New Graham Knives: You have to ASK them to check your knife?

trkJr

trkJr

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Chalk this one up to a bad experience:

recently ordered a Case cheetah cub for my nephew, dut to his good grades and such. his first real knive, and we were both looking forward to it.

it arrived, and we opened it together. He immediately noticed that the "swivel guard" (Not sure if that is the correct term?) was loose on both sides.

I called them up and they said to return it. I thought I'd get credit for return shipping, but was told by Ann that they only pay for it if they ship you the wrong product, but not for product defects.

I asked her why they don't inspect items before shipping, and she replied that they don't have time to do that. they will inspect if the customer requests them to do so, but not otherwise.

Now, to be fair it does say on their frequently asked questions about not paying for return shipping on defects, but NOWHERE DOES IT STATE that they don't inspect knives for defects unless customer requests them to do so.

I guess I expected a higher level of job performance. my mistake.

Not sure I'd order from them again, but put this out as a warning to others.
 
On the other side of the argument you would have people wanting to know why their knives had been opened. Are they used?

I would be upset at Case for letting that knife get out of their doors not at New Graham for shipping it to you. They provided you with a solution to your problem, ask them to inspect it before they send it out, they're not saying that they will charge extra for it or even that they mind doing so. I've had nothing but good experiences with them and will gladly continue ordering from them.

Just putting that out as an assurance to others.

I know this comes off as me shilling for New Graham but it's difficult to find nice family run companies that offer decent prices and good customer support/communication. It takes so little to ruin your reputation that has taken a long time to build I feel justified in standing up for them.
 
NGK is great. The fact that they will actually check for defects sets them apart from most other sites.
Nobody checks every shipment. Most check no shipments.
 
Don't blame NGK, it's the knife's manufacturer who is to blame. If I bought a knife from NGK and it arrived open I would not be happy with NGK. If I bought a knife from NGK and upon opening it found it to be defective I would not be happy with the manufacturer. Whether I shipped back to NGK or to the manufacturer would not change the fact that shipping would be out of my pocket.

There is no way a retailer can check items sold in a box, especially when hundreds of packaged goods are sold daily. If you are the type of person who gets pissed at the prospect of paying shipping you should only buy from a B&M. Shipping in either direction is rarely included, ever..................

As for your warning...........:jerkit::p
 
I'm going to be counter-culture here, and contend that the buyer should not suffer a pecuniary loss ($) if he does not receive what he paid for (a non-defective product).

As between the seller and the buyer, who is less at fault when a defective product is shipped? The buyer.


:thumbup:
 
This is not a NGK problem, it's a Case problem.

Your complaint should have been addressed to them and the knife sent to them to replace/repair.
 
I have purchased several times from NGK and never had a problem. I did buy a Queen slip joint knife from another vendor to find it had blade wiggle. I sent it back to the manufacturer. The manufacturer provides the warrenty not the vendor. The fact tha NGK would take it back is a credit to them.

I work in a small gun shop and customers are surprised that if they have problems with a gun they purchased from us that we just don't exchange it. Doesn't work that way. We will handle shipping it back to the manufacturer for them to make it right however. Try that with Academy Sports or other big companies. I know that with Academy, once you purchase a firearm it is your problem.

NGK had great prices and service.

John
 
RecoilJunkie said:
On the other side of the argument you would have people wanting to know why their knives had been opened. Are they used?

I would be upset at Case for letting that knife get out of their doors not at New Graham for shipping it to you. They provided you with a solution to your problem, ask them to inspect it before they send it out"

I'm not trying to bash NGK, only wish I had known they didn't check merchandise before sending.

There was nothing sealed about the box. it was in a case tin, inside an open-ended sleeve, and could have easily been opened without my knowing it.

it was listed as new, and I have no reason to believe otherwise. If they had stated somewhat clearer that they will only check if the customer asks, I would have asked them to do so.
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I Just ordered an Al mar Sere operator from them and the knife came on time and I am very happy with both customer service and my new knife. I am sorry that you did not have a good experience with them but I think that its more cases fault than NGK.

Bill
 
Again, I'm not trying to bash them or ruin their reputation... they have many fans here, and they are shipping me an alternate blade for my nephew, so in the end expect things will be ok.

I just think their disclaimer/frequently asked questions area could state these things more clearly. For both knife makers and shops, it's about quality of product and quality of service.

I would ask them to check out anything else I ordered from them. Now I know, just wish I could have found out in a different way.
 
