# A Heads Up (MUST READ)



## 4ssss (Jan 30, 2018)

I just looked thru some Craigslist ads and I saw this on an ad

https://plaza-machines.myshopify.com/

This is not the same site as this one, which is well known for good customer service and hard to find machinery and parts

https://web.archive.org/web/20160204012420/http://plazamachinery.com/


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## akajun (Jan 30, 2018)

The first is the Notorious Al Babin, crook extraordinaire, who started using Plaza Machinery's good name after the death of the owner.
Supposedly the former owners son in going through probate and trying to get the business back up and running.


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## Hukshawn (Jan 30, 2018)

Mostly looks like chinese tools, but the prices seem reasonable and they ship to Canada at a fair rate, so that's a plus in my books. I might give it a try at some point.


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## Hukshawn (Jan 30, 2018)

akajun said:


> The first is the Notorious Al Babin, crook extraordinaire, who started using Plaza Machinery's good name after the death of the owner.
> Supposedly the former owners son in going through probate and trying to get the business back up and running.


You posted seconds before I did..... Now my faith is shaken.


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## 4ssss (Jan 30, 2018)

I actually put his name in first before editing it out, but yep, that's him


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## Bill Gruby (Jan 30, 2018)

akajun said:


> The first is the Notorious Al Babin, crook extraordinaire, who started using Plaza Machinery's good name after the death of the owner.
> Supposedly the former owners son in going through probate and trying to get the business back up and running.[/QUOTE}
> 
> 
> ...


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## 4GSR (Jan 30, 2018)

I was wondering when his name was going to pop up again.  And I subscribed to his newsletter!

I should have known.


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## Dave Paine (Jan 30, 2018)

I am always suspicious when I see a site with no contact information, no address, just a shopping cart.   Perhaps it is just my browser but even if it is just my browser settings I would not purchase from such a site.


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## The_Apprentice (Jan 30, 2018)

4gsr said:


> I was wondering when his name was going to pop up again.



Hmm. As a newbie here, I must have missed some drama... yet ANOTHER SCAMMER? Or just unethical businessman.


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## 4GSR (Jan 30, 2018)

The_Apprentice said:


> Hmm. As a newbie here, I must have missed some drama... yet ANOTHER SCAMMER? Or just unethical businessman.


Both!!


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## 4ssss (Jan 30, 2018)

The_Apprentice said:


> Hmm. As a newbie here, I must have missed some drama... yet ANOTHER SCAMMER? Or just unethical businessman.



If you google his name you'll find a bunch of complaints from his previous dealings. There's a pretty bad review of him on Modern Machinist, and I did read posts where he was actually fighting with someone that bought a machine from him.  He did business on ebay, but now he has a bunch of other people doing it in their names on the site, maybe he was kicked off, but I don't know for sure.  Anything you see for sale anywhere with the location as Plainville, Ct or close to it, is probably one of his, and it's a buyer beware thing.  I know of one guy on this site that bought a Bridgeport lead screw from him on ebay and  got the wrong screw sent. He was worried about getting the right one or his money back because he bought it on ebay.  I believe he did get the right one after I saw his post about the problem and gave him the phone number  to contact him. Maybe that was an exception, but  his name comes up often associated with bad customer service enough for me to shy away from him. Being close to where he is  I have the opportunity to deal with him personally, but I'd rather not. I know Plaza Machinery in Vermont is well known for having hard to find machinery and parts, and since Joe passed his son has started up the business again, and when I saw the similarities in the 2 web site names I just thought people on this site needed to know. As you see with some of the posts he's pretty well known, and disliked.


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## ddickey (Jan 30, 2018)

I believe this is his son's email.
I've had come correspondence with him about parts I need.
vincentbergamo624@gmail.com


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## 4GSR (Jan 30, 2018)

Kind of changing the subject,  has anyone heard anymore on Plaza Machinery reopening?


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## ddickey (Jan 30, 2018)

I asked his son for  list. He said the list is not updated and it will take time for him to get one together. He told me it's best to just ask what I want adn he'd check their stock.
So I guess you could say they are back in business.


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## .LMS. (Jan 30, 2018)

I answered a local craigslist ad, suggesting the equipment was near me, but when I called, it was in CT.   Pretty sure it was him.


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## woodchucker (Jan 30, 2018)

what I find interesting is how little info each item has .. NOTHING other than the title. I looked at an item. An mT2 er32.. no draw bar spec, no indication if it's hardened, run out. How can you order when there's nothing to go by?


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