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Jul 2024
Posts:
372
EE: 100% (22)
VA, USA
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https://www.ar15.com/forums/AR-15/Has-anyone-bought-from-Cryostructure-/123-788404/ I’ve had product on order since last summer. After two shipping notices/tracking numbers and no shipment, I requested a refund by this Friday via charge back. We will see. Edit: Jesus. Just googled “shadow ops Paul Russ”. There’s an angry customer Facebook group, Reddit and Tx gun owners posts, and even newspaper articles. Update: see my post further down. |
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Originally Posted By SSG-69: https://www.ar15.com/forums/AR-15/Has-anyone-bought-from-Cryostructure-/123-788404/ I’ve had product on order since last summer. After two shipping notices/tracking numbers and no shipment, I requested a refund by this Friday via charge back. We will see. Edit: Jesus. Just googled “shadow ops Paul Russ”. There’s an angry customer Facebook group, Reddit and Tx gun owners posts, and even newspaper articles. You rip off hundreds if not thousands of customers and your reputation will take a hit. My biggest issue was they took all the useable parts from the pre-sold complete suppressors and built new suppressors with the pre-sold cores and unsold tubes and then shipped the form3 registered tubes to the buyers who got suckered into pre paying for complete suppressors. The "new" suppressors bought $250+-ea at auction. Fuck Paul Russ. |
"Kid you're so lost, even I can't bring you home" - The North Star
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Originally Posted By Kornbread: Send me an email and you are welcome to post them. Here’s Kornbread’s barrel. I got a shipping notification on mine as well today. Attached File Attached File Attached File Attached File |
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On a side note, this popped up for sale lol. Seller is asking face value and stating end of 2025. Not sure when he got this or if this is anything anyone's seen? Is this like his receipt for buying one or an actual gift card? Seller posted with info redacted and info showing for the world to see, I just reposted what was being show on the internet.   |
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Originally Posted By redman797: On a side note, this popped up for sale. Seller is asking face value and stating end of 2025. Not sure when he got this or if this is anything anyone's seen? Is this like his receipt for buying one or an actual gift card? Seller posted with info redacted and info showing for the world to see, I just reposted what was being show on the internet. https://i.ibb.co/HLHJL18F/IMG-4898.jpg https://i.ibb.co/nMkfs0r6/IMG-4899.jpg Why would anyone pay face value for a 2nd hand gift card? And paying face value for a gift card to a place that has never met a deadline is even crazier. I'd pay 30 bucks for the card, in the off chance that something came of it. Kinda like buying 30 bucks in lotto tickets. Those cards must be the ones that Paul said he would include for the guys that didn't cancel their orders. The 2025 delivery is probably one of the biggest lines of BS yet. Dude can't cline an upper of an existing design in under 2 years, but he will have a whole new MG ready for delivery in 8 months... he must be working with BSD fab |
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Originally Posted By redman797: I’d love for someone that lives close to just go and check up on it. Surely he would welcome people to see the final product in person, not saying let them into his shop and have full reign to report on all his trade secrets etc, but if he’s legit and someone lives close by, just go and visit him. Maybe record him if you live in a 1 party state and ask some real questions for us. On a side not about showing up with a sheriff, not much they can do since it’d be a civil matter. For anything involving defrauding or criminal business practices there has to be intent or there’s like no shop and everything he’s posted is photoshopped AI generated etc… I don’t think that would be necessary. Barrels are shipping…just not on the timeline we all would like. As for LE involvement…pretty sure over $1k is grand larceny but not sure in VA. Like I said though….coming from a guy who waited 6 years for the KAC Lunchbox set I’m not too worried. |
Joined:
Jul 2024
Posts:
374
EE: 100% (22)
VA, USA
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Somewhat to my surprise and gratification, I received a cashiers check drawn on a major bank with my money back, and an unanodized 80%. (Had ordered anodized engraved, but here we are). So, I have to say, while I did not receive exactly what I ordered seven months ago, Paul Russ made good and refunded me, adding a bonus. It is very nicely machined and includes most small details like the rebate for the 601 style pin.  |
Joined:
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Posts:
798
EE: 100% (94)
USA
| Seeing the guy refund people at will as well as literally gift the above user with a free 80% definitely should absolve the man's reputation of being a 'scammer' or just being a shill seller, but it doesn't remove either the low-probability suspicion that he's running a Ponzi scheme to cover overhead production costs, or that with his slow progress one may (and should) easily call into question his quality control over his products, or his own acclaim that he's running operations rivaling the scale of DSArms... |
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Originally Posted By cms81586: I don’t think that would be necessary. Barrels are shipping…just not on the timeline we all would like. As for LE involvement…pretty sure over $1k is grand larceny but not sure in VA. Like I said though….coming from a guy who waited 6 years for the KAC Lunchbox set I’m not too worried. Just to keep this thread alive and updated. Does your 21 barrel work? Ive heard a bunch had improper chamber fluting. Also, he is shipping 21 barrel, which he announced long after the MCR barrels, and had to order special tooling for to make the 21 barrels. Its like a manufacturing ponzi scheme instead of an investment one. |
