Airfree Tires: RIPOFF SCAM
tph
Air Free Tires, Inc. 104 Smith St. New Smyrna, FL. 32168
(386) 478-1861 fax 309 218-2459 Intl. 386 478-1861
This company is a SCAM and a RIPOFF. I was stupid enough to order tires
from them on their website:
1. They charged my credit card the same day I ordered
2. They double billed my card for the same one order
3. They NEVER shipped the merchandise to me
I have called their "customer service" phone number at least 30 times,
and have NEVER spoken to a human being, only an answering machine.
After 30 voicemails and 20 e-mails, I have NO response from them.
The Florida Better Business Bureau has an "unsatisfactory" rating for
them due to failure to respond to complaints.
Next time, I will check with the BBB *before* I throw away my money.
Leo Lichtman
"tph" wrote: This company is a SCAM and a RIPOFF. (clip)
^^^^^^^^^^^^
In cases like this you should be able to get the credit card company to
reverse the charges.
Thanks for the "heads up."
Zog The Undeniable
Oddly enough, my old copy of Richard's Bicycle Book warns against scams
involving airfree tyres. They're total crap anyway - Mr Dunlop got it
right all those years ago.
Benjamin Lewis
Apparently these ones are also rubber-free. The emperor has no clothes.
--
Benjamin Lewis
I regret to say that we of the FBI are powerless to act in cases of
oral-genital intimacy, unless it has in some way obstructed interstate
commerce. -- J. Edgar Hoover
Muttley
>Zog The Undeniable wrote:
>
>> tph wrote:
>>
>>> Air Free Tires, Inc. 104 Smith St. New Smyrna, FL. 32168 (386) 478-1861
>>> fax 309 218-2459 Intl. 386 478-1861
>>> This company is a SCAM and a RIPOFF. I was stupid enough to order tires
>>> from them on their website:
>>> 1. They charged my credit card the same day I ordered
>>> 2. They double billed my card for the same one order
>>> 3. They NEVER shipped the merchandise to me
>>> I have called their "customer service" phone number at least 30 times,
>>> and have NEVER spoken to a human being, only an answering machine.
>>> After 30 voicemails and 20 e-mails, I have NO response from them.
>>> The Florida Better Business Bureau has an "unsatisfactory" rating for
>>> them due to failure to respond to complaints.
>>> Next time, I will check with the BBB *before* I throw away my money.
>>
>> Oddly enough, my old copy of Richard's Bicycle Book warns against scams
>> involving airfree tyres. They're total crap anyway - Mr Dunlop got it
>> right all those years ago.
>
>Apparently these ones are also rubber-free.
Keyboard!
Benjamin Lewis
Muttley
>mrn...@candern.com wrote:
>
>> On Tue, 14 Sep 2004 10:49:58 -0700, Benjamin Lewis <bcl...@cs.sfu.ca>
>> wrote:
>>> Zog The Undeniable wrote:
>>>>
>>>> Oddly enough, my old copy of Richard's Bicycle Book warns against scams
>>>> involving airfree tyres. They're total crap anyway - Mr Dunlop got it
>>>> right all those years ago.
>>>
>>> Apparently these ones are also rubber-free.
>>
>> Keyboard!
>
>I don't get it...
Sorry, it's a convention is some newsgroups that if something really makes you
LOL, you mention that the purveyor of the comic quip has caused you to ruin your
keyboard by spraying it with coffee.
Of course, you usually haven't actually soaked the keyboard - it's just a sort
of compliment.
Werehatrack
wrote:
>
>Air Free Tires, Inc. 104 Smith St. New Smyrna, FL. 32168
>(386) 478-1861 fax 309 218-2459 Intl. 386 478-1861
Florida. It figures. (I used to live in Florida. Commercially, much
of it makes Mos Eisley look like the Vatican. Boca Raton, in
particular, is recognized as the spam capitol of the planet. The most
common business model in Florida is "grab the cash and run.")
--
Typoes are a feature, not a bug.
Some gardening required to reply via email.
Words processed in a facility that contains nuts.
