Broken GS 12" dob

Hi group,

Unpacked my GS 12" dob today.

Poor instructions for the base, but assembly was figured out OK. A
bit of commom sense helped. It uses a roller system for rotation.
The rollers are built into a thin circular mat. Time will tell how
good it is, but it rotates OK.

The carton for the OTA was in pretty poor condition as delivered - several
gashes and tears. It was delivered when no-one was home, so no
documentation.

The carton is not very solid, and it has a cradle of foam to support the
scope inside. My two Synta scopes, by comparison, were in a
carton within a carton - very solid and secure. Never-the-less,the tube
looked OK when unpacked, ie no scratches or dings.

I was utterly dismayed to hear a sliding sound as I stood the tube
up. Yes, the secondary mounting had been broken. The secondary is
held in a plastic mounting, which had fractured into several pieces.

Both the secondary and the primary mirrors are scratched, the
secondary, severely.

I have had an unsatisfactory warranty experience with the dealer, Andrews
Communications in Sydney, over a broken azimuth casing on an EQ5 mount. I
ended up paying to have it fixed. Lee Andrews casually told me I should be
more careful with my gear. But I look after it like jewels.

Boy, am I worried now.

In tears,
Ashley

Ashley,

Sorry to hear of your mishap. I've found dealing with Andrews
Communications a positive experience, but then I haven't tested their
warranty support.

Let us know how you go. I'd be interested to in how the scope performs
when you get it sorted. What price and accessories are they offering?

Mark
Sydney.

Hi Mark,

I phoned Andrews first thing this morning, and to Lee's credit he said to
return the scope. He will replace it with another one.

I was worried, as it would cost a lot to fix, with both mirrors trashed.

This is great service. I was expecting difficulty, and there was none.

I'll drive to Sydney this Fri evening with the broken scope, and check the
new one and bring it home rather than trust the packaging and the freight
company again. On Saturday I have to pick up a son from Uni in Armidale and
bring his gear home, so might as well take the long route via Sydney.

Extras: the scope came with 25 and 9mm plossls and a 2" 32mm ep. Finderscope
is 8 x 50.

I'm getting a 2" Sirius Neb1 filter, and I have a Telrad to go on it.

It is quite an impressive beast. Plenty of aperture for the neb filter. The
base has a handle that makes it easy enough to take from the garage to my
viewing area, and it will be both arms around the tube to carry it out.
Neither part is heavy. Setup time should be quick.

Hopefully I can tell you in a week how it goes. Nice dark skies then

Much relieved,
Ashley


Mark Elkington" wrote
Sorry to hear of your mishap. I've found dealing with Andrews
Communications a positive experience, but then I haven't tested their
warranty support.

Let us know how you go. I'd be interested to in how the scope performs
when you get it sorted. What price and accessories are they offering?

Mark
Sydney.

On Mon, 15 Sep 2003 17:58:47 +1000, "Ashley"
wrote:

Hi Mark,

I phoned Andrews first thing this morning, and to Lee's credit he said to
return the scope. He will replace it with another one.


Thats great to hear !

It would be sad to think that the only Aussie dealer selling the GS
scopes at a reasonable price didnt give good service.

I have heard that the broken secondary holder in shipping is a common
occurance with the new 12 inch dobs. Apparently the secondary screws
are cranked down a little too tightly on the plastic holder.

"Ashley" wrote in message ...
Hi group,

Unpacked my GS 12" dob today.


The carton for the OTA was in pretty poor condition as delivered - several
gashes and tears. It was delivered when no-one was home, so no
documentation.

The carton is not very solid, and it has a cradle of foam to support the
scope inside. My two Synta scopes, by comparison, were in a
carton within a carton - very solid and secure. Never-the-less,the tube
looked OK when unpacked, ie no scratches or dings.


I have had an unsatisfactory warranty experience with the dealer, Andrews
Communications in Sydney, over a broken azimuth casing on an EQ5 mount. I
ended up paying to have it fixed. Lee Andrews casually told me I should be
more careful with my gear. But I look after it like jewels.

Boy, am I worried now.

