SCR10480

Warren from Parachute Equipment Corporation (PEC) is a thief, and a liar. He just told me "I won't help you, PD can't help you, and I never want to do business with you again" It just proves that the loss of one customer is no cause for alarm. There are plenty of other sheep to be sheared. Thanks for all your help and well wishes.

Due to the obvious legal challenge I'm facing, I think it's best at this point not to release any names other than my own. I appreciate your concern, and value your opinion I just don't want to disclose any details. In the event this matter is not satisfied, I assure you one and all, that I'll scream like a Banshee from the highest mountain top!

It's always a real bummer when things don't work out the way they should on stuff like this. Best of luck with these guy...I hope you can get it worked out! __________________________________________________ Hey! I just typed the dealer's name into the search function...very interesting!

Thanks again Ryan, I see your point. I tell EVERYONE how you and JP treated me, and hope it has sent other folks your way. If this issue is not resolved, then I'll scream bloody murder to ANYONE who'll listen! Greg

I'd consider contacting the manufacturer directly with your information. For one thing, they might terminate their relationship with the dealer. Or they might put some pressure on the dealer. Either way, this sucks. Make some color copies of your canopy design so that you always have one to hand out without its being your last. __________________________________________________ Thanks Wendy, but I've already been in contact with Rusty at PD, as they were the first the dealer "blamed" for this whole mess...you see, that's the whole problem here! The dealer doesn't care to remedy this, he wants to blame someone for it!

Not sure the use of the canopy would be agreed upon but certainly the dealer orders your real canopy and you give them the crud canopy AFTER they do so and its there problem to sell it sounds the least they can do. __________________________________________________ Well, the one thing I am certain of in this situation, is that the dealer will do his VERY least! So, I guess my demands for an all expense paid trip to DeLand for two weeks will be refused as well.

I think you should try and fix the problem but if all else fails others should be warned of the dealers lack of customer service..... This might not get your money back but damn wouldn't it be satisfying!! __________________________________________________ Thanks Mate! I'll have to admit that I am becoming increasingly angry, and have thoughts of posting the business's name, address, phone number and web address on as many sites as I can find! But, revenge is not what I'm after. Do you think asking for a new (correct this time) canopy, at the DEALER'S cost is unreasonable? Also the use of this abstract modern art eyesore until the RIGHT canopy is ready to be shipped?

Hi Mike...didn't mean to ruffle any feathers. I too am in the service industry. I only used Mechanics as an example, because I am most familiar with their trade. I couldn't say that 99% of lawyers, give the other's a bad name, now could I? To your questions, No card...CASH, as the man requested. In advance. I have all the forms, I have all the dates. Now, let me ask you, and in all hoesty tell me what you would do if you were out several hundred dollars for something and you were told "Too bad, better luck next time?" When you were supposed to be dealing with a Pro that claims 30 years of customer satisfaction? Huh, am I just a problem consumer or am I getting taken advantage of?

Hi Stephen! Lisa (skybytch) has a very valid point. I own a J-1 and I put a 170 in it, and it's a challenge! Lisa says "slippery snot," and that's a good discription... Have you ever tried to stack BB's?

It's truly unfortunate that stuff like this happens. Not knowing anything about the dealer you bought it through, I won't run the guy down, but this is just another reason to make sure you're buying your stuff through a shop with a history of customer service. I've yelled and screamed on this before, but saving a hundred bucks or so just isn't worth this kind of trouble!! Deal with a professional shop, yes you will pay a bit more to support their overhead, but they'll take care of you! Like I said, you might have been dealing with a shop, but I'm betting they wouldn't fall under the title of PROFESSIONAL if they won't help you out in this situation. THE CUSTOMER IS YOUR BEST FRIEND, TREAT HIM THAT WAY!!!...or he'll go elsewhere...which is what I'm guessing you'll do in the future! __________________________________________________ Thanks Ryan, but I wasn't "bargain hunting" and I did pay the going rate! When I bought my Hornet from you, I got great service, a great price, and an excellent canopy. I do believe in the "two way street" and the "one hand washes the other" philosophy. But, and try your best to understand...this situation is bizarre! The dealer is being...well, childish about the whole thing. He sounds like a parrot, that just keeps repeating "it's not my fault, it's not my fault." All I'm asking for is some advice on what would be a fair solution, not an acquittal. I've done nothing wrong, yet a mistake was made and it cost me a lot of money. Do I seek damages? Do I try to smear this man's reputation? Or do I try to get this solved in a professional manner? Why is the dealer so resistant to a logical remedy?

