Support?? Futaba vs JR/Spektrum

[HeLiJerSey]

Futaba supports stinks no matter how you view it!!!

[Greybird]

Originally Posted by HeLiJerSey

No arguing please! i just want everyone to select either Futaba or JR. now don`t forget we are not doing a poll on how good their products are like the 7C, 10C, DX7, 9303, 12X, etc.....and so forth. that`s basically your own preference whether your a Futaba or JR guy. in my eyes both are great products, i had the best of both worlds.

I`m sure alot of Helifreakers here called either Horizon (JR/Skectrum) or Hobbico (Futaba) with a question.
This poll is mainly who has better customer satisfactory overall. please let`s vote and move on, keep it clean..lol.. now carry on!!!

Uh, Keep it clean.

[JackdaWack]

You have to expect the fact however that these places selling the product, may not know how to actually use it.. or are limited in service due to knowledge. I'm sure they have a protocol for all malfunctioning and/or damaged items. Remember there just customer service, not profession support for products. I don't blame the guy for getting annoyed that some one calls up and just expects him to know everything about a product, however something unusually seen in cust.serv. is being polite and just saying sorry but the support your looking for doesn't exist here.

[HeLiJerSey]

Futaba small company or big company??? BIG company = professionalism, there really isn`t any argument here. simple if the guy does not know the answer or can`t answer a question. very simple to say, "sir i will have someone call you back to answer your question", reality i don`t know what everyones occupation is but in the professional indusrty like futaba should know how to handle there customers no matter what level of support someone is asking for. i think everybody knows that.....unless your a landscaper or a person who picks apples from a tree all day...in that field all day long.

[cbdane]

Originally Posted by HeLiJerSey

...there really isn`t any agruement here.

Uhh, I'd beg to differ. You seem to be doing quite fine...

[HeLiJerSey]

Originally Posted by cbdane

Uhh, I'd beg to differ. You seem to be doing quite fine...

thanks CBDANE

[HeLiJerSey]

i guess that`s the poll?? with customer satisfaction!

[JackdaWack]

Originally Posted by HeLiJerSey

Futaba small company or big company??? BIG company = professionalism, there really isn`t any argument here. simple if the guy does not know the answer or can`t answer a question. very simple to say, "sir i will have someone call you back to answer your question".

Well u expect just because u bought there product there obligated to give you answers to all your questions... but the reality is, they have to pay people to help you. So they hire people based on what they need them for. They don't scout knowledge RC people to work for them, they get people who will work for a cheap paycheck. They hire people to assist in claims made by customers, so they keep there unfortunate customers. It wouldnt be very beneficial for a company to pay people to teach there customers how to use the product for free. People would be taking advantage of it. Time is money! If they charged people to call, and had product support, then i could see some one being upset if a question went unswered.

Some companies, like PC companies, will have a toll free claims service, and a product support service that charges you. It makes sense, if there product has an issue its on them, if you have an issue with a product its on you.
If every one called up and asked, what does this button do, and how do i program mixing, the suport service, if free, would actually be loosing money, they would have to hire knowledgable people, with professional experience in there products, they would have to train there support service and spend loads in recources to really make it a product support service. Mainly why most compaines dont do it, or charge a fee.

[HeLiJerSey]

WOOW..Spektrum smoked Futaba...as far as customer relations.:dance

[HeLiJerSey]

[DarkHeli]

This thread is flawed. People who own mainly spektrum will most likely have had more spektrum type calls for help, therefore they will vote for spektrum, its not necassarily because spektrum customer support is better then futaba, it is because they have more market share in current helicopter gear. ( At least this website shows this.)

[Greybird]

Well, that settles it. Sell all your Futaba stuff and get Spektrum. ... Also, switch to Spektrum servo's and Spektrum gyro's. Wait, there servo's suck, and they do not make gyro's. The 10CHG is not really a "beginner" radio. Get a DX-7 if that will make you happier. Trying to condemn Futaba for not answering newbie questions on an open forum is truly not appropriate. In my world, I will buy nothing but Futaba. I have had no issues, with any of their products. FWIW, since you own a 10chg, try a GY 520 with a BLS 251 combo for the tail , and BLS 451 cyclic servos, and a R600HS. I guarantee whatever heli these components are attached to will kick some serious butt. I have a Swift with the above stuff, and each flight ends with a smile that is very tough to wipe off. My next heli will be a Logo 500 with the exact components. I have been flying heli's for about 6 years. These new Futaba components are just light years ahead of other stuff I have used.

