Caldwell: Take it to the Bank!

[Spitpatch]

Bought a Caldwell "The Rock" shooting rest (bench tripod) probably around '03 or '05. The elevating wheel (looks like a big sprocket that you turn to elevate or lower the bag platform) failed, as it is threaded cast aluminum and (for some reason) was expected to bear on the threaded steel main stem.

Admittedly, I may "exercise" this piece of equipment at a much more frequent rate than the average guy. I considered this "failure" my fault, and to be expected. I just wanted to buy the part.
I went online and had a "chat", where a Rep was not very helpful, finally resigned myself to just replacing it with a 1" hex nut.

Stewed on it for a week, then phoned Caldwell. Guy there said "Wait a minute. I have a box of those. Hang on." (Lots of rattling around in the background) Then asked, "What diameter is your stem?". "One inch", I replied.

"Ohhh....hmmm, well that might explain why the chat guy had difficulty. They are 3/4" now. I don't have any of one inch"
"Hey, ya know what? I'm just gonna warranty the whole thing. Gimme your address."

5 days later:



The shooting industry used to be replete with outfits like this. Caldwell is still doin' it right.

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[Flopsweat]

They replaced some electronic earmuffs for me once because there was a slight delay in the vox circuit. No hassle whatsoever. No problem Sir, what is your address, we get a batch of them every 90 days, you should have yours in 3 weeks. Very professional customer service.

 

[Member 5605]

May be a good thing but the first call should have resolved it, not the second.
As somebody who has been in Customer Service/Relations in one way or another since about 2000, two phone calls should not have been needed.

 

[Flopsweat]

May be a good thing but the first call should have resolved it, not the second.
As somebody who has been in Customer Service/Relations in one way or another since about 2000, two phone calls should not have been needed.

Still miles ahead of Facebook.

 

[Spitpatch]

May be a good thing but the first call should have resolved it, not the second.
As somebody who has been in Customer Service/Relations in one way or another since about 2000, two phone calls should not have been needed.

I agree entirely with your premise. I've been in "crucial" customer service for 30 years and conventional customer service for 10 years prior. BUT: the first contact was on "computer chat". This is not the first, or perhaps 90th or 190th time I have proven to myself that humans actually talking to each other get their communications completed in a far more superior manner.

In fact my reliance and hard evidenced conviction of this is one of the great struggles I have in my profession where the newer people believe actual conversation is unnecessary, inconvenient and tedious (and sometimes even feel threatened or challenged by it).

But you are right. Shoulda been handled on the spot. I believe had I made a phone call to start with, it probably would have.

I also offered this account as a contrast to a thread I posted not long ago regarding RCBS refusing to grant ANY allowance on an electronic scale that failed. Honestly, I could not expect an electronic device to be considered "hard gear", but RCBS has been a bastion of guarantee reliability. I would have been ecstatic to have received a moderate discount on a brand new measure/scale outfit, if only as a result of my brand loyalty to them for 48 years.

I still believe Fred Huntington would not have put the brand on it if he could not stand behind it.

 

[FordPrefect]

Sounds like Geissele Triggers. When I was setting up mine, I stripped out the hex nut in the trigger and contacted them about it, two days later I had a new trigger and they didn't ask for the borked one back.