I bought my second new saw last October - a Stihl 460 Mag. I was apprehensive dropping nearly $1000 on a small piece of hardware but a couple of factors led me to it. The main one was I was tired of wrestling with a used 460 that I was depending on to get my winter wood cut, but was constantly breaking down. The local hardware store became a Stihl dealer within the last year and I thought I'd give them a shot. I know the owner and he's a class act and fellow officer in the local Lions club.
Cutting season was bearing down on me so I bought in October and got right to business, cutting about 20 cord. The saw is awesome, but I noticed that for some reason after every tank I'd have to re-tension the chain. I finally got around to taking it in to the shop to have them check it today. Yes - I know I waited longer than I should have. I explained to the shop guy (not the owner) what the deal was. He called me a few hours later saying he checked it out and couldn't find anything wrong. He asked me about new chain vs old (stretching could cause loosening). Also cold vs warm, not pulling up the bar nose when tightening, etc. I know all of those things but was pleasant to him.
When I picked the saw up he had a $15 shop charge on it for labor. I prickled a bit at that. It's not the cost, to me it's the fact that I dropped a large chunk of cash on the saw and it's never held tension, so why is that my cost? Plus the shop guy is just not nice - sour attitude, unpleasant to talk to, and made me sound like a moron for asking why there was a shop charge on what I assumed was a warranty item.
I held my tongue, paid the charge, and figured I should cool off and ask the forum. So, am I out of line by being miffed at the shop charge? How many of you deal with crappy service at your local shop? I must say I'm not too keen on going back for service after warranty just based on the personality of the shop guy.
Cutting season was bearing down on me so I bought in October and got right to business, cutting about 20 cord. The saw is awesome, but I noticed that for some reason after every tank I'd have to re-tension the chain. I finally got around to taking it in to the shop to have them check it today. Yes - I know I waited longer than I should have. I explained to the shop guy (not the owner) what the deal was. He called me a few hours later saying he checked it out and couldn't find anything wrong. He asked me about new chain vs old (stretching could cause loosening). Also cold vs warm, not pulling up the bar nose when tightening, etc. I know all of those things but was pleasant to him.
When I picked the saw up he had a $15 shop charge on it for labor. I prickled a bit at that. It's not the cost, to me it's the fact that I dropped a large chunk of cash on the saw and it's never held tension, so why is that my cost? Plus the shop guy is just not nice - sour attitude, unpleasant to talk to, and made me sound like a moron for asking why there was a shop charge on what I assumed was a warranty item.
I held my tongue, paid the charge, and figured I should cool off and ask the forum. So, am I out of line by being miffed at the shop charge? How many of you deal with crappy service at your local shop? I must say I'm not too keen on going back for service after warranty just based on the personality of the shop guy.