[Nuclear Dave]

Originally Posted by Greybird

Well, that settles it. Sell all your Futaba stuff and get Spektrum. ... Also, switch to Spektrum servo's and Spektrum gyro's. Wait, there servo's suck, and they do not make gyro's. The 10CHG is not really a "beginner" radio. Get a DX-7 if that will make you happier. Trying to condemn Futaba for not answering newbie questions on an open forum is truly not appropriate. In my world, I will buy nothing but Futaba. I have had no issues, with any of their products. FWIW, since you own a 10chg, try a GY 520 with a BLS 251 combo for the tail , and BLS 451 cyclic servos, and a R600HS. I guarantee whatever heli these components are attached to will kick some serious butt. I have a Swift with the above stuff, and each flight ends with a smile that is very tough to wipe off. My next heli will be a Logo 500 with the exact components. I have been flying heli's for about 6 years. These new Futaba components are just light years ahead of other stuff I have used.

Customer/Product support is there to answer question concerning thier product. Wether or not its covered in the manual shouldn't really matter. The tech was correct to mention the fact that it was covered in the manual but then he should have answered the question in a polite manner. People can argue that the tech did nothing wrong but the fact is Futaba has lost prior and future customers because their employee's did not perform their jobs.

I have been stuck in a toss up between the 7C and DX7 but this is the type of stuff that helps me make up my mind. This has been a great thread.

Spektrum does make servo's and gyro's under their parent company JR.

[Greybird]

By all means, get the DX-7. Those are perfect for people that need help with set-up. I have nothing against them. I like Futaba. Also, keep in mind, I have had questions about the 520, and on the conditions part of the menu which were answered by Futaba Tech support. Whta does this lever do? type of questions should be refered back to the manual.

[Greybird]

...Oops

[John Cook]

Futaba and OS service through Hobbyservices is criminal in my opinion. IMO they purposely find ways NOT to cover a warranty claim. Support LOL. Good luck with futaba. JR/Horizion might not be able to answer your question, but at least they will try. Plus their service is above and beyond the call of duty. I sent in a tail servo I wasn't sure if it was my tail issue or not. They tested, couldn't find a fault, but replaced it just in case for "customer satisfaction". I guarantee you, Futaba/Hobbyservices has NEVER heard of that concept. IMO they are liars and thieves and cheat people . Plus they like to tell you, you are at fault and trying to rip them off. I'm SURE that does happen. BUT, in the cases I've HAD to deal with them it wasn't our issue, but a parts issue and they still tried to deny coverage and blame it on us. I will NOT buy futaba/OS parts from US dealers for that reason. I like those products, but I will NOT support Hobbic/hobbyservices which distribute for the US and profit from US sales. Screw them as they screw me and my friends. I'll buy ashore and skip their profit and risk any warranty myself, b/c IMO there is NO warranty in the US for these parts anyway. Just heartache and pain and blame if you send something in.

as you call tell Hobbyservices has gotten on my bad side in a BAD WAY.

Also: Keep in mind that Futaba/OS/JR or whatever foreign brand does NOT support product in the US. That's up to the US distributer to do. The parent company sells to the distributer, and the distributer is SUPPOSED to support the brand. JR/Airtronics/YS US distributers do a great job. Hobbico/Great planes which distribute Futaba/OS do an absolutely aweful job of supporting the end user. If they can find any and I mean ANY plausable reason why they should not cover your part, they will try to use it. Just to get out of fixing your parts. This is NOT an attack at OS/Futaba. I love their products. They just need to find a different US distributer so #1 we don't have to over pay for crappy service.

[ClayK]

I disagree with your assessment of their warranty support. I've sent in a couple things (motor and radio) for warranty issues and received them back in a timely manner, with no questions asked. A friend of mine that also flies with a Futaba radio had a warranty issue with his, twice. Both times, no questions asked, repairs were done quickly. I've also discussed similar issues with others, all have had no problems with warranty servicing.

[John Cook]

Originally Posted by ClayK

I disagree with your assessment of their warranty support. I've sent in a couple things (motor and radio) for warranty issues and received them back in a timely manner, with no questions asked. A friend of mine that also flies with a Futaba radio had a warranty issue with his, twice. Both times, no questions asked, repairs were done quickly. I've also discussed similar issues with others, all have had no problems with warranty servicing.

