Aaahhh!! Someone that "GETS" it. init4fun could not have said it better. But just so others don't get the impression I was upset....not at all in fact. Just stating facts. One can not argue with what is in black and white, right? Granted, I have been very pleased with the RCG 50cc I purchased from HK. Indescribable for power, dependability, and economy. I actually just now as a matter of fact, just came in from running that exact motor. (Installed a Pitts muffler and tuning) Mejzlik 20x10 three blade prop @ 6900 rpm. As it was from the day it was new. However, this being said...."ONE" decent motor does not a supplier make. I have heard good reports from many people on this motor. But, "BUT" the thing is this. As with Hobbico, Horizon, Tower and anyone else I have dealt with, they proudly wear their name and let the WHOLE world see it. Heck, I was very displeased with an ARF I purchased from Horizon last year. They went WAY beyond what I ever anticipated any company would do. Sent me a "COMPLETE" new ARF....told me to keep certain components of the original and they did all this at their...."THEIR" expense. And that is why I keep going back to Horizon, Tower, Chief, Troy Built... THEY TAKE CARE OF THEIR CUSTOMERS. HK????? Not so much. I've said my piece and offered my opinions. If someone wishes to continue to purchase from HK...then that is up to them. I myself have had enough of poor C.S. that my extra few bucks will go to someone who "CARES" for me and this hobby. Not just the "ALLMIGHTY" dollars they are getting.

Sometimes it is like casting lots with HK. Some folks actually get a level of service. I cannot imagine even trying to get service with them. I don't even expect it at the price for their items. I do however expect service with the vendors that I pay a premium for items. It is all about how much you want to pay for the service. Is it worth 50 bucks more to have your engine serviced? For some yes and for some no. I came up in the days where customer service was what business was all about. Now days, it is laughable to even think you get service like old times.

You make a good point about getting one decent motor out of many purchases. I have yet to take a chance on a HK engine. I simply won't risk that at this time because I don't have the spare time to invest in trying to get it corrected if the sale does go sour. I stick with the more service oriented vendors for my engines and so far I have done fine with that process.

I didn't really expect it either. My last order arrived a week ago and I actually did receive a faulty item. I was ready to write it off and throw it away but decided to play the game..

I sent two vids and five photos that proved indisputably that the item was faulty.

It was resolved in less than 2 weeks.

Today I received an apology and my choice of 1. Store credit, 2. A full refund, or 3. A replacement.

Miracles do happen. Full details of the vids and photos here for anyone interested.

http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2041337

http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/atta...mentid=1944952

I have a basic set of expectations for any vendor no matter who they are or how much they cost.

1. I expect to receive the item or items that I paid for.
2. If I do not receive said items I expect the vendor to find out why and as quickly as possible, not to blame me for the error.
3. If the stuff I received is damaged or not in working order I expect either replacement or a refund.
4. If I ask for a refund then I should get one, not store credit that I don't want or can't use.

Those are four very basic expectations and are not too much to ask from any store regardless of cost. To simply throw away a part because you "got such a deal" on everything else is in my mind foolish. Deal or not I expect to receive working parts or get a replacement or my money back and that is not asking for much at all, just what's fair and right. I agree that it is stupid to pay 3 or four dollars to ship a two dollar servo back to Hobby King. On the flip side of that coin and looking at it from a customer satisfaction point of view, it is profoundly ignorant of them to not drop that 2 buck servo (that they pay fifty cents for) into an envelope and send it to you. I just can't do business with a company that violates my basic expectations. Waste your money as you see fit.

Oh and Australians are exempt from this because they don't have any hobby stores or vendors in Australia so they have to rely on Hobby King. It's OK though, just toss the buggerd up parts in the bin because hey, they were cheap anyway and it's only money after all.

I expect you will hear from the Australians about that.

Last summer I bought an 1/10 RC car from HK.
Since I could only use it about a month, I couldnt see paying $500 for one. The HK one cost $149 and it was brushless.
The ESC was bad. I had a few rounds with HK and finally just bought a new ESC from HK for $29.
In the end I had a car that was the equal of the $500 ones and it only cost $180..

It sure seems to be a TV stereotype that all Australians live in the outback and wrestle 'gators , ALA Paul Hogan (Crocodile Dundee) .

I'm sure , given the size of their big cities , that they've got some really great hobby shops . Course , maybe not one on every corner like we had here in the US in our youth . Now , OUR hobby shops are rather few and far between , themselves ....

The pope is a aussie and I wrestle crocs not gators catch taipans everyday and have a pet kanga . Other than that Im almost normal . I think H.K. customer service is getting better , I got a wrong country adapter worth 99c in my last order and brought it to there attention and figured it wasnt worth the hassel with photos etc. so I just ordered another one but that was entirely my decision not theres . Cheers from the aussie pope

On the one hand, I really admire and respect the Aussies. On the other Hand, there are exceptions.

Me 2

This sort of thing is why I use a CC. Merchants hate charge backs, and too many of them will cause problems with the merchant's ability to accept CC's.

I got into RCU for the info on planes. I had gotten insulted a few times and did the same back, not proud of that! But now I go on a thread untill it starts getting out of hand. When it does I bail" I love the hobby and getting all the info I can without all. The nonsence.

I think what happens at times is the parts are so inexpensive it is hardly worth the postage to send back. I know the type of items I buy, I would not invest in the time to send them back. The only backside of this is the vendor does not feel the pain of faulty items. So in one sense we should file claims just so the vendor has some responsibility to stand behind their parts even though we may or may not get any satisfaction.

