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Off Topics > Jax Hobbies - Bad service

CyberPilot
Veteran
Location: Yorba Linda CA

I just had a really bad customer service experience at Jax Hobbies (in Orange County CA). My friend Peter is just getting into the hobby and purchased a heli w/receiver from another member of my club. However, he still needed a radio and an Rx crystal. He purchased them at Jax but the crystal was on back order. John, the proprietor told him it would be a few days but it took 10! When it came in he installed it but nothing worked. He asked me to look at it and we found that it was a single conversion crystal. Peter went back to Jax and asked to return it. He reminded John that he had shown him the receiver (so he should've known) and since they didn’t have the correct one in stock, John gave him a refund. We then purchased the correct crystal at a different shop but things still didn't work. I loaned him my Spectra module (dial in any channel) and we determined that his radio was OK but the Tx module was bad. Again we went back to Jax and asked John to make it right but he refused. He told Peter that he could've helped him if he brought it back the next day but not 2 weeks later. How? The crystal was on back order! So Peter asked him if he could return the whole thing and he’d buy it elsewhere. His reply was "Get the Hell out of my store". He threw us both out!

God help you if you buy something from him and need to return or repair it.

I am recommending to everyone, Stay away from Jax Hobbies!

~OCHC~
I make kits from helis :-)

07-24-2003 03:15 PM

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BigRob
Veteran
Location: Long Beach, CA

Whoa

Thats suprising! I've been a customer of John's now for almost three years and he's always been fair and an easy going guy.

Not trying to make any excuses for him, but If my memory serves me correctly, he places all of his orders on Tuesday and Thursday and usually gets them in two-three days later, but remember that if their distributor has the item backordered it would ship as soon as the item is in stock again. Although, I have learned that if you have him order anything for you, try to give him the part number instead of leaving it up to him to match the part for you. People make mistakes especially when you are one person ordering a million parts for two stores.

It's very hard to find a LHS that has on person that knows everything. Although, I must say, it's hard for me to see John throwing anyone out of his store without provocation.

The one......
the only...
The BigRob

07-24-2003 05:34 PM

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gpyros
Key Veteran
Location: On a beach in Mexico

CyberPilot:

Sounds like a serious case of customer dis-service to me.

I'll buy my stuff elsewhere, thanks for the head's up!

Greg

Maxi-Joker helicam
Joker-CX helicam
Graupner Jet Ranger (elec)
Raptor-50
Logo-10
9CH

07-24-2003 06:20 PM

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CyberPilot
Veteran
Location: Yorba Linda CA

I USED to be a customer of his for years

I've been going there for years for my plane stuff & model rocket stuff before that (all before the Darkside). I used to get decent service and started bringing my friends there as well but not after this last situation.

Frankly, I was shocked. I felt like a deer caught in the headlights. I never expected it from him and I never saw it coming.

I've heard that a hobby store is a tuff business so you'd think that you would want a reputation for good customer service.

Oh well.....

~OCHC~
I make kits from helis :-)

07-24-2003 06:43 PM

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BigRob
Veteran
Location: Long Beach, CA

That sucks

Yeah man, I hate to hear that.

Oh well, you can always visit MTA Hobbies in Torrance.
They are a HELI only shop. Nadir and Rosey will do you right.

Bring them some 7-Eleven Slurpees and you may receive the good guy price.

Let them know BigRob sai HI.

The one......
the only...
The BigRob

07-24-2003 06:59 PM

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BigRob
Veteran
Location: Long Beach, CA

Gyro

John's brother owns Gyro's.

...and from my understanding, John orders the parts for Gyros too.

The one......
the only...
The BigRob

07-24-2003 07:00 PM

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CyberPilot
Veteran
Location: Yorba Linda CA

Hey Chris,

Yep. We frequent Gyros, MTA and Ultimate.

There is one more thing I wanted to say (in reply to Rob's post).

