Safety Hazard & Dishonest Sale Practices: Cucvm1028

Please see links to photographs at the bottom with all correspondence between us via VAGT and text, how he represented the condition of the rifle, the damage I discovered, and the original sale listing to substantiate my claims

Overview
I am posting this to warn the community about dangerous and dishonest behavior I encountered during a transaction with Cucvm1028. Cucvm1028 sold a damaged Eddystone M1917 Enfield to me on 4/8/26. The seller misrepresented the rifle as safe and in "good working condition." In reality, the receiver has two structural cracks where it mates with the barrel. A cracked Eddystone receiver is a catastrophic safety hazard; firing this weapon could result in a receiver explosion, risking life-altering injury. The seller is currently refusing a return despite evidence that the damage was obscured during initial discussions and occurred prior to completing the sale.

Prior to Meeting
On 4/7/26, I contacted the seller regarding his M1917 listing. I specifically asked if there were any issues with firing the rifle, to which he replied, "nope, none." In his ad, he demonstrated technical knowledge of this specific rifle and knowledge of its unique characteristics and features, noting it was a low-serial-number receiver and claiming all components were "E" (Eddystone) marked.

To verify internal "E" (Eddystone) markings and the barrel shank, the handguards must be removed. The seller’s claim of an "all-correct" rifle confirms he performed this disassembly and looked directly at the area now found to be cracked. Furthermore, the only retaining screws on the entire rifle showing signs of recent tool marks were the ones securing the handguards directly over the damage.

Misleading Photos
Prior to the meeting, Cucvm1028 provided numerous photos of the rifle. These photos appear to have been staged at specific angles to misrepresent the condition. The cracks were either omitted from the frame or photographed in a way that they appeared as minor surface marring or finish wear.

Meeting and Damage Discovery
We met on 4/8/26 in a public parking lot. Based on the provided photos and the seller's explicit assurances, I performed a standard check of the action, bore, and stock. Finding no immediate red flags in the limited light and setting of a public meeting, I completed the $700 sale.

Within 30 minutes of completing the sale and returning home, a detailed inspection revealed multiple cracks in the receiver located adjacent to the receiver stampings and under/adjacent to the handguard. I contacted the seller immediately. He ignored my calls and eventually replied via text claiming he "didn't know" about the cracks—a claim that directly contradicts his own verification of the "all-Eddystone" markings and "smooth action" described in his ad.

Safety & Resolution
An Eddystone with a cracked receiver is not a "project gun" nor what I agreed to purchase; it is a catastrophic failure waiting to happen. Standard .30-06 cartridges exert over 50,000 PSI on the chamber and receiver. Firing this weapon could have resulted in a receiver explosion, causing permanent injury (loss of an eye or hand) to myself, another shooter, or nearby bystanders.

The seller has offered a meager $100 refund and refuses to accept a return, leaving me $600 out of pocket for a dangerous, unusable firearm. I am posting this to ensure no other member is put at risk by this seller’s practices and avoids doing business with him.

Please see the links below for photos I was provided misrepresenting the condition of the rifle, of the damage, the original listing, and our correspondence.


Link to album: "Photos of Rifle Sent by Cucvm1028 to me"
https://imgur.com/a/LFXkC1P

Link to album: "Conversation between Cucvm1028 (grey) and myself (blue)"
https://imgur.com/a/0zX2VVC

Link to album: "Original M1917 Sale Ad, Images of Damages I shared with Cucvm1028 Upon Discovery, and Additional Images of the Damage"
https://imgur.com/a/2p1XQjD

PM sent to Cucvm1028 inviting the member to reply to this negative feedback

https://vaguntrader.com/forums/ubbthreads.php/users/68554

Only the 2 members involved here is allowed to reply

Not to sure where to start with this but I will provide what I can. I purchased this rifle about two weeks ago from another member on here. Through conversation with him he advised me the rifle is all eddystone marked and he had never had issues with it when shooting it. The original seller advised me he put 50 rounds through it. The original seller was kind enough to bring it to my house which I appreciated greatly. I did a basic functions check of it outside checking the bolt cycled and that the barrel was in good shootable shape. I had a buddy who was going to buy it from me and have it shipped to him via FFL. Well that friend backed out due to financial issues and I had this eddystone now in my possession. I already owned two and as much I found this one interesting with its low serial number I didn’t see a need for a third and would rather have the funds to purchase something else. So with that I listed this rifle. Upon listing this rifle schmoopy reached out and we had the above exchange. We agreed to meet and did. I figured I would be generous and since someone brought the rifle to me I would return the favor and drive it out to them. Which I did. Now to say we had limited light is false. We were in a open parking lot at around 1:30 in the afternoon… no clouds or anything… just bright sunlight. the buyer did a basic functions check as I did and we made our exchange. While on my way home the buyer reached out which you will see and accepted a 100 refund.


