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Box Store surprise

Started by jargo432, May 08, 2014, 02:31:27 PM

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jargo432

I was out running around looking for a new liner for my hard hat and happen to stop at Home Depot.  They didn't have the liner so I went to see what brand of chainsaws they had and was surprised to see an Echo display.  They even had a cs590 for $399.

Now I know people are going to jump on the band waggon about don't support the evil box stores and buy from a small dealer,  and that's exactly what I plan on doing, but it was nice to see a great saw in there.  I should have asked if they provide service for Echo but I was in a hurry.
Jack of all trades.

ladylake

 Echo dealers are the same price as the box stores and might though in something free.    Steve
Timberking B20  18000  hours +  Case75xt grapple + forks+8" snow bucket + dirt bucket   770 Oliver   Lots(too many) of chainsaws, Like the Echo saws and the Stihl and Husky     W5  Case loader   1  trailers  Wright sharpener     Suffolk  setter Volvo MCT125c skid loader

Claybraker

Yep. I did some price comparisons a few months ago between Home Depot, a local chain (didn't know anybody outside of the metro Atlanta area had heard of them) and Howard Brothers on Echo products. Howard Brothers was consistently $10 lower.

SawTroll

Quote from: jargo432 on May 08, 2014, 02:31:27 PM
I was out running around looking for a new liner for my hard hat and happen to stop at Home Depot.  They didn't have the liner so I went to see what brand of chainsaws they had and was surprised to see an Echo display.  They even had a cs590 for $399.

Now I know people are going to jump on the band waggon about don't support the evil box stores and buy from a small dealer,  and that's exactly what I plan on doing, but it was nice to see a great saw in there.  I should have asked if they provide service for Echo but I was in a hurry.

The CS590 is by far the cheapest of the current 60cc Echo saws (the others being the 600 and the 620) - and I assume there are reasons that it is cheapest..... ;)

Even the 620 is heavy for a 60cc saw, and power to weight isn't among the best ones out there - but it is a step in the right direction for Echo. I suspect the 590 isn't so much.....
Information collector.

Brian_Rhoad

Our local "Echo Dealer" doesn't stock any saws. They are a Stihl dealer also. Why should I order a saw from someone who should have them in stock and not buy it from someone who does stock them?

beenthere

Maybe the important part of this equation is "who can I go to for help, service, or parts after the saw purchase? "
south central Wisconsin
It may be that my sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others

BradMarks

Supporting the "local guy" resonates with me, it keeps more dollars in the community. I do believe that a servicing dealer is the best option, but in the same breath, I don't know of any dealer who will turn away a repair job 'cause it wasn't "bought there".

Brian_Rhoad

I do all of my own repairs, unless it is warranty repair. That is one reason I won't buy another Stihl. I can order parts online for other brands. I do support my local dealer when the deserve my support. 

Chop Shop

Find a nice "like new" saw on craigslist.  The money will stay local (all of it) and its tax free (if you have sales tax) and a nice like new saw can be found or half price or better.


My local dealers are dumb as a stick and one is kinda crooked too.   They never stock anything unless its a crappy new saw.  Parts, better wait for an order.  I can order things myself.

Madsens is the only killer shop around here but its a 2 hour drive for me.



I like to support local as much as possible and preach it to tothers when I can, but its getting harder to find QUALITY HONEST help at smaller stores these days.

With the big chains giving the squeeze, I would think customer support/satisfaction would be priority #one, but its not.

LittleJohn

...that is why local dealer switched to DOLMAR; guys would buy junk off big box shelf and when it broke take it to him and he woudl make squat

pine

Quote from: Chop Shop on May 09, 2014, 01:13:48 PM
Find a nice "like new" saw on craigslist.  The money will stay local (all of it) and its tax free (if you have sales tax) and a nice like new saw can be found or half price or better.


My local dealers are dumb as a stick and one is kinda crooked too.   They never stock anything unless its a crappy new saw.  Parts, better wait for an order.  I can order things myself.

Madsens is the only killer shop around here but its a 2 hour drive for me.



I like to support local as much as possible and preach it to tothers when I can, but its getting harder to find QUALITY HONEST help at smaller stores these days.

With the big chains giving the squeeze, I would think customer support/satisfaction would be priority #one, but its not.

Madsens is great but their are some great Stihl dealers around more local for me that do carry a good supply of parts. (Madsens is 1+45 for me)  Where about are you in the PNW

Paul_H

I started keeping track this week on the time spent with folks that can't get parts or service on purchases from the box stores.
15 minutes with a guy that bought a battery powered mower and the battery failed and he couldn't source another battery anywhere he looked.We couldn't source one either.
A little later a guy came in looking for a rope rotor for a 5hp Powerfist engine he bought from Princess Auto.Similar to a Honda but not quite.15 minutes the one day and 10 the next. He doesn't know what to do and he is out the $200 for a new engine.
A elderly lady called the same day for a cap for the stringhead on her Black and Decker trimmer.I did a failed google search for her and listened to her and urged her to complaint to the store where she bought it and the company that manufactured it. Five minutes.

Over a two day period I dealt with a guy looking for a bar tensioner for a Makita.I can't find a parts supplier so finally went to the US website and found a contact number and called and found a number in BC.After identifying myself as a repair shop they transfered me to customer service.The woman cut me off and said you are not a customer sir so I passed the phone over to the customer at my counter.He spoke to her over 5 minutes and when he was through he said that was not a helpfull conversation and she suggesed he try going online.

