Fencing.Net - Your Guide to Fencing & Fencing Equipment

edwin012290 · 11-10-2005, 09:49 PM

i bought an allstar bluestar foil last week...not even last week...on saturday. and it already broke. after being used twice, the tip just snapped off and i think its pretty much beyond repair. i got it from blade in manhattan...and the wiring of my blade was crap too. after being used just twice, i found a disconnection in the wire my second time and it didnt work. wtf...im planning to go tomorrow. what should i say to stan and will he give me another foil for a cheaper price or something because of this blade's crappy @$$ quality?

D+F+P=Hadouken! · 11-10-2005, 09:50 PM

I've seen another bluestar blade, and it kinked 3 inches down, on the first hit.

edwin012290 · 11-10-2005, 09:56 PM

ya....well mine didnt kink, the WHOLE TIP PART snapped off! this is BS! if im gonna make another foil purchase at blade it should be loads cheaper because of the crappy blade stan gave me!

Purple Fencer · 11-10-2005, 10:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by edwin012290

ya....well mine didnt kink, the WHOLE TIP PART snapped off! this is BS! if im gonna make another foil purchase at blade it should be loads cheaper because of the crappy blade stan gave me!

In Stan's defense (and that's something you'll rarely see from me), he's just the importer, not the manufacturer...in fact, if you REALLY want to complain, go to Blaise Freres....they're the actual manufacturer (hence the BF logo). Go to http://fie.ch/Addresses/AddrFed.aspx?Fab=1 for the address.

Blade has no control over the quality of the blades...even the ones with their stamp on them...they're a reseller. It sometimes depends on if the guy making it got laid the night before...

What Stan IS responsible for is customer service and satisfaction. He could replace teh blade for free and return the broken one to BF to analasys....but that's up to Blade.

penguin_2000 · 11-10-2005, 10:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by edwin012290

i bought an allstar bluestar foil last week...not even last week...on saturday. and it already broke. after being used twice, the tip just snapped off and i think its pretty much beyond repair. i got it from blade in manhattan...and the wiring of my blade was crap too. after being used just twice, i found a disconnection in the wire my second time and it didnt work. wtf...im planning to go tomorrow. what should i say to stan and will he give me another foil for a cheaper price or something because of this blade's crappy @$$ quality?

Tell him to go F**K himself... because that's what he'll tell you if you complain to him. I've never failed to get poor customer service from Blade.

keropie · 11-11-2005, 12:35 AM

FWIW, I have two BF FIE Blue foil blades that I've been using around 3 years now, haven't had any issues, no kinks, no breaks, etc. But no quality control is perfect.

CvilleFencer · 11-11-2005, 12:48 AM

Like others I have never had a good customer service experiance from Blade, which is why I don't use them. With the BF FIE blades, some people go a long time with no problems. My record with a BF FIE is about 5 months. Most have broken in a much shorter time and one snapped in about 2 weeks. I love the feel, but given the lifespan they are just not worth it to me and I think they are very overpriced for the durability that they offer.

However, keep in mind what Purple says. Blade just resales, they don't have anything to do with the quality of the blade. I got my BF blades from Zivkovic, TCA and BG. The Zivkovic one was the longest lasting of my BF's and the TCA was the shortest, but I doubt that it had anything to do with the seller. The true test of a retailer is in how they handle their customer service and if they will do anything to make it right. In my opinion it is a better "value" to by from someone that will stand buy their products and offer great service, even if they charge a little bit more for it. After all you do usually get what you pay for in that respect.

Alex_Paul · 11-14-2005, 06:23 AM

IMOHO it makes no difference wether or not you are a manufacturer or a reseller. It is a companies responsability to sell goods that are up to an acceptable standard. Selling a blade that snaps during its first use is like selling a broken pencil (pointless

). In the UK the sale of goods act prevents the sale of items that are not "fit for purpose".

In the UK a company selling a blade that snapped after its first use would have to either refund the customer, replace the blade or argue (in writing) that it's blades were only designed to last for a single use! I have used the sale of goods act numerous times to have items that broke outside of warantee repaird or replaced free. Eg I had a Dell laptop that broke where the hinges broke after 1 year and 3 months. They refused to fix it and I wrote them a letter demanding it was either fixed or they gave me in writing a statement that their laptops were only designed to function for 1 year and 3 months. They backed down immediately and replaced the screen for free.

Are there not similar laws to protect consumers in the USA?

DHCJr · 11-14-2005, 10:47 AM

I agree with Barry, but I also believe in buyer beware (See Picking out the right blade). The blade can be fixed, but rethreading the blade. If you have not done that before, have someone who has show you. It is not as easy as threading a tang.

Blades do break, but 2 bouts, is a little much.

***Craig*** · 11-14-2005, 01:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alex_Paul

IMOHO it makes no difference wether or not you are a manufacturer or a reseller. It is a companies responsability to sell goods that are up to an acceptable standard.

I agree totally. Even if you are a reseller and not the manufacturer, there is quality control.

Resellers choose what they are selling and purchasing. If there are quality control issues, then the reseller can either ignore it and hope for the best or take it up with the manufacturer(s) for resolution.

Craig

larkmaj · 11-14-2005, 02:22 PM

i wish edwin the best of luck in dealing with blade. they still owe our club a few hundred dollars for an order they botched up. yet for some reason they still want to come to our tournaments. go figure.... if you're in the area stick with BG or Absolute, their customer service is infinitely better than Blade, Physical Chess, or whatever they decide to call themselves for that particular transaction.

Anybody else notice that physical chess is selling fencing gear on amazon?

fencinman89 · 11-14-2005, 04:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DHCJr

I agree with Barry....

You mean Alex?
-Tre'

D+F+P=Hadouken! · 11-14-2005, 05:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fencinman89

You mean Alex?
-Tre'

.... paul.

edwin012290 · 11-14-2005, 05:03 PM

well, i got my blade exchanged

he was alright about it. i just took store credit for the broken one and bought a vniti fie because i heard it was pretty good. i dunno...i bought a westbrook sabre blade at blade before and...it bent weirdly and couldnt be repaired without some tools. i dont thing im gonna go with blade equipment anymore. straightly buying from BG and LP from now.

CvilleFencer · 11-14-2005, 05:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by edwin012290

straightly buying from BG and LP from now.

Hard to go wrong with LP for top shelf equipment. For mid to low lever gear check out Absolute fencing. It is ran by the lady who used to make BG customer service so good. I have only had a couple of small problems with them over the past 8-12 months and they have all been taken care of super quick. When you are dealing in large volumes like I tend to do mistakes will happen. For me the measure is how well they are handled and if they happen often/again. For me Absolute is the best of the big east coast vendors for that sort of things, so give them a try.

Also keep in mind that a LP and Absolute gear as well as StM and Vniti gear is now being sold at very good prices and great service right here at Fencing.Net by Craig and Joanna. Chances are this could be your one stop shopping spot for all your gear!