Axminister - How is the quality?
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paulloseby
Member
I have always rated Axminster, mainly because of their backup service - and the brilliant staff. That changed somewhat when I saw in their last catalogue, that the prices had increased dramatically with no offers on existing stock. I then needed a small switch for an expensive worklamp that I had bought from them - and told it would take 6 months for delivery (I bought the same thing from Amazon, cheaper and got it the next day). Finally last night, a friend contacted me for suggestions of which handplane to buy. I looked on the Axminster site and almost everything was out of stock.
I'm sorry Axminster but Yandles is my first port of call these days.
I'm sorry Axminster but Yandles is my first port of call these days.
robgul
Barry Bucknell is my hero
Diverting slightly from the thread - out of curiosity what was the bike you bought? (I used to manage a bike shop and have an interest in these things)
im sooooo going to have to pick your brains in another thread.....im looking at a Whyte
sorry thats just not correct, i have been importing & exporting for almost 20 years and vast qtys of them go back, many through Europe, but there is actualy a shortage of them in china.... but lets be clear, its not a one way trip!
yes you can buy a used shipping container for about £1500, they have always been available used as they make good long lasting storage after they are deemed no longer usable as cargo, demand for them used has gone through the roof over the last 10-15 years though with the boost in using them as building materials.
Phil Pascoe
Established Member
I was in Singapore 14 years ago (it'll be sing a pond forever in our memories as that's what our four year old called it
).
We were in Chinatown with a guide when someone asked if banking, manufacturing or tourism was their biggest earner. He pointed out to the horizon and said see all those container ships? They are heading up the Malacca Straits for Europe. Next year the port of Singapore will handle twenty two million full containers - and most will go back empty. You wonder why your economies are failing? They very nearly all come from China.
).We were in Chinatown with a guide when someone asked if banking, manufacturing or tourism was their biggest earner. He pointed out to the horizon and said see all those container ships? They are heading up the Malacca Straits for Europe. Next year the port of Singapore will handle twenty two million full containers - and most will go back empty. You wonder why your economies are failing? They very nearly all come from China.
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Cabinetman
Established Member
I bow to your obvious knowledge, I’m just repeating what I was told, that and the fact that it was virtually brand-new, maybe the cost of making a new one, plus the cost of returning one empty is about £1500, so some get sold here – who knows. Ian
robgul
Barry Bucknell is my hero
Feel free to message direct - I may have some pearls of wisdom that might assist! Biggest issue with anything decent in bikes is stock availability - e.g. Trek is quoting (possibly) June 21 for some models.
Well I know that to buy items, you specify what you want in a contract, and if you don't get what has been agreed then you have a remedy. Reading back, when I used the word "you", I was not specifically referring to you who innocently bought an item from a retailer, and I was meaning the party buying from the factory. Apologies if this has confused.
Your bike was clearly defective. The reason was not that it was Chinese crap, it was simply crap, manufactured on a production line in a factory where every possible cost had been removed. There was nobody catching mistakes before it landed with you having probably passed through a wholesaler, retailer etc- for a bit more per unit there could have been somebody checking. The retailer would probably not be able to sell to you at the same price, and you may go elsewhere for somebody that could, so the age old phrase "made to a price" is demonstrated. The trade buyer is at fault (not you) for not checking what they were buying. The same factory is likely churning out good products to other buyers, the difference being that the other buyer has identified a risk and put their rep in the factory to check.
You can specify where something is manufactured when you buy it- it is what the Brexit lot have been going on about for years. You may struggle to get a European made bike for £100 though. Far better to purchase based on specification though and check that you get what you are paying for!
Is this not just the way of the world now. Look around and many goods get replaced on a whim because they are deemed out of fashion, we are in a throw away society, people no longer seem to want to keep things long term because a lot just enjoy shopping and buying. If China can send a rocket to the moon to collect some hardcore then they are more than capable of manufacturing quality machinery but they are producing to a standard that meets a price. Whilst the likes of Axminster can import this stuff and sell for a good profit nothing will change, it needs people to either just not purchase until we see a better quality product or that we will be willing to pay more for quality if they keep their profit sensible. The other issue is that the home hobby workworking market is really small and I suspect that for a lot of the asian manufacturers it is not their main line of business.
I bought an Axminster bandsaw which I was happy with until I bought the mitre fence, the table has a 19 mm slot but the attachment didn't fit as the slot was u/size by about 0,25 mm. I contacted them and sent another one out but the surface finish wasn't as smooth as the original so I ended up getting vouchers. It works okay and the aftersales was good. You get what you pay for at the end of the day.
Fixed that for you
segovia
Established Member
My view on Axminster, a lot of their own stuff is low on quality and high on price. I have spent 000's in Axminster over the years and request for frequent buyer/loyalty discount has fallen on deaf ears. I don't use them as much I use too, I prefer to shop around, its a pain, if I need to make a return I have to remember where I got it from.
As an example, I have a black 24" rule, the paint is starting to peel, not through damage, just poor finish. I raised a ticket with Axminster. As it was over 12 month old they declined to replace. If they had looked at my account they would have seen I have spent £15,000 with them over the past 8 years. You would think a gesture of goodwill would have been forthcoming, no chance. !
As an example, I have a black 24" rule, the paint is starting to peel, not through damage, just poor finish. I raised a ticket with Axminster. As it was over 12 month old they declined to replace. If they had looked at my account they would have seen I have spent £15,000 with them over the past 8 years. You would think a gesture of goodwill would have been forthcoming, no chance. !
westwardho
Established Member
> Look around and many goods get replaced on a whim because they are deemed out of fashion, we are in a throw away society, people no longer seem to want to keep things long term because a lot just enjoy shopping and buying.
It's not entirely as simple as that, though. My wife took a sewing machine into a repair shop recently, and was told it would be 150 for a replacement motor, let alone labour.
It's often not economically feasible for people to get stuff repaired.
It's not entirely as simple as that, though. My wife took a sewing machine into a repair shop recently, and was told it would be 150 for a replacement motor, let alone labour.
It's often not economically feasible for people to get stuff repaired.
Phil Pascoe
Established Member
A huge % of cars are scrapped not because they not repairable, but because they are not economically repairable because of the extortionate cost of parts (especially electrical ones).
Owd Jockey
Established Member
Hi Rob, i've trawled through my email archives from 2 to 3 years ago but could not locate the details. The bike in question is still under cover in my back yard and has "Challenger" emblazoned on the frame, it's a folding bike. I re-used a few of the non-mission critical parts on my other bikes. A few months after this I bit the bullet and bought a second-hand Dahon Cadenza Mountain Bike which is still going strong.
robgul
Barry Bucknell is my hero
Challenger is probably just a name for a mail-order/dept store BSO*, with the added complication of being a folder . . . when I was running the shop I had a few customers with the Cadenza and they were pretty good for the price, and that they folded in half for sticking in a car. Dahon as a manufacturer (and brand) is pretty much behind a massive range of folding bikes of varying qualities and white label/own brands (e.g. the Dawes and Raleigh folders are Dahons re-badged) . .. some are absolutely at the bottom of the food chain.
* Bicycle Shaped Object!
JamesInNorway
New member
Please could you provide a link to the updated thread if it has come about yet?
I haven't finished the list yet, but when I do, I will post an update in this thread.
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