Given a little time hopefully red will get over what was said in that thread. It would certainly be a shame to lose his services. I for one have found it fascinating seeing all the rare bits of kit he has unearthed from goodness knows where!
I agree that his comment was illadvised. Something like "Wow that's a really good price for that item, what a bargain" would have come across a lot more positively whilst pretty much saying the same thing. Regardless no one deserves to be crucified for one loose comment.