So in January of 2011 I moved to a new state to attend gunsmithing school. Being in a new unfamiliar area, I went gunshop surfing at the local gunsops, and pawnshops being most of them bought and sold guns. I found a local Pawn Shop, seemed the manager made it real easy to wheel and deal, I started stopping by weekley to make sure there was nothing I couldn't live with out, eventually making different purchases, from the manager. after a few visits I finally asked him what he had in the bottom corner of his pistol cabinet, he reach down and pulled out a reciever stamped EDM 408 cheytec, mdl 96 ser#XXX , I thought huh what a thing to be pawned, sticker was 1899.00 and immediately he said i'll make you a hell of a deal, he paused for a second and said 800.00, I thought to myself two things first! thats a hell of a deal! second! is it real???, and starting to attend school full time, finances being what they are, that it not a smart investment for me.
So as time goes buy, it would not fail that I would go in and the manager would slide the reciever out in front of me giving me the look with a half cocked smile, i'd just shake my head , and we both would laugh, finally after several more trips he whipped out the reciver, and forced me to ask " is it real?" he swiftly said he had no Idea!, but i would take 600.00. so I asked him for permission to take some pics informing him I wanted to see what I could find out. which he was graceously happy to let me. A few days later in one of my classes the instructor reminded us that we had specs and D&F coming up in December 2012 for most of us, and we might want to start planing are projects for specs so we would have all the parts needed. So finally taking the pics from the pawnshop, and a little searching on the internet, it was no time at all and I was talking to a man named Bill at EDM ARMS in Windrunner, Utah, telling him I think I found one of his recievers and I would like to send him some pics to verify that it was indeed his and not a counterfeit, a couple days later he gives me a call and states that it is his and he would love to build it for me ,and it would take 2850.00 off the build, when I stated that I would like to biild it as a specs project, and asked if I could purchase the parts to complete this. which turned out to be a no!, Again pushing off the purchase of this damm reciever, thinking damm Bill, and the only good info I recieved that it was an early enough model that it could be built in any caliber 408 and up!, which I was pleased to hear always wanting a 50BMG of my own. but still not being able to justify the purchase. I had to blow it off once again!
So standing in the pawnshop one day dealing, once again with the same manager on a deal involving two mausers and a HK-91 clone, he leaned over the counter after we came to an agreement and said for 450.00 you can have the big paperweight (now the new name I gave this reciever because he couldn't verify if it was real) along with the rest, when I looked at him and before, he stated no I don't know if its real. when I said OK, i'll make you a deal let me get out of school and I will return! just make sure you have the bottom price on it. Shortly after graduating in april 2012 learned that he had a nice Drugnakov clone in 8mm which i have always wanted one and if I hurried I could have it for 600.00 told him I'm on my way! upon showing up, he handed me the rifle and first thing I realised it was actually 7.62x54, after pondering for a while I realised its still a deal and i can still get surplus ammo! screw it i'll take it! while doing the parework he slid that damm overpriced paperweight up on the counter and as shaking my head, he didn't say a word he just put up his hand and made a ssshhhh noise left the counter shortly returning with a small piece of paper with 350.00 on it! so like an appropriate 10 yr old i flopped my arms around a little bit thought what the hell i'll take he said good because if you didn't it was going back up to 1000.00 and I was going to verify it myself.
So I waited using it as a paper weight for prints for a while not having the funds to build it, time goes by and I thought what the hell I put it on a few different places for sale. I felt I knew what it was and ask a 1000.00 allowing someone else with the funds to enjoy it. after recieving no even remotely real response even though I had verification from the factory it was theres. and even a couple members in here were asses about it last October, me being to knew to sell. I thought what the hell i'll keep it and build it when I can, well my time rolled around where I thought, I can afford this with out changing my life style and called Bill at EDM, so after attending the local gunshow I recieved a call from Bill at EDM he said so your ready to build that thing! i said yeah so where do we start he said i'll give you 2000.00 credit on the reciever, and i was ebrupt in saying whooaaa? you told me when you verifyed that it was yours It would take 2850.00 off the build and he stated thats what he sold it for and thats what he would allow against the build. I was neeedles to say! pissed off! and said i wasn't ready for that price, him quickly suggesting payments, me stating that i don't like payments. I said screw it and hung up. That night I was talking to my brother venting to him as we do back and forth stating that I hate when people do shit like that and maybe i'm just being greedy, but the man said when it was verified it was 2850.00 I was rasied if you say something or say your goimg to do something you stick to it Good or Bad!, Told my brother "wish I could meet Bill in person just to see if it was my actions or if he is just as big of a dick as i thought he was??." Brother and me laughed it off well so happens walking throught the next gunshow with couple friends and saw the new remington Big Bore Line of products thinking to myself wow those look just like my EDM stating that to my friend he taps me on the arm pointing to the man behind the table with the EDM ARMS shirt first thing out of my mouth was, are you Bill from EDM ARMS ???. he looks at me stating yes I am! I said the same one I talked to about the Pawnsop reciever, Quickly he said your Luke? yep! and your Bill? yep!