At no point was I aware of any cracks in the receiver. At no point was I attempting to hide any damage or be dishonest. And lastly at no point did I remove any wood from the rifle and discover any damage. The last thing I would want to do is have someone or myself be injured or killed from recreational shooting. The photos used were a mix of ones I took and what the original seller provided. I will not drop the original sellers name as I don’t want to drag him into this drama. This is a private sale and under no circumstances am I obligated to accept a return I refunded the buyer $100.00 which I feel is more than fair I encourage anyone buying from me to do there due diligence and make sure everything I am selling is good to go. I will continue to sell on this forum and many others. Once again I encourage anyone buying from me or anyone else to conduct a full inspection and make sure all parts pass, are operable, and safe.

Cucvm1028's response confirms the very dishonesty and dangerous behavior I am warning this community about. He is attempting to hide behind a "middleman" defense to avoid responsibility for selling a dangerous, defective firearm.

When I asked if there were issues with shooting the rifle, he replied, "nope, none." He now admits he had never actually fired the gun and was simply repeating third-party hearsay. Representing a rifle as "good to go" when you have zero personal knowledge of its safety—especially an Eddystone known for receiver issues—is the definition of a dangerous sales practice.

The seller claims he never removed the wood or saw the damage. However, his original ad explicitly boasted that the rifle was "all-correct" and "all Eddystone marked." You cannot verify internal markings or the barrel shank without removing the handguards. Either he lied about verifying the rifle was "all-correct" to justify his asking price, or he inspected it, saw the cracks, and is lying now.

Cucvm1028 admits to using "a mix" of photos, including ones from a previous owner. By his own admission, he sold me a rifle using outdated pictures that did not reflect its current state. He chose angles that masked structural cracks as minor "marring" or completely omitted the damage, which is clearly visible when comparing his provided photos to the actual damage documented in my photos.

The seller mentions "generously" driving to Alexandria and providing a $100 refund. My text logs show I initially offered to drive to him; he chose Alexandria because he was already running errands there. Regarding the refund: A $100 "discount" on a $700 "pipe bomb" is not fair. He sold me an explosive hazard that exerts 50,000+ PSI ones face and hands and thinks $100 makes it right. He essentially offloaded a dangerous liability and got paid $600 to do so.

The suggestion that I should have performed an armorer’s teardown in a parking lot is absurd. I discovered the damage within 30 minutes of returning home. Crucially, the receiver cracks are visible even without removing the handguards. Cucvm1028 admitted to possessing this rifle for two weeks. It is simply not credible that he "didn't know" about apparent, visible structural damage on a rifle he had possession for 14 days while supposedly verifying "all-correct" markings and functionality.


Cucvm1028 says he "will continue to sell on this forum." I hope this post serves as a permanent record of what "due diligence" looks like with him and how he will represent items he is selling. He will sell you a dangerous defect, claim ignorance by blaming a previous owner, and then tell you it’s your fault for believing his description.

He keeps my $600; the community keeps this warning.

You’re making me out to be a liar… which I am not. I didn’t know about the damage and will hold true to that… you can say I am a liar but thats simply not true. I read your Reddit post and it looks like you didn’t know this was a common issue either for already owning m1917. I was unaware of the damage. I told you the barrel was a replacement barrel from JA. I did not pick specific angles to hide anything. Once again I encourage anyone to do their due diligence when buying anything. Never said it was your fault for believing anything…. And my errands were going to a surplus shop…. Still a generous act weather you believe it or not… and if this is noticeable without removing the handguards… why didn’t you notice it? I hate to be cold but you are 600 in the hole. You can part it out and make back the rest or find a spotter like you mentioned. I don’t think I have been unfair. I buy and sell a lot man and have never had negative interactions or reviews with people until now. It’s a lesson for the both of us. Sorry dude good luck. Again anytime I’m selling something people are more than welcome to break it down or schedule a meeting with an gunsmith to have them inspect it.

Cucvm1028 is now attempting to use my search for expert advice and confirmation of the damage on Reddit to excuse his own negligence and to continually deflect responsibility.

The seller claims we were both "unaware" of the common issues with Eddystones. The difference is: I wasn't the one selling the rifle for $700. When you post an ad claiming a rifle is "all-correct," "smooth," and has "no issues," you are assuming the role of the expert. If you didn't actually know the condition or the common failure points of the platform, you should not have given me a definitive "nope, none" when I asked about its safety.

