messed up everything above 60% design - myself waiting for a complete 110% kitt and a 60% case.

To bad that he turned out to be nothing else than a thief and a lier, he seemed like a solid and good guy with good intention but something went wrong for sure.

[twiddle]

I received a 60% and 75% PCB, but no cases for those or my full 110% kit. Sprit indicated he would send the remaining items through in a few emails at the start of the year but haven't heard from him for quite some time.
Just thought I would put that out there so people know there was at least *some* progress on the non-60% boards.

[jlor]

Apparently he is moving offices.. If it is true it might explain some of the delay on non-60% PCBs (i.e. stuff he didn't have stocked):

SPRiT is moving to new office, hence the delay.
I waited quite a bit for reply, but the order was already shipped.
So don't worry, your package is probably on it's way.

Unknown how credible this information is however. And at any rate it would have been prudent of him to inform us of this himself..

[osxoep]

if he does start sending things, i hope he messages us first. i've moved address since his last message.

i'm not holding my breath, i'm counting this money as lost now

[tjweir]

i'm not holding my breath, i'm counting this money as lost now

I've been flip-flopping on him and this buy, now solidly in the camp that my money is lost as well. 

[Dansor]

...
To bad that he turned out to be nothing else than a thief and a lier, he seemed like a solid and good guy with good intention but something went wrong for sure.

This is what I don't understand.  He's completed, as far as I can tell, a TON of other orders.
I feel like there's something to this story that we're not seeing.  I'm not saying it's excusable, but there must be more here than Sprit just deciding to not fulfill X% of the group buy orders.

But, ultimately, it's poor communication that has lead us here, so I don't expect to ever get the full story.

The sad part is that if there were more frequent, and fewer misleading, updates, I would actually be OK waiting two years for a group buy order.

[jlor]

...

The sad part is that if there were more frequent, and fewer misleading, updates, I would actually be OK waiting two years for a group buy order.

This, a million times this! I'm beyond annoyed right now, but it is 100% because of Sprit saying one thing and then never doing it or updating us with why he wont do it.
E.g.: Shipping packages to X, never shipping packages to X and never saying why he didn't ship to X.
Or: Your board is ready to ship if you want to solder yourself, never shipping, never saying why he didn't ship.

[_robban]

...
To bad that he turned out to be nothing else than a thief and a lier, he seemed like a solid and good guy with good intention but something went wrong for sure.

This is what I don't understand.  He's completed, as far as I can tell, a TON of other orders.
I feel like there's something to this story that we're not seeing.  I'm not saying it's excusable, but there must be more here than Sprit just deciding to not fulfill X% of the group buy orders.

But, ultimately, it's poor communication that has lead us here, so I don't expect to ever get the full story.

The sad part is that if there were more frequent, and fewer misleading, updates, I would actually be OK waiting two years for a group buy order.

Well false and incorrect communication and taking my money and not send me anything in return summaries my (and many more peoples I believe) opinion.
He have sent out other peoples stuff, great for them, but still myself and many with me still waiting and waiting. I don’t mind waiting either but if I am to do I do need some feedback on the actual GB progress and what is causing the delay ie faulty PCB design, incorrect housing, waiting on switches etc

[limitz]

I received a 60% and 75% PCB, but no cases for those or my full 110% kit. Sprit indicated he would send the remaining items through in a few emails at the start of the year but haven't heard from him for quite some time.
Just thought I would put that out there so people know there was at least *some* progress on the non-60% boards.

I received a 75% V1 case + 75% PCB (I ordered a V2 though). When I communicated to him that I ordered a V2 and not a V1, he sent me the lower pieces for the V2 about 2 weeks later. I submitted my order in July 2014, and it was fulfilled earlier this year. I am absolutely in the minority, and I count myself very very lucky. My opinion of this buy is that even though a lucky few received their orders, I believe that the majority will not. If I still had money in this buy, I would absolutely be writing it off.