The thing several people have tried to explain is that a dealer who inspects every piece which goes out his door is the rare exception, not the norm. You are faulting NGK for not doing something that is very unusual for a dealer to do. If you had elected to return the knife to the manufacturer, who are the ones actually responsible for it being defective, you would have paid shipping too. As others have said, the fact they'll inspect knives if asked puts them a cut above many other internet dealers.
 
The Deacon said:
The thing several people have tried to explain is that a dealer who inspects every piece which goes out his door is the rare exception, not the norm. You are faulting NGK for not doing something that is very unusual for a dealer to do. If you had elected to return the knife to the manufacturer, who are the ones actually responsible for it being defective, you would have paid shipping too. As others have said, the fact they'll inspect knives if asked puts them a cut above many other internet dealers.
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It's really not so much about the cost of shipping as it is not understanding that things aren't checked prior to. haven't had any problems with any of the other numerous internet knife purchasing I've done. I assumed other dealers checked, or I have just been lucky.

And now I know. Will ask from now on.
 
You have just been lucky. It would be great if dealers had the time to check every knife they sell before shipping them out, but they don't.

I am a little surprised that NGK don't pay for return shipping on defective products.
 
Keith Montgomery said:
You have just been lucky. It would be great if dealers had the time to check every knife they sell before shipping them out, but they don't.

I am a little surprised that NGK don't pay for return shipping on defective products.
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Would you eat shipping two ways on a $50 knife and call that good business?

I wish I had an Uncle like you when I was growing up Trkjr.
 
The product is supposed to be quality checked by the manufacturer, there's no reason for distributors & retailers to waste labor to repeat the process. What would they deem defective in any case, that depends on the manufacturer's specs and/or customer expectations. The retailer is just a conduit, saving the mfg. the expense of holding stock, selling & shipping to individual end users.

NGK has very good pricing, and the fact that they will take an extra step without charge is good service, imo.
 
RecoilJunkie said:
Would you eat shipping two ways on a $50 knife and call that good business?

I wish I had an Uncle like you when I was growing up Trkjr.
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I was in retail for 32 years. If one of our customers was shipped anything defective or damaged, we would supply the customer with our UPS or Fed-Ex account number for them to use to ship the item back. The only time that the customer had to pay was when they wanted to return it for an exchange or refund. Most of what we sold was over $50.00, but not everything. By the way, it was good business.

As long as it is made clear on their website, NGK have the right to make their policy whatever they want it to be.
 
Here is a copy and paste from our FAQ's:

""Q. What is New Graham's Return policy?

A. If we screw up...we will make right and cover any additional shipping expenses the buyer incurs.
--If buyer orders wrong item, or is not pleased with purchase, we will accept return and issue credit for the cost of merchandise only and only if it is still in factory new condition. Buyer will NOT be reimbursed for shipping.
--All our merchandise is factory new and comes direct from the manufacturer or from authorized national distributors.
--Please understand we do not manufacture the product, therefore we can not be held responsible for factory defects. Any item that you feel is defective can be sent to the manufacturer for evaluation or, at your option, returned to us for refund or replacement. We will NOT refund your shipping charges on defective merchandise.""

I trust the manufacturers to take care of QC and most do a bang up job. The QC check is figured in to the dealer cost. A QC check is not figured into my selling price. Yea, I will check a knife if asked, but I don't have the time or manpower to check them all. If I post on the FAQ's we will check items before shipping, I will be checking voltage on every battery we ship....not good if the consumer wants selection, speed, service and savings.

Even if a dealer does not issue a refund on shipping, the dealer loses roughly 3% to process the credit card upon purchase and another 2% to process the refund, so we do share in your pain, and now I have the defective knife.

BTW, thanks folks for the insightful comments and support.

Regards, Mike
 
Keith Montgomery said:
I was in retail for 32 years. If one of our customers was shipped anything defective or damaged, we would supply the customer with our UPS or Fed-Ex account number for them to use to ship the item back. The only time that the customer had to pay was when they wanted to return it for an exchange or refund. Most of what we sold was over $50.00, but not everything. By the way, it was good business.

As long as it is made clear on their website, NGK have the right to make their policy whatever they want it to be.
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My retail background is all big box home improvement. Talk about apples and oranges. You're right that it really lets your customers know that you're interested in keeping their business which is good. It also raises overhead and opens a Pandora's box of abuse. I think NGK has struck a happy median with their generous for the market policy.


Keep up the good work Mike, I'll try to keep from tithing too much of my paycheck to you. :D
 
I'm surprised this has gone on as long as it has. I'm over it.

"Yea, I will check a knife if asked"

Michael, I now know to ask.
 
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