Is anyone else having a problem with Matthew Wilson - Fantasy Masterpieces ??

[Dr_Neff]

Holy *spoon*

[Red Hook]

That sux.

I went thru it about ten years ago.A very respected restoration guy on LI suddenly went rogue and started a ponzi scheme where he'd sell your book,repair someone elses and give it to you,then repeat over and over.

He was arrested,found guilty and placed on probation. After all,it was only comic books.Both the DA and Newsday failed to take it very seriously.

Lots of zaps and pows in the coverage,and he jumped at the plead deal that was offered.

I hope this has a better ending.

 

Who was it?

 

I don't remember his last name. His first name was Rich and he ran a comic/video store called Video Venture in Franklin Square.

He did really nice work. He's the one who restored my Flash 105.

I used to stop by his apartment/studio and he'd have dismantled Action 1s all over the place.I remember joking to him about how he kept track of which pages went with which books. He just smircked and said it was no problem.

 

 

Thanks. Do you still have the Flash 105? Would be interesting to see a scan of it and have you tell us what he did.

[blazingbob]

Umm, I actually went through the GA threads and don't see what you are referring to.

[showcase4]

Umm, I actually went through the GA threads and don't see what you are referring to.

 

http://boards.collectors-society.com/sho...part=1&vc=1

[Dr_Neff]

does anybody know the dude in England who was restoring comics? he had awesome xeroxes of the covers and had them graded of course it was confidential at the time so I didn't look, but I 'member they were AWESOME books with the purple label and it said "cover is color copy" in label.. anyone?

[Ze-man]

any clue as to what books they are, just in case they appear on the market ?

 

(2) copies of this.......

 

 

Here is to hoping you get these two books back Steve. Makes me ill to think books like this are even involved in a scenario like this. But there sure seems to be an awful lot of red flags coming from several directions. Let's just hope you get your books and money back without too much trouble. I think everybody needs to see this thread for a good long while if Wilson has, for whatever reason not made good on his end of the bargain. I hope for his sake he does contact you soon. And this is resolved sooner, rather then later.

 

 

If possible keep us posted as to what unfolds Steve, and good luck.

 

Ze-

[The Black Hand ®]

Hopefully the books are intact and not damaged, but every restorer out there have had their problems. I once heard of one who washed away all the red on the cover of Sensation 1, I think. I truly don't know who it was, but imagine getting that phone call! Whoops!

[Mr. Zipper]

I once heard of one who washed away all the red on the cover of Sensation 1, I think. I truly don't know who it was, but imagine getting that phone call! Whoops!

 

This brings up an interesting question...

 

Do restorers carry any professional liability or some sort of E&O insurance? And if no, why not?

[rob_allan]

WOW Horribleness

 

I'm glad you've got legal rep. And it looks like you got DARN GOOD legal rep.

 

Good luck to you.

[scottish]

I once heard of one who washed away all the red on the cover of Sensation 1, I think. I truly don't know who it was, but imagine getting that phone call! Whoops!

 

This brings up an interesting question...

 

Do restorers carry any professional liability or some sort of E&O insurance? And if no, why not?

 

Considering their work I would think that E & O would be prudent (and considerable at that) per occurence anyway - I certainly wouldn't send my books to someone that DIDN'T carry it.

[TheBrockley]

I once heard of one who washed away all the red on the cover of Sensation 1, I think. I truly don't know who it was, but imagine getting that phone call! Whoops!

 

This brings up an interesting question...

 

Do restorers carry any professional liability or some sort of E&O insurance? And if no, why not?

 

Considering their work I would think that E & O would be prudent (and considerable at that) per occurence anyway - I certainly wouldn't send my books to someone that DIDN'T carry it.

 

Some of the doctors I insure carry personal E & O over and above the coverage they have through the medical board. I have one general practitioner who owns a group of 4 offices, but because he "floats" between all 4 and the hospital, the medical board determined there would be cross liability for each location were something happen, so the cover your azz move they required him to carry personal medical E & O for $1,000,000.

 

His annual premium is $10,800 Canadian

 

So you can basically compare the "fixing" of people that he does to the "fixing" of comics that Matt Wilson does and there are some simialarities because both things that are working on have considerible value, so, IMO, he would be a fool to operate without some form of commercial general liability, if he were to flub a an Action 1 or any other high dollar book and was sued, someone would own him for the rest of his natural life.