My biggest gripe/frustration with this GB is the lying. So many broken promises... "I'll ship tomorrow", then no communication for months. "Your order is ready", then radio silence. "I'll ship your PCB if you do not need soldering", a year later, nothing. The lack of integrity, broken promises, and constant lying to members here is disgusting. I can't stress this enough. I can't believe people are saying "Sprit is a good guy", when there are literal hundreds of people that he has lied to over and over again with meaningless updates.

It doesn't help either that if you browse the Korean boards, like Kbdlab and mention "Sprit", you'll realize that he has absolutely no credibility in Korea.

[gimpster]

It's been about 6 months since I checked back in on this thread. I'm glad to see that I didn't miss anything important and I see there's not much changed in the state of affairs in this GB...I got SPRIT's email back on Apr 9th. I replied on Apr 13th indicating that I could do the soldering myself. I've heard crickets since then. I see my name was on a list of "up next" for a couple months, then 2 months ago there was a post promising a small update coming very soon that never happened, and then the no posts from SPRIT in over a month now. Pretty much what I expected when I didn't receive my order after the first couple of months. 12/18 will mark the 2nd anniversary since this was paid for...maybe it will arrive in time for my grandchildren to have a relic from an age long past when people used to communicate by pecking plastic key caps with their hands instead of simply thinking their words into existence...

[Rodgaroon]

This makes me

[cookiesowns]

I got half my orders. Some switches, LED's, diodes for the non existent PCB's. Very close to $800 down the drain from missing cases & PCB's, along with me being a hopeful person and ordering a switch lubing station.

Well GG....

[jlor]

I wonder why he wont give us an update or at the very least react to the very negative tone and information revealed in this thread lately.

He has been online recently. Last post he made was August 18th. But I suppose him not having a reaction to this thread is proof that this GB is done and those of us that haven't received our products are out of money.
I could call Sprit a lot of very nasty names, but..

[mark0331]

I've emailed Sprit nicely and received no response. I will now be filing a report with the US Internet Crime Complaint Center aka FBI. I urge others to do the same. The more complaints received concerning Sprit the likelier they are to contact authorities in S Korea. I don't wish Sprit I'll will, but ignoring everything is never a good solution.

[jlor]

I've emailed Sprit nicely and received no response. I will now be filing a report with the US Internet Crime Complaint Center aka FBI. I urge others to do the same. The more complaints received concerning Sprit the likelier they are to contact authorities in S Korea. I don't wish Sprit I'll will, but ignoring everything is never a good solution.

I understand the outrage and annoyance with what has happened in this group buy, but I doubt reporting him to any sort of authority, other than the geekhack admins, will help.
Reason? This thread on the group buy forum: New RULES. 1) READ THESE RULES. 2) CAVEAT EMPTOR, specifically this section in that thread:

CAVEAT EMPTOR: WE ACCEPT NO LIABILITY FOR LOSSES RELATED TO OR RESULTING FROM POSTING IN THIS FORUM OR FOR ANY TRANSACTION RESULTING FROM A POSTING IN THIS FORUM.

EDIT:
Our best shot at feeling some sort of redemption would be to make sure people in this community know how Sprit operated in this thread (and many others).
I know he is ill, but taking on new orders while others are incomplete for years, AND FULFILLING THEM, is just not OK without informing everyone why he has done that.

At first I thought he might have needed the money for medical bills, but then I learned that south korea has free medical care for all citizens (albeit with some small deductible) unless it's elective surgery. So taking on extra work without completing old orders just makes him a bad person to have in charge of money. People should know this, instead of the rosy view most on this forum seem to have of him (i.e. "Sprits a good guy").

It seems LeandreN is having Sprit issues now as well.. He got one shipment of PCBs for his customers, and now he can't contact him anymore. I see a pattern emerging here

[limitz]

Kind of sad that the frequency of posts to this thread is slowly, but surely decreasing. No updates from anyone at this point anymore, certainly not from the only person that matters. We're all so tired, there's not even a point to complaining, as everything that needs to be said, has been said already.

