Grizzly Strikes Again!

[Smith, David W.]

I have been having trouble breathing this winter while the shop has had the doors and windows closed. Normally, two large drum fans keep a good volume of air going out which keeps the dust down. Works well for the warmer months but in the colder months when I have the heat on the dust gets to be a bit much. I thought about an air filter but never got around to ordering one.

So, I decided to order a Grizzly G9965 air filter for the shop since they claimed it would change the air in a 20' x 20' shop 26 times per hour. My shop is 36 x 40 so the filter should do well. Pretty good I thought. And I also ordered a washable filter for it so cleaning would be easier. Sounded like a good idea at the time. After all, I have bought 11 other Grizzly tools and have been satisfied with their quality so I believed something as simple as an air filter would be a no brainer.

So the big truck stopped by today and dropped off the 78 pound box. I opened the box, read the instruction manual, plugged it in and turned on the switch. Nothing! No air! Just the hum of the motor. Something isn't right. So I removed the two filters and found that the squirrel cage motor wasn't attached to the motor housing and was laying loose. The squirrel cage was laying in the housing and it wouldn't turn. All the hardware was laying on the bottom of the case and if I counted right, some is still missing. Looks like a 5 pm assembly, the assembler simply tossed in parts at quitting time and sent it on its merry way.

So I called Grizzly and asked for a replacement. Once they receive the filter and inspect it, then a new one will be sent out. Means a two to three week wait which I am not willing to do. Then I requested a partial refund since I would have to totally disassemble the filter, finish the assembly then put it back together. No, can't do that! So I told them I wanted a RA # and a full refund. The CS rep was kind enough to tell me I wouldn't have to pay the 10% restocking fee since it was defective. Then I told them I wanted a refund for the freight since it was totally worthless when received. We'll see what happens there.

Then I remembered I ordered a washable inner filter as an after thought a few days later. I cancelled that also. I have return labels in hand, UPS freight has been called and a pick up scheduled for tomorrow. UPS ground is supposed to deliver the inner filter tomorrow and it will go out the door with a return label as quickly as it will come it.

So the air filter is back in the original box, ready to go and I believe this will be the last Grizzly tool I will purchase mostly because of the poor excuse for quality and some because of the poor concern shown by the CS rep.

BTW I bought a Jet air filter this afternoon.

[Jerry Wright]

Did I miss something? You said you had purchased 11 Grizzly machines before and had been pleased. You now received one with a problem. You titled your post "Grizzly strikes again".

Jerry

[Mike Heidrick]

Its called being mad is all. We all feel that way sometimes. I would have been polite (I am sure you were David) and PM'd papa Griz here. He makes things right.

[glenn bradley]

In all fairness the Jet could have been just as bad. I have a pretty decent tolerance for the sellers who cater to our low end market. They are able to sell at those prices for a reason. Wal-Mart is not Nordstrom's. Its when someone charges 40% more for the same thing that gets me. No one likes to receive a new tool with a problem regardless of the price-point.

[Matt Day]

I can understand being upset that the machine didn't perform, and by the apparent unsatisfactory CS you received. "Grizzly strikes again"? - you stated that you are happy with 11/12 of your Grizzly machines. I'd call back to CS and ask for a manager or supervisor and explain the situation and see where that gets you. I suppose contacting Shiraz would be an option, but he's the President of the company and I think that road should be the last resort. I would hate to think that SMC takes advantage of his participation on this forum.

I hope this gets resolved for you. Good Luck

[Shiraz Balolia]

I hope this gets resolved for you. Good Luck

Yes it will - stuff happens and we take care of it.

David, thank you for your business and we apologize for the mishap. We will follow through and investigate the whole episode, all the way from the operator you spoke with, back to the assembly line overseas.

[keith micinski]

I also read this thinking how on earth can 11 good experiences be completely over ridden by one bad experience and Honestly the Grizzly customer service didn't really seem to be all that bad. Everyone makes mistakes, its how you handle them when they happen that define who you are.

[Jim O'Dell]

And anyone can have a bad day, on both sides of the phone. Been there done that myself. Does seem a little bit of a harsh reaction given the 11 good experiences in a row. As always, Shiraz steps in with a plan. Unfortunately too late for the OP, but still shows he is concerned for his customers and his company. I personally don't think you can ask for better than that. I had a minor problem with my Grizzly G0691. Wouldn't have kept me from using it. The customer service rep I talked to was great, and was able to take care of me in a way that I think worked out great for the company and myself. Grizzly has been a great partner here. Not saying if there is a problem not to voice it, but I would urge all of us to try to go that extra step to see if things can be taken care of. Just my 2 cents, even though I wasn't asked. Jim.

