A Word Of Caution Regarding Luke's Ultralite

[Kevin B]

@jayflexx, you did a good service to BPL by chasing this issue to ground.  Hope you and the others get their $ back someday.

[Nick B]

That’s a shame. I was really hoping Luke was going to turn this one around but I don’t know if that’s even a possibility anymore…

[Thomas Willard]

Man, what a shame. It’s disappointing that Luke’s father is stealing money.

[Stephen Bing]

So sad. Don’t do drugs!

[Ken Larson]

I believe this drug issue that Luke is dealing with permeated from the treatment after his auto accident. This disease snuck up on him just a it has many before him in similar situations. Not knowing what help his family/support group provided ……it got the better of him. :(

[Greg Mihalik]

Same thing happened in our town.  A bad fracture lead to oxy and over the course of a year a community pillar spiraled in. Stealing, lying, denying.  Somehow, with the help of family, friends, and the courts, he managed to step up and get back on track.

It’s a pervasive, vicious, nasty disease.  Be careful out there.

(Compliments of Big Pharma.)

[Roger Caffin]

One could indite the over-prescription of Oxy-Contin for many of these cases. Both certain drug companies and their ‘bought’ doctors are the culprits.

cheers

[Ken Larson]

http://tinyurl.com/ybhba6by

 

 

[Nathan L]

Since the website stated they were up an “Rockin” now I emailed Luke last week inquiring about rain gear.  He responded relatively fast to multiple emails, with all the specifications and add-ons I could have and to send a check to him for payment and he would get started on it.  But now with the post from what the detective said, I am hesitant and am not so sure that is a good idea, if they cannot find him to talk to him.

[Nick B]

Send a check?!  Sounds pretty shady to me.  I’m certainly not up to speed on checks so hopefully someone else knows: what recourse would you be left with in the event of fraud?

[Stephen Bing]

Sounds pretty shady.

If you’re apprehensive about it, don’t do it.

[Paul S.]

There’s a discussion on Reddit ultralight based on this thread. One commenter recently commissioned work and got lots of emails with false promises. I think it’s fair to say Luke is purely scamming potential customers for a quick buck.

[Ryan Faulkner]

I am sad that this is my first post in many years on Backpacking light but I wanted to add my voice to this discussion. I also ordered a down anorak from luke several months ago for my upcoming PCT thru hike (leaving imminently!!!). Its an awesome looking product and I ordered based on many positive reviews from the past of lukes work. I remember reading a few concerns, but I dismissed them assuming they were just fussy/ unreasonable customers. After all, this company had sold through massdrop and Mike St. Pierre raved about their down jacket on his blog, must be legit right??

Unfortunately, I am now among the many who have been lied to, with an unfulfilled order and no refund. I don’t post this to be mean, but just to hopefully help others to avoid this issue in the future. Perhaps Luke’s was once a legitimate company, but now they are either incapable or no longer intending to fulfill orders.

My experience, like many others, was that Luke quoted a 2 week lead time. Since I ordered months before my thru-hike I assumed this would be plenty of time, even if there were delays. However, along the way, when Luke did care to respond, he made several new ship date promises, never coming through. The closer I got to my hike, the more urgent my emails got. I even managed to get him on the phone once! however he eventually started ignoring my calls and emails completely.

If the accusations of fraud are true, he is certainly one tricky guy. He had all kinds of stories throughout the process that made me think everything was legit and even feel sympathy for him. I was always patient and understanding. However, with all of the info on this forum as well as many other complaints I uncovered on the internet, I now believe it was all a lie and a scam.

I have opened complaints with my bank, the Federal trade commission, the FBI and authorize.net (where I got Luke’s invoice from). I hope that I can get my money back, but I hope even more the I can contribute to helping others avoid this headache.

 

The sad thing is that now I don’t have a super cool, custom down anorak for my Hike! I am wishing now that I had gone with Ben at Goosefeetgear.com (funny story, I had also got a quote from Ben before I ordered from Luke. His price and product was pretty much identical but I went with luke because of the promised 2 week turnaround and Ben’s was a more realistic 6 weeks… if only I had known), but since I am leaving so soon I have decided to go with a mont-bell superior parka. not quite as awesome, but not bad for off the shelf and shipped the next day! :)

 

I’d just also like to make a plug for all the other cottage manufacturers out there. I hope that experiences like this don’t make people lose faith in them completely. I have ordered products from just about every cottage brand you can think of and never once had a bad experience until now. I’ll continue to support these small brands that make awesome products you just cannot get at REI…. but never again from Luke’s Ultralight.

[BlackHatGuy]

If you feel wronged, and if there are many others who do as well, I think one of the most effective places to lodge a complaint is with the state attorney general. They’ll certainly pay attention to a multitude of complaints.

[Ryan Faulkner]

Thank you for that advice Doug, I may just do that depending on how it all pans out. I am really not out for blood here, I don’t want to harm Luke personally, I just hope to help others avoid going through all this like I have. It bothers me to see his website, facebook and instagram pages all up and running knowing that myself and many others feel scammed and that there is a possibility it is all to support an addiction, as others have indicated.

For reference, would that be with the ohio state attorney general where luke’s ultralite is operating or my state? Cheers!

[BlackHatGuy]

The state where Luke’s Ultralite operates.

[Carl S]

These are my email exchanges with Luke’s dad back in January, for what it is worth:

From me, January 4

I see all the reports of you restarting business and providing products to people. Please don’t ignore your prior orders–communicate. You and I both served in the military and know better than this. I and others understand your hardships, and we are willing to work with you. Please show good faith.