This is going the way of the other infamous buys. Sad to say, but the writing has been on the wall for a while now.

[DWawa]

Lefty, Godot, Little Sheba, Sprit

[jlor]

Kind of sad that the frequency of posts to this thread is slowly, but surely decreasing. No updates from anyone at this point anymore, certainly not from the only person that matters. We're all so tired, there's not even a point to complaining, as everything that needs to be said, has been said already.
...

I figured there's no reason to keep complaining in here. The only people that visit this thread are people looking for Sprit..
I've given up on my money and bought a CODE keyboard from WASD instead. Found out they had the clear switches in stock, so I went that way.. Changing all keycaps when it arrives Monday.

Luckily one good thing did come out of this collective massive loss of money: Sprits reputation is tainted now and hopefully fewer people will be hit by his greed next time. At least people have been warned now.
People in LeandreNs group buy have been hesitant to join his GB because one of the sub-vendors were Sprit.
There also seem to be no people in the reddit Sprit PSA thread to white knight for Sprit and come to his defense.. So it seems to be a general thing that the trust has gone.

We just had to pay for it to happen it seems.

[DanielT]

I think something has happened to SPRiT, until August we used to chat over e-mail quite often. Now in the last 2 months he wtote me once about my order and that was it. I haven't lost hope in him, I'm sure I'm going to get my stuff at sime point, to be honest it would be nuce to be sooner than later but it's no drama.
I have noticed a trend with the Korean organized GB's here. It seems that they bite more than they can chew, at the moment they open to the rest of the world the numbers ar more than they can handle, look at GON, kin25. GON used to have small runs that went smooth, in the moment he went big scale it all crashed

[tofgerl]

Then they should ****ing limit the buys!

[jlor]

I think something has happened to SPRiT, until August we used to chat over e-mail quite often. Now in the last 2 months he wtote me once about my order and that was it. I haven't lost hope in him, I'm sure I'm going to get my stuff at sime point, to be honest it would be nuce to be sooner than later but it's no drama.
I have noticed a trend with the Korean organized GB's here. It seems that they bite more than they can chew, at the moment they open to the rest of the world the numbers ar more than they can handle, look at GON, kin25. GON used to have small runs that went smooth, in the moment he went big scale it all crashed

Yea, I think that's what happened here too. But it's inexcusable to keep taking on orders in other GBs then and broker deals with major sellers to provide them parts.
Biting off more than you can chew happens, but then you shouldn't go back for seconds, thirds and fourths..

[DanielT]

Then they should ****ing limit the buys!

That is true, but again people will complain there is not enough supply ... From following GH I've learned one thing, unless you have a tram behind you and very good logistics big GB's are bound to fail or take like forever... GH60 comes in mind for example, but there are much more examples.
It's Caveat Emptor all over the place, you pour your money into a complete strangers wallet and hope you get your stuff, there is no buyer protection no moneyback guarantee no nothing. GB's work on good faith.
I assume that I've lost my money from the moment I join a GB and never stick more money than I can afford to lose in one. This way if everything works out I'm happy, if not well it was my fault I gave the money to the hustler.
The big problem is that GB's are not ran by a business, you pay as gift, what do you expect

[DanielT]

I think something has happened to SPRiT, until August we used to chat over e-mail quite often. Now in the last 2 months he wtote me once about my order and that was it. I haven't lost hope in him, I'm sure I'm going to get my stuff at sime point, to be honest it would be nuce to be sooner than later but it's no drama.
I have noticed a trend with the Korean organized GB's here. It seems that they bite more than they can chew, at the moment they open to the rest of the world the numbers ar more than they can handle, look at GON, kin25. GON used to have small runs that went smooth, in the moment he went big scale it all crashed

Yea, I think that's what happened here too. But it's inexcusable to keep taking on orders in other GBs then and broker deals with major sellers to provide them parts.
Biting off more than you can chew happens, but then you shouldn't go back for seconds, thirds and fourths..