Just telling my friend at the table the short version of this story and him knowing my mouth, said text me when your done and they all left leaving me and Bill to one of the Best conversations I have had about firearms in a long time quickly at the beginning of the conversation Bill said "I will work with you on the build but I did sell that at 2000.00 from one of my factrorys" it doesn' take me very long for me to realise that Bill is a real American, and runs his day to day operations at His factory's making me believe that under pressure he's not much of a phone guy. which he swiftly disagreed . and I laughed off, realising him again stating I get under pressure and phone conversations does'nt always go the way they should. and seeing his sincerity, and me being a customer service specialist for a large company you usually don't talk to customers until there already mad, usually for good reason! I now know I was being a demanding ass without demanding and that Bill was just protecting his intrest in what he has built from scratch. In the end I almost felt bad -.0 almost, know knowing there is probably not a more reasonable man to deal with, and he went above and beyond, to make the deal happen at the original prices, I salute Bill from EDM arms and was happy to get to meet the man in person! I sent the reciever back with Bill to be built, realising quickly the card I was using had a 3500.00 limit called EDM ARMS once again Bill answering the phone, asked him to change cards, do to this one having zero apr for 18 months yea sure no problem! oh by the way Bill said your 21 weeks just dropped down to 5 to 6 weeks on the build do to my reciever already being cut, a opening for the honing is available so he went ahead and sent mine in. So not nowing if it was the conversation we had about being able to have it for my birthday or it already being cut it was a real wonderful surprise! so when I send this last payment I'm going to send Bill a good bottle, for him to enjoy around a camp fire with his friends. hopefully letting him know my appreciation in the man he is!, and reminding him that his customer service is among the top! .
So as time goes buy, it would not fail that I would go in and the manager would slide the reciever out in front of me giving me the look with a half cocked smile, i'd just shake my head , and we both would laugh, finally after several more trips he whipped out the reciver, and forced me to ask " is it real?" he swiftly said he had no Idea!, but i would take 600.00. so I asked him for permission to take some pics informing him I wanted to see what I could find out. which he was graceously happy to let me. A few days later in one of my classes the instructor reminded us that we had specs and D&F coming up in December 2012 for most of us, and we might want to start planing are projects for specs so we would have all the parts needed. So finally taking the pics from the pawnshop, and a little searching on the internet, it was no time at all and I was talking to a man named Bill at EDM ARMS in Windrunner, Utah, telling him I think I found one of his recievers and I would like to send him some pics to verify that it was indeed his and not a counterfeit, a couple days later he gives me a call and states that it is his and he would love to build it for me ,and it would take 2850.00 off the build, when I stated that I would like to biild it as a specs project, and asked if I could purchase the parts to complete this. which turned out to be a no!, Again pushing off the purchase of this damm reciever, thinking damm Bill, and the only good info I recieved that it was an early enough model that it could be built in any caliber 408 and up!, which I was pleased to hear always wanting a 50BMG of my own. but still not being able to justify the purchase. I had to blow it off once again!
