Kapex Bru-ha-ha

[danrush]

First, Thanks to Festool and my local dealer  for replacing my defective Kapex within about 2 hours notice.  Very cool!  I continue to be a big fan.

I do have a question for Festool, however...   The recent Kapex bru-ha-ha started on about July 15,   with a thread by Chris M.  Please correct me if I'm wrong, but I haven't read a peep from Festool to date. 

Yes, I know that Festool has been addressing this issue on a one by one basis through the dealers, but I wonder if some of the anxiety and drama could have been diffused by a simple statement issued by you guys.  Even some PR  bla, bla, bla, that says something but nothing might have relieved some fears (unfounded or not). If Festool did indeed know about the issue, and had a known remedy, it would seem to me that this is one of the best places to publish that info. 

Festool has been so responsive in the past, where were you on this one?  Are you guys still checking in regularly? 

Again, thanks for the quick response in my case, but your silence is deafening.

Dan

 

[Matthew Schenker]

Festool has been so responsive in the past, where were you on this one?  Are you guys still checking in regularly? 

Again, thanks for the quick response in my case, but your silence is deafening.

Dan,
We now have 14 Festool USA Employees in the forum (listed here).  Almost all of them have been checking in on the forum regularly, right up until this morning.
Matthew

 

[Steve Jones]

Knowing no "inside information" I suspect that Festool wisely decided that contributing to a public discussion which by definition involved several potentially unhappy customers would be counter-productive, instead they devoted their efforts to fixing individual problems with each customer through the proper channels of the dealer network.

Think about it, had they mentioned any theory about the problem and it's resolution, some folks here would have leaped on prematurely applying the ideas and generating new ones, dissagreeing publicly with proposed solutions, messed up alignments, and generally made more problems than originally existed. (come to think of it, it looked like some of that happened anyway, but at least it was without any form of encouragement from Festool).

Festool behaved with a far more professional approach than many on this forum, It seems like most (if not all) customers are restored to happiness with their Kapex's. While still having doubts myself about the current model design (I don't and will not own one until it's changed). i respect and admire the way Festool handled this situation.

 

[Tom the Remodeler]

I agree that while it would be nice to see some sort of public statement from Festool, they handled my personal situation to my great satisfaction. Granted, it was frustrating to have my first saw not be perfect, but they rushed me a new unit and I was framing a basement with my new Kapex within a week. I'd like to see the same customer service from any of the other major tool manufacturers.

 

[Woodenfish]

I agree that while it would be nice to see some sort of public statement from Festool, they handled my personal situation to my great satisfaction.

Why? How would that alter your situation in which you seem happily satisfied? Seems like a waste of time to me.

 

[ccmviking]

I'd like to see the same customer service from any of the other major tool manufacturers.

Tom,

With most of the other stuff out there it's a quick trip to Lowes to get a new one.  No hassle returns and right around the corner.  It may not be coming directly from the manufacturer next day air but they support it.

Chris... 

 

[danrush]

Hi guys,

Matthew, I'm happy that Festool employees are checking in.  But I'm not sure that I put that in the same catagory as participating, let alone responding to a particular thread with some direct concerns and open questions.  I have come to admire, respect, and through experience, expect a better response from the festool employee "regulars" here. 

Steve, I have followed your threads, and even stolen some ideas.  Thanks. 
I too, know no inside information.  And I agree that Festool went way beyond the call in fixing this problem(s) , mine included.  It seems to me however that the problem was known by Festool, and that there wasn't much time for theory or conjecture.  Parts or saws were sent out almost immediately.  A simple statement saying something like " Yup, it's a bad part on such and such production run, and we will send replacements now, etc, etc, etc."  would have saved days of speculation(some would say "wild speculation" ) and general angst among their most faithful devotees.  Again, Thanks to Festool and my dealer for fixing me up so quickly.

Tom, Glad you were fixed up as quickly and efficently as I was.  A true testament to the Festool policy.  On a new rollout, I don't expect perfection, just a true effort at it.  Festool followed through.

I may be harping, and I'll let it go now, but why still no response from Festool here?

Thanks, Dan

 

[Tom the Remodeler]

I'd like to see the same customer service from any of the other major tool manufacturers.

Tom,

With most of the other stuff out there it's a quick trip to Lowes to get a new one.  No hassle returns and right around the corner.  It may not be coming directly from the manufacturer next day air but they support it.

Chris... 

Hi there Chris!