I realize that people make mistakes and sometimes have a bad day. Ordering the wrong crystal was his (John's) mistake but Peter didn't make a big deal out of it. Telling him that it will take a few days and not getting it for 10 days, he probably forgot to order it; another mistake that Peter let slide. But the bad module was not even Jax' (John's) fault. It's funny but everyone was clear that Peter just got a bad product; he wasn't attacking John; he didn't blame the store. It was brand new and not working but no one was getting bent over it, he just wanted a working one or his money back so he could buy it elsewhere and get flying.

John actually accused him of some devious plot to defraud Jax by asking for a replacement or refund. Why? Does he really think that we go from shop to shop, spend our money for a radio, break it, then get a refund? What would that serve? What would we have to gain?

It was just plain weird.

~OCHC~
I make kits from helis :-)

07-24-2003 07:05 PM

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JimmyY2KWS6
Senior Heliman
Location: Miami, Florida

That sucks. There is no excuse for a hobby shop owner to treat his customers like that. I don't understand why wouldn't he just swap it out and return the defective product back the manufacturer?? Your buddy can send it in himself and get it replaced under warranty and never buy from him again.

Jimmy

Fury Tempest 3D Fury Expert 60

07-24-2003 10:02 PM

CyberPilot
Veteran
Location: Yorba Linda CA

Jimmy,

Thanks, I think that's what Peter may have to do. He's already e-mailed the local reps for Hitec and he's going to do everything he can within his legal limits as a consumer. Including filing complaints with various government agencies (i.e. BBB, Consumer affairs, etc.) not to mention his credit card company.

It really doesn't make sense. Here's a guy (Peter) just starting in the hobby; this is an excellent opportunity to gain a new customer. Instead he lost quite a few. Peter, me, all of our friends. I've posted this on several boards including my club. What was this guy thinking???

Oh well....
C.P.

~OCHC~
I make kits from helis :-)

07-25-2003 03:27 PM

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CyberPilot
Veteran
Location: Yorba Linda CA

My buddy got his money back from Visa!

~OCHC~
I make kits from helis :-)

08-11-2003 08:38 PM

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BigRob
Veteran
Location: Long Beach, CA

John...

Are you guys sure you were speaking to "John"??

He's a pretty cool guy, his employee, can't remember the guys name (Tim maybe), is a jerk (idiot) and is usually confused for John.

John has longer hair and usually wears it in a pony tail.

The one......
the only...
The BigRob

08-11-2003 08:43 PM

HOMEPAGE

CyberPilot
Veteran
Location: Yorba Linda CA

BigRob,

We're pretty sure it was John. He as a pony tail. I remember last year (or earlier this year) he was in a cast; motorcycle accident I think.

C.P.

~OCHC~
I make kits from helis :-)

08-20-2003 06:18 PM

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Scott Reed
Senior Heliman
Location: Southern California

there are ALLWAYS two sides to EVERY situation

and it's likely true in this case also,

having said that, most of us replying to this thread were NOT there, so we don't really know what happened, but I have known John for over ten years, and consider him a friend, and have never, not one time personaly seen him treet a costomer or anyone else for that matter, with anything less then his trademark calm respectfull manner, period ! .

if he does'nt know you, he tends to be kinda quiet, and reserved, but allways polite.

the point of my reply here is not to cause any flaming, but to remind everyone following the thread, to keep in mind, that John is a human being, and mabee he did snap, but he is still a human and has a buissness to run and kids to feed, and he should not have his buissness trashed by one sided hearsay weather fact or not.

regards, Scott Reed

08-20-2003 10:01 PM

CyberPilot
Veteran
Location: Yorba Linda CA

SKYPILOT,

If I wasn't there to see it for myself I would not have believed it either. I had been going there for years before this incident.

Whether or not his business gets trashed is really up to him and how he handles this and other customer service/ customer relation issues.

He has definately lost a new customer (my friend Peter) and my business and that of my friends that I fly with. I doubt that it will trash his business but he brought this on himself. Where it goes from here is up to him.

C.P.

