Spyderco Warranty and Repair is lacking in communication...

[gull wing]

I've bought Spyderco since the 1980's, three send backs, all done in decent time.
Of course I void the warranty right away on most of my knives :D .

[nirvanero]

Fortunately, I only had to contact Spyderco once for a missing screw and they were very fast and straightforward. That said, nobody is perfect and also maybe you caught them very busy that time. I hope that it will somehow end well.

[KBR]

Sorry for not replying to a few posts asking specific questions....mainly because I don't have the patience to try and do a multi post response on my iPhone, so here you go;

By receiving credit towards the other knife, does this mean that you loose the CF Military due to exchange?......

Unfortunately, yes. I was hoping that they could have resolved the issue that I was having or maybe switch the M390 blade over to another handle but because of CQI, that wasn't possible.

Have you used their C/S a lot before? I have kind of gotten used to it. I seem to have a propensity to get "bad" ones , and have had to use warranty quite a few times. And every single time, it takes 4.5 weeks [on the quick side] - 5-6 weeks [on the longer side]. And have never gotten an email/phone/notification in between. It was always me send-->wait--> receive package. So if I have a issue I usually pair it with other stuff [like a group send in sort to speak, like wait till I have 2-3 items, whether its warranty or a sharpening] and then send it in to save on time. I did get a lecture once to not take apart my knives, and that they will know etc. [I always indicate if a certain knife has been taken apart, but those I only send in for sharpening =/ ]. So while it may be nice for them to give up to dates, whether by emailing the person a code to check on their site showing the status, or phone call, etc - I believe such a thing would be more feasible once/if they are able to expand, and create positions for that type of staff.

In this case, it's been six weeks and probably at least another week to week and a half waiting for the new knife to arrive through ups. IMO, I don't really think that it would take much of an effort to send a quick email to the customer just to touch base with them, not necessarily a page long email. If anything, it may be beneficial for them to have one or two people dealing with informing customers with status updates about their knives. Of course, opinions about this may vary.

People are human and make mistakes. I'm not justifying this but I can't see it happening because they just don't care or aren't trying. This is also why I'll pay extra at a brick and mortar so I can deal with exchanges and returns in person.

I agree, we are all human and make mistakes. And I strongly agree that I'd rather deal with a brick and mortar store, although I usually buy my knives from New Graham via the web. But with those great folks out there, I've had zero issues. They did send the wrong knife one time and as soon as I called them about it, they sent the correct knife before even waiting for the wrong one to be sent back to them. THAT'S excellent customer service right there. They also have no problem checking knives, if asked, to make sure there are no issues that may have been overlooked at the factory.

I've bought Spyderco since the 1980's, three send backs, all done in decent time.
Of course I void the warranty right away on most of my knives :D .

Same here, this was the third time that I've dealt with W/R in 15 plus years, while being the second exchange but this one has taken longer than the previous two combined. While I know that they'll make things right, it's just a matter of waiting for them to do so.

[The Mastiff]

Again, nothing but an ad hominem attack, completely against the rules that Spyderco has set out, completely off topic as to your attempt to create a positive reporting bias.

An attack is two brigades forward with one in reserve moving to contact with artillery and air support, along with electronic deception and jamming. This was merely me explaining to you why I don't take your accusations or interruptions seriously enough to actually give you an explanation or answer to a question you rudely post in a thread. No matter how much I try I just can't take you seriously. I have tried. You should know that.

You can let Spyderco mods worry about the rules BTW.

I will attempt to take your sensitive nature into account in the future but if you annoy a dog enough no matter how nice he is eventually you get the teeth.

Joe

[JNewell]

I sent in my CF/M390 Military six weeks ago because of a concern that I had about the linerlock.

Out of pure curiosity, what was the nature of the concern?

[KBR]

Out of pure curiosity, what was the nature of the concern?

For some reason, I noticed that the linerlock didn't have tension against the blade tang, as my S30V Military does, when releasing it from the locked position. Upon opening the blade, the linerlock did engage as it should but it felt odd to me that there wasn't any resistance when I was closing the blade. I had also started noticing, although very minor, some very slight blade play. I never had the lock fail on me but it was a concern, nonetheless.

