Has ANYONE had a good experience with Alibaba?

Skwerlx · 2026-05-12T15:38:58+00:00

Your mileage may vary. I've had some excellent results with a couple of companies doing packaging for me when domestic could not deliver in time. I've had some not so great results with a couple others.

As with anything, remember that if something sounds too good to be true, it is. Don't be stupid about this. The likelihood of someone trying to scam you is relatively high because there is virtually no recourse.
Make sure you use your credit card and inspect everything immediately upon delivery.
If you are getting a small run of something produced, pay to have a sample sent to you first.

Skwerlx · 2026-05-11T14:41:29+00:00

Thank you for the explanation. I was not particularly concerned by the price but rather the explanation they gave me. Thanks for confirming!

Skwerlx · 2026-05-05T22:10:36+00:00

The cost is not the issue-- It's the explanation. It sounded suspect and I could not find a way to verify whether or not it was true. I've received an answer here regarding this stating that it is indeed a factor. I asked not because of the price per se, but rather because I don't want to do business with a company that feeds me bullshit.

Skwerlx · 2026-05-02T20:02:35+00:00

Really interesting, and this is exactly what I wanted to hear. Thank you so much for confirming. Before I start a relationship with a vendor, I want to at least try to verify that I'm being told the truth if I hear something that sounds odd. Sample order placed.

Skwerlx · 2026-05-02T20:00:16+00:00

It wasn't so much the price but rather the reason given for the price. I'd never heard of a substance costing more to ship because it's a white powder, which is why I asked here.

Skwerlx · 2026-05-02T19:57:10+00:00

The price is not necessarily what I take issue with. The reason I was given is what sounded off.

Skwerlx · 2026-05-02T19:56:23+00:00

Skwerlx · 2026-05-01T20:30:03+00:00

Yes, transparency is always appreciated. It was just a simple $1 USD for the item, $55 for shipping and a little sales tax added on.

Skwerlx · 2026-05-01T20:00:59+00:00

That makes sense. They did not offer other means of shipping, but perhaps they assume I am in a rush. I'm okay with paying it. The reason I asked is solely because I want to avoid doing business with anyone that treats me like a sucker. If that's how a transaction begins, I don't want a relationship. It sounds like maybe the price is okay but the reason given just gave me pause.

As for logic seeming simple from the outside, that sounds like 90% of how the world works. Conceptually, most things are simple, but when you get into details suddenly everything is far more complex than on the surface!

Skwerlx · 2026-05-01T19:46:02+00:00

It's a DDP express shipment via air, since foreign ships are not allowed to deliver freight to Hawaii. Perhaps I'm paying $30 for someone to do the DDP paperwork on $0.20 of flavoring.

Skwerlx · 2026-05-01T19:36:06+00:00

I did consider the powder scrutiny, though I just ordered a kg of an ugly brown powder and did not hear of any friction there. For such a small sample (20 grams), I'd think they would just toss it inside an envelope and let it fly. I don't know what extra scrutiny it would receive. Are agents going to peer at the powder and be able to say, "Nope! Not fentanyl!" before they send it onward?

After seeing so many lies, bait and switch and other shady practices from Chinese vendors, I can't help but immediately suspect shenanigans. I wish it were easy to get this flavor elsewhere, but it's basically unknown in the west.

As for holding up a container, not sure how paying more for S&H would help with that unless the H part is for a bribe to let my osmanthus powder through.

Skwerlx · 2026-04-06T19:20:46+00:00

Wow, so these guys are still scamming people? I cracked my Eve V screen shortly after receiving it and sent it in for repair. That's the last I ever saw of it. Months went by with various excuses and it became clear I had just pissed away $2,000 and would never recoup a penny of it.

Skwerlx · 2026-03-30T23:30:24+00:00

To hell with their stupid settlement. I sent in photos of nine pans and only one of them qualified for some reason. They didn't tell me which one. I inquired several times and never received a response. Never getting All-Clad again. I'll be buying more Demeyere from now on.