Joined:
Jan 2026
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OH, USA
| Sadly, it’s 01/29/2026 and the uppers are still nowhere to be found. After 3 weeks of him dodging my emails requesting a refund, I sent him another threatening legal action. I received an email back quickly saying he would call me today and process the refund. We shall see…. |
Joined:
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Posts:
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EE: 0% (0)
OH, USA
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Originally Posted By krinkovkid: Sadly, it’s 01/29/2026 and the uppers are still nowhere to be found. After 3 weeks of him dodging my emails requesting a refund, I sent him another threatening legal action. I received an email back quickly saying he would call me today and process the refund. We shall see…. Can't wait to see this thread hit 2 years old. Haha. And remember. 2 years from when delivery was promised. At least Geoff Herring/Ares had working prototypes to show off before taking deposits. |
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Originally Posted By SGT-Fish: https://i.postimg.cc/PJsQs6zT/Screenshot-20260202-080435-Gmail.jpg Imagine asking people to put down $6,000 for a 7.62 upper when you haven't even shown a complete prototype of your first upper, after years of holding on to other people's money... Imagine people doing business with you at all after you fucked over hundreds of customers who prepaid for suppressors and custom engraved lowers. I'm still confused why people would give that guy any money after his previous ponzi scheme. Google results for "Paul Russ Shadow Ops Weaponry Scam" |
"Kid you're so lost, even I can't bring you home" - The North Star
Joined:
Mar 2024
Posts:
718
EE: 100% (71)
TN, USA
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Originally Posted By hydrostatic_cling: Need a stickied thread warning of all Paul Russ scams and close all threads talking about his latest ventures, because for some unknown reason people keep sending him money. I dont think we should close the threads. Just put disclaimers warning of extreme caution. |
Joined:
Aug 2024
Posts:
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EE: 100% (1)
TX, USA
Joined:
Aug 2024
Posts:
8
EE: 100% (1)
TX, USA
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Originally Posted By krinkovkid: Sadly, it's 01/29/2026 and the uppers are still nowhere to be found. After 3 weeks of him dodging my emails requesting a refund, I sent him another threatening legal action. I received an email back quickly saying he would call me today and process the refund. We shall see . |
  Cryostructure Belt Fed Drama |
"Kid you're so lost, even I can't bring you home" - The North Star
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Originally Posted By bluedog82: Hopefully just saved a local guy from becoming a master dealer for Cryo. When i first heard of the upper, late 2023 or early 2024, Paul offered for me to be a dealer and I would have gotten a real good price on the uppers. He guaranteed delivery in Q2 2024, said he had like $3 million in orders being placed so I better send funds now or delivery would be pushed back to Q3 of 2024. It seemed very fishy so I backed away. I knew how bad it was for Ares just to get stuff assembled and shipped. So even if he was honest, he wasnt gonna meet the deadline |
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Originally Posted By SGT-Fish: When i first heard of the upper, late 2023 or early 2024, Paul offered for me to be a dealer and I would have gotten a real good price on the uppers. He guaranteed delivery in Q2 2024, said he had like $3 million in orders being placed so I better send funds now or delivery would be pushed back to Q3 of 2024. It seemed very fishy so I backed away. I knew how bad it was for Ares just to get stuff assembled and shipped. So even if he was honest, he wasnt gonna meet the deadline Yeah, he was really sweet-talking my dealer, had him until I showed him this thread and he did a little research. |
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Originally Posted By hydrostatic_cling: Need a stickied thread warning of all Paul Russ scams and close all threads talking about his latest ventures, because for some unknown reason people keep sending him money. Seconding this, know another dozen people who have received the "russ runaround" Amazing that in 2026 we still have dudes trying to be Todd/Wade Bailey levels of trash in the market. |
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Originally Posted By cms81586: Here’s Kornbread’s barrel. I got a shipping notification on mine as well today. https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/2980/image0_jpeg-3510445.JPG https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/2980/image1_jpeg-3510446.JPGhttps://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/2980/image2_jpeg-3510447.JPGhttps://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/2980/image3_jpeg-3510448.JPG That’s a rough looking chamber and the flutes are shallow. |
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Originally Posted By SGT-Fish: Keeping the thread alive. Paul just told another buyer that his two uppers will ship this month. Anyone want to place a bet? Haha https://www.sturmgewehr.com/forums/index.php?/topic/47301-cryostructure/ Thats crazy they advertise on Sturmgewehr. Even crazier that Sturm still exists, Buddy and the other guy who run that place are complete assholes. I forgot Sturm even existed it's been so long since Ive bothered visiting their site. After thinking about it for a minute , I guess I'm not actually that surprised they took Paul Russ' money and knowingly allow him to run his ponzi scheme there. He must have written his ads perfectly to comply with the grammar requirements and maybe bought Buddy lunch. 