[JNewell]

For some reason, I noticed that the linerlock didn't have tension against the blade tang, as my S30V Military does, when releasing it from the locked position. Upon opening the blade, the linerlock did engage as it should but it felt odd to me that there wasn't any resistance when I was closing the blade. I had also started noticing, although very minor, some very slight blade play. I never had the lock fail on me but it was a concern, nonetheless.

Thank you and best luck.

[v8r]

The only thing I can add is sometimes it is simply better to keep trying to contact someone at Spyderco rather than publicly bash them. You may not have intended that, but it looks that way. I have been in the customer service industry for many years until recently. I really feel social media has made it where people no longer have to work on their social skills and how we speak to each other. I am guilty of this myself.

[donutsrule]

I left their site-based customer service a message about my old blue Dodo on the evening of 6/5 and got an emailed response the morning of 6/6, so so far so good there. I guess if Blade slowed things down, they're getting back up to speed.
The email mentioned turn-around times of approx 3 weeks, so if I send it in next week, I'll report back on how it goes.

[KBR]

The only thing I can add is sometimes it is simply better to keep trying to contact someone at Spyderco rather than publicly bash them. You may not have intended that, but it looks that way. I have been in the customer service industry for many years until recently. I really feel social media has made it where people no longer have to work on their social skills and how we speak to each other. I am guilty of this myself.

No, this thread wasn't intended to 'bash' anybody.... simply look at the title of this thread where I said they were lacking in communication. Nothing derogatory, just a statement about an area that needs improvement, IMO. An area that I had no problem with the first two times that I dealt with them, many years ago. Back then, I wasn't calling them to find anything out. The customer service/warranty & repair dept. was calling me....and in less than half the time than this current occasion.

Furthermore, I have no issue interacting with people either in an internet environment or in a face to face setting. If you have dealt with customers in the past, then you would understand how important it is to communicate and keep in touch with them, in situations such as this, so they are not left wondering what the status is of their case or when it will be resolved.

And because I'm sure that there may be many Spyderco customers to deal with, I am not talking about sending a page long email or having an hour long conversation with them on the phone but rather just sending at least a quick email keeping those customers up to date on their status.

[The Mastiff]

KBR, though I chose to approach things differently that does not in any way mean I don't respect you or your way of getting business done.Nor do I feel it's my business to pass judgement. I apologize for the way I came across on this forum.
We all can agree that people need to be happy with their interactions with the company they choose to do business with or they tend to not come back. You have been doing the Spyderco thing plenty of long enough for me to see it's evident you aren't just here to cause trouble. As I stated on the other forum good luck getting what you need to be a satisfied customer and hopefully put this behind you. In the end we are all pretty sure you will get what you need, It was just the time frame that was not satisfactory to you.

I recall how frustrated I got with Sony when they had a TV of mine ( top of the line Wega back then) on a W&R job that went on 11 months and included them sending me back the TV obviously un worked on at one time before I returned it and had to wait another 3-4 months for them to get a circuit board replaced. If they had internet forums back then I sure would have posted on them.

Spyderco does have several supervisors who can help in a strange situation and I wouldn't bother to find the exact one in the W&R's chain of command. Just dial the operator and ask for a supervisor or manager to help you. They do take a lot of folks to blade though, in addition Kristi or others could be at another trade show somewhere else at the same time. They are very fast moving, hard working people and they all pretty much have multiple responsibilities and can mostly all help in a pinch. Once again good luck.

Sorry about cluttering up this thread with other things off topic as well. S#!+ happens sometimes when dealing with people who are all imperfect by nature. That's every one of us.

Joe

[chuck_roxas45]

Takes a big man to accept and apologize for a mistake.

[nirvanero]

Well said Joe.

[JNewell]

The only thing I can add is sometimes it is simply better to keep trying to contact someone at Spyderco rather than publicly bash them. You may not have intended that, but it looks that way. I have been in the customer service industry for many years until recently. I really feel social media has made it where people no longer have to work on their social skills and how we speak to each other. I am guilty of this myself.

Echo/agree. In fact, nearly all of my "successes" with customer service have come in situations where I politely encourage them to meet or exceed their own high standards and my expectations, rather than threatening, insulting or other similar responses. I know it works the other way round, too (when I'm the target of the complaint (not quite the right word...) rather than the one with the complaint!). :)

[Cliff Stamp]

Echo/agree. In fact, nearly all of my "successes" with customer service have come in situations where I politely encourage them to meet or exceed their own high standards and my expectations, rather than threatening, insulting or other similar responses.