In tears,
Ashley

I am very sorry to hear about your problems with Andrews
Communications of Sydney. Please keep us unformed. The "casual" Mr.
Lee Andrews might be in for a shock if he finds out his behaviour is
the talking point of the astro newsgroup community. Rather than a
simple one to one local deal where he thinks he holds all the cards in
a completely private deal.
His packaging sounds like ****. Isn't he making enough profit on a
12" scope that he can't afford an extra bit of cardboard?
If you don't get complete sympathy and an immediate free replacement
then do let us know. I think a polite e-mail from everybody on s.a.a.
might bring him smartly to attention. These days you are not alone in
your battles with the seemingly uncaring dealer.

(I would hope that a simple e-mail note from many members of this
newsgroup would be an interesting exercise in customer empowerment).

Chris.B

Hi Chris,

I'm glad to say that Lee was most understanding, and immediately offered to
replace the scope.

Apparently some had broken secondary holders in transit. Lee had received a
supply of secondary holders to replace the broken ones, and offered to send
one to me, but when I explained the mirrors were damaged, he had no
hesitation in offering to replace the scope.

I am glad Lee made correcting this unfortunate event as easy as possible. I
guess I was just scared I might have been left high and dry.

I've now bought 3 scopes from Lee, and I would not hesitate to do so again.
Can't think of what I might need right at the moment

Ashley

8" EQ f5 reflector (my starter scope - got me hooked)
6" EQ f8 refractor
12" GS Dob (soon to see light)

"Chris.B" wrote in message
om...
"Ashley" wrote in message
...
Hi group,

Unpacked my GS 12" dob today.


The carton for the OTA was in pretty poor condition as delivered -
several
gashes and tears. It was delivered when no-one was home, so no
documentation.

The carton is not very solid, and it has a cradle of foam to support the
scope inside. My two Synta scopes, by comparison, were in a
carton within a carton - very solid and secure. Never-the-less,the tube
looked OK when unpacked, ie no scratches or dings.


I have had an unsatisfactory warranty experience with the dealer,
Andrews
Communications in Sydney, over a broken azimuth casing on an EQ5 mount.
I
ended up paying to have it fixed. Lee Andrews casually told me I should
be
more careful with my gear. But I look after it like jewels.

Boy, am I worried now.

In tears,
Ashley

I am very sorry to hear about your problems with Andrews
Communications of Sydney. Please keep us unformed. The "casual" Mr.
Lee Andrews might be in for a shock if he finds out his behaviour is
the talking point of the astro newsgroup community. Rather than a
simple one to one local deal where he thinks he holds all the cards in
a completely private deal.
His packaging sounds like ****. Isn't he making enough profit on a
12" scope that he can't afford an extra bit of cardboard?
If you don't get complete sympathy and an immediate free replacement
then do let us know. I think a polite e-mail from everybody on s.a.a.
might bring him smartly to attention. These days you are not alone in
your battles with the seemingly uncaring dealer.

(I would hope that a simple e-mail note from many members of this
newsgroup would be an interesting exercise in customer empowerment).

Chris.B

Ashley wrote:
Hi Mark,

I phoned Andrews first thing this morning, and to Lee's credit he said to
return the scope. He will replace it with another one.

I was worried, as it would cost a lot to fix, with both mirrors trashed.

This is great service. I was expecting difficulty, and there was none.

I'll drive to Sydney this Fri evening with the broken scope, and check the
new one and bring it home rather than trust the packaging and the freight
company again.

Good idea. I try to drive to a dealer to buy all my scopes.
Fortunately, I can do that where I live. But even then one was damaged
from factory to dealer. So do check it out in detail while there.

Phil

"Ashley" wrote in message ...
Hi Chris,

I'm glad to say that Lee was most understanding, and immediately offered to
replace the scope.

Apparently some had broken secondary holders in transit. Lee had received a
supply of secondary holders to replace the broken ones, and offered to send
one to me, but when I explained the mirrors were damaged, he had no
hesitation in offering to replace the scope.

I am glad Lee made correcting this unfortunate event as easy as possible. I
guess I was just scared I might have been left high and dry.

I've now bought 3 scopes from Lee, and I would not hesitate to do so again.
Can't think of what I might need right at the moment

Ashley

8" EQ f5 reflector (my starter scope - got me hooked)
6" EQ f8 refractor
12" GS Dob (soon to see light)

Hi,
That's great news! Tragedy averted! g

A 6", an 8" & now a 12"? You've got aperture fever! Must be all that sunshine.

Have fun
Chris.B