Werehatrack
rec.bicycles.tech doesn't seem to have an acknowledged convention for
that; in news.admin.net-abuse.email, the [C&C] tag warning of humorous
content is known (C&C = "Cats and Coffee Warning, put both in a safe
place before reading"), and in alt.callahans the acts of spraying the
monitor with coffee (or beverage of your choice) is called
"kittening", for reasons that would take too long to explain.
Analogous customs exist in other newsgroups.
Benjamin Lewis
> On Tue, 14 Sep 2004 18:36:39 GMT, mrn...@candern.com (Muttley) wrote:
>> On Tue, 14 Sep 2004 11:13:20 -0700, Benjamin Lewis <bcl...@cs.sfu.ca>
>>> mrn...@candern.com wrote:
>>>>
>>>> Keyboard!
>>>
>>> I don't get it...
>>
>> Sorry, it's a convention is some newsgroups that if something really
>> makes you LOL, you mention that the purveyor of the comic quip has
>> caused you to ruin your keyboard by spraying it with coffee.
>>
>> Of course, you usually haven't actually soaked the keyboard - it's just
>> a sort of compliment.
>
> rec.bicycles.tech doesn't seem to have an acknowledged convention for
> that;
That because, aside from the occasional zinger from Jobst, we're a fairly
humourless bunch over here.
However, I note that this is also cross-posted to .misc and .soc.
Sheldon Brown
> Florida. It figures. (I used to live in Florida. Commercially, much
> of it makes Mos Eisley look like the Vatican. Boca Raton, in
> particular, is recognized as the spam capitol of the planet. The most
> common business model in Florida is "grab the cash and run.")
"Boca Raton" sounds better in Spanish, but I prefer to refer to it by
the English translation: "Rat Mouth, Florida."
Sheldon "Translator" Brown
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
| When anyone asks me how I can best describe my experience |
| in nearly 40 years at sea, I merely say, "uneventful." |
| Of course, there have been many gales and storms and fog |
| and the like. But in all my experience, I have never been |
| in any accident of any sort worth speaking about. I have |
| never seen but one vessel in distress in all my years at sea. |
| I never saw a wreck and never have been wrecked, nor was I |
| ever in any predicament that threatened to end in disaster |
| of any sort. --E. J. Smith, Captain, RMS Titanic |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
Harris Cyclery, West Newton, Massachusetts
Phone 617-244-9772 FAX 617-244-1041
http://harriscyclery.com
Hard-to-find parts shipped Worldwide
http://captainbike.com http://sheldonbrown.com
Werehatrack
wrote:
>rau...@earthWEEDSlink.net wrote:
>> On Tue, 14 Sep 2004 18:36:39 GMT, mrn...@candern.com (Muttley) wrote:
>>> Sorry, it's a convention is some newsgroups that if something really
>>> makes you LOL, you mention that the purveyor of the comic quip has
>>> caused you to ruin your keyboard by spraying it with coffee.
>>>
>>> Of course, you usually haven't actually soaked the keyboard - it's just
>>> a sort of compliment.
>>
>> rec.bicycles.tech doesn't seem to have an acknowledged convention for
>> that;
>
>That because, aside from the occasional zinger from Jobst, we're a fairly
>humourless bunch over here.
"Zingers from Jobst"... Yeah. Right. Good thing I wasn't scritching
the cat when I read *that* line.
And Barraged On Chestnut, or whatever his name is, cannot be credibly
accused of being humorless.
Mike Schwab
to theft on Feb 8, have yet to see anything from them. I do not know
what his problem is. Dispute the credit card charges, you have 60 days
for that. Then order from http://www.nuteck.com . This is the actual
manufacturer in Colorado. I lose a little speed from the solid tires,
but it sure beats having a lot of flats.
Werehatrack
<capt...@sheldonbrown.com> wrote:
>Werehatrack wrote:
>
>> Florida. It figures. (I used to live in Florida. Commercially, much
>> of it makes Mos Eisley look like the Vatican. Boca Raton, in
>> particular, is recognized as the spam capitol of the planet. The most
>> common business model in Florida is "grab the cash and run.")
>
>"Boca Raton" sounds better in Spanish, but I prefer to refer to it by
>the English translation: "Rat Mouth, Florida."
Idiomatically, in Spanish, "raton" is "mouse", and rat is "rata",
but...