You cannot have it both ways. You cannot post a technical ad detailing specific parts markings and "E" stamps to justify a price, and then pivot to "I'm just an ignorant middleman" the moment a life-threatening defect is found. Either you inspected the rifle (and saw the cracks) or you lied about the inspection (and sold a dangerous defect).

I noticed the damage within 30 minutes because I am a responsible owner who performs an inspection before taking a new firearm to the range. I didn't notice it in a parking lot because I made the mistake of trusting your word. You had the rifle for 14 days; the fact that you missed "apparent" damage while allegedly verifying every "E" mark is simply not believable.

Cucvm1028’s defense boils down to: "I didn't know what I was talking about when I told you it was safe." On a forum where firearms, that isn't an excuse—it's a confession of dangerous sales practices.

He is comfortable leaving a member $600 in the hole for a "pipe bomb" he misrepresented. I’ll leave it to the community and the moderators to decide if that's the kind of person they want to do business with.

Never did I justify the price. We could have haggled more it’s buying and selling from a private party you made an offer I accepted it. Never did I claim to be an expert… if I am selling a car and say all the above that doesn’t make me a expert that is absurd to call someone a expert when they take the role of simply selling something…I have two m1917’s I think they are cool rifles like all military surplus. I am novice at best with no professional gunsmith experience. I like firearms as a hobby just like you…. Expert advice would be from a qualified gunsmith not random people on Reddit. I gave you a refund. You seem to take everything I say and dissect it 3 ways. I gave the rifle a basic inspection at the time I purchased it like you did… I did NOT do a more comprehensive breakdown of it. I did not remove any wood from the rifle. I am not using a middleman excuse I am simply telling you how I came into possession of the rifle. Once again I have done plenty of deals on here as you can see from my feedback in both buying and selling . I have also done the same on multiple other platforms with only one other negative review from a few years ago. I am a man of my word and have I at no point knowingly misrepresented anything to you. I may have misspoke at most but NEVER have I lied.

Cucvm1028’s response is a masterclass in deflecting responsibility. Instead of standing behind the item he sold, he is attempting to spread the blame across three different parties--including, the previous owner, myself, and his own "novice/hobbyist" status.



When Cucvm1028 previously mentioned he purchased this from another member, I remembered seeing the original listing for this exact rifle. He purchased it for $600. Cucvm1028 then immediately relisted it for $700, using the previous owner’s exact photos and description. This explains why he 'dIdNtn'T kNoW' about the cracks—--he was only interested in a fast $100 markup and didn't even bother to use only his own photos, perform a basic safety check, or confirm the accuracy of the rifle’s details in the description. Deflecting blame onto a previous seller while recycling their ad for profit is a reckless and deceptive practice, and what I image to be a prolific issue this user demonstrates across other sales.


Cucvm1028 claims he is a "novice" and "just like me" to avoid being held to his own words. There is a major difference between us--if I had unknowingly sold a life-threatening "pipe bomb" to a fellow member, I would have rectified it immediately with a full refund and pickup of the defective item.


Honesty is not a professional skill, it is a choice. You chose to be deceptive and continue to choose to be deceptive. If you lack the knowledge to verify a rifle’s safety, you should not give a definitive "nope, none" when asked about its condition/issues nor should you be in the buying and selling business.

Cucvm1028 asks why I didn't notice the damage at the meet. I didn't notice it in a parking lot because I chose to trust his word. I discovered the damage within 30 minutes of returning home; the seller possessed this rifle for 14 days. It is not credible that he verified specific internal markings for an ad while failing to notice "apparent" structural damage over a two-week period. He is now essentially blaming me for trusting his description.



The seller’s $100 refund was not an act of "generosity." It was a calculation. By returning only the profit from his flip, he ensured he broke even while I was left with a catastrophic failure risk that would have exerted 50,000+ PSI near my face and hands. Telling a buyer to "part out" a dangerous receiver to recoup a loss is a total abdication of his seller responsibility, illustrates he did not want to go through the effort of parting it out himself, and a further demonstrates his misalignment with this community's ethics.


Cucvm1028 has made his position clear. He will make authoritative claims to justify a profit, but will blame everyone else—the previous owner, the buyer, and his own "ignorance" in order to keep the money when those claims are proven false.


He has protected his $600 investment at my expense and safety had I not inspected the rifle. I hope the community takes note of the value of his word and how he values your safety (it's worth about $600).

Both parties have replied

Topic locked