ClayK
I do believe you that you've had good support from them, and I'm happy you did. I've had 2 occasions to use Hobbico/Hobby services support and I have a friend who's needed to use them. Well with our experiences they've tried to deny our motor claims as user error, and his servo claim as "purchased on grey or black market--I forget the exact term" going so far as to say his servo claim was fraudulent and they were confiscating the servo from him. That I might add included the invoice for Heliproz where he bought the servo and it was DOA on install. It took a call from a manager at Heliproz to confirm he did indeed buy the servo there before they would replace the defective servo. Now back to the motors. OS91SZ pumped motors. One taco'd beyond belief due to pump failure, other was acting up but aside from some very mild scoring of the liner, no other damage and ran fine otherwise except the pump would occasionally act up and quit working, resulting in emergency auto to prevent lean run. Well they denied warranty on both saying it was a user tune issue NOT the pumps fault, that the pumps were working fine, and to top it off, they DENIED ANY pump issues in the OS91 series motors. I think we can all agree the SZ pumps were not exactely known as being the pinnacle of reliability. After basically a test of wills on the phone they agreed to fix the taco'd motor, but at first wanted more for repair than a new motor costs. Eventually after they ran out of excuses, which we deftly explained were false, they were left with no choice but to fix the bad motor. The other motor I told them just to ship back and I'd fix it on my own since I really didn't trust them further.

That has been my last dealings with them. Hopefully my last. So while some have had good luck with them, I really hope most of you never have to deal with them. Further, I believe that in the last 6-9 months there has been a change in their policy to the effect that they are increasing their denial rates so that if any plausable explanation could be user error, then they will deny it. Many parts failures could be product defect OR user error. Certainly people will send in things for warranty when THEY know they messed it up b/c they don't want to pay for it and think companies have deep pockets. Is that wrong, YES it is. Should the company pay for it, NO they shouldn't. BUT IMO they are over denying claims in an effort to save themselves money even when a very valid reason exists that the part was damaged from material defect, NOT user error.

I"m jaded what can I say! I've read many posts and talked to MANY people who feel the same way. Sorry!

[HeLiJerSey]

No matter how you look at it Horizon smokes Futaba just look at the numbers. those are the facts...no hard feelings CLAY K again i like futaba stuff. but i chose horizon for the fact you can ask anything and they will answer. that`s the oral of this whole thread. that goes for everyone else. again i have no problems i think they should try better or learn how to speak to a customer no matter what question is ask.

[ClayK]

Originally Posted by HeLiJerSey

No matter how you look at it Horizon smokes Futaba just look at the numbers. those are the facts...no hard feelings CLAY K again i like futaba stuff. but i chose horizon for the fact you can ask anything and they will answer. that`s the oral of this whole thread. that goes for everyone else. again i have no problems i think they should try better or learn how to speak to a customer no matter what question is ask.

Why would I have hard feelings? I've had good support from both Horizon and Hobby Services. I believe your initial presentation ultimately dictates the outcome of your situation. Considering how you've presented yourself (HeLiJerSey) in past threads, I feel pretty confident and make the assumption (which I don't do a lot of) that you probably approached the situation in a less than favorable manner. I could be wrong, but there are plenty of threads on here where you've rubbed people wrong or something similar. That's what we call a pattern. Now, I'm not saying you did or didn't present your case in a positive manner, but isn't it possible that you didn't? Customer Service isn't there to bend over backwards when you treat them negatively. In fact, in all of the Customer Service areas that I have worked in over the last 20 years, when a customer is aggressive or abusive or unreasonable, that's when a manager gets involved.

Anyway, whatever. If you don't like your Futaba stuff, sell it. Switch to Spektrum/JR. Frankly, I don't care. If you want to go on and on about it, stop being a wuss and walk the walk. All this talking about this and that. If the point you want to make is Spektrum/JR is better, then switch. The numbers on the poll are subjective since it's only the helicopter community and only the people on this site and only the people that chose to vote. You have a 115 votes in your poll and there are 92,000+ users on this board. You really think your 115 is a representative slice of the hobby writ large or even the helicopter portion?

Heck, you said you would sell it all for a $1. Here's my public bid and me taking up your offer (kidding or not).