"Boca Raton" been misrepresented as "rat's mouth" in so many places
for so long that it's like "there's a sucker born every minute"; even
though PT Barnum never said it, the attribution now belongs to him by
popular acclamation...and even though Boca Raton means "mouth mouse"
in a correct Spanish-English translation, in the US it is "rat's
mouth" in the mind of the public.
I've been there. IMNSHO, it has earned the appellation.
Bob Parnass
> ... Then order from http://www.nuteck.com . This is the actual
> manufacturer in Colorado. I lose a little speed from the solid tires,
> but it sure beats having a lot of flats.
You forgot a hyphen. The URL is http://www.nu-teck.com
--
=========================================================================
Bob Parnass, AJ9S GNU/Linux User http://parnass.com
Thornhill
> I bought 4 tires from them and I like them. I ordered a replacement due
> to theft on Feb 8, have yet to see anything from them. I do not know
> what his problem is. Dispute the credit card charges, you have 60 days
> for that. Then order from http://www.nuteck.com . This is the actual
> manufacturer in Colorado. I lose a little speed from the solid tires,
> but it sure beats having a lot of flats.
>
Actually, should be www.nu-teck.com
jobst....@stanfordalumni.org
> I bought 4 tires from them and I like them. I ordered a replacement
> due to theft on Feb 8, have yet to see anything from them. I do not
> know what his problem is. Dispute the credit card charges, you have
> 60 days for that. Then order from http://www.nuteck.com . This is
> the actual manufacturer in Colorado. I lose a little speed from the
> solid tires, but it sure beats having a lot of flats.
I can't visualize what sort of bicycling you do with solid tires, but
exceeding 15mph while riding over even a 1/2" step in the pavement
will damage rims, there being insufficient compression in a
non-pneumatic tire to absorb such shock. Just the same, there is a
use for these tires but it is not a reasonable solution to flat tires
considering how many thousand miles most riders cover between flats.
I can't imagine riding 1000 miles on "Airfree Tires".
Jobst Brandt
jobst....@stanfordalumni.org
Tom Sherman
> ...
> I can't visualize what sort of bicycling you do with solid tires, but
> exceeding 15mph while riding over even a 1/2" step in the pavement
> will damage rims, there being insufficient compression in a
> non-pneumatic tire to absorb such shock. Just the same, there is a
> use for these tires...
They would be my tires of choice for use on wheelbarrows.
--
Tom Sherman
Werehatrack
There's a hotdog vendor here in Houston who uses them on his cart.
Oh, and the guy at the lbs said the small ones make a dandy support
ring to help flatten out the spare tire cover on his hatchback. I
suppose that a big one might make a decent protective foot under a
spool table, but I haven't seen one of those in a long time. (As a
table, that is.)
Leo Lichtman
"Tom Sherman" wrote: They would be my tires of choice for use on
wheelbarrows.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^
As long as you keep the speed down.
Mike Kruger
> >>>>
> >>>> Keyboard!
> >>>
> >>> I don't get it...
> >>
> >> Sorry, it's a convention is some newsgroups that if something really
> >> makes you LOL, you mention that the purveyor of the comic quip has
> >> caused you to ruin your keyboard by spraying it with coffee.
> >
> > that;
>
> That because, aside from the occasional zinger from Jobst, we're a fairly
> humourless bunch over here.
>
> However, I note that this is also cross-posted to .misc and .soc.
>
Benjamin Lewis
Yes, I read misc too. In fact, I even made some posts to that "Troll, not
published helmet research" thread back when I was a young lad, and it was
still called "published helmet research - not troll".
Just zis Guy, you know?
> Yes, I read misc too. In fact, I even made some posts to that
> "Troll, not published helmet research" thread back when I was a young
> lad, and it was still called "published helmet research - not troll".
The funny part is, Zaumie never even noticed the change in thread title :-)
Guy
--
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.
http://www.chapmancentral.co.uk
88% of helmet statistics are made up, 65% of them at Washington
University
the black rose
Dang, is that argument still going? I marked that thread Ignore at
least a couple weeks ago.
