Customer service expectations

[Jlsoip]

Hi guys,

I was gifted a Hinderer MP-1 this post Christmas, and it's a workhorse of a knife. However, a couple months into use, I noticed that the belt clip was loose. Upon closer inspection, one of the screws holding it in place was missing, as was a standoff screw, with others that were loose.

Now, I've never had a knife just about come apart on me, let alone a $500 folder, so I was a bit perturbed.

Got in contact with Hinderer, and they agreed to ship me replacement screws, provided I pay the shipping. Really?

What do you think? Is this typical of customer service for high end knife sellers these days? I tend to expect a little better when it comes to high end products.

 

[Scott321]

Paying for shipping is common for repairs or parts warranty work from most places, knife related or not. I would expect not paying for shipping as above or exceeding expectations, but not expected.

 

[Danke42]

Get rid of it! Gift it to someone else; I'll bet anything they'll be happy to pay some postage to get it running.

 

[sharkattacksw]

Depends. On a sub $200 production knife, I'd expect to pay for shipping. On a $500 knife, I'd expect the company to pick up the tab.

 

[jill jackson]

Hinderer will not charge for return shipping if you send your knife in.

 

[jceckrosh]

Eh. Could go either way I guess. I don't think I'd be bothered paying a couple bucks for shipping. I'd be more bothered about the screws shaking loose.

 

[jill jackson]

Any screw can come loose depending on many factors. That's why they make this stuff in different grades.

• High Strength Permanent Red LOCTITE® Threadlockers. Learn more about red high strength threadlockers. ...
• Medium Strength Removable Blue LOCTITE® Threadlockers. ...
• Low Strength (small thread) Purple LOCTITE® Threadlockers. ...
• Preassembled Wicking Grade Green LOCTITE® Threadlockers.

 

[rycen]

Welcome.

I don’t think I’ve ever lost a screw no matter the price of the knife. Some companies won’t provide you parts, some want you to send the knife in. Others will mail parts free of charge. Hinderer may be slightly different in that they manufacture all the hardware themselves I believe. Based on that and that they’re not a huge company buying screws in bulk I’d guess theirs cost more.

 

[sharp_edge]

Can we see some pictures of the said Hinderer knife?

 

[jill jackson]

How does Hinderer know if someone took the clip off and put it back or not? Why are they responsible to know that? They have no way to know how someone else tightened something up on a used knife. If it was brand new and falling apart is one thing. Used on something that is designed with a removable part is quite another.

 

[b00n]

I don't see a problem with it. If the screws had been missing from the factory I would expect them to send some out for free, but you lost them during use and only noticed after the fact. Giving you replacement parts for free is a nice enough thing in my book, so picking up the shipping tab seems fair to me. Maintaining ones tools/knives is part of the hobby imho. And Loctite (Blue) is a good investment, not only to prevent losing screws but also to keep the pivot adjusted.

 

[jwh720]

I don't see a problem with it. If the screws had been missing from the factory I would expect them to send some out for free, but you lost them during use and only noticed after the fact. Giving you replacement parts for free is a nice enough thing in my book, so picking up the shipping tab seems fair to me. Maintaining ones tools/knives is part of the hobby imho. And Loctite (Blue) is a good investment, not only to prevent losing screws but also to keep the pivot adjusted.

^this 100%

 

[marrenmiller]

While I would hope that they'd match the CS of a company like KAI and ship you parts for free, no questions asked, I think it's totally reasonable to request shipping for the free parts they provide to you.

Who knows, maybe you'll even get the parts faster this way. I know from experience that it can take weeks to get spare parts shipped from Kershaw/ZT from all of one state away (Oregon to California). If I needed my knife back in service quickly, I would gladly pay a couple dollars for a priority mail envelope.

Edit: Welcome to the forum, by the way. I'd recommend buying a small tube of blue/low strength loctite and applying a small dab of it to the threads of all of your knife's screws when you get the parts from Hinderer.

 

[jbmonkey]

cost of shipping is no big deal. i dont see this as a problem myself. id be happy they would give me the screws for only shipping cost.

are you overseas, is this more than 10 bucks?

 

[cashville]

Also curious what the cost will be? As a comparison, CRK would charge you for the screws and shipping. They are regarded as having one of the best warranties for folding mid-techs/ folding knives in general. Either way, with either company this cost would be almost negligible to many who live in the states. But.....

If you live overseas, you could inquire if they could provide a few extra screws. Even if it costs a few extra bucks, it may save you money in the long run paying for shipping on a screw by screw basis. Plus this would elimate the shipping time.

Even if you have to pay $10 to have screws shipped, it is still a fraction of the cost of the knife. Sure, free is preferable, but even in you aren’t looking at it from a repair cost/cost of knife ratio, $10 still isn’t a killer IMO. Seems pretty reasonable to me

Edit: If a company were to pay the shipping, that cost would end up getting factored in to the original price of the product in the long run.

 

[Peter Hartwig]

Shipping some screws can't be much. I would be glad they were supplying what I needed and not worry about it. Just put a little locktite on the screws(not the permanent kind) or just some Teflon tape-which is what I use.

 

[115Italian]

Seems like a fair trade. Free screws, you cover shipping. Yes some companies will just send you hardware free but everyone has different policies. Zt just recently sent me washers free of charge. I think the difference is big corporate company vs small business.

 

[unwisefool]

I'm a big fan of the purple loctite for small screws and such. Also its prettier...

 

[danbot]

Yes, if they're making their own screws, then they have a screw machine. I kind of doubt that. More likely they have them custom made at pennies per screw, but that's still a cost and I don't think it's unreasonable that the customer pay the shipping if they need some.

 

[b00n]

Yes, if they're making their own screws, then they have a screw machine. I kind of doubt that. More likely they have them custom made at pennies per screw, but that's still a cost and I don't think it's unreasonable that the customer pay the shipping if they need some.

I could see them making the pivot screws themselves, but the scale and clip screws, nah. They are either off the shelf or bought in bulk to their specs.