It is true, but I've seen this kind of behavior also with GON, he knows he is swamped in orders and experiences delays and still takes new orders. Maybe there is also something related to the eastern culture that we don't understand.
Again also people are, sorry to be so blunt, but idiots, you see the drama, hear people complain amd yet still you place an order. TL;DR is not an excuse, in that case people deserve what they get...

When I've placed my last order with SPRiT I knew that it could take some time, ergo I don't complain it was my decision, nobody forced me. 

[jamster]

Luckily one good thing did come out of this collective massive loss of money: Sprits reputation is tainted now and hopefully fewer people will be hit by his greed next time. At least people have been warned now.

This saga has been of use to me- I had tried making a small order for a load of springs a while back, then came across all this drama. Months later when he started up again and everyone got all enthusiastic with his return, I got a friendly "let me take your order!" email from him, and thought "no ****ing way".

[Elias Camber]

hm... I don't know guys. I don't think the guy is a scam and I sure don't see any systematic behind any of this.
I think he just took on way too much and is incapable of handling it. Simple as that.
I'd say think positive, he can still get the job done. Personally I ordered in November 2013 and that money is long gone...
at this point I don't even care about time any more, I'd just like him to succeed delivering eventually for the sake of everybody involved.

[gimpster]

Why are there so many people on this thread defending SPRiT saying that he's "only incompetent" and not "intentionally defrauding the community" as if that's somehow better...?

[OperationT]

Why are there so many people on this thread defending SPRiT saying that he's "only incompetent" and not "intentionally defrauding the community" as if that's somehow better...?

In my opinion, it is better. Even the law punishes more severely when an intent was present.

At the very least, he is less likely to continue his act if it was due to incompetence than if it was intentional fraud.

[lol]

At the very least, he is less likely to continue his act if it was due to incompetence than if it was intentional fraud.

Then based on his track record of continuous lying would those be considered intentional fraud?  )

[OperationT]

At the very least, he is less likely to continue his act if it was due to incompetence than if it was intentional fraud.

Then based on his track record of continuous lying would those be considered intentional fraud?  )

That I really can't tell

[Elias Camber]

I didn't want to make a statement on what's better... but as gimpster said: intention does make a difference.
Also I don't mean to defend the guy. Everybody who brought himself in a situation like this has to know he will be attacked.
I'm just observing here. And what else can you do... filing some **** with authorities or FBI or whatever is just delusional.
Nobody gives a **** if some guy in Korea got a few thousand dollars over the span of 2 Years. And the police won't knock on
his door unless he pulled of a major scam in Korea and it would be the Korean authorities then.
And personally being angry doesn't help me whatsoever.
 

[fgsz291]

Hi, I just finished my build today and it surely was fun but I have quite a big problem. The keyboard stopped working after sometime and pluging it out and in again, the PC did not identify it. I tried to upgrade the firmware but it said "problems downloading.." and now it stopped working at all. Did I kill something on the keyboard or is it possible to reset the firmware somehow? thanks

[flabbergast]

If you can get into the bootloader, then your board is not dead yet. If you can't get into the bootloader, then you'd need some extra equipment (AVR ISP programmer) to see if the atmega32a is still functional or not.

[fgsz291]

I would Need to desolder the atmega32a Controller right?

[flabbergast]

No, you don't need to desolder the MCU to test if it's alive - on this PCB there are pads where you can hook up an AVR ISP programmer - it's the "standard" 2x3 pin header (on this PCB it's "overlaid" with a 1x6 header; that can be used as well).

[fgsz291]

Thanks, I will look into that.

[lilky]

Just as a warning to others thinking of joining this group buy:


THIS IS A SCAM

I ordered $400+ worth of parts in the ROUND 1 GROUPBUY. Not R2. The ROUND 1. I was one of the very first to order, and I never received anything from Sprit. This guy is running a scam and people are still falling for it.

[Dansor]

[Dansor]

So, I don't want to start a whole thing and get the Sprit lynch mob going again.

