Comments?

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dusty
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Re: Comments?

Post by dusty »

The box is definitely beyond use (NOW) but was it when packaged? More importantly, was anything damaged in shipment?
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80spiders
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Re: Comments?

Post by 80spiders »

Hi Dusty. I am not sure I understand your first question of "when was it packaged?" The box, as pictured, is exactly how it arrived at my office other than being opened by me. There was no delay in the tracking which eliminates the possibly that the box was misdirected and repackaged by a third party. I did not add the blackouts or extra tape, only the pink sticky note over my address and I had removed the packing list before the pictures. I opened the box with a pocket knife to cut through all of the packing tape. I ordered 3 packages of sandpaper, two miter bars and 4 T nuts. I received it all with the exception of 1 T nut; however, the packing list said all four T nuts were included. There were no open holes present in the box where one of the T nuts could have slipped out. Nothing was damaged. I am questioning why this type of packaging is acceptable and/or necessary - the perception I am left with is not good.
DLB
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Re: Comments?

Post by DLB »

80spiders wrote: Wed May 18, 2022 8:05 am Hi Dusty. I am not sure I understand your first question of "when was it packaged?" The box, as pictured, is exactly how it arrived at my office other than being opened by me. There was no delay in the tracking which eliminates the possibly that the box was misdirected and repackaged by a third party. I did not add the blackouts or extra tape, only the pink sticky note over my address and I had removed the packing list before the pictures. I opened the box with a pocket knife to cut through all of the packing tape. I ordered 3 packages of sandpaper, two miter bars and 4 T nuts. I received it all with the exception of 1 T nut; however, the packing list said all four T nuts were included. There were no open holes present in the box where one of the T nuts could have slipped out. Nothing was damaged. I am questioning why this type of packaging is acceptable and/or necessary - the perception I am left with is not good.
I'm not sure that it is what Dusty is referring to, but I've had an occasion where UPS completely repacked a shipment due to damage to the packaging while they had it. And more than one occasion where they added tape. I haven't seen anything like this from Shopsmith, but my last couple of orders have been small and went USPS. Coincidentally I did recently get a 4 pack of T-nuts which came in a labeled zip-lock bag inside the package. If yours was packed that way it would take pretty rough handling to lose just one, but that box has definitely been through a lot at some point.

- David
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algale
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Re: Comments?

Post by algale »

I have had some badly packed / packaged shipments from Shopsmith but this one is beyond the pale.
Gale's Law: The bigger the woodworking project, the less the mistakes show in any photo taken far enough away to show the entire project!

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Ed in Tampa
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Re: Comments?

Post by Ed in Tampa »

I wonder if it was a repackage by the shipping company? I know I have received things in odd boxes and found out the original was damaged in transit and repackaged.
80spiders
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Re: Comments?

Post by 80spiders »

Ed in Tampa wrote: Wed May 18, 2022 9:48 am I wonder if it was a repackage by the shipping company? I know I have received things in odd boxes and found out the original was damaged in transit and repackaged.
Ed, that is certainly a possibility - I know the package was shipped on Friday the 13th (that was not a good omen) and was to be delivered to me on Tuesday, the 17th. This is what the tracking information said on Friday, the day of shipment, so the schedule was set at the time of shipment. I did receive it as normal via UPS on the 17th and can only guess that if there was a glitch along the way it would have been delayed - but just a guess certainly not known to be true.
I can give SS the benefit of the doubt this time. I really hope I will be able to order parts and accessories in the future from them.
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dusty
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Re: Comments?

Post by dusty »

Expand the pictures and read that which was blacked out. Original content was not Shopsmith parts.
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SteveMaryland
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Re: Comments?

Post by SteveMaryland »

This thread has gone from lousy boxes to the future of Shopsmith. I worry about that as well. I recently expressed my concerns in another thread ("the very negative reviews the current company management has gotten on certain employee-review sites").

Here I will state my first-hand reason for worrying. About 2 years ago I went to a Power Pro demo at the blue Big Box. Arrived early morning. I was the only prospect who had showed up at the time, besides the demo guy and someone else with him.

I was positively impressed with the Power Pro. I was negatively impressed by the demo guy. Rude and p-d off and gave me the creeps. It was just a big chore for him to demo the Power Pro. Last name initial was F.

Yes, I know about how aggravating tire-kickers can be to a salesperson, but that does not excuse the behavior I saw.

What to make of this? Maybe nothing, but maybe it portends where Shopsmith as a company is going. It certainly dovetails with the lousy employee reviews I saw.

I do want Shopsmith to be around for a while, but if this Mr. F. is the future of Shopsmith, I would not expect much.
Mark V, Model 555510, Serial No. 102689, purchased November 1989. Upgraded to 520
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dusty
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Re: Comments?

Post by dusty »

Was the box in that condition when it shipped? We don't know. Let us learn the facts before we condemn.
No
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80spiders
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Re: Comments?

Post by 80spiders »

dusty wrote: Wed May 18, 2022 8:00 pm Was the box in that condition when it shipped? We don't not know. Let us learn the facts before we condemn.
No
In an effort to put this issue to bed, I called UPS this morning, provided the tracking number, stated the package was received and there were no problems with the contents (to remove any possible defensive posture on the rep's part). I asked if the box had been repackaged by them. The rep said there was nothing in the history of the tracking number to indicate it was damaged in shipping and repackaged. I asked the general question, "If a package is damaged and needs to be repackaged, would the system show that?" The answer was "yes." A second general question was asked, "If a package does need to be repackaged by UPS, would a UPS box be used or just anything that was available to the warehouse?" The answer was "most definitely, a UPS box." The recommendation by UPS was that I ask SS what container was used to ship the package. I am not going to do that.
So, I am putting this matter behind me. Dusty's point is valid, we don't know - I will leave it at that.
Thank you all for your input and comments.
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