A Launch Pad Company

[Bjarte]

Hi over there

I'm trying to get in touch with "A Launch Pad Company", without any sucsess.. Does any of you have info in regards to if the company still is in business, or?

Thanks!

 

[KevinK]

Do you mean "The Launch Pad"? If so, here is their website.

https://www.the-launch-pad.com/

 

[MarkM]

Originally posted by KevinK
Do you mean "The Launch Pad"? If so, here is their website.

https://www.the-launch-pad.com/

No...I think he means what he says. They make launch pads, not kits. A friend of mine has one of their pads that our club is using. So, I think they're still in buisness although not sure when the pad was ordered. Here's their website if needed

https://rap.midco.net/omalley12653/index.htm

I noticed you're in Norway. From their website it looks like they only ship to the continental US.

 

[Bjarte]

Hi, yep it's THE pad launch pad company I mean They do export and I ordered a pad ages ago but it hasn't arrived yet. I was therefore trying to get hold of the manager in order to track it but my emails are undeliverable....

Mind you, this has probably a natural explanation as I have no reason to belive otherwise.

Thanks for your assistance by the way!

 

[Fred]

Hi bjartre,
Good luck with the pad and that is a really neat aurora shot
Cheers
Fred

 

[Bjarte]

Thanks

 

[Cougar93]

Just got a private message from another guy claiming he's out $250 waiting on a pad from Zepeda. Same excuse is being given for lack of delivery as well. Lot's of poor health going on around this guy. Everyone seems to get sick when it comes to delivering the goods in return for the $$$$.

You guys REALLY need to sticky this thread.

Personally, I consider this blatant fraud.

 

[CQBArms]

We really need a separate forum like a Board of Inquiry. To track these things.

 

[Rick Lindsey]

Here's another thread with what looks like recent info about TLP...

(edit) link deleted since it referred to the wrong launch pad! (/edit)

-Rick

 

[DaveCombs]

(Withdrawn by me!)

 

[Rick Lindsey]

.

 

[Bohica]

https://www.rocketryforum.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=28149

 

[pencak]

FYI

The South Dakota Attorney General's office has a consumer fraud division. The website is located here:
https://www.state.sd.us/attorney/office/divisions/consumer/default.asp
There's convenient link on the page to fill out a complaint form.

In case you run into the same problems I'm having.
Ordered and paid for the small pad in the beginning of October 2006
It's now January 2007 and I'm not getting any responses to my emails for the last 2 months.

 

[Motörhead]

Originally posted by CQBArms
We really need a separate forum like a Board of Inquiry. To track these things.

Amen to that brother. And to think I once considered placing an order with A Launch Pad Company (not happening now) ....

Pete

 

[Cougar93]

I wish the guy lived somewhere near me. I think a country ___ whoopin' is very much in order... and I'd like to be the one to give it to him.

 

[pencak]

For those considering buying something like the pad that a lot of people are trying to buy, here are some other options:
https://www.rgmgs.com/rocket/rail_base.html
https://www.bmibay.net/rocketry.html#Launch_pads
https://www.blacksky.com/

I can't verify these vendors reliability, however, I do not recommend A Launch Pad Company's products.

I could not see Blacksky's pads because they are not for sale at this time. However, the descriptions look great.

I wish I had seen these threads before I sent $245 to somebody who didn't send me any product and ignored my emails.

I hope this helps others.

 

[rocket trike]

I use to launch with this guy and another. We devided up the club in a high power club and a low power club. The main reason for this is that this Vic and the other guy did not beleive in the rules. We even had to make the city to make it legal only to launch up to a E motor in the city limits as they wanted to launch larger and the largest site we had to launch at was to small.

I did not do much with him when he started this company. I do work at the hospital and his wife or girlfriend Iam not sure what she was did have cancer. This is still not a excuse for not shipping. I wished I knew how to get ahold of him but I have never been to his house and the number i had was the same as he has on the web site.

Just thought i would let you know some back ground and let you know that there was some sickness around him but like I said that is no reason to treat you guys like this and I am not standing up for him.

I sure hope that you get your money back or your launch pads.