It might surprise you to step into a parachute canopy "sweat-shop", which looks like any third-world garment factory. The big outdoor shops like REI have done many tests around the world, and it has been found that uneducated petite asian and latin-american women with small hands are best suited for long hours of precision sewing. __________________________________________________ But, are they not also considered among the top fabric artisans the "civilized" world has ever known? Anyway, Whomever they might be, they made just exactly what the dealer sent them...not one missed stitch.

Funny...very funny.

Thank you very much! My thoughts exactly. I would never have any trouble accepting the blame if I had been at fault. I am not. Now I know a little about how women must feel when they get bamboozled by some "all knowing" car mechanic or such. There always has been, and always will be right and wrong. Never mind who has the best line of bull. I'm right, and the dealer knows it! Why else would he squirm so vigorously?

Did you download the form from the dealer's site, or did they mail you the form? If yes to either mode of delivery then I'd say you have a valid argument, and the dealer has a piece of colorful rental gear. Downloaded the form after coloring the canopy, then faxed completed form, where it was then formatted into the "center cell #1" arrangment that ruined it. There WAS a pattern to it...anyone could see that! Now it's random to say the least...and there's only three colors! Who do I argue with? The dealer is very bullheaded and unreasonable, saying I should have known the format he would be using...BS!!!! He got his money up front, and could give a crap less whether or not I got what I paid for.

Thanks for the kind words Haz... According to the Consumer Protection Advocates I am legally entitled to a full, and complete refund (including shipping) should I choose to pursue this. I really don't want to get nasty, nor do I wish to be treated like an idiot. All I want is the CORRECT canopy...if I must travel the legal maze to get it, then that is where I'll go.

It WAS a PD order form, from a MAJOR equipment retailer, and it WAS numbered left to right. Ignorance and stupidity are two different things...one can be cured, the other cannot.

Touche'

Very good advice indeed...however, I did use a professional shop, with 30 years experiance!

Thanks...very nice BTW. But I did use "a" canopy designer! And it was numbered left to right!!! The dealer then transfered all the info onto his order form. Center out.

Thanks so much J.P. I mean that. You obviously have some notion of just how frustrating this is. I've been flying used stuff around (maybe even some of your old canopies) dreaming of the day I could have "my own." I did everything the dealer asked, paid in advance even. All I get from him is the "two step" and I can't dance. Like I said, he blamed it on PD first so I contacted them...Rusty did backflips for me trying to figure it all out. I'm VERY impressed with his efforts...but, ultimately it was discovered that PD produced EXACTLY what the dealer had ordered...back to the dealer again. This time it's my fault, not the manufacturer...and certainly not the dealer!!! I'd get a rope and hang myself, but the rope would probably break, give me a nasty burn, and I'd sprain my ankle.

Thank you Skybytch! I didn't know it until several hundred dollars ago...

Thanks J.P. and Dave...yes, I have tried talking with the dealer. At first he blamed the whole SNAFU on PD. Now he says it's my fault because I numbered the cells left to right "And everyone knows that number 1 is the center"... He's a very nice guy, but is he ever stubborn!

Hello everyone! I have a question for you...I just recieved my very first, brand new (beer) canopy after 20 (plus) years in the sport last Tuesday. I had it custom made, in my own color scheme. So far, so good, right? Well, no...you see, I had the canopy and it's corresponding cell colors numbered left to right 1 through 9. The dealer that ordered it, made the center cell (my cell #5) the #1 cell and then proceeded to number the rest from the center out. My canopy was supposed to be symmetrical...what I have looks like some 3rd grade child colored it in on a napkin. No, the dealer never phoned my one time in the 10 weeks I waited. The factory could not answer questions without a PO#, etc., et ad nauseam. What would you do? What CAN I do?

A pilot chute in tow is unmistakable, you will not feel any deceleration or be stood up, (as you would in, say a bag lock). Since your main tray will still be closed when you deploy the reserve, cutting away your main isn't necessary. Pull the reserve, and pull it now! If, by some chance the pilot chute in tow clears (as some un cocked pilot chutes will) after you deploy the reserve, you'll likely feel the main bag drop out...it might even hit the back of your legs. At any rate, you will then be going so slow that inflation of the main canopy will be severely retarded, and a cut away can be easily accomplished. Remember, in skydiving seconds count. All emergency procedures should be automated by drill...do it the same way you were taught, and when you do it in your head, don't try to complicate it with different scenarios. Keep it simple.

Daydreaming, or mentally preparing for a malfunction is a good idea...I do it on every load. Trying to invent methods of dealing with malfunctions is a bad idea...I'm a simple creature really, I always opt for the easy way. P/C in tow? Pull the handle with the hole. Okay, now try to keep an eye on my bag/pilot chute.