So standing in the pawnshop one day dealing, once again with the same manager on a deal involving two mausers and a HK-91 clone, he leaned over the counter after we came to an agreement and said for 450.00 you can have the big paperweight (now the new name I gave this reciever because he couldn't verify if it was real) along with the rest, when I looked at him and before, he stated no I don't know if its real. when I said OK, i'll make you a deal let me get out of school and I will return! just make sure you have the bottom price on it. Shortly after graduating in april 2012 learned that he had a nice Drugnakov clone in 8mm which i have always wanted one and if I hurried I could have it for 600.00 told him I'm on my way! upon showing up, he handed me the rifle and first thing I realised it was actually 7.62x54, after pondering for a while I realised its still a deal and i can still get surplus ammo! screw it i'll take it! while doing the parework he slid that damm overpriced paperweight up on the counter and as shaking my head, he didn't say a word he just put up his hand and made a ssshhhh noise left the counter shortly returning with a small piece of paper with 350.00 on it! so like an appropriate 10 yr old i flopped my arms around a little bit thought what the hell i'll take he said good because if you didn't it was going back up to 1000.00 and I was going to verify it myself.
So I waited using it as a paper weight for prints for a while not having the funds to build it, time goes by and I thought what the hell I put it on a few different places for sale. I felt I knew what it was and ask a 1000.00 allowing someone else with the funds to enjoy it. after recieving no even remotely real response even though I had verification from the factory it was theres. and even a couple members in here were asses about it last October, me being to knew to sell. I thought what the hell i'll keep it and build it when I can, well my time rolled around where I thought, I can afford this with out changing my life style and called Bill at EDM, so after attending the local gunshow I recieved a call from Bill at EDM he said so your ready to build that thing! i said yeah so where do we start he said i'll give you 2000.00 credit on the reciever, and i was ebrupt in saying whooaaa? you told me when you verifyed that it was yours It would take 2850.00 off the build and he stated thats what he sold it for and thats what he would allow against the build. I was neeedles to say! pissed off! and said i wasn't ready for that price, him quickly suggesting payments, me stating that i don't like payments. I said screw it and hung up. That night I was talking to my brother venting to him as we do back and forth stating that I hate when people do shit like that and maybe i'm just being greedy, but the man said when it was verified it was 2850.00 I was rasied if you say something or say your goimg to do something you stick to it Good or Bad!, Told my brother "wish I could meet Bill in person just to see if it was my actions or if he is just as big of a dick as i thought he was??." Brother and me laughed it off well so happens walking throught the next gunshow with couple friends and saw the new remington Big Bore Line of products thinking to myself wow those look just like my EDM stating that to my friend he taps me on the arm pointing to the man behind the table with the EDM ARMS shirt first thing out of my mouth was, are you Bill from EDM ARMS ???. he looks at me stating yes I am! I said the same one I talked to about the Pawnsop reciever, Quickly he said your Luke? yep! and your Bill? yep!
Just telling my friend at the table the short version of this story and him knowing my mouth, said text me when your done and they all left leaving me and Bill to one of the Best conversations I have had about firearms in a long time quickly at the beginning of the conversation Bill said "I will work with you on the build but I did sell that at 2000.00 from one of my factrorys" it doesn' take me very long for me to realise that Bill is a real American, and runs his day to day operations at His factory's making me believe that under pressure he's not much of a phone guy. which he swiftly disagreed . and I laughed off, realising him again stating I get under pressure and phone conversations does'nt always go the way they should. and seeing his sincerity, and me being a customer service specialist for a large company you usually don't talk to customers until there already mad, usually for good reason! I now know I was being a demanding ass without demanding and that Bill was just protecting his intrest in what he has built from scratch. In the end I almost felt bad -.0 almost, know knowing there is probably not a more reasonable man to deal with, and he went above and beyond, to make the deal happen at the original prices, I salute Bill from EDM arms and was happy to get to meet the man in person! I sent the reciever back with Bill to be built, realising quickly the card I was using had a 3500.00 limit called EDM ARMS once again Bill answering the phone, asked him to change cards, do to this one having zero apr for 18 months yea sure no problem! oh by the way Bill said your 21 weeks just dropped down to 5 to 6 weeks on the build do to my reciever already being cut, a opening for the honing is available so he went ahead and sent mine in. So not nowing if it was the conversation we had about being able to have it for my birthday or it already being cut it was a real wonderful surprise! so when I send this last payment I'm going to send Bill a good bottle, for him to enjoy around a camp fire with his friends. hopefully letting him know my appreciation in the man he is!, and reminding him that his customer service is among the top! .
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