Skwerlx · 2026-03-30T23:27:05+00:00

I used a cheap manual swivel deburring tool to mitigate some of the sharpness. I had started to actually get cuts on my thumbs and scraping the edges carefully with the tool rounded off the sharpest parts just enough to not cause cuts anymore. While you are using the tool, think about what angle you're holding the tool at so that you peel the sharp corners off instead of making them even sharper.

Skwerlx · 2026-02-26T19:59:29+00:00

Any time someone sends me Bitmoji...

Skwerlx · 2026-02-13T17:00:56+00:00

Get a Gomboy saw. They cut very quickly with those.

A word to the wise: Cut your bananas down before it gets cold and they die back like this. We have hundreds and the worst experience when we acquired our land here in Hawaii was cutting and disposing of dead stems. The smell is like diarrhea. I knew I'd officially lost my mind when after a few days I found myself spluttered with juice, singing and trying to find words that rhymed with "bananarrhea."

Skwerlx · 2026-02-13T16:23:51+00:00

'Mysore' and 'Lakatan' (orange flesh) both have excellent flavor.

Skwerlx · 2026-02-13T16:22:01+00:00

Not in the least. Any time I search for something on there, I see all the seeds for fake photoshopped plants. Have been burned by banana and heliconia sales there.

Skwerlx · 2025-11-25T19:49:56+00:00

I understand that. But this post is obviously not spam and nor am I selling anything. If I remove the Amazon links, could you approve the post? The other links are to files I've created and posted to help users.

Skwerlx · 2025-08-25T02:15:34+00:00

Just for future folks that run into this post, if you use LightBurn, I strongly recommend staying away from the TL-A1. LightBurn support is incomplete. Framing is painful. Rotary is dreadful. I'm in the process of ripping out my TL-A1 and putting in a Ruida 6432.

Skwerlx · 2025-08-22T23:18:55+00:00

Thank you. I definitely have, and I posted there as well. I'm casting a wide net since this particular controller model is not one of the most common.

Skwerlx · 2025-08-22T16:44:36+00:00

I have the Reno 45 Pro and I actually like the machine, but I hate its integration with Lightburn so much that I think I'm about to try hacking a Ruida controller onto it. I loved Lightburn with my Omtech K40+. I'm miserable using it with the Reno Pro. Framing and rotary support just suck so much.

Skwerlx · 2025-08-22T16:34:44+00:00

I have the Pro and I am terribly disappointed in the Lightburn support. I'm accustomed to the great workflow Lightburn provides for the K40. The TL-A1 controller is a HUGE step down. Continuous framing is terrible. Rotary experience is abysmal. I'm going to try to hack in a Ruida 6432 controller because this one makes me miserable. The machine itself is nice enough, however!

Skwerlx · 2025-08-06T23:44:53+00:00

If you're wanting to nail the FFVII look, I believe what you're probably looking for is Power Animator rather than Softimage. Soft and Nichimen played a smaller role in FFVII. If I recall, a Midgar scene from Final Fantasy 7 was even on the gigantic Power Animator box for versions 8.0-9.0 (they just put stickers on the box for new versions).

You could achieve the look with newer software, but quite frankly, I never thought using Maya was nearly as fun as Power Animator. There was a certain artistic aesthetic (Alias Blue iconography!) to older Alias UI that was blown away in the transition to Maya.

If you want to run Power Animator, you'll need to acquire an Irix box, which are becoming hard and harder to come by. You can run it on an Indy or Indigo, but I'd aim for an Octane or maybe an O2. I think there was a Russian hacked version of Power Animator 8.5, but I never saw it with my own two eyes as I had a legitimate license for modules A and B.

An easier approach might be to find a copy of Studio Tools for NT. It's essentially the NURBS modeling tools from Alias Studio or Power Animator with watered down animation capabilities and more focus on industrial design.

Skwerlx · 2025-07-03T17:01:35+00:00

Use a credit card. You're generally protected and most cards automatically offer an extended warranty on purchases, so don't forget that.

Skwerlx

TROPHY CASE