Yes, but that isn't the situation, and it isn't even the purpose of the post.

The simple fact is this - you either have a shill forum or you don't. If you don't want to have a shill forum then you have to encourage negative commentary the exact same way you encourage the positive. Any movement at all to pressure the removal of negative commentary is towards a shill forum.

If the original post had been positive, praising the interaction would there have been pressure to not have it made? If the answer is no then anyone putting pressure to have it remove as written is again making this move towards a shill forum, it is one of the few manufacturer forums that are not and it would be a huge loss to happen.

I have had in general mainly positive response with Spyderco, but on occasion they were negative (never service related) and I speak about the negative and positive with the same ease depending on the topic - the instant there is any pressure to make this change you are creating a positive reporting bias - i.e. you are making a shill forum.

Here is the frank reality, the only benefit to shill forums is when the makers/manufacturers actually make poor products and they do not perform as claimed thus if you do put pressure to make this a shill forum that is what you actually believe.

I don't. I actually believe that Spyderco makes good products, that they have good customer service and that open and frank discussion of both will always dominate in their favor and thus there is no need, and in fact only a loss, in trying to censor negative commentary both directly and indirectly.

[chuck_roxas45]

Yes, but that isn't the situation, and it isn't even the purpose of the post.

The simple fact is this - you either have a shill forum or you don't. If you don't want to have a shill forum then you have to encourage negative commentary the exact same way you encourage the positive. Any movement at all to pressure the removal of negative commentary is towards a shill forum.

If the original post had been positive, praising the interaction would there have been pressure to not have it made? If the answer is no then anyone putting pressure to have it remove as written is again making this move towards a shill forum, it is one of the few manufacturer forums that are not and it would be a huge loss to happen.

I have had in general mainly positive response with Spyderco, but on occasion they were negative (never service related) and I speak about the negative and positive with the same ease depending on the topic - the instant there is any pressure to make this change you are creating a positive reporting bias - i.e. you are making a shill forum.

Here is the frank reality, the only benefit to shill forums is when the makers/manufacturers actually make poor products and they do not perform as claimed thus if you do put pressure to make this a shill forum that is what you actually believe.

I don't. I actually believe that Spyderco makes good products, that they have good customer service and that open and frank discussion of both will always dominate in their favor and thus there is no need, and in fact only a loss, in trying to censor negative commentary both directly and indirectly.

I find that I'm actually agreeing with Cliff on this. Unless it's outright bashing, a negative commentary can be exposed to scrutiny and discussed. This open discussion will soon show the semblance of truth.

[KBR]

KBR, though I chose to approach things differently that does not in any way mean I don't respect you or your way of getting business done.Nor do I feel it's my business to pass judgement. I apologize for the way I came across on this forum.
We all can agree that people need to be happy with their interactions with the company they choose to do business with or they tend to not come back. You have been doing the Spyderco thing plenty of long enough for me to see it's evident you aren't just here to cause trouble. As I stated on the other forum good luck getting what you need to be a satisfied customer and hopefully put this behind you. In the end we are all pretty sure you will get what you need, It was just the time frame that was not satisfactory to you.

I recall how frustrated I got with Sony when they had a TV of mine ( top of the line Wega back then) on a W&R job that went on 11 months and included them sending me back the TV obviously un worked on at one time before I returned it and had to wait another 3-4 months for them to get a circuit board replaced. If they had internet forums back then I sure would have posted on them.

Spyderco does have several supervisors who can help in a strange situation and I wouldn't bother to find the exact one in the W&R's chain of command. Just dial the operator and ask for a supervisor or manager to help you. They do take a lot of folks to blade though, in addition Kristi or others could be at another trade show somewhere else at the same time. They are very fast moving, hard working people and they all pretty much have multiple responsibilities and can mostly all help in a pinch. Once again good luck.

Sorry about cluttering up this thread with other things off topic as well. S#!+ happens sometimes when dealing with people who are all imperfect by nature. That's every one of us.

Joe

Well said, Joe, and thank you BUT you were simply voicing your opinion so no apology is needed my friend....this is what forums like this are for. I didn't take, nor do I take, anything at a personal level here. I understand where you're coming from and I'm also familiar with the 'chain of command' method in taking care of a situation. I did call up Spyderco and spoke with someone in management a couple of days ago and he apologized, said that he would look into the matter and see about expediting the shipping on the Techno since it's going on two weeks with it in that state, so I'm going to see how that works out.

