I'll just say I live very close to their shop. Joe is a very nice guy in person, has a capable shop, dyno, tons of Nissans getting decked out... though I asked him where his Fiesta was and he said it was at home in the garage... and then I was on the forums later that night and saw that he had sold it to another member in a different state several months prior. So I'm not sure what would have possessed him to lie about that.
They've sold 3 (that I know of) to members of our local ST club. One of which has already installed his, and he seems to be quite happy. None of them have the issue that was brought up today/yesterday in this, but they definitely aren't a polished finish like other intercoolers.
So it seems like the QC is a bit lacking.
I have a hunch that perhaps the end tank design change was done to make it easier/cheaper to make. Just take a look at the old/updated version and you'll see what I mean. I also have a hunch that the "retail price" was listed at $799 to encourage more people to pre-order, as we are well past the pre-order stage and it's still at $399.
I'd recommend you to ask for a refund, Venom. I understand that may not be feasible due to the shipping stuff, but give it a shot if you haven't already. :/ I'm really disappointed that this all has happened like this. Like I said, I met him in person and everything seemed fine. I even saw the IC before any of them shipped out. Welds looked great, etc.