-km
--
Only cowards fight kids -- unidentified Moscow protester
the black rose
proud to be owned by a yorkie
http://community.webshots.com/user/blackrosequilts
Lewis Campbell
> I can't visualize what sort of bicycling you do with solid tires, but
> exceeding 15mph while riding over even a 1/2" step in the pavement
> will damage rims, there being insufficient compression in a
> non-pneumatic tire to absorb such shock. Just the same, there is a
> use for these tires but it is not a reasonable solution to flat tires
> considering how many thousand miles most riders cover between flats.
> I can't imagine riding 1000 miles on "Airfree Tires".
>
> Jobst Brandt
> jobst....@stanfordalumni.org
Well, Jobst, I can imagine it.
I have used several varieties of Airfree Tires for about 5 years now
and have been VERY happy with them, not that I don't also have bikes
with pneumatic tires but the 2 that are shod with Airfrees (a single
speed and a fixie) are just great machines for what I use them for.
Most people don't _understand_ Airfree Tires and herein lies the
problem.
1 ) You're NOT going to win the Tour using these tires. In fact, they
may actually slow you down but NOT very much.
2 ) They are VERY 'rim specific'.
Failing to understand these two things, coupled with so many people's
ineptitude to measure thing like rims accurately, is by far the cause
of most people's dissatisfaction with them.
There are differences between Airless tires from one manufacturer to
another which cause many of them to be VERY 'recreational' and there
is only one that I have tried, that could in my opinion, be considered
a 'performance' tire.
This means that for MOST people, riding on Airfree Tires will only be
a dream, until some manufacturer starts making them in a VARIETY of
POPULAR sizes.
I live that dream and I am loving it. :-)
Lewis.
************************
S o r n i
> Benjamin Lewis wrote:
>
>> Yes, I read misc too. In fact, I even made some posts to that
>> "Troll, not published helmet research" thread back when I was a young
>> lad, and it was still called "published helmet research - not troll".
>
> The funny part is, Zaumie never even noticed the change in thread
> title :-)
Now don't be bringing that sh^t down here.
Bill "it's like ebola, I tells ya" S.
tph
but he replied to my e-mail within a day of my original Usenet posting.
Here is a little e-mail exchange:
--- help...@airfreetires.com wrote:
> often times people get thier money back by disputing the charges
> with
> thier credit card company. Spewing venom may feel good for the
> short
> term but doesn't solve anything. If you are looking for a refund
> then
> fine, but before you write things you may later regret make sure
> you
> have checked your options. If you aren't satisified with your
> customer
> experience then yours will prove to be an isolated experience but
> you
> can still get your refund via your credit card. Companies make
> mistakes
> but your actions border on malicious.
>
> Hugh
>
My reply:
I truly cannot believe you replied to me after 5 months of sending
e-mails which you ignored. And after at least 15 answering machine
messages which you also ignored. And, now, your answer is basically,
get a refund thru your bank if you want. I have read your postings
about the wonderful integrity of your company, Hugh, so why don't you
prove it and REFUND my money???
And, if my experience is an "isolated" one, why does the South
Florida Better Business Bureau have an unsatisfactory rating for you?
I did not make that up, I can forward you their e-mail. Why don't
you provide refunds to unsatisfied customers? Why don't you EVER
answer your phone and respond to complaints?
I cannot believe after months of trying, the only response from you
is to accuse me of being malicious... Do you deny double billing my
credit card? Do you deny NEVER sending me the merchandise I PAID
FOR?? You say "companies make mistakes"... sorry, Hugh, this is more
than a mistake, it is a rip-off. Are you admitting a mistake? If so,
then why should I have to go through my bank to get a refund?
Prove me wrong, Hugh...go ahead and refund my money. I regret NOTHING
I have written, because it's the truth. BTW, you owe me $200.55. My
next "option" is small claims court...
Zoot Katz
<6kN1d.13787$54.1...@typhoon.sonic.net>,
jobst....@stanfordalumni.org wrote:
>I can't imagine riding 1000 miles on "Airfree Tires".
Not all at once.
I'd think them suitable, though expensive, tires for bikes that are
left on trainers.
--
zk
Mike Kruger
news:2qqeh3F...@uni-berlin.de...
> Benjamin Lewis wrote:
>
> > Yes, I read misc too. In fact, I even made some posts to that
> > "Troll, not published helmet research" thread back when I was a young
> > lad, and it was still called "published helmet research - not troll".