I guess I try to avoid the big Home Depot and Lowes stores as much as possible. I do the vast majority of my tool purchases at Thomas Tool and Supply in Maplewood, MN. They carry everything from shovels and jackhammers all the way up to Festool. If I need something special ordered, or just need it tommorrow and can't spare the time to get to the store, they'll one- or two-day ship it to my jobsite, saving me the trip to the store. If I have a return or need to have warranty work performed, they just look up my account in their computer system, no sales receipts, no in-store credit.

I guess I am happy with my Kapex situation simply because I know that it's not widely available, and was still able to get a brand new unit within a week, delivered to my jobsite. What kind of service would you get from, say, a Lowes, trying to exchange a faulty router, and they don't have any others in stock, and it's a special order item?

Overall, I should really be singing the praises of Thomas Tool as much as Festool. Adam at Thomas Tool opened the Kapex box with me, found the unit to be faulty, and proceeded to spend the next hour and a half of his time trying to trouble-shoot the problem. When we couldn't fix the problem, he phoned his Festool rep. Here's where Festool stepped in. Adam's Fes rep answered his cell at his kids soccer game, and spent 15 minutes on the phone with Adam figuring out what the problem was and how to resolve it. Festool fast-tracked a Kapex to Minnesota, and Adam Speedy-Delivered the Kapex to my jobsite the same day it got to his store.

I agree that Lowes and Home Depot definitely have their place in the market, but for a professional who doesn't have time to run to the store every time he has a problem it's folks like Adam at Thomas Tool and Timmy C at Festool Junky that really help us earn our living, and it's nice to see a tool manufacturer (Fes) step up and try to please their customers.

Woodenfish, I guess it would have been nice for Fes to come out and say "yeah, we've got a few bugs to work out, but we're working on them and we'll keep you posted". Granted, statements don't fix saws, but it would still be nice to hear something official from them. 

Anyways, hope everybody's doing well! 

 

[Matthew Schenker]

Matthew, I'm happy that Festool employees are checking in.  But I'm not sure that I put that in the same catagory as participating, let alone responding to a particular thread with some direct concerns and open questions.  I have come to admire, respect, and through experience, expect a better response from the festool employee "regulars" here. 

You're right, and I did not mean to say that checking in is the same as responding.  I was only letting people know that Festool employees do check in every day, often several times a day.  Beyond that, I don't know why they are not responding.

As you know, I consider it extremely valuable for Festool to respond to customer questions, especially when there is an issue.  At the same time, I also understand they might have good reasons for remaining quiet.  I don't know what those reasons are, and I don't want to add to speculation or rumors by guessing.

However, whatever the reason, the lack of responses does suggest that it's time for me to close the "Contact Festool" board.

Let me be clear: I'm not judging Festool employees on this.  I'm just saying that if we get no responses, then we don't need a "Contact Festool" board.

Stay in touch,
Matthew

 

[Bob Marino]

Matthew, I'm happy that Festool employees are checking in.  But I'm not sure that I put that in the same catagory as participating, let alone responding to a particular thread with some direct concerns and open questions.  I have come to admire, respect, and through experience, expect a better response from the festool employee "regulars" here. 

You're right, and I did not mean to say that checking in is the same as responding.  I was only letting people know that Festool employees do check in every day, often several times a day.  Beyond that, I don't know why they are not responding.

As you know, I consider it extremely valuable for Festool to respond to customer questions, especially when there is an issue.  At the same time, I also understand they might have good reasons for remaining quiet.  I don't know what those reasons are, and I don't want to add to speculation or rumors by guessing.

However, whatever the reason, the lack of responses does suggest that it's time for me to close the "Contact Festool" board.

Let me be clear: I'm not judging Festool employees on this.  I'm just saying that if we get no responses, then we don't need a "Contact Festool" board.

Stay in touch,
Matthew

Matt,

The reason Festool has not yet posted regarding this issue is that they want to gather as much info/do as much research, get their facts straight and post from a position of knowledge, rather than speculating on what went wrong and what's the best fix, only having to retract that statement a day or two later. We will be hearing from them shortly.

Bob

Bob

 

[Matthew Schenker]

Bob,
Thanks for letting us know the status.  Like everyone else, I'm looking forward to Festool's response, and would love to move past this stage into the "everyone loves their Kapex" stage instead!

But still, this situation does emphasize the need to close the "Contact Festool" board.  I think that when Festool does respond, it should be in the main boards.

Thanks,
Matthew

 

[danrush]

Matthew,

I think my stance on Festool's response on this issue is clear since I started this thread.  However, I would urge you to reconsider closing the "contact Festool board".

