Emerson Warranty Service Problems

Ben

Joined
Feb 11, 1999
Messages
9
I purchased a Commander from Arizona Custom Knives in October, and immediately noticed that the locking liner went all the way to the far side of the blade tang when the knife was opened using the wave feature.

I liked the knife, and so I called the company to find out if this was something that they could fix. The lady that I spoke with said that it was covered by the warranty, and that the turn around should be about two weeks. I sent the knife off on October 12, UPS 3-day with a check for shipping and handling.

I still had not heard from them by November 12, and so I called to inquire on the status of the job. I was informed that they had the knife, and that it would go out on the following Monday, 11/15.

Still no knife by 11/22, and so I call them once more. Yes, they have the knife, but they haven't sent it out yet. I mention the above information, and get very little feedback. This person tells me that it will be finished as soon as they can, and when I ask her to contact me with an update, she says, "I'll try."

Basically, I'm not impressed. The knife is a great design, but that particular blade should not have left the factory. Further, I would not be as concerned if I felt as though they were holding up their end. I understand that warranty work can take some time, but the "two weeks", "next monday", "when we can get to it" song and dance is not up to spec.

Of course, my situation may be the exception to the rule. I will be sure to update this post as I get new information, and we will see what happens.

UPDATE TO PREVIOUS POST:

On 11/29/99, I received a Commander via UPS. The knife included the following note:

"We apologize for the delay in returning your knife to you. We are sending you a new one, and hope you do not have any problems with it.
Thank you, -Emerson Knives"

Enclosed was a brand-new Commander, with none of the problems of the previous knife.

My opinion? Well, they did take a while to get a knife back to me, but they made good on their promise, and further, they acknowledged the length of the delay. That satisfies me; people, and companies, do occasionally make mistakes, and I appreciate their efforts to correct the problem.

Finally, the Commander is a great knife, and well worth the wait. Enough said.

- Ben

[This message has been edited by Ben (edited 30 November 1999).]
 
see my posts on the subject:

http://www.bladeforums.com/ubb/Forum3/HTML/001033.html

These knives are way over priced. I did get mine back within a few weeks, but still didn't get one that was $150+ in quality. If obvious things like bad liner locks get thru their QC I wonder how well the blade is heat treated--sure wish I had access to a tester.

Too bad this wasn't a Chris Reeve knife! Could you imagine a Commander Sebenza! Or a Microtech Commader DA auto! HAAAA! I love the design and wish it was made to a higher quality.

By the way, I didn't send $ to cover return shipping. $10 is alittle steep when $5.50 is what USPS charged me for shipping it insured for $150. Also, I have never paid for return shipping on any item sent back for warranty work--personally, they should re-imburse you for postage!!


jc



[This message has been edited by jc (edited 23 November 1999).]
 
I just recieved a Commander, and it thas the same problem, the lock goes almost all the way to the liner, Is this really a problem? I like the knife and it seems to funtion very smoothly!
I have also sent in a Specwar for a liner problem(it rubbed the blade) I posted about it earlier. Emerson gave me all kinds of stories about the knife and it was supposed to be shipped out last week. I still have not seen it, Emerson will not even confirm if it has been shipped! Like I said I really like the knives but what is with the QC at Emerson knives these days??

------------------
Take care of the tools that take care of you


 
My first Commander start out locking in the middle of the blade and everything was good. Then the liner would lock much closer to the right hand side of the blade (with the knife upside down of course!). Not a big deal until I put pressure on the spine of the knife. The lock would move to the left and the blade would have vertical play--not good at all.

My replacement seems to be much better with the lock starting life way closer to the left of the blade. After many openings, the liner has only moved very slightly to the right but is not past the center of the blade. Also, more of the lock is contacting the tang of the blade. The first Commander had less than a 1/4 of the liner lock contacting the blade (measuring the rub mark on the tang). The new one has a good 3/4 of the liner contacting.

jc
 
This hit's a sore spot with me too...The QC at Emerson is the worst!
Another thing I dont agree with...If Emerson has their own forum section here they should have someone try to maintain it and at least try to respond, if not that section should be closed. All this is to Emerson it seems is free ad space.




------------------
~Keith~
"War to the knife and knife to the hilt"

 
With my experiences aside, I feel that the CQ dept. needs some real tightening up. Blade/ liner rub is unacceptable as it requires only a quick check at most. On top of this a $10 fee to have it warranteed worked plus the cost of return insured shipping! Defects strait from the box that you have to pay for! Wow. How much does that folder cost now?

Makes one think about examining knives at the local retailer before taking it home. Prices could work out to be similar...

It' s unfortunate as the Commander does indeed have one of the best ergonomics I' ve ever felt in a folder.

L8r,
Nakano

PS- don' t be surprised if the old bending the scales method (a la AFCK) remedies this problem.
smile.gif



 
Guys,

I always find threads like this interesting. Instead of complaining about it, do something.

Stop buying these knives.

Your paying for defects out of the box? Im confused, why do they keep the knives for repair? Every other major factory would just replace the knife.

That might be the best course of action, ask for a replacement.

Les

 
This seems to be an epidemic with various production companies. When they are smaller companies with less of a customer base, they are able to have superb customer service. They answer phone calls immediately and either replace the knife or send it right back out when you return the knife with various factory defects. I've had great experiences with certain companies and then suddenly after a few months to a year I hear a whole range of customer service delays and problems. Why does customer service go out the window when the company gets big? Because without it, people stop buying the knives. The same thing happens with production values. In my opinion, the first couple batches of knives are great then a load of problems start rolling in.


Jason
 
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