~OCHC~
I make kits from helis :-)

08-20-2003 11:08 PM

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Scott Reed
Senior Heliman
Location: Southern California

there you go again

like it or not, you just trashed him again, and every time you spew your BS distain for john in front of your buddies, other people hear this, and some of the people reading this crap take it as gosple, so YOU are directly doing damage to his buissness, and the real rub is, it did'nt even happen to YOU, YOU are the one out of line here, you don't see John coming in here saying, geez, I had this dumba$$ customer in today trying to do this or that, and your buddy handled the problem from his end with his c/c company, and not here, and that should have been it.

so why are YOU trashing John and not your buddy ?, and why are YOU telling all your buddies, and these readers to boycot Jax .

man, I wish everyone who feels the need to get on their soapbox and blast hobby shops could first work in one for even one day, to see first hand what the owners go through, with the scams people try constantly to get over on him.

in that buissness, it is Very hard to make a buck, trust this, he needs every customer he can get through his doors, remember the saying, bad news travels faster than good ?, the point ?, you said you don't really think Jax will suffer because of this, I say he allready has, and it is due to YOUR words, not your buddies, and who gave YOU that right ? !

regards, Scott Reed

08-21-2003 12:05 AM

CyberPilot
Veteran
Location: Yorba Linda CA

Bad Service lost business not me...

Quote
Originally posted by SKYPILOT .....and who gave YOU that right ? !

well, he did when he acted like an @$$h0!e and threw us out his store.

Sorry you don't like to hear it but when a shop owner treats customers badly they tend to lose business because of it.

All this is a direct result of his actions.

~OCHC~
I make kits from helis :-)

08-21-2003 12:22 AM

HOMEPAGE

Scott Reed
Senior Heliman
Location: Southern California

Here's the OTHERSIDE of the story

I just got the OTHER side of this story direct from the owner, and i gotta tell yah, I would have done the same thing he did, and i'm pretty sure any owner would have.

first of all, it was YOU throwing the fit that got you thrown out, not your friend, your friend may have been frustrated, but YOU were the one mouthing off, second, you kept the radio for weeks, and switched moduals and christals and removed labels, and tried parts from another store and your radio, then bring this basterd mess back and ask for a complete refund, and when the scam failed, YOU come in here and blast the guy for being smart enough to protect himself, this is the kind of crap he and other owners have to deal with every day, so he got fed up and tossed you, GREAT, I would have done the same.

put yourself in his position and ask youself if you would have just rolled over, and anyone else reading this, would you ?.

if your going to publicly blast someone in here, tell the whole story (read truth), and sign your name to it ( noting that you don't ) not much credibility to a screen name only, and be prepaired, that person may have friends who will take aception and defend him.

we need mavrick small hobby shops like JAX, GYRO, MTA, to stay open, when was the last time you could go down to hobbypeople and order a special part, or anything for that matter ?, uhh, never.

regards, Scott Reed

08-21-2003 01:34 AM

daviddrheli
Heliman
Location: Little Rock, AR

As a Busines Owner

Every business owner should know that the average happy customer might tell 1 person about a good experience, while an unhappy customer will tell 15+ people about a bad experience. This is just a fact of business and every small business owner must strive not to give a bad experience.

The act of simply sending the radio back to the factory instead of the customer having to do it would probably have prevented the loss of several customers.

08-21-2003 01:35 AM

HOMEPAGE

Scott Reed
Senior Heliman
Location: Southern California

this is exactly my point

hi David,

too bad my post did'nt make it in 60 seconds earlier, you might have had the benifit of the whole story, and posably drawn another conclusion.

I got from him that he felt very uneasy about the whole thing, thinking he would not get warrenty service from a ( worked ) radio, and also the demeaner of the two, made him think he was being had .

regards, Scott Reed

08-21-2003 01:50 AM

CyberPilot
Veteran
Location: Yorba Linda CA

The Truth

I was there and can tell everyone here first hand what happened. I'd like John to sign on to tell his side of the story himself so nothing gets lost, changed or creatively edited from him to SKYPILOT to us. I'd like to avoid the miscommunication like in the old telephone game.