I was also an earlier contributor, and was roundly flamed for my trouble.
> The funny part is, Zaumie never even noticed the change in thread title
:-)
>
According to Google, this thread (under the title "Troll, not published
helmet research") began August 17, and has 222 postings (including today).
The earlier thread ("Published helmet research, not troll") began June 15
and had 1071 postings, including at least one yesterday.
These are only moderately sized helmet threads.
In fact, I suspect BillZ, TomK, FrankK and a couple of others now use bots
to reply, sort of like the dancing paper clip in Microsoft Word figures out
how not to answer your Help question.
(dropped .tech and .soc)
Benjamin Lewis
> On Tue, 14 Sep 2004 13:34:06 -0700, Benjamin Lewis <bcl...@cs.sfu.ca>
> wrote:
>
>> rau...@earthWEEDSlink.net wrote:
>>> On Tue, 14 Sep 2004 18:36:39 GMT, mrn...@candern.com (Muttley) wrote:
>>>> Sorry, it's a convention is some newsgroups that if something really
>>>> makes you LOL, you mention that the purveyor of the comic quip has
>>>> caused you to ruin your keyboard by spraying it with coffee.
>>>>
>>>> Of course, you usually haven't actually soaked the keyboard - it's
>>>> just a sort of compliment.
>>>
>>> rec.bicycles.tech doesn't seem to have an acknowledged convention for
>>> that;
>>
>> That because, aside from the occasional zinger from Jobst, we're a
>> fairly humourless bunch over here.
>
> "Zingers from Jobst"... Yeah. Right. Good thing I wasn't scritching
> the cat when I read *that* line.
Actually, believe it or not, that part of my sentence was at least
partially serious.
Benjamin Lewis
> "Just zis Guy, you know?" <outloo...@microsoft.com> wrote in message
> news:2qqeh3F...@uni-berlin.de...
>> Benjamin Lewis wrote:
>>
>>> Yes, I read misc too. In fact, I even made some posts to that
>>> "Troll, not published helmet research" thread back when I was a young
>>> lad, and it was still called "published helmet research - not troll".
>
> I was also an earlier contributor, and was roundly flamed for my trouble.
>
>> The funny part is, Zaumie never even noticed the change in thread title
> :-)
>>
> According to Google, this thread (under the title "Troll, not published
> helmet research") began August 17, and has 222 postings (including
> today).
>
> The earlier thread ("Published helmet research, not troll") began June 15
> and had 1071 postings, including at least one yesterday.
>
> These are only moderately sized helmet threads.
I believe there are more variant subject titles, stemming from the same
thread.
Aw, the li'l thread is now 3 months old. How quickly they grow!
I suspect no new content has been contributed for about 2 1/2 months...
Mike Schwab
jobst....@stanfordalumni.org wrote:
>
>
> I can't visualize what sort of bicycling you do with solid tires, but
> exceeding 15mph while riding over even a 1/2" step in the pavement
> will damage rims, there being insufficient compression in a
> non-pneumatic tire to absorb such shock. Just the same, there is a
> use for these tires but it is not a reasonable solution to flat tires
> considering how many thousand miles most riders cover between flats.
> I can't imagine riding 1000 miles on "Airfree Tires".
>
> Jobst Brandt
> jobst....@stanfordalumni.org
I do recreational riding.
I was getting at least 1 flat a week.
Can't jump curbs with a recumbent.
I tried jumping a curb with a Waterford road bike and went over the
handlebars.
I hit a pot hole with aired tires with my recumbent, and blew the tire
and bent the rim (flared out on both sides).
Pat
> >
> Prove me wrong, Hugh...go ahead and refund my money. I regret NOTHING
> I have written, because it's the truth. BTW, you owe me $200.55. My
> next "option" is small claims court...
Go file in small claims court. When I filed against a woman who pushed a
shopping cart into the side of my car, the next thing I knew, I got a letter
from the Judge Judy television show wanting to pay my way to California to
appear on the television show. Evidently, the show gives the local clerks
bonus money if they forward interesting claims to Judge Judy. I would have
gone, too, but the woman refused (I still won in local court, though).
Pat in TX