Before one whines and complains how they were hard done by, did they:

1. Read and understand the shipping options or return policy?
2. Research others experiences good and bad with this company you don’t have to buy from them.
3. Factor in that you are dealing with a vendor in another country do you understand your options if you have to try and recover your money.
4. Did you use a method of payment that provides some protection? Be careful credit cards usually have a single billing cycle as a limit to file a grievance. This could be why Hobby King asks you wait 45 days before becoming concerned.
5. Ever heard the saying “Buyer Beware”.

After doing all the research you ultimately make the decision to order. Your expectations mean little if the company you are ordering from chooses to ignore you. Learn to take care of number one first.

Dennis

I like this comment, same thing happened to me and I retaliated in a way I am not proud of either. But I took a step back and realised I actually have much better things to do than argue with strangers over a Hobbyshop.

I love this hobby so I decided to turn over a new leaf and only say positive things that will help or encourage others.

I hope more people start taking up this attitude. I think this just may be my new years resolution. I try to always go into threads with the attitude of trying to get something out of them, to learn. Unfortunately in a forum format its often difficult to ask questions, especially if your question might imply that a previous poster was wrong. Things tend to be taken wrong easily in a forum type format… and quite honestly your right.. its not worth the stress and anger misinterpretations can cause, so I too often duck out of threads when people start to get snippy or defensive. If you can't educate me, I'm not hear to name call and want no part in that.

Bought a couple of items that were good. Bought a couple of items that were crap. But when they screwed on a return item is when I said that's enough and I'm done!!




Wind therapy for Me!

I think we should expose wrongs and rights, however we should make absolutely sure we are factual and using sound judgment. Too many times folks jump to conclusions hastily without the whole story. If HK or any other supplier did not do what is right within their written agreement then it should be duely noted for others to see. The same goes with the "great" deals and services as well.

I often find that after I researching an issue that someone put forth in anger it is rarely 100% factual and this is where the problems come in. When we do that we are falsely judging the vendor. That is detrimental and should not be done. Most of us have enough common sense to add 2+2 and know the answer.

When looking at posts about a vendor, look at a person's track record and determine if their appraisal of the vendor is honestly set forth from solid facts. An example might be, if I post that I got a bad engine from HK and here are all the facts that I have gathered. Now the rest of us can glean from that and determine if we want to risk a purchase or not.

Personally, I have done well with HK, but then I have done good with most vendors. I did have a few bad componants from Tower and HK. In the last three years I have had more faulty items at a higher cost level from Tower than HK, yet one has to consider how many items are ordered.

I ordered more from Tower so it stands to reason the chances of bad items are larger. Some would say, "Tower's quality control is better". I would have to question that to some extent.

The important thing is Tower stood behind the items 100%, albeit not as easy in days past. I had to go through a bit more than in the past and I think Tower has tightened the belt some on returns. I never returned anything with HK, so I have no facts about their service.

Easy solution, move to that country....

Problem solved.

Never thought of that . I think too many people would miss me plus H.K.
wouldnt have the excuse that they sent my order to Austria instead of Australia . CHEERS THE POPE

Good ale in Austria, a bit cool in winter though. One nice thing about your place is Uluru Park, plenty of room to fly and it's pleasantly warm in January. you have to be careful of the big rock though.:D

I was robbed for $237.45, paid for but never received my merchandise. Paid back in August of 2013....

Go here to fill out the form to report Hobbyking to the United States Postal Inspection Service. http://ehome.uspis.gov/fcsexternal/

HobbyKing is a criminal enterprise in my opinion, they should be jailed.


I got this nice reply.
Mail Fraud Complaint form submitted successfully.

Thank you for completing the form.

The information you provided will be entered into our national complaint system.

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service gathers data on mail-related crime to determine whether a violation has occurred. While we can't guarantee that we can recover lost money or items, your information can help alert Inspectors to problem areas and possibly prevent other people from being victimized. U.S. Postal Inspectors base their investigations on the number, substance, and pattern of complaints received from the public.

We ask you to keep all original documents related to your complaint. We will contact you ONLY if more information is needed.


Don't let them get away with ripping you off...!!!

Hi Broken Wings ,

I am sad to see yet another RCer ripped off by HobbyKing . Kudos to you for filling out the mail fraud complaint , if everyone who was ripped off by this crooked company were to do the same , maybe something might get done . I often wonder , with all of the paypal charge backs I read of against HK , how long will it be before paypal and others begin to blacklist them ?

you guys crack me up !

Yea , it's a real laugh seeing how HK rips off a fellow RCer for $237.45 , , , huh ?????

Let me guess , Mr. pope , YOUR last 300 orders have all shown up flawlessly , right ?????

Funny is in the eye of the beholder , and I see NOTHING funny about the fact that HK has done YET AGAIN what they do SO well , Take a guy's money and send nothing ..........

Not 300 but a fair amount never a problem. Longest wait was 3 weeks. I use my visa and will have no problem making sure I file a charge back in time if need be. Usually you have one billing cycle to file a charge back so be careful when Hobby King asks you to wait 45 days. I have no loyalty at all to Hobby King or any other vendor I have no problem entering into a charge back. So far I have no complaints against Hobby King.

I belong to two clubs and between them there are quite a few who order from Hobby King. At our Christmas party the talk came around to some of the new products sold by Hobby King. Not one complaint about being ripped off. The most common complaint was the length it took sometimes to get your order. A few complaints about the fit and finish on an arf but it was repairable and of course everyone’s favorite trying to return something. If you are old enough to have a credit card one should be wise enough to know how to protect yourself. I have a special low limit card $1500 I use for internet transactions I pay a few percentage points more in interest if I let the charges stay on the card but I have never had a problem initiating a charge back. Only one was ever canceled and it was at my request because I finally did receive the parcel.

I feel if you don’t know how to protect yourself you should refrain from using your card to make internet purchases.


Dennis