If you have ordered an 18 watt kit

[Graydon]

Now, a kit with 100v PT to Japan in less than a month would be impressive. You up for the challenge....lol?
Chris

I have Japanese-spec 100V PTs in stock. Email if you have any interest.

Loy, good job. Even if you have troubles, if you keep your customers informed and be honest, you should be OK. I've had shipping troubles too. I know how it can go some times.

[neiloler]

4 weeks?

That is 3 weeks too many!

Speed is of the essence here...

Well in defence of the kit makers, I also ordered a cabinet to go with it, so it took them a little bit to make the cab per my custome tolex specs. Yeah, still, could have been shorter, but it's great stuff, and I'm not complaining.

[brownnote]

I'm guilty too..no excuses.
I have to give a HUGE thanks to all the folks that have ordered from us.

THANKS!

BTW...Starting this month Nov we have a great office manager who's already kicking my butt into high gear....give her a call if you want her to put in a gratuitous (or well-deserved) butt-kicking on your behalf

[briane]

I'm guilty too..no excuses.
I have to give a HUGE thanks to all the folks that have ordered from us.

hey man, it was worth the wait!

I think your quality is tops, so like I said before I think thats the priority. If you want quick, then order from a giant monster, but be prepared when the ear test says gee 'I think its time to move some stuff around'. Also be prepared to pay a lot more if you want both quality and now.

Personally I think quality is the main concern. anyone can walk down to GC and get something that makes noise off the shelf. This is not what DIY is about...its about my (or your) tone. That and the satisfaction about knowing whats in there, who did it, how it was done....Plus the fun of getting to run the soldering iron.

I think 6-8 weeks should be considered a reasonable wait time.....longer if its a small outfit, or if you know that the supplier only will only send you the best...whenever it may happen to arrive at their shop. Remember this aint macy's, my friend;-)

[tubetwang]

The day 8 weeks is considered a reasonable wait time for quality parts is the day i move on to another hobby...

To each is own i guess...

[loyjdockery]

Since this thread was started because I was late, I would like to say that I'm getting progress on that. Now, my wife is doing it for me and she is very fast. We are now doing a much faster system/process than we had before. She is excited to help me out with this.

Another thing I am in the process of doing is giving her an e-mail address so that she can send out notifications of when things ship, and anything else needed. That way the customers are notified the day it's shipped, every time. I am going to focus on getting more amps available, updating the website, ordering the parts, etc...

For example, I'm working with a customer to create an Ampeg B-15N bass amp (2x6L6). I really don't see many bass amp kits out there, so I think there needs to be one. I'm also seeing how a TW Express pre goes with a 12AU7 PP output tube. That should be a fiery practice amp, with extra gain for the hi-distortion enthusiasts.

Loy

[kedsinger]

My day job is Vice President of National Sales for a large credit card processor, and I must say that there are rules and regulations about charging someones card long before product is shipped. It's actually put in place for this type of situation(avoid chargebacks). This is why you need to have your own credit card setup(instead of Pay-me-5%+pall). that way you can charge the customers card days before shipping(unless you need those funds to buy the parts that make up the kit). I personally do not want anything charged to one of my cards a month ahead of shipping because I don't keep balances on them. A week charged ahead is OK. Loy, I can understand that this business may be growing faster than you expected, but maybe that means you need to set it up more like a business and process things differently ie..set your website up with a shopping cart and a virtual credit card gateway(get rid of P/P). I think you'll actually save $. Have your popular kits ready to go because gateways are set-up for your customers to complete the transaction. If you are only selling one or two kits a month however Pay**LL is the way to go. I'm buying a kit from you, but I don't want my card charged a month ahead of time....me no like to pay interest .
Keith

[dartanion]

I did the kit thing briefly with Sweetwood and I can say that it is not easy at all coordinating the whole shebang. A lot of time was spent specifying parts, assembling orders, waiting for shipments, then waiting for stuff that was on back order, finding alternative vendors for parts that were on back order, waiting some more, etc. That, and the outlay of cash to get parts in hand is not small. It became more of a hassle than it was worth to me, so I am sticking with building amps for folks and leave the frustrations of a kit business to others.

Hang in there Loy, I know you're trying to do the best by your customers.

[loyjdockery]

Keith,

I'm improving the shipping time to be definitely within a week. Most of the time I end up sending 95% of the kit within a week and the other 5% takes a couple weeks (unusually, 3-4 weeks). I'm not waiting to ship the kit out until I get all of the parts ready. That way the customers can get started while they wait for their 1 or 2 caps, transfomers, faceplates, whatever.

My #1 priority for this business is sending 100% of the kit within much less than a week.

Does the sending 5% later break the rules too though?

Dartanion, along with everyone else saying encouraging things too... Thank you!!! It's kept me quite optimistic You're all like a support group for my business woes.

[kedsinger]

Keith,
Does the sending 5% later break the rules too though?
.