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"Kid you're so lost, even I can't bring you home" - The North Star
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Originally Posted By NWRed: Thats crazy they advertise on Sturmgewehr. Even crazier that Sturm still exists, Buddy and the other guy who run that place are complete assholes. I forgot Sturm even existed it's been so long since Ive bothered visiting their site. After thinking about it for a minute , I guess I'm not actually that surprised they took Paul Russ' money and knowingly allow him to run his ponzi scheme there. He must have written his ads perfectly to comply with the grammar requirements and maybe bought Buddy lunch. https://media2.giphy.com/media/Y8SqjWuohk8Rq/200.webp?cid=8dc8958cqp0d7r0i8o19t3ol5ueoc56s9lubh729gg5z4s72&ep=v1_gifs_search&rid=200.webp&ct=g Honestly its the only really active NFA classified left since frank bought and killed subguns |
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Originally Posted By SGT-Fish: Honestly it's the only really active NFA classified left since frank bought and killed subguns That might be true, but doesn't change that whoever mods their website ruined it for people like me by randomly deleting posts due to whatever OCD criteria they use to vet posts...."wts" wasn't capitalised or there was 3 spaces in between the "WTS" and the next word instead of 1. I could literally copy a current WTS post and change the wording to whatever I was trying to sell at the time and my post would be deleted by the mods. That's a lot more effort than it was worth to post an ad there 10+ years ago when I could post the same ad (cut and paste) on a dozen other websites that didn't give a shit if "wts" was capitalised or if the city/state was listed in the title. At some point Sturm will be as relevant as FJ Vollmer's board is today. FYI "Rusty Galil" was fucking hilarious at the time and may have been been the death knell of FJ Vollmer. With any luck, "we allow ponzi schemes as banner advertisers" will be the end of Sturmgewehr as they circle the drain |
"Kid you're so lost, even I can't bring you home" - The North Star
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My 80% lower ordered June of last year finally arrived after much pestering (multiple emails a week for a few months and a few phone calls). I think the following line really swayed him: "Can I get that picture or is a Buddhist Monk engraving it by hand with a stone?" |
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Originally Posted By TZLVredmist: June 16th will be ONE YEAR since I order my barrels from Paul.  Still no barrels. The barrels that are totally in stock and ready but also coming back from the coating shop next week and also just need one more operation? He keeps saying his uppers are just waiting on the bolts or something. But that would mean the barrels are complete and ready to ship. Which means that he is lying or has your money and is keeping it while refusing to ship the product. My buddy finally decided to ask for a refund. After no response he said he was doing a CC dispute and Paul told him to go ahead and do it, it saves him the $2k gift card or whatever. Then Paul ended up refunding it anyway. Idk who in their right mind would tell a customer to do a charge back. Thats a quick way to get your merchant accounts suspended. Could be why he is asking for zelle now. Same buddy got one of the bad hk21 barrels and sent it back. He figures it may be a loss at this point. |
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Originally Posted By NWRed: That might be true, but doesn't change that whoever mods their website ruined it for people like me by randomly deleting posts due to whatever OCD criteria they use to vet posts...."wts" wasn't capitalised or there was 3 spaces in between the "WTS" and the next word instead of 1. I could literally copy a current WTS post and change the wording to whatever I was trying to sell at the time and my post would be deleted by the mods. That's a lot more effort than it was worth to post an ad there 10+ years ago when I could post the same ad (cut and paste) on a dozen other websites that didn't give a shit if "wts" was capitalised or if the city/state was listed in the title. At some point Sturm will be as relevant as FJ Vollmer's board is today. FYI "Rusty Galil" was fucking hilarious at the time and may have been been the death knell of FJ Vollmer. With any luck, "we allow ponzi schemes as banner advertisers" will be the end of Sturmgewehr as they circle the drain Ive never had any problems. But I also never used sturm regularly til after subguns was killed. And I believe buddy sold the website before that but still acts as a mod. The banner ad definitely rubs ya wrong and he should be banned. Its actually amazing that his ad payments go through |
| If anyone here can’t get a refund from Paul then shoot me a PM with the rough amount he owes you by the end of the month. Having a chat with a VA Commonwealth’s Attorney in a few weeks to find out what they would need to pursue this. Between his current scam and known history with the last one…it’s time for the legal system to catch up with him. |
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