Bill G
ArboristSite King
Not when the customer does not pay.
Best chainsaw brand?
- Thread starter sjpaq
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How is that relevant? If the customer does not pay, the shop will not continue to do business with the customer. And every dealer I have ever encountered will insist on full payment before releasing parts or repaired products to the customer.
Take care of the good repeat customers first. If you went out of your way to buy it elsewhere, I will get to you as soon as I can. Try to get a saw fixed at John Deere or Tractor supply.
Sounds like you understand how to take care of a customer and add get new customers to come back.
Around here you fix your own or you dont cut wood!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You would be one of the few with that mentality, it's not mainstream or even done by many of the "pro" users. refurbishing old equipment just isn't really done anymore.
LuDookie
ArboristSite Guru
And I think the saw manufacturers have caught onto that. Kind of like plastic firearms, where are they going to be in 30 or 40 years? And round and round we go. Haha.
Comparing a chainsaw to a gun is a bit far out, but I understand your thoughts and agree.
LuDookie
ArboristSite Guru
Ah c’mon, you can get more stirred up than that! Just kidding. I don’t want you getting stirred up. I like more and more everyday. Just reminded me of past conversations, that’s all. I’m getting geared up for hunting season right now so I’m on a bit of a gun kick.
Sierra_rider
Piss revver
Yep, most of my pro-user buddies have a shed full of non-running saws. Some of them have the intention of fixing up some of the saws, but it almost never actually happens.
One arborist friend in particular, has numerous ms201ts with varying issues w/them. If he bothered to put all the good parts together, he'd likely have a few servicable saws...but it's just not worth his time to do that. Even if he payed the dealer to fix them, it likely would be approaching the cost of just replacing them. BTW, not a knock against Stihl or the 201, it's just that tree service saws live hard lives. It's one thing if you're the operator, but good luck finding employees that have mechanical sympathy and/or don't do idiotic things.
I'll add that IMO it's mostly the older generation that fixes stuff...and this is to a fault sometimes. I know some of my older neighbors that will spend hours and $$$ trying to get their Craftsmen, Wild-thing, etc working properly. For better or worse, most cheap to mid level tools are not designed to be serviceable anymore...just another reason that I think battery saws are probably the best bet for most saw users. Most saw users aren't climbers, timber-fallers, or even processing a dozen cords of firewood a year.
I had a bit of a rant planned out, but deleted it. Not the sub forum for that talk lol.
Yep, yep, yep. My logging buddy has a small box truck box filled with worn out saws and small equipment. Just not worth his time. I did convince him to let me freshen up his last 372xp, but he has about 30 others for parts if it needs anything major. I'm not gonna charge him for it either. He loves his 572xp but has said many times it's just not as nimble ad his old 372xp.
100% are with the battery saw thing too, and the older generations tripping over a dollar to save a penny. Seems to really kick in when they retire. Gone through that with my grandparents and I'm sure with as cheap as my old man is, it will be the same with him.
Sierra_rider
Piss revver
When my grandfather died, we probably threw away about a dozen small engines that he had been working on. None were worth fixing, he was busy enough just maintaining his property of dense forest and could have easily justified a pro-level saw. However, he'd always go buy the cheapest saw he could find, use it til it wore out, and then spend more than the cost of a new one on chasing parts for it. He'd eventually really need a running saw, so he'd go buy another el cheapo plastic saw and repeat the process.
His mindset was likely developed from growing up on a farm during the depression/ww2...all of my great-uncles were the same way. It was a good mindset at the time, but I'd say most of the market nowadays is built on disposable instead of durable goods. I hate the thought of throwing a tool away, but if/when I do fix something, I know fully well that it's probably not financially the most prudent thing to do.
Bill G
ArboristSite King
Well when folks drop stuff off for repair they do not prepay. The pay upon pickup. Please tell me what a man/woman should do when the customer comes in, you hand them the bill and they refuse to pay? I would really love to hear your experience with that situation. The shop owner already has $137.23 in parts and labor in the saw and the customer refuses to pay the bill.
Here is what happens the shop owner puts the saw on a shelf hoping the customer will change their mind and return. When he/she runs out of shelf space and the saw is still there it goes in a huge steel container called a dumpster.
That is the real world.
Bill G
ArboristSite King
What conglomerate is your Deere dealer in NW Iowa? Not that it matters...................none are in the saw business' even though Stihl and them are quite cuddly under the sheets.
Bill G
ArboristSite King
That is the Illinois way
Bill G
ArboristSite King
There is a reason I have the now over 700 saws I have.
That's called doing business. It happens everyday with stuff a lot more expensive then a chain saw. No risk no reward.
That's because you're a saw hoarder.