Don't get me wrong Loy. A lot of people break that Visa/Mastercard rule. However, what I'm saying is that it seems like you've got a good thing going here. I like the idea that you get the main components out first. If your starting to get a lot of orders, maybe you should take out a business credit card to stock up on inventory(that way you'll get a price break on larger orders too). I'm sure you've already thought of all this...I'm just rambling on. Anyway, I would definately buy from you!
Keith

[arwokc]

Well, what the heck, I may as well give my two cents as well. I tend to kick around my thoughts about the amp I'm going to build for weeks before I commit to it. But, when I commit, I don't want to wait for weeks for my parts. Living in Oklahoma, I easily get three day UPS ground service from anywhere in the U.S. Four days is tops. If I need something quickly, I ask the vendor if they have it in stock and how fast they can ship it. In my opinion, as the consumer, if you don't ask those questions and it takes weeks to get it, it's your own fault. But if you ask those questions and it still takes weeks to get it, that's poor customer service and unforgiveable. Not answering emails or phone calls after the sell it another pet peave. And if you lie to your customer, you should be damned to amp h*ll. It doesn't matter if you are selling a product or a service, if you can't deliver in a timely matter, you are doomed to failure. I have personally witnessed the failure of three businesses in the last ten years because of this. It seems to me that not every dealer in our community is running their business as their primary livelihood, and that's okay. But when your conduct reflects that fact, that is where the problem lies. I work very hard at my job just like everyone else and I take it personally when I send someone my hard earned bucks, and I don't get their best effort in return. I don't believe you can justify poor service as a norm just because everyone else takes that long. It is still a business transaction in which you, as a dealer, are receiving someone elses earnings for a product in good faith.
A prime example is when I ordered a cabinet and chassis kit from a forum member's business. I specifically wanted a certain color cabinet, but settled for the color he had in stock because he stated he could ship the next day. After five days of not receiving the cabinet, I began emailing. I didn't get a response for three more days. I didn't receive the cabinet until three weeks after the transaction for an "in stock" cabinet. I am currently working on another project and since that experience I found out who his supplier was. I ordered my latest cabinet directly from the supplier in the exact size and color I wanted, for less money, and it only took two weeks from the day of the transaction. Now that is customer service. So, in my opinion, you don't have to tolerate poor service. There are too many other people who will actually act like they are happy to have your business.
Okay, I'll get off my soap box now!

[tubetwang]

also keeping each customer up to date, goes a long way...

Things like e-mailing... payment received...parts shipped today...or...sorry, we're a little late but we're working on it...

Good communication is muy importante, nobody like to be kept in the dark...

Go Loy Go!


P.S. had'nt seen Arwokc post when i wrote those lines...we think alike but.

[arwokc]

By the way, I'm glad 18watt.com is back online.

[zaphod_phil]

So am I!

Now going back to your previous post, I think we also need to separate the two issues of poor customer service and long lead times. For instance it's possible that a larger outfit may give a faster delivery time, but the end product or their after-sales service may be not as good. Or possibly a smaller mom n' pop shop may have longer delivery times, but you know you're buying quality. That may not always be the case, but hopefully it illustrates the difference between the two issues. And obviously, in all cases delivery time commitments need to be kept, whether short or long.

[arwokc]

Z.P.
I agree with you 100%. That is why I always ask the fore mentioned questions. That way I don't have unrealistic expectations. If someone has a really superb product and I know it is superior to others, and they have a lead time, I have no problem with that as long as they are honest about their lead time. My problem is when you place an order with someone for an " in stock" item, and they don't ship for ten days after the transaction. I have a real big problem with that. It's almost as if they are non-verbally communicating, "I've got your money, now you have no choice but to wait until it's convenient for me to process your order." Sorry, maybe I'm way out of the ball park on this one, but I'm taking my business else where in that scenario. Yes, I want the best deal possible, but I don't mind paying extra for a better product and better service either.

[kedsinger]

Well with all of that in mind what I have noticed here is that Loy is there for you long after the sale. I'm only metioning this because that is how this thread started in the beginning. In fact I've noticed him helping someone who bought from someone else....Thats Cool!

P.S. Everybody here is very helpful! Almost brings a tear to my eye...I love you man

[loyjdockery]

Everybody here is helpful! I definitely agree on that one.

[Hiwatt25]

Everyone has to decide what they find acceptable in terms of customer service, price and lead times. The bottom line lies where your budget and your preferences collide.

I've ordered a kit from Loy and let me tell you, everything that could go wrong did.

In Loy's defense, he's been honest about his lead times/staffing problems, he's been quick to make them right and he's been quick to respond to my e-mails. Heck, I've been to Loy's house and I've met his dog. So I say, no harm no foul.

As I've told Loy, one of my priorities is to support the little guy especially since Loy operates in my home state (WA represent). Loy being the proverbial little guy means he doesn't have the staff or the buying power of the big guys so I'm willing to accept late or missing parts etc. At the very least, he deserves the latitude that everyone seems to extend Steve at Smallbear. Loy's communication is certainly better.

If you're flexible and you've got some time on your hands, why not throw a couple bucks his way? If you're in a pinch, go elsewhere. There's been no secret made of his commitment to his customers or his lead times. Simple as that.

Now if Mouser shorted me a part or delayed my shipment, I'd rip someone a new one. Hey, economies of scale dictate that the big guy better have his **** together....

[zaphod_phil]

Heck, I've been to Loy's house and I've met his dog. So I say, no harm no foul.

So basically, you're saying that Loy's dog is house trained?

[curtg]

I ordered a Lightning kit from Loy on Monday. Looking forward to getting it.