Unfortunately, even if it was shipped as scheduled this past Thursday or Friday, I have no idea.....haven't gotten any notice about it.

BTW, no problem at all with straying a bit off topic at times...

Yes, but that isn't the situation, and it isn't even the purpose of the post.

The simple fact is this - you either have a shill forum or you don't. If you don't want to have a shill forum then you have to encourage negative commentary the exact same way you encourage the positive. Any movement at all to pressure the removal of negative commentary is towards a shill forum.

If the original post had been positive, praising the interaction would there have been pressure to not have it made? If the answer is no then anyone putting pressure to have it remove as written is again making this move towards a shill forum, it is one of the few manufacturer forums that are not and it would be a huge loss to happen.

I have had in general mainly positive response with Spyderco, but on occasion they were negative (never service related) and I speak about the negative and positive with the same ease depending on the topic - the instant there is any pressure to make this change you are creating a positive reporting bias - i.e. you are making a shill forum.

Here is the frank reality, the only benefit to shill forums is when the makers/manufacturers actually make poor products and they do not perform as claimed thus if you do put pressure to make this a shill forum that is what you actually believe.

I don't. I actually believe that Spyderco makes good products, that they have good customer service and that open and frank discussion of both will always dominate in their favor and thus there is no need, and in fact only a loss, in trying to censor negative commentary both directly and indirectly.

I find that I'm actually agreeing with Cliff on this. Unless it's outright bashing, a negative commentary can be exposed to scrutiny and discussed. This open discussion will soon show the semblance of truth.

Well said, Cliff and Chuck, and I highly agree.

[JNewell]

I agree...not sure what in my post triggered your reaction.

Yes, but that isn't the situation, and it isn't even the purpose of the post.

The simple fact is this - you either have a shill forum or you don't. If you don't want to have a shill forum then you have to encourage negative commentary the exact same way you encourage the positive. Any movement at all to pressure the removal of negative commentary is towards a shill forum.

If the original post had been positive, praising the interaction would there have been pressure to not have it made? If the answer is no then anyone putting pressure to have it remove as written is again making this move towards a shill forum, it is one of the few manufacturer forums that are not and it would be a huge loss to happen.

I have had in general mainly positive response with Spyderco, but on occasion they were negative (never service related) and I speak about the negative and positive with the same ease depending on the topic - the instant there is any pressure to make this change you are creating a positive reporting bias - i.e. you are making a shill forum.

Here is the frank reality, the only benefit to shill forums is when the makers/manufacturers actually make poor products and they do not perform as claimed thus if you do put pressure to make this a shill forum that is what you actually believe.

I don't. I actually believe that Spyderco makes good products, that they have good customer service and that open and frank discussion of both will always dominate in their favor and thus there is no need, and in fact only a loss, in trying to censor negative commentary both directly and indirectly.

[JudasD]

All we need is someone to kick-start Godwin's law and then all will be in balance in the forumite universe. :)

JD

[Cliff Stamp]

I agree...not sure what in my post triggered your reaction.

One of the problems with forum discussion is the nature of a open group discussion and direct peer discussion which happens at the same time but often isn't clear when there is a switch between the two. I was not responding directly towards you in that you were creating the issue, more so making a general post prompted by an idea you generated.

I agree with your approach to customer service and in general realize that the person on the other end of the line is just doing a job and they have limitations of what they can do. If you make life unpleasant for them they will likely to the least they can, if you do the opposite they will likely do the most they can. If you are really pleasant they could even remember you and provide better service next time.

My point was indirect, that the first post here was not a discussion of how to work with customer service, but an example of failed customer service from the customers PoV who both wanted to vent as well make some kind of psa. While this is not maybe a pleasant thing to read, any negative influence towards that customer does nothing positive and there has been a lot of it in this thread.

If it doesn't appear that way, again just reverse the post, make it one praising Spyderco and then imagine what the posts would look like in regards to how / what should have been posted. If there is any change then it shows a clear reporting bias and a movement towards a shill forum.

Again Spyderco makes a good product, in general they have good customer service and an open discussion of both sides will always end in their favor and as a side effect it puts all issues in a forum where they have direct control and ease of reporting/notices.