I guarantee to you I am not going away. I am a crusty old fart. I will blog the ongoing results of working with you, good or bad, and if I have to I will fly to Ohio to discuss this matter with you, and take it through the legal chain if it gets to that point to resolution. Yes, I am willing to spend some K if necessary for this $90 matter. It’s about the principle–I haven’t seen anything like this before in this outdoor industry I have grown up with since the 60s, and it is not right.

If resolved quickly and up front, I will let all know, and will promote your business as much as one guy can do. The ball is in your court.

From Mark (Luke’s dad), January 4

Thank You Carl for your email  First of all thank you for your service and your patience.  I am more than willing to send you a ck  just let me know where you would like  it sent.  Carl based on your emails you seem like you are a great person and one you can place confidence in.  Luke is my son and has been going through  some tough emotional and physical times.  I never served in the armed forces but things that happened in Afghanistan are raising there ugly head  He is having a tough time with it but now is talking about it so maybe that is a start.  Again we appreciate your business Thanks so much!

From me, January 4

Mark,

Great to hear from you! Appreciate the words–I am really sorry to hear that Luke is struggling. He has a great reputation for making amazing things, and I have loved what I ordered from him also previously. I wish him the very best.

If finances are an issue, then I say let’s just donate my portion to assist with your son and his efforts to get back on his feet.

Again, it was great to hear from you. It had been frustrating not knowing what was going on, having placed an order that basically just disappeared, but I have been through a lot in my own life and know things can go. Hearing from you was big. I will make sure within my small capacity that people aware of your positive efforts.

Let me know if you are starting to make things again–actually I would still love to get what I ordered this time at some point, and if you get moving well we will certainly be customers. Please keep us posted.

Best of luck to Luke, yourself and Luke’s Ultralite.

From Mark, January 29

Carl I am sorry please file a claim  with paypal Luke is not able to work right now Thanks

From me, January 29

Mark,

That was nice of you; okay, we will figure it out. My best to Luke–hope every possible good break can start to go for him and you.

[Greg K]

I am glad this thread is here!  I don’t get people who say things like “calling Luke a thief is just being negative”!  Calling Luke a thief is just telling the truth, that’s all.  If the truth is “negative”, it’s not the fault of the messenger. It’s Luke who is creating the “negativity” by ripping people off. This thread is a series of posts on the reality of this situation.  It’s a warning for those of us who have been lucky enough to not order from Luke, and I appreciate that!  If the thread is “too long”, someone like me who might be wanting to order some new ultralight gear can just start at the last page or two of the thread and get the current status of the situation.  Thanks to all who have posted here, and my condolences to those who have lost money and a huge amount of time dealing with this.

[Kimberly Wersal]

Hmmmm…. I notice that today on Massdrop they are offering Luke’s Ultralite Thru-Hiker shorts…. Over 450 sold already!  Wonder who is going to make those?

[”V” (CzechClown)]

And therefore how is Luke currently selling shorts on Massdrop ?  And with all the facts coming out about Luke’s Ultralite what does this say about Massdrop and their selection of sellers.

[Frank E]

I have purchased from Luke in the past and value his products very much. High quality and very well thought out designs. However, about a year ago I had to do a PayPal claw back on a payment due to non delivery. I know for a fact that a month ago he was taking credit card payments for products. So, If he is now wanting personal checks for payment this is yet another huge red flag ( if anyone really needed one ) Don’t send a check. If you do your options are very limited. I hope the best for Luke and his father Mark. I have spoken to both of them over the past several years and I think that events and situations as outlined here and on Reddit by people who are more familiar with them than I am have overwhelmed them both.

[David Thomas]

Digging into the comments on that MassDrop offering of Luke’s Ultralite Thru-Hiker Laundry Shorts:

There are numerous posts from LUL customers still waiting for their gear, understandably pissed off that LUL has time, material and labor to produce hundreds of shorts, but not their already-paid-for gear.

Many other posts quote BPL and Reddit threads and urge caution.

There are also a lot of posts simply raving about the shorts, how very light they are (wearing underwear beneath them is one suggestion), and the quality of the sewing.  Another “drop” was successfully completed 6 months ago.

A “FatDaddy” with LUL posts saying he’s in charge of the bulk-order side of things, suggesting there are multiple organizational structures at LUL.  (Or, only my theory, did Luke sell off rights to some of his designs?).

[David Thomas]

“Send a check?!  Sounds pretty shady to me.  I’m certainly not up to speed on checks so hopefully someone else knows: what recourse would you be left with in the event of fraud?”

Nick and Nathan: I am pretty up on checks, being older, and my utility takes in 60,000 checks a year.  A check is simply an instruction to your bank to pay the named party from your account.  If you never get the merchandise, the bank won’t/can’t assist you.  However, if you sent the check through the US Mail, then you could involve the US Postal Inspectors because mail fraud is a federal crime.  But their focus will be on prosecuting a crime, not on refunding your money.  Getting your money back for an unfulfilled order would be MUCH easier with a credit card or PayPal payment.

[Nick B]

^^That’s what I thought. Thanks for clarifying that, David.

[M B]

These massdrop shorts could easily be items at some Chinese Factory is sewing for him. Just a middleman takes no work on their part except the ship out.

A few notable Mass drops of gear such turned out that their Mass drops were not their normal gear and were in fact made in China.

Internet fraud, is already a federal crime.

[Author]

Posts