At the end of the week a guy phoned from a town a 1/2 hour south to see if we would repair his brand new Generator that his son purchased at Costco (ran 20 minutes then quit).It is a honda knockoff and has no spark.I told him his best bet was taking it back to Costco.
He kept pressing me to repair it so I told him I could try a new Honda coil but he would be taking a risk that it wouldn't match. Finally he agreed that returning it to Costco would be the best bet. the whole process took 20 minutes.

I was telling a friend about the lost wages we experience on account of dealing with box store purchases and he said "that's part of doing business,maybe you'll pick up a customer. I said maybe but what would you say if a stranger came on your jobsite while you were working and tied up you and your crew with questions on how to save money by helping your competition?
He said he never thought of it that way,that it is lost wages for the shop and frustration for the marooned box store customer.
I urged each of the customers to voice their frustration to the boxstore and the manufacturers and let others know of their experience.We are a Stihl and Toro dealer athough we service any brand that we can get parts for but we can't help when it comes to the obscure.
Science isn't meant to be trusted it's to be tested

Spike60

I'm with Paul on this. Except that we don't even spend the time chasing a probable loose end on this stuff. It's getting worse as the number of things with oddball chinese engines increases. There really is no support network in place for most of these products. And once you lay your hands on this junk, you're married to it and all future problems, so I want nothing to do with it.

I think most customers simply don't understand how the industry works. Many believe that a shop has access to anything and everything, and that is of course not true. They are surprised when you tell them that cannot get parts for unit. Could be a well known brand as well. I turn away most Echo and Stihl as I'm not a dealer for either and can't get parts. I won't chase parts as it's a sure way to lose money. Some dealers will drive 45 minutes to get a $4 fuel line. I don't get it.  ???

Messing with other brands can also tarnish a shop's reputation. We are considered the best Husky shop around. Guys drive from other towns, and even area codes to see us. Tons of parts, plenty of experience and we know what we are doing. We have a lot of "cred" as they say. A brand we don't carry? No parts, no IPL's, little experience, slow turnaround on the job despite more time invested. We go from being the best, to looking like dummies. Not good for us or the customer.
Husqvarna-Jonsered
Ashokan Turf and Timber
845-657-6395

beenthere

Where is Spike60 located?
Pls fill out your bio, ;)  Probably have said in a post, but that gets lost to others reading your recent posts.
south central Wisconsin
It may be that my sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others

Mac102004

Home Depot also sells those 64cc Makita (Dolmar) saws I thinks it's model #6421, for a pretty good price. It might be just available online and not in store though as I've never seen one on display.
562XPG 24" B/C
357XP 18" B/C

sawguy21

But where is after sales support for that Makita? Who could do a warranty repair? Here most Makita service centers only look after power tools, they don't touch gas. The Dolmar shop can't do warranty repairs unless he is a Makita dealer which would be unlikely.
Going back to the original post H-D sells Echo but is not what we would consider a dealer, they don't service anything. The dealers I worked at don't stock saws because they don't sell alongside Stihl and Husqvarna, the brand recognition is not there, and Echo does not cater to the professional logger. The landscapers like the trimmers and blowers and the consumers see that but saws get dusty on the shelf.
Online shopping can be very difficult for the servicing dealer to compete with. He/she has a considerable investment that needs to make a return, the guy sitting in his skivvies and t-shirt front of a keyboard at home doesn't so can shave his margins and deal on volume. Where will we be when the shops are gone? Throw a perfectly good saw into the landfill and order another online because we can't replace a starter rope or overhaul a carburetor? Just my 2 cents (1.8 US)
old age and treachery will always overcome youth and enthusiasm

7sleeper

Quote from: sawguy21 on May 24, 2014, 12:57:36 PM
But where is ....Where will we be when the shops are gone? Throw a perfectly good saw into the landfill and order another online because we can't replace a starter rope or overhaul a carburetor? Just my 2 cents (1.8 US)
The dream of the industry! Throw away and buy new!

7

Paul_H

Great post Roy and Spike
Science isn't meant to be trusted it's to be tested

JohnG28

Great posts Spike and sawguy. Beenthere, Spike is in the central NY area.
Stihl MS361, 460 & 200T, Jonsered 490, Jonsereds 90, Husky 350 & 142, Homelite XL and Super XL

jargo432

I think one problem is lack of information.  I can remember as a kid (young man), the first think I did after buying a car (beater) was to get a haynes or chilton book for it.  I wouldn't even know what book to buy for a saw.

I mean really? how hard could it be to work on a cheap chainsaw?  If a man knew what he was doing he could probally make it run for 20 years for 1/10th of the cost of a quality saw.

People just don't WANT to work on their on equipment these days, and the box stores capitalize on that.
Jack of all trades.

Ianab

You can still buy books on general 2 stroke engine maintenance and rebuilding etc. Web pages and  forums will fill in the gaps. 2 stroke engines are not rocket science

But if you can't get the parts, or the quality of the machine is so poor that it's basically shaken itself apart, then the info doesn't really help. Like the cheap Chinese knock off saws. The plastic is moulded to the same shape, but it's crap plastic. The metals studs pull out, it cracks easily from heat and vibration. The metal parts are not the same quality, and prone to  stress fractures etc.

Building a functional (and reliable) chainsaw isn't a problem, any number of manufactures can do that. But if you try and reduce the price past a certain level, then you have to start cutting corners, use cheaper materials, skimp on the quality control etc. Then you get to the level where it's not worth fixing any more...

Ian
Weekend warrior, Peterson JP test pilot, Dolmar 7900 and Stihl MS310 saws and  the usual collection of power tools :)

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