[Smith, David W.]

I need to explain deeper.

I purchased a 490X which ran well and worked hard for two years. I up graded to a 0609X 12" jointer which was defective out of the box. The dust hood was poorly made and the infeed and outfeed tables could not be adjusted coplaner to each other across the cutterhead. After 10 days of adjusting and speaking with customer service and technical service reps, they finally agreed to take it back. Once it was gone I did purchase another 490X.

My 453Z planer also is a steady performer. After 2 years of use I did have to rebuild the transmission completely with all new bearings and seals. I only had one bearing that was making a noise and one seal was leaking from the factory so I decided to replace everything while it was apart. Once reassembled I could use the slower feed speed which wasn't working before.

I purchased 1140 edge sander and quickly found out the working table wasn't ever going to be adjusted square and without wobbling. Customer service refused to discuss this with me or attempt to do anything about it. So I sold it. Yes, I told the buyer whay I was selling it.

I did purchase a 564 edge sander which worked well for the time I had it. It too was sold when I lost the contract it was purchased for.

The 690 is a dedicated crosscut saw and works well. The 1023 I ordered as a rip saw was a different story. Dust collection is pitiful and the shroud under the blade clogs easily. It was removed! The dust port at the back is also less than efficient. I mofified it soon after it arrived. The biggie was when the blade guard flew off during a kick back. The 20 tooth rip blade had 11 teeth missing after the event and the guard itself was hit 43 times by the teeth. The customer service and technical service were less than concerned and treated it as an abberation. After several days of discussions, I did receive a new blade guard and several weeks later a new blade. I appreciated both replacements.

For the record, I operate a professional shop making goods that are sent all over the world. During use, all the machines will run for 2 to 4 hours at a time without stopping. I expect a lot from my machines and keep them in good shape.

The least I expected from the air filter was that it would be fully assembled.

[Matt Day]

David,

It sounds like Shiraz has stepped in and will take care of you, so I'm sure this will get resolved.

But if you seemingly continue to have problems with Grizzly equipment, why do you keep buying it?

Personally, Grizzly is my second choice in machinery, with used gloat-worthy equipment being #1!

[David Weaver]

I agree with you in terms of getting upset about getting something that's out of commission.

The problems with the design of machines or inability for proper squareness, etc, that's just par for the course with inexpensive machines - the kind of things that drives a lot of us to rely on the cheap power tools for coarse work and hand tools for fine work.

[Jim Andrew]

This winter has been bad for dust for me. Thinking about building a filtering box myself. Have a furnace fan, as I had the furnace replaced, and kept the fan. There was a thread not long ago where a guy posted pictures of his homemade filter box. Looked like it took 16 x 20 filters. This thread will not stop me from ordering from Grizzly, but think I can make my own filter.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

I will remind everyone about the announcements at the top of each forum with regards to equipment threads and rants:

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Before You Rant Read This December 20th, 2010

"It is the intent of SMC to permit the airing of concerns regarding the suitability of a particular product, or the quality or sufficiency of customer service provided by a vendor in any particular instance provided there is not a breach of contract component involved.

However, these threads often deteriorate into a "piling on" and develop a very negative tone. That doesn't assist other viewers in assessing the overall advisability of whether to buy this particular product, nor to assess the overall customer service provided by that manufacturer/vendor.

In order to be fair to the many vendors that provide woodworking products, the following policies will be in force:
The original poster must have first contacted the manufacturer/vendor and have attempted a solution PRIOR to posting the thread.
The original poster should provide factual details of the problem, and details of efforts that have been made with the manufacturer/vendor to rectify the problem.
Subsequent posts must be limited to suggestions to the original poster to assist in rectifying the problem - not to pile on because you had similar problems.

SMC is a woodworking forum. The intended purpose is to provide a community in which useful information may be shared among the members. Threads that do not achieve that purpose will be locked, or removed if necessary." SawMill Creek is not a Court of Law and we are not in a position to judge a breach of contract case here, therefore SawMill Creek will not become a stage or a courtroom for a legal dispute between two or more parties, it just isn't our mission.
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