No one was trying to rip him off. Think about it. What would Peter, a complete newbie, have to gain by switching out a receiver crystal? He didn't even know how to change it out. Why would he need to steel an $8 crystal? Besides he would still have to buy the one he's accused of switching. He's the manager of his department and makes a healthy salary as do I. Do you honestly think that we waste weeks of our time, our gas, drive from hobby shop to hobby shop put hundreds of dollars of our money at risk to buy radios then switch out the crystal, then try to return it? Where's the profit in that? How were we trying to rip him off?

No one was "mouthing off" I didn't even get involved in the conversation until the end. I was actually shopping, giving them my business (and my money). It is exactly as I stated it before.

Peter brought in a receiver (common FM Futaba) and showed it to John. He told John that he was new to the hobby, bought a used heli and needed a radio and a crystal for the receiver. John wrote up the order and told him he could take the radio that day but the crystal was on back order and would arrive in 3 days.

JAX SCREW UP # 1:

Peter paid up front and came back in three days but the crystal was not in; in fact it took 10 days (we think John forgot to order it). Peter was not happy but let it slide. He (and all my friends) believe in giving people the benefit of the doubt. We understand that people make mistakes.

JAX SCREW UP # 2:

When the crystal finally came in (10 days later) Peter picked it up, put it in his receiver and could not make it work. Since he is new at this he brought it to me the next day and asked me to help. After a while I realized that John sold him a single conversion crystal and not a dual conversion crystal. John, being a hobby shop owner, should know the difference; JOHN'S MISTAKE AGAIN. Peter took the crystal back and tried to get the correct one. John didn't have it in stock but said he could order it. Well, Gyro's did have it in stock and Peter didn't want to wait another 10 Days so he asked for a refund. Peter didn't give John any crap and let the 2nd mistake slide (very tolerant of Peter).

JAX SCREW UP # 3:

The time frame is now about 12 - 14 days since Peter's first order and after the hassle of waiting for the wrong part, having to return it, having to go to a different shop to get the correct part Peter finally got a chance to TRY the radio with the correct crystal. This is REALLY the 1st time (even though it's almost 2 weeks later) but it STILL doesn't work.

The next day Peter brings it to me again to check out. My radio has a synthesized module so I can dial in any channel. I used my radio to test his receiver, it worked. Since we have the same radio (although Peter has a fixed freq) I used my tx module to test his radio and it also worked. I used my radio to test his tx module but it didn't work. There's the problem, bad tx module. We went back to Jax again to explain the situation. Even though he's had all these issues with items he's purchased from JAX HOBBIES Peter still tried to give John a chance to make it right. Peter still was not upset (is he going for sainthood?).

Somehow John instinctively knew to open up the tx module and pull out the crystal and found that it was the wrong crystal. John looked for the correct crystal but didn't have it in stock. Peter asked if he could just get another module. John said he didn't have one in stock. Peter then asked if he could swap out the whole set for the one John had in the case. John refused, waked away and ignored us. Peter asked how he was going to resolve this and John told him that he had to take it up with the manufacturer. John whinnied about having to eat the cost of the receiver crystal. Why is he telling us this? It was his fault for ordering the wrong part and now he's taking it out on the customer!

JAX SCREW UP # 4:

John then claimed that the label on the tx module was a fake and said that someone else had previously changed a crystal on him. Ahhh, so that's how he knew to go directly to the crystal; maybe this was the same radio. Then he accused us of trying to rip him off. He even made an off color remark about us being dressed up in nice clothes

"it doesn't have to be a couple of BLACK guys that rip me off!" he said.

I'm not saying that he's a racist but that comment made me uncomfortable. I saw that he was getting angry so this is when I jumped in. I started to calmly explain how we came to this conclusion. I told him that I had my radio in the car and would be happy to show him how we tested everything. I didn't even get 2 sentences out when he said that he get's ripped off 6 times a year and "this time you 2 are it" then he threw us out of his store.

Sorry for the long post but SKYPILOT's comments warranted the whole story, FIRST HAND, TRUE STORY

~OCHC~
I make kits from helis :-)

08-21-2003 05:25 PM

HOMEPAGE

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