Extra Aviator

If you feel intimidated that would a personal problem of yours. You were not singled out as bad or negative nor was the company so why would you feel intimidated unless you think you and the company are absolutely perfect above and beyond talking about the what if's??? He did not bash anyone or any company. He was simply looking for help and reasurance. Of which you shared NONE!!! Perhaps your comments about him made the company look bad, but he didnt. So why are you bashing him, a happy and satisfied customer of that company who has more than one of thier products and who loves that companys stuff. Are you trying to lose customers for Wren by badmouthing him?? Cause there is more of a chance of that than from anything he said. Perhaps glass houses should have some mirror's.

johnls

I've lost the plot here. What are you saying?



John

Boomerang1

The guys at Wren are also modellers & understand that some people buy engines & then take a while to actually use them.

I was in a similar situation to you, an engine just out of 'calendar time' warranty but a problem very early in 'run time'.

They took good care of me, I'm sure they will look after you to. - John.

highhorse

My Feedback: (2)

I can't see where the poor guy went wrong. he has accused Wren of nothing improper, just passing along his experience and asking if he's alone in that........

If one of mine from any brandeats itself I'm gonna ask the same questions.......

highhorse

My Feedback: (2)

How does one know that there is no known pattern of failure unless everyone who has one is allowed and encouraged to post it without reprisal? And if we accept your apparent assertions that 1) this is the first ever failure of a Wren 160, and 2) for that reason alone it should have been kept off of the internet, how would some potential second failure in the future ever be know to us or other Wren customers?

Presumably it would not, because THAT guy would be assuming that HE is the first...........it's an infinite loop.

The guys engine failed and he made that public. SO WHAT?

Are we to believe that everyone on here is a naive alarmist, unable to understand that &&@^# happens or that there will be some irrational black balling back-lash against Wren?

Please....just....relax.

I'm glad he shared the event and pray that he follows thru later when the cause is found.

rjbob

My Feedback: (8)

I didn't see anything malicious in the first post.

I have had an out-of-warranty situation with Wren in the past and they treated me like I was their best customer.

If Wren attacks this situation with their usual excellent service, the company AND the customer will both come out looking good.

p51Dpony

Just to follow and see if this was 'random chaos' or 'predictable sequelae'...
  how many hrs on unit and was it due for any maintainance?  Asking simply for my own education.  Thanks.

SCALECRAFT

My Feedback: (13)

This is just a statement of an event.

No conclusions can or should drawn at this early point.


Steve

lov2flyrc

My Feedback: (24)

EVERY brand engine will have failures; nature of the beast.... We are turning these engines at very high RPM's, there are numerous reasons an engine can fail. Says nothing of the quality of the engines unless this was a common occurrence (which as far as I know, it is not with Wren or their 160). I see nothing malicious with the OP checking to see if this failure has been seen before with this model and I don't see this as being a negative reflection on Wren. The Wren team will take good care of you, they are a first class operation..... JMHO

Modellbau USA

My Feedback: (5)

I agree 100% with Todd, as a turbine manufacturer the reasons for failure are enormous to say the least. We also do not know the state at which it was operated before the failure occurred. The quality of product that Wren produces is excellent. When we were making our "T" series of turbines we used many parts made by Wren. I had the opportunity to visit there factory and it is top notch. I am sure Wren will make things right.

SPLIT S

My God, all he did was ask a question and some act like he just dissed their mom or shot their puppy. Sometimes I wish there was a pink panties rating you could give people....

dubd

+1

This forum has more fanboys than a Raiders home game. Some of these guys act like they own stock in these companies. Online communities thrive when people can share their experiences, good or bad. That's all the original poster did.

noahb

My Feedback: (67)

Could not have said it better.
Don't even mention the Spek vs Fasst or JR vs Futaba... Whew!

Jim Cattanach

Good morning (well it is in Cyprus) & happy new year. I don't want to say much more as it seems to provide ammunition for argument.
I will give a brief history of the turbine & then wait & post the outcome.
The 160 was one of two I ordered at the Jetpower show in Germany in September 2009. They are both the 160 pro versions, with Projet ECU's. One was delivered in November 2009 & the other in December 2009. Both have been back to Wren for ECU upgrades & one had a new NGV fitted.
I did not check the actual runtime on this turbine before I shipped it back to Wren & I cannot remember if it was the one I received in Nov or Dec. Both turbines will have roughly equal run times. I checked the other one & it has eight hours on it.
As I said, I will post the outcome. I do not expect to end up with a virtually new turbine at no cost, considering it is a year old.

SpiderJets

Hi Jim,

The engine you mentioned that they charged you one hour labour for, although still under warranty, was that the one which was clogged all over at the inside (needles, filters,...) because of using unfiltered dirty fuel ?
If so, I would also have charged you the bill which is in my opinion and considering such information even very reasonable. Friendly pun intended !

Happy New Year to everyone !