As this forum grows with more threads and even more posts,  single comments or questions appropriately directed to Festool can and may well get lost in the noise.  Few can read every thread or post.

I think it is important for the FOG membership to have a direct conduet to Festool. Whether Festool chooses to respond or not, at least we know (or hope) that our questions or comments have at least been heard.

Please reconsider the action you propose,

Thanks, Dan

 

[Matthew Schenker]

Dan,
I understand what you're saying.  However, these problems have arisen:
1. Often, questions are posted here and it's mysterious whether they were received by Festool or not.
2. Often, questions posted here are indistinguishable from what could have been posted in a main tool board.  The majority of the time, questions posted here are answered by other members, not Festool.  Because this board is checked less often, on average, than other boards, many members miss potentially good material because of this split between "contact Festool" questions and regular questions.  That would be fine if we received regular responses from the company (see 1. above).

The concept for a "Contact Festool" board was something I always wanted, so in essence I'm criticizing my own idea!  But I have to look at the larger way that the forum works, or doesn't work, and make appropriate changes.

I'd like nothing more than to keep this board up, and see Festool responding more to member questions.  But for whatever reason (I'm not going to assume anything) it's not happening.

Stay in touch,
Matthew

 

[Steveo48]

I'd like to see the same customer service from any of the other major tool manufacturers.

Tom,

With most of the other stuff out there it's a quick trip to Lowes to get a new one.  No hassle returns and right around the corner.  It may not be coming directly from the manufacturer next day air but they support it.

Chris... 

Absolutely, and the 30 days no-questions-asked guarantee is a painful problem for tool manufacturers.  A college buddy of mine works for Campbell-Hausfeld in Harrison, Ohio.  I know at one time they were (and probably still are) getting burned by people buying a compressor to do work and then returning it for a full refund.  My compressor was a return and I paid just 1/5th it's value then.  There was nothing wrong with it.  ALL of my air tools came the same way, some of them cost me as little as $5.00 apiece.  The guy in their warehouse gave me stuff I didn't want just to get rid of it.  Ever wonder where a lot of the new looking tools come from in flea markets?

Tom, the service you get from your local guy, I'm sure it's really good but it's not cheap.  When I'm in a hurry I usually go to my local Ace Hardware guy (He's a former shop teacher, I bet some of you guys learned construction or manufacturing with curriculum he helped write).  Smaller store, they greet you at the door, take you to the parts you need and your out of there!  But you do pay for that.

Steve

 

[Matthew Schenker]

Everyone,
There has been speculation here, and elsewhere, in the forum about why Festool has chosen to stay out of forum discussions.  The speculation includes reasons such as negative or off-color posts, or even the attitude of the administrator.  The Kapex discussion in particular generated some speculation about why Festool is not posting. 

I have recently been communicating with Christian Oltzscher about the "Contact Festool" board and Festool's general involvement with the forum.  None of the reasons stated above are why Festool is no longer posting to the forum.  Festool's decision not to post to this forum is related to other events, external to the forum.

That should clear up speculation about why Festool has chosen to stop taking part in the forum.

Stay in touch,
Matthew

 

[nclemmons]

Can they be any more vague? 

The key question is whether they plan to participate in any of the discussions on ANY of the forums here.  Other than Shane saying he's going to be at IWF I don't think I've seen any commentary from Festool employees of late.  It seems odd that the company that was actively promoting the forum has decided to just watch rather than join the conversation. 

I'm fine with closing the contact Festool forum if they don't want to join in the discussion.  I'd be more interested in whether they want to have any conversation even in the general forums.
Seems like what was a great dialog around product, promotion, community, tips, etc has lost the voice of the company.

Neil

 

[Per Swenson]

Folks,

Didja ever see this?

I am going to put my self in Festools shoes for a moment.

I have a top notch crew in the Indiana headquarters that I pay good money

to solve each and every customer problem or question.

To guarantee they get the proper service and meet or exceed our all ready

outstanding customer service. (The important part) On a one to one basis.

As the boss, do I want to pay somebody to be or check a internet forum and answer general questions?

No, I want him on the phone with each individual and I want each individual to know it.

Festool accountability is greatly served by that phone number up top.

Its back to that committee thing.

I don't want a committee (And I love you guy's, don't get me wrong)

dealing with my issue. I want the head of service in Goleta on the phone.

10 minutes ago.

Per

 

[peter halle]

Per:

Bingo.  Well said.

Peter