Mares REPS will not respond my service problems

[VooDooGasMan]

I PM zak and phil, about My speargun needs a piston, Dive shops wont order parts,

ZAK' told me on another post that they should have. I asked what is the problem with servicing Pneumatic guns, We both agreed that there is nothing to it. The internal parts can't be very much, And only take about 8 to 12 minutes to put together.

I believe I was right that they can not profit from fixing the guns. At an estimate of $120 I now know they can profit from it.

I have seen for several years now pon this board where spearfisherman tried to get there guns fixed or parts.

Mares should have a section on there web site that says we cannot repair your gun at a affordable price.

phil and zak responded to others yesterday, Why not me, they could not even PM me back, I posted after there post on a thread, no response.

I gave the dive shop name and description of gun, It cuoldn't possibly take over an hour to call there service dept and find out what and why the cost is almost the same as new.

Just tell me why, I know the barrel is perfect, there's no way the labor can be that much, If it is put it on the web site so everyone knows.


I hope you can respond to this thread.

 

[Phil Mintz]

Hi VooDoo

I did receive your PM as did Zak this time as well as in prior conversations about the same subject. Your inquiry requires alittle more time because I have to look up the charges (your gun was sent to Mares for service) and I need to speak to the shop owner (not a service tech) to verify the charges. You have Mares Labor and parts, shipping both ways, I don't think your charges are out of line, but I will verify. Also if you found this $120 to be too high, why did you not shop around or contact us prior to sending in the gun for service?

Pneumatic guns take more than 8 minutes to service, in fact they take more time than a reg or BC and are very messy work, which is why many shops do not like to offer this service and instead send it to our service center. Your gun is over 10 years old (I believe it is a Frontier), so you certainly have to evaluate the cost/value equation.

I will get back to you as soon as I speak to the shop owner as there is always two sides to every story.

Regards,

Phil

 

[VooDooGasMan]

I'm not worried about the shop owner, They said mares Quote is $120 I can just Imagine what there cost is above that, now when the shipping comes in effect both ways, This is the point I'm letting you Know.

You need to Provide Info that there is no affordable service on your spearguns.
I have checked before hand the only way to get a price is to send it to mares service dept.

So what you telling me is this is a sales trick if you want your gun back you have to pay shipping.

I would have never even brought this up ,But a rep advertised for a service for Pneumatic guns at dema.

You need a Pneumatic repair in the northwest.

Theres one in florida, why not everywhere.

Messy work, Your telling me the diveshops will not dirty there hands, Everyone Knows that.

It's obvious that you have never opened one up. if it would take a whole 30 minutes to put the piston and some oil in it, Well thats just pathetic.

How much are the Parts.

 

[Phil Mintz]

I'm not worried about the shop owner, They said mares Quote is $120 I can just Imagine what there cost is above that, now when the shipping comes in effect both ways, This is the point I'm letting you Know.

Voodoo,

You seem to want to be confrontational about this, I prefer to do what I stated and get back to you once I speak to the owner.



You need to Provide Info that there is no affordable service on your spearguns.
I have checked before hand the only way to get a price is to send it to mares service dept.

This is your opinion, but in my opinion you are incorrect.

So what you telling me is this is a sales trick if you want your gun back you have to pay shipping.

I am not sure what you are stating as I did not state this and we do not "trick" customers. What you asked is how the charges were determined and I was giving you an estimate of the pieces. If I send any item I own to a service center either myself or through a dealer, how do you think it gets there? Typically by UPS and someone pays the charge: either seperate or built into the bill, but shipping cost are real dollars.

I would have never even brought this up ,But a rep advertised for a service for Pneumatic guns at dema.

A rep for who? We do not advertise regarding the offering of service to consumers. Mares runs repair seminars (Called Mares Lab) at Dema and thoughtout the year at different locations, these are for authorized dealers so they can be factory trained to service the equipement they sell.

You need a Pneumatic repair in the northwest.

Theres one in florida, why not everywhere.

We have one repair center in the US, it is not in Florida. There are dealers around the country who are authorized to do repairs, but we only have one company center in the mid-atlantic.

Messy work, Your telling me the diveshops will not dirty there hands, Everyone Knows that.

It's obvious that you have never opened one up. if it would take a whole 30 minutes to put the piston and some oil in it, Well thats just pathetic.

I never claimed to be a repair technician, nor do I ever offer technical advice on these boards, there are many more qualified people than I. Any technical quesiton I get, I make sure the response comes from someone who is qualified. Now you state this should take 30 minutes? If this is such a simple and lucrative business, why are you not opening a service shop?

How much are the Parts.

We do not sell direct to consumers.

I will get back to you as I stated, please be patient we are not ignoring you, just trying to answer your original question. You can see my answers to your new questions above.

Phil

 

[VooDooGasMan]

Zak said the dive shops should sell the parts, there not life threating.

I replied to the dema workshop, It was after dema when I found it, no reply.

