Vent about Festool service on Kapex

[erikfsn]

My Kapex is going back to Festool for the fourth time in a month.

First issue was a cracked bit of plastic broken by flying wood (the part that holds the rubber dust collecting funnel).

This took three trips to Festool before they fixed it. It came back from the third trip with the part finally fixed, but with something else broken. I noticed electrical tape had been wrapped around my power cord. I unwrapped it and could see that the power cord was crimped and the outer jacket sliced through as if it had been closed in a heavy door or run over by something heavy.
But instead of fixing the cord, someone just wrapped it up with tape.

Sigh.

Thanks for listening.
Erik

 

[Brice Burrell]

Erik, sorry to hear about your trouble. What Festool repair center are you referring to, in what country?

 

[erikfsn]

Hi Brice,

I'm in California, the bay area. My dealer has been shipping it back for me, somewhere in the US, but I'm not sure exactly where.

Due to the nature of my work right now I've been able to get by without it, but I have a couple of projects on hold until the saw is fixed so it's a little frustrating.

 

[Martin Johnson]

Erik,

This does not sound right to me.  I know that I am back in our repair center on a weekly basis, and I can not imagine that they would return a product in this shape.  We have another facility in Galeta for repairs, but this does not sound like something they would do either.  Can you give me the serial number of your Kapex, and the dealer that sent it in for you.  I'll help get to the bottome of it.  You can send to me via email...

regards,
Martin

 

[Rob Z]

Hi Erik

I read on another forum where a guy said that he went through  four or five Kapexes before he got one without a problem. Rather than concluding that I wouldn't buy a Festool product, I concluded that I was impressed that the company worked through the problems and made sure he got a saw that didn't have any problems.  I'm ready to accept that any company can have a string of problems and one of these days I'll be the guy that experiences a bunch at once with a particular tool or product  (come to think of it, this has happened many times in the course of my business  ).  The difference is whether or not the manufacturer will leave you hanging.  It sounds like Martin is ready to work on resolving your problem, which is a good thing.

 

[Brice Burrell]

Well, I'm glad Martin replied, I was going to say the same thing he did, something just doesn't seems right here. I can't help but think your dealer might be trying to pull a fast one on you. It must cost a lot of money to ship a saw back and forth so I can't imagine Festool wouldn't make sure it was right the first time through the repair center. One ting that I pretty certain of is that Festool will make this right. Good luck.

 

[Matthew Schenker]

Erik,
I'm glad you are getting a direct response here about your Kapex.  That's what makes this forum -- and Festool -- unique in the tool world!  Even if there's a problem, it can be turned into a positive situation in the end.

Remember, after the whole thing is solved, make sure to post a report to the forum so we can all know the outcome.

Thanks,
Matthew

 

[erikfsn]

Matthew, I will post the outcome when I know what it is.

Brice, I did want to respond to what you said about my dealer. Correct me if I'm wrong, but it sounds to me like you think there's a possibility they are not returning the saw to Festool? However, each time the saw has come back I've seen the paperwork from Festool indicating what they've done.

I do trust my dealer; Truitt and White is a good lumber yard, and the guy I've been working with there is a great guy. I can see the frustration on his face about what's been going on with my repair.

 

[PeterK]

Are you sure the saw you got in return is the one you sent out? Same serial number? Just curious. If it was changed out, I bet it was by the dealer. As you have seen, Festool does actively monitor this forum and takes very quick action to resolve issues. Let us know the outcome please.
Pete

 

[bronx]

Hi Erik,

case solved?

Thomas

 

[erikfsn]

Almost resolved; going to pick up saw today. After checking serial number I will report.

Martin, I emailed you as requested a few days ago but haven't heard from you. Did you get my email?

Erik

 

[erikfsn]

So, I picked up my saw today.

Someone from Festool called me, I think it was David. He apologized for the trouble I've been having with the repair. He said that it was someone from Festool who had  taped the cord up.

Festool authorized my dealer to replace the cord (which they did) so it did not have to be mailed back a fourth time (in a box full of broken bits of the original protective styrofoam). They also offered to give me a blade for the Kapex as recompense for the repair problems and I accepted it.  I would have preferred one of their new drills instead, but I guess my problems didn't seem sufficient to them for that. Speaking as the one who had to go through all this, I disagree but am just going to put this behind me.

Turns out the number on my receipt is not a serial number, so I couldn't check that out.

Erik

 

[Martin Johnson]

Erik,

Yes, I received your email, and instructed repair to look into the issue.  According to the records, the cord was nicked, and the service person taped it.  My feedback was that they should have contacted you to alert you to the problem, so you were fully aware of any issue.  There were a few other details that we discussed to help improve the process, so your feedback was important to us.  I also asked them to include a few tips that should help with the the small cut-offs.  Did you receive those as well (either in writing or verbally?)

Best regards,
Martin

 

[erikfsn]

Thanks Martin, I appreciate your help. They did offer me a few tips verbally for small bits of wood.

I'm glad my feedback was helpful to your service department. It is such an important part of a company's success.

I think about three times now I've had a problem develop with my iPhone. Each time Apple has replaced the unit with a smile. I think that attitude has something to do with their ability to sell things.

 

[Jimhart]

Thanks Martin, I appreciate your help. They did offer me a few tips verbally for small bits of wood.

I'm glad my feedback was helpful to your service department. It is such an important part of a company's success.

I think about three times now I've had a problem develop with my iPhone. Each time Apple has replaced the unit with a smile. I think that attitude has something to do with their ability to sell things.

Erik,

I read a book a few years back that echoed your thought exactly. Can't remember the title, but the message was 'people no longer expect companies to be perfect on the first try, 95% of our perception of a company now comes from how well they make things right.'

Jim

 

[GreenGA]

While not Festool related, it is related to Apple.

I've had my Gen4 Nano back to the local Apple store 4 times, and soon to be 5th, and they have yet to replace it.  The battery wears down within a couple of days of non-use.

They've restarted the Nano so it would/could charge (when it wouldn't charge via the PC), sold me a powered adapter to charge it, instead of using the PC, and even "cleaned" the connector port for charging; all to no avail.

We shall see...

Off Soap Box.

I think about three times now I've had a problem develop with my iPhone. Each time Apple has replaced the unit with a smile. I think that attitude has something to do with their ability to sell things.