Alfred from Austria ?

VCM3

VCM3

Dealer / Materials Provider
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Any body know of this guy? He e-mailed me,wanting to buy knives,with no mention of this site,and or any particular knife. A little strange,no? Also, in the e-mail,it comes up from: knife fan,like it's a user name.
 
It might just be bad manners, not giving you better information on himself, waiting for you to ask for the information you need. I've had people email me with questions that don't give me any name or forum reference, just the email address in the heading, as if I should know who they are.

They're in a class with the txt msg, no caps, no punctuation writers. They have no idea how they come across.

By the same token, he hasn't shown you much respect using this empty format. I wouldn't trust him at all.
 
Hi Guys
I recieved an email from him too! Who the h@#l is he and how did he get our email addresses??
phil
 
Afellow forumite informed me that he is zingzong2005.
 
So he's a new guy who may not be aware of netiquette. I know VCM3 is listed on knives for sale. "Alfred" may be scanning the Exchange forums for names of people interested in buying and selling.
 
Here is the message. IMO It sounds like a scam to me.

Hi,
I´m Alfred from Austria /that´s in Europe.
Most of the time people think that I misspelled Australia and assume
that I´m an Aussie but I´m not.;-)

So I explain where I´m from before I write anything else.

Anyways, I´m a knife nut and I´m always looking for new and/or used
knives.

It doesn´t matter if they are fixed blade or folder,for a good price
I´m interested in everything.

SO if you have some knives you wanna sell just be kind and let me know
.

Would be really nice!
--
Herzlichen Dank / Thanks a lot

Alfred
 
I checked out zingzong2005's email addy and it didn't match any Alfred or knife fan. It may not be him.

I don't know why if he wants to buy knives he doesn't just check out the sales forums ... like I do, so compulsively. :D
 
Walking Man, That's the message he sent to me verbatum,I hope we are not suspicious of someone who is mentally or physically challenged,as if that's a form letter. I just don't care to get involved. Thanks for everyones input,VCM3
 
VCM3 said:
Walking Man, That's the message he sent to me verbatum,I hope we are not suspicious of someone who is mentally or physically challenged,as if that's a form letter.
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WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT??!?? Where are you getting that ANYONE ever said anything about anyone being challenged in any way shape or form? To be completely honest, I'm a little angry because your post seems like an accusation.
 
Maybe I'm more suspicious than most, but it wouldn't hurt to have a look at the path header of that email. I suspect it's from Nigeria.
 
Walking MAN, Take it easy!, it just looks like ,because it's the same letter word for word,to two or more people,maybe he has a hard time typing for some reason,and its a form letter.I'm just talkin' here man,Iknow I can't type worth a dam,and always looking to give someone the benefit of the doubt,until I know otherwise for sure.Not everyone is p.c. perfect. VCM3
 
Okay, I'm sensitive because I have a handicapped brother, I apologize for overreacting. Anyhow, to me it's obvious that his typing error are probably caused by his lack of understanding of the English language. I still think what you wrote is pretty big leap of logic, and I would becareful before even suggesting that someone might be prejudgiced, it's a pretty touchy subject.
HOWEVER, after further examination, I believe that he is probably an American. Look at this:
SO if you have some knives you wanna sell just be kind and let me know.
"wanna" is an American coloquialism that would probably not be familiar to foreigners.
 
Walking Man,Advice taken, and never meant it any way bad,only to give him the benefit,Cougar speaks of a path header,I don't know what that is,you see what I mean,I consider myself like a caveman with this p.c.,and when his letter came across it looked as if he struggled with it,or didn't know what to say.But you guys are right,and we should be wary. I didn't reply to him,and am not going to,either. Thanks for the advice and input,VCM3
 
Again, I apologize. I too have been on the defensive side of standing up for people. It's good that you would have given this person the benefit of the doubt, but I have seen too much grief due to thieves on the internet. NEVER trust anyone who you don't know that makes you an offer to buy something. I regularly buy stuff on eBay, but I check their feedback very carefully before buying.
 
When we write here it can be taken differently than what are trying to express,a "Grey Area",if you would.I only hope he's not looking to do wrong,but we all need to be careful,that's why I sought the advice initially.I hope I did not offend anyone,that was not my intention. Thanks,VCM3
 
For what it's worth, his writing style certainly suggests that his mother tongue is German.

The contraction "wanna" is pretty much common knowledge among non-native speakers. He's probably someone whose English got a little rusty because he rarely practiced it and now that almost everyone regularly uses the internet (where English is the lingua franca), he tries to improve his language skills and doesn't want to sound like a non-native speaker - that sort of thing is very common nowadays in continental Europe.
 
He sent me an email attempting to assure me that he is not attempting a scam. If you get such an email, I highly recommend NOT engaging in any transactions with him no matter how nice he is. If he wants knives that badly he can post here or go through 1sks or whereever. Here's the email:
Hi,
it might sound like scam but it´s NOT.
I´m really interested in knives!
Maybe you have some you wann get rid of or wanna sell to buy some
others for
the money.
please let me know if you have something for sale.

take care
Al
 
Quiet Storm said:
For what it's worth, his writing style certainly suggests that his mother tongue is German.

The contraction "wanna" is pretty much common knowledge among non-native speakers. He's probably someone whose English got a little rusty because he rarely practiced it and now that almost everyone regularly uses the internet (where English is the lingua franca), he tries to improve his language skills and doesn't want to sound like a non-native speaker - that sort of thing is very common nowadays in continental Europe.
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I think you just hit the head of the nail:)
ALIass
 
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