However, is there any method, official or unofficial, of establishing a moratorium on all of Sprit's group buys, at least until he starts responding again and perhaps explains what's going on?

My concern, basically, is that it appears at least some of his group buys are open and accepting orders.  If these are accepted and billed, more people may lose money to a person who MAY be a scammer.

It is certainly possible that he has personal issues, health problems, or has been kidnapped by space pirates.
Until it is determined what is happening, should at least a warning of some sort be posted on those group buys?

Also, please don't use this post as an opportunity to simply rail on Sprit.
It does nobody any good, and there may be more going on than we a privy too.
But I DO think there should be a conversation about putting things on hold until it's straightened out.

[calvinhousecat]

Ever since I joined GH watching Sprit's goupbuys have been such a roller coaster. One month he will be shipping tremendously and then he will disappear for a couple of months, and it repeats over and over.

Mods as a precaution should just edit Sprit's account to tag him as a risky seller for the potential new members on GH. No one deserves to be played around like this.

[tofgerl]

Obviously he's not a scammer.

He is, like many others, having problems with production scaling. That's not the problem. The problem is he's not communicating with the buyers - which is PR suicide.

[Dansor]

Obviously he's not a scammer.

I tend to agree with you, but I'm not sure it's entirely obvious.
If you paid in full two years ago, have been repeatedly told that your shipment is ready, and then stop receiving emails, board messages, or any responses at all, while some other, newer orders seem to be being filled, it starts to feel very much like a scam, even if that's not his intent.

In any case, I suppose that's neither here nor there, and I agree, intellectually, with your sentiment.

I also believe it's important for the community to have this addressed, andto  collectively insist on a response from Sprit before allowing his buys to continue.

[jlor]

...
In any case, I suppose that's neither here nor there, and I agree, intellectually, with your sentiment.

I also believe it's important for the community to have this addressed, andto  collectively insist on a response from Sprit before allowing his buys to continue.

I 100% agree! Lynch-mentality does nothing. To label him a scammer or not does nothing. We have no recourse that would result in us getting our money back or getting our order filled.

We can, however, make sure no one else lands in our situation by having the mods edit his posts to say he's currently AWOL. That way new buyers are immediately aware of this fact without having to read the entire thread.
Labeling him (the user account) a risky seller seems a little drastic though, as it would appear in any post he may be making elsewhere on the board too.

[DanielT]

All of this is becoming quite depressing  I don't know what we could do so that all his running GB's come to an end, an end that will please the participants. I've supported SPRiT every time in the last 2 years since all of this started, even now I don't think he is a scammer but I have to admit that I'm disappointed. This and some other events made me think twice about joining GB's any more. I've just had enough of waiting and waiting and when I get the stuff I don't even need or want ...

[Magna224]

3 months. No contact in this thread.

Shouldn't it be winter over there? Maybe sprit is a bear? zzz

[mark0331]

3 months. No contact in this thread.

Shouldn't it be winter over there? Maybe sprit is a bear? zzz

Well, it looks like he is logging in every once in a while. He logged in this morning 10/23. So it appears he is purposely ignoring this thread and all PM/E-Mail contact.

[Dansor]

Well, it looks like he is logging in every once in a while. He logged in this morning 10/23. So it appears he is purposely ignoring this thread and all PM/E-Mail contact.

That makes me wonder if he's accepting orders, and makes me more inclined to think his buys should be put on hold.
Over the past n months, while we've been vacillating between optimism and pessimism, are more people being pulled into this group buy purgatory?

[DanielT]

I propose just to forget about this and get along with our lifes.
To be honest we can't do anything, it's too late for PayPal dispute, we don't know his real name, where he lives (except for the country). If he doesn't want to post or answer mails or PM's there is nothing we can do.
I feel sad because I thought we were friends, I would have understanding for any kind of problems (even something like "dude I wanted a new iPhone and I spend all GB money on that") but be open about that don't go in hiding and ignore the people.