Tom

 

[pencak]

He said he got hurt in an email to me back on October 28th. If his wife or girlfriend got sick, I can understand a hobby/business falling on the back burner.
However, after getting money from somebody it would be good to at least respond to emails and let them know the situation.

No word whatsoever after at least one email every two weeks or so. These were nice emails I sent him, asking about his condition, etc. Every email I sent got no response. It's the lack of response that is getting me upset. I can cut a guy slack who is holding my money if he responds. No response and I'm not believing anything about "hard times". He's just got $245 of my hard earned money that I sent him in good faith and now he's ignoring me when he has to live up to his side of the bargain.

He should at least contact me.

 

[rocket trike]

I agree 100% with you. I never really trust the guy from the beginning.

Tom

 

[pencak]

As an update I did get an email from Victor saying he would ship the pad to me on the 15th.

I hope he follows through. If not then he should refund my money. I should know by the 14th.

 

[Cougar93]

However, after getting money from somebody it would be good to at least respond to emails and let them know the situation.

This is how I felt. If he is going to keep thie website up and running, and accept people's money via PayPal, then he has to deliver. If he can't, he needs to shut down until he is better. I'm not trying to be cold here, but there is just no excuse for taking people's money like this, and then not being responsive. Find someone to help you, or shut it down. Hell, at least return a phone call or send an email. It should not take 10 emails to get a response.

It's too bad really. After I extracted the pad out of him, I actually thought it was a pretty good product. If he was more responsive, he could probably do pretty well selling these things.

 

[pencak]

When I was researching the list of other vendors that sell pads I went to the BlackSky site. They've shut down the shopping cart because the guy running it is away on a consulting gig.

This is the right thing to do.

The lack of Victor's response is what burns people.

 

[Cougar93]

Maybe he was sick, maybe he wasn't... but for some reason I have no doubt that money he receives quickly finds its way into his checking account.

I think Bjarte had given up after almost a year... something like that. I wonder why a guy would think it was okay to hold onto that much money and never give a person the product they were expecting. Victor wasn't exactly trying to call Bjarte back to let him know he still had the money and planned to send him the pad. I got the distinct impression that should Bjarte have just walked away, the money would never have been returned.

 

[pencak]

Here's the public service announcement for anybody else coming along who is as frustrated as I am. If you deal with Victor Zepeda of A Launch Pad Company, and he waits longer than the promised 8 weeks to deliver the product you paid for do the following:

Contact him via email and demand he ship your product or refund your money
[email protected]

Try calling him on the phone:
605-545-0017

No response in 24hrs then send the same message via registered mail:
A Launch Pad CO.
Victor Zepeda
6651 Green DR
Rapid City, SD 57703

Go to the South Dakota Attorney General's office consumer complaint website and fill out a complaint form:
https://www.state.sd.us/attorney/off...mer/default.asp

Send an email to the Investigator familiar with Victor's past history of doing this to customers:
[email protected]

Go to the Federal Trade Commission website and fill out their complaint form:
https://rn.ftc.gov/pls/dod/wsolcq$.startup?Z_ORG_CODE=PU01

Use this contact information:
A Launch Pad CO.
Victor Zepeda
6651 Green DR
Rapid City, SD 57703
605-545-0017
[email protected]

Go to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service website and fill out their complaint form (using the same information from your FTC complaint):
https://www.usps.com/postalinspectors/fraud/welcome.htm

Fill out the mail fraud complaint form.

Accepting money and not shipping the product is against the law. Purposely stringing people along is wrong.

 

[pencak]

Let me see...
It's been over 6 months now since the check was cashed.
I haven't received the product.

I hope this helps anybody considering buying anything from Victor Zepeda at The Launch Pad Company.

 

[Bjarte]

Bon chance!

 

[Cougar93]

Bjarte, I suggested to Pencack that he contact the local media. I would be agreeable to being interviewed about Zepeda... would you?

 

[Bjarte]

Sure, I'd be happy to share my story.

 

[Cougar93]

I hope Pencak isn't "sleeping with the fishes" over this thing.

 

[pencak]

Nope just busy with things worth more than $250. I'll get to it soon.