Excelsis - Display Vote

Orion Telescope & Binocular Center

I purchased a Super EQ Mount with 6" rings. It arrived without a manual. The bolts to hold the rings would not go all the way in so they flop with about 1/4" of play. Call #1: Omitting the manual was an error, the Orion rep said, and he directed me to their website where I could download a PDF copy. I had to call back to talk about the rings. Call #2: The tech rep acknowledged the problem - "others have encountered it." He did not know if it was because they had not drilled the rings deeply enough or had the wrong sized bolts. He recommended getting additional washers, which I had already figured out but had hoped they had replacement bolts. This is the second product from Orion that has arrived with the wrong sized bolts, the first being a 6" Dob. In both cases the tech rep was already aware of the problem and in both cases the suggestion was to go fix it myself. Prices are good and service in terms of delivery time and telephone availability is good. But shipping products that require assembly without manuals is a pretty clear indicator basic quality control is lacking. Continuing to ship the wrong sized parts which make the product unuseable is worse. After 30 years of being an amateur astronomer, I have become convinced that the "amateur" refers not to the people doing the observations but the people selling us the gear.

Overall Rating: 5
Price:8 Service:8
Weight: 10 (Trustworthy Vote)
Date: 02/20/2002 02:22:13 am PST
By: Lobo
Link to this vote: http://excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=68928

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