[showcase4]

WOW Horribleness

 

I'm glad you've got legal rep. And it looks like you got DARN GOOD legal rep.

 

Good luck to you.

 

Thanks....I chose Mark Zaid because I knew he could fight for me with a passion that someone outside of our hobby wouldn't or couldn't have. (plus his ablilites and reputation, of course)

Steve

[thedarkknight]

I hope you get your books back. That really sucks. Thanks for the warning on this guy.

[Theagenes]

Steve, that really does suck. I hope everything works out for you. You're obviously in good legal hands with Mark. Good luck.

[ciorac]

WOW Horribleness

 

I'm glad you've got legal rep. And it looks like you got DARN GOOD legal rep.

 

Good luck to you.

 

Thanks....I chose Mark Zaid because I knew he could fight for me with a passion that someone outside of our hobby wouldn't or couldn't have. (plus his ablilites and reputation, of course)

Steve

 

Wilson has always been nortoriously slow, and rarely ever answered the phone. It is a Wilson family trait. Sorry Mark, I love you bro, but you guys have always been harder to reach than the President.

 

I used Matt's services back in the early 90's but it became to aggravating and stopped.

 

Hope it works out for you Steve. I am surprised to hear that it has gotten this bad. Matt, as I said, was always slow and non-communicative, but I never thought of him as dishonest. He eventually always came through.

[The Black Hand ®]

When you send an item to someone and don't have any kind of signed contract or statement that mentions liability, what should you expect. I do remember talking to a restorer over the phone and expressing concerns over the dangers involved and was told that under certain conditions, certain things could go wrong, like color bleading or covers and wraps splitting, so I always assumed that there was a possibility that I might have to end up having more work done than I initially expected. None of the books were worth more than 500 dollars in their unrestored condition, but what if you have , say a ten thousand to fifty thousand dollar unrestored book? Do you have a contract drawn up or does the restorer? anyone know?

[ciorac]

When you send an item to someone and don't have any kind of signed contract or statement that mentions liability, what should you expect. I do remember talking to a restorer over the phone and expressing concerns over the dangers involved and was told that under certain conditions, certain things could go wrong, like color bleading or covers and wraps splitting, so I always assumed that there was a possibility that I might have to end up having more work done than I initially expected. None of the books were worth more than 500 dollars in their unrestored condition, but what if you have , say a ten thousand to fifty thousand dollar unrestored book? Do you have a contract drawn up or does the restorer? anyone know?

 

Sounds reasonable BH, I will ask Matt Nelson. I don't think they do though. A guy I knew had an Action #1 stuck with a restorer for several years, but Steve, take heart, his lawyer got the book back for him!

[showcase4]

I used Matt's services back in the early 90's but it became to aggravating and stopped.

 

Hope it works out for you Steve. I am surprised to hear that it has gotten this bad. Matt, as I said, was always slow and non-communicative, but I never thought of him as dishonest. He eventually always came through.

 

Based on several PM's I received, I am confident my problem is much bigger and much more serious than lack of communication. Legal help is absolutely warranted and nessessary at this time. Thank you for your well wishes. It makes me sick to my stomach to be in this situation...especially on these 2 irreplacable books, and I can not begin to tell you how full of rage I am right now.

[nochips]

Lesson learned = Always use Matt Nelson, not Matt Wilson

 

You bet! Matt Nelson is OK. He prescreened books for me and billed me after he sent them back. I have known him over 10 years. I am not sure if he does that for everyone. He is a nice person and very honest.

 

I have heard horror stories about Matt Wilson, I hear he was in jail a while back for some sort of internet issue. I am sure some of you remember that fiasco.

[The Black Hand ®]

I've used Matt Nelson and I wouldn't hesitate to use him again or recommend him. Although it's been years and I'm sure his price has gone up. The one note of caution I have though, is to be sure to research what you are doing to be sure it's actually worth doing. If you spend 300.00 for a book and another 300.00 to have it restored to a fine/ vf, but for 600.00 you could have bought a decent, unrestored midgrade, is it worth it? Also books with poor page quality should be avoided as a resto candidate, IMO.