Nicolas.

bigplumbs

We should all remember that Wren UK no longer have Sarah and her husband as owners/co owners. It will be interesting to see how different the service is in respect of this issue. Being an owner of 7 Wrens I have had some minor dealings with them since the change in ownership and while the service I received was OK. I have to say it was not quite as good as when Sarah had a hand on the tiller, It was however in the early days just after the change in management

I still however believe that Wrens are excellent Turbines and I would not hesitate to buy another one

Dennis

Jim Cattanach

Hi Nico, Thanks, I did not want to go into my problems with that issue, since I was sure it would lead to discussion off topic & did not want to air my issues with Wren in public, but since you bring it up, I am forced to go into detail. Not sure if it was that turbine, or the other.
On that particular engine, I installed it in a brand new FeiBao Panther, with all new tanks (washed out), plumbing & BVM UAT. The jet was lost when the turbine stopped after three minutes. The turbine was placed on a test bench, it would run for three minutes perfectly well, idle or full throttle, then stop. It did this every time. Wren asked me to try various things to try & cure the problem, including removing the fuel filter under the front cover to check it. The filter was spotless, but was changed anyway. It made no difference. I was somewhat annoyed at losing my jet & sent the turbine back to Wren. There was never any ''clogged all over the inside'' or clogged needles referred to at all. After having the turbine for over two weeks, they came back & said the fuel filter under the cover was totally blocked & sent a photo of this congealed mess of a filter, which I can assure you never came out of my turbine. I had just examined it as requested & changed it prior to shipping it back.

I asked them how such a filter could be mine, when I filter my fuel twice before filling the models tanks. I also asked how all this supposed crud can go through a new BVM UAT, totally clog up the filter & with a new filter fitted, still have the same thing happen & the turbine still run perfectly at full power for three minutes, then stop. They never answered these questions.

The same fuel was used in my Wren 54, Supersports & 44 with no problems.

They billed me for one hours labour, plus the cost of a new filter. At the time, I was fuming. I had lost a new jet & found it incredible that a company thought it worthwhile to charge for one hours labor on a new turbine & wondered if they had thought it worth it in terms of customer relations.
I had been a lifelong customer of Wren, buying a few turbines over the years.
I do not want to get into any discussion about this, as it happened a year ago.

mick15

This thread has certainly lost its direction hasn’t it? It was never exclusively about Wren but about the way a problem was addressed, it is still my view the approach was in the wrong order.
Because posting on the net first intimidates a manufacturer into a course he may not ordinarily pursue, to explain, If the unit had been returned to them quietly they could have decided for themselves whether it showed a generic fault or not. If a generic fault is discovered then any responsible manufacturer would recall all units for a safety modification.
As it is now they are forced to repair the engine and ship ASAP to quell the uproar, just a personal opinion and the way I have addressed such an issue.

brg m

bigplumbs

You are making the assumption that someone from Wren UK reads these posts. Sarah used to but since she left I have never seen anyone from Wren UK comment or log on here

Dennis

jason

My Feedback: (1)

I have to say if I were Wren I would be very upset with your posts Jim and I would do only what I have to regarding your 160 problem. As it's out of warranty I'd be charging you for the repair. I don't think there’s many who would disagree with that. There a right and wrong way about going about things and in my opinion you have gone about it the wrong way.

Regards and a happy new year

Jason

Jim Cattanach

Jason. You are a well known dyed in the wool Wren shill. All I originally posted, was state what happened & asked if anyone else had experienced the same problem.
Any other comments I have made are because of people like you trying to stir it up.
I will make no further comment until I hear from Wren.

Couch Potato

He used to be. He's a Merlin fanboy now.

Jim, I hope you get everything sorted to your satisfaction.

hooker53

My Feedback: (106)

Spoken from a master. I wished the T series was still being made. A turbine ahead of it's time. I agree with Todd and Henry. There is way to state things/events and then a way not to. I think he was very concise and polite. Roy

luv2flyrc

My Feedback: (6)

[/quote]

It is tough not to post a problem or loss without mentioning a brand name to 'warn' others, but throwing in an ''it's out of warranty'' is an un-called for black eye for the manufacturer.
[/quote]

I think the fact that it's out of warranty and that he will have to "depend" on the "goodwill" of the manufacturer is an extremely valid point that Wren should strongly consider. Their 1 year warranty is the weakest of any of the turbine manufacturers, most have at least 2yrs, 3yrs or lifetime. If Wren believes in their product, they should offer a competitive warranty, they should also be aware that their lack of a competitive warranty is negatively impacting their sales.

I would never purchase a Wren, although I consider it a superb turbine brand but, there are other superb brands with far superior warranties. I think this type of feedback is key to the well being of the company.

Mike

North Cyprus Pilot

Hi
Im new on the forum but i see nothing wrong with posting the problem with a product, of any kind as long as we also get the result of what the manufacturers say and do about it, that is good for getting the problem sorted and if the manufacturers do their stuff, good for them also i would think.