I want to know excatly what this procedure is for repairing a gun through mares.

Why do I have to be certified to repair a gun of my own.

You wont sell me the parts, is that the deal.

I want to buy the parts from the dive shop, Like I said ZAK see's no reason why the dive shop will not sell them to me.

Why not its not scuba.

 

[Phil Mintz]

That is Zaks opinion, but each shop owner determines what they sell, not us.

You replied to a workshop after it occurred. You didn't get a response as you are not an authorized dealer of Mares. What is the issue?

The procedure is you bring it to an authorized dealer.

You do not need to be certified to repair your own gun. But we do not offer to teach the general public.

We don't sell anything direct to consumers, but a shop can sell them to you. If one won't, this is their own business decision, good or bad it is their decision. If I have a problem with a retailer and they don't treat me the way I expect, I go elsewhere.

Phil

 

[Phil Mintz]

Zak said the dive shops should sell the parts, there not life threating.

I replied to the dema workshop, It was after dema when I found it, no reply.

I want to know excatly what this procedure is for repairing a gun through mares.

Why do I have to be certified to repair a gun of my own.

You wont sell me the parts, is that the deal.

I want to buy the parts from the dive shop, Like I said ZAK see's no reason why the dive shop will not sell them to me.

Why not its not scuba.

VooDoo

I spoke with Terry, from your prior notes it sounds like you know him, so he is assuming he knows you to. He is looking for your order and said you should give him a call. He will work it out for you so that all are satisfied.

Regards,

Phil

 

[VooDooGasMan]

OK, Then Phil I can see that you have given me the info I already new, and this is how it is.

Thats what I want to Know.

There are numerous forums that ask these same questions, Spearfisherman give alternate suggestions, but never a confirmed reason why.

You get on here to help and give answers.

Now I know for sure that if you buy a Pneumatic speargun from mares, and it breaks after the warranty has run out, You should just buy another one, cause to service it the new one is only a few bucks more.

Many spearfisherman have said this for 6 to 7 years, When asked why, they never new why.

And it seems that I can tell divers this will never change, If you need to change the o-Rings just buy a knew gun, If you don't your going to wait for 5 weeks for the estimate, then probably a couple weeks to get it back, So it's obvious for a few bucks more, buy a new one today.

Thanks for your time this what I what I want to Know.

PS.
So many people blame the dive shops, when really it is the vendor that wont help the diver.

So it just leaves me confused why you give the run around, instead of take a issue like this and make it happen.

You are putting this on the dive shops, when instead you should be making an effort to have this repair in all the regions of the world.

So Phil thanx for your time.

 

[Phil Mintz]

OK, Then Phil I can see that you have given me the info I already new, and this is how it is.

Thats what I want to Know.

There are numerous forums that ask these same questions, Spearfisherman give alternate suggestions, but never a confirmed reason why.

You get on here to help and give answers.

Now I know for sure that if you buy a Pneumatic speargun from mares, and it breaks after the warranty has run out, You should just buy another one, cause to service it the new one is only a few bucks more.

Many spearfisherman have said this for 6 to 7 years, When asked why, they never new why.

And it seems that I can tell divers this will never change, If you need to change the o-Rings just buy a knew gun, If you don't your going to wait for 5 weeks for the estimate, then probably a couple weeks to get it back, So it's obvious for a few bucks more, buy a new one today.

Thanks for your time this what I what I want to Know.

PS.
So many people blame the dive shops, when really it is the vendor that wont help the diver.

So it just leaves me confused why you give the run around, instead of take a issue like this and make it happen.

You are putting this on the dive shops, when instead you should be making an effort to have this repair in all the regions of the world.

So Phil thanx for your time.

VooDoo

Your questions/comments are difficult to follow. I answer questions here regularly so I am not sure what you mean about questions in other forums.

I don't know what you mean by 5 weeks for an estimate, but original question was about the charges and I have answered this for you. As for an estimate how can one determine a cost to fix something that we have not seen. If it is a standard service this charge does not change. As for the cost, a new gun of a comparable model today would cost significantly more.

As for a run around we resolved your problem in 1-2 days. Try contacting another company who makes these guns either directly or on these boards: They are not here.

Best regards,

Phil

 

[VooDooGasMan]

Phil,I asked a lot of questions so it could be summed up.

Google spearfishing Websites, Forums, what ever search you want.

Your only on this board, Probably cause of the high traffic, there are many local boards (forums), dive club boards (forums).

I probably Have seen this problem a couple of hundred times in forums all over the world.

If you want to help and be Informative You should research the all the websites and forums.

It is good you have been here, I want to see that the dive shops can get more help in service in certain areas, quickly. start training dive shops Everything in service.

The run around is how much are parts and how much is labor.

How much is O-ring replacement if you bring it in to a PNW diveshop.

You see Phil these are things that take a long time for an answer, I see it as no different as a visual inspection on a tank, a 10 minute task.