Terrible Powermatic Customer Service

[Matt Day]

Probabaly better off with the old green Powermatics and getting parts on OWWM!

This sounds like another reason not to spend the extra money on the gold paint job when you get the same machine in green or white. Not exactly in this case because I don’t think Griz makes the same 2013 bandsaw.

Regarding your worry about the buyer of the machine the motor is getting pulled from, I wouldn’t worry about it. Hopefully PM would notice its missing a motor when they go to ship it out!

[Frankie Hunt]

I don't think they are set up very well for service. Last year I got their new tenon jig. I had issues with the bar and called them. They talked me into several things to try much to no avail. They then looked up the parts I needed and said they would ship them. After several phone calls / emails with the their technician I was told they didnt have that part in stock and had no eta. They told me they would take the parts from a new one and send to me. More calls / emails I was told that would not work out. They told me to bust up the old unit with a hammer and send photos showing serial number and busted unit. They did send me a new one and made things right. Overall I was happy enough with the outcome.

It sure is a different world we live in today. 20 years ago I updated most of my equipment. I went with all Delta since they were the "standard", had great service, USA made and would be around forever..... Who would have though that Grizzly would overtake them in service and product.... (other than Shiraz Balolia)

[Roger Feeley]

I bought a rikon 17” bandsaw and the motor tripped the breaker once. I reset the breaker and the saw started up fine. I called rikon and told them about it. They said it might be an anomaly but to be safe, they shopped me a motor. The replacement motor arrived with a dented fan shroud. I told them it was no big deal. The fan looked fine and I could pound out the dent. They shipped another motor! they never asked anything back. I’m still using the original motor. I guess I have two spares.

[Peter Kelly]

Since experiencing this problem, I've done some research on JPW. They have some major employee problems it seems. From the posts I've read from former employees the moral is terrible, the pay is barely adequate and upper management is unresponsive. Posts from upper management are all about creating greater profits for stakeholders/shareholders. Little mention of what they actually do to make that happen.

Pretty much standard operating procedure with any PE firm acquisition. Over-leverage, suck the life / cash out of a company and dump it.

[Matthew Bennett DC]

Sounds like the perfect time to short JPW stocks. I'll check it out and maybe that's what I will do.

I've received an email this morning from the service technician. He says they are going to go ahead and pull a motor off of a new machine, test it, then get it in the mail to me. He didn't say when though. I'll be calling him later today to see if I can nail him down. With that said, I've got two thoughts about this turn of events: 1) what will the story be for the unlucky buyer who gets the machine from which they are robbing this motor; will he/she know any of this (I'm sure they won't), 2) has JPW let things go this bad with customer service and parts replacement for a reason? Why would they not have an adequate supply of replacement parts in inventory? Are the owners of JPW robbing all the value out of the company as they drive it into possible bankruptcy then dump it? We've all seen this scenario before.

[Perry Hilbert Jr]

Some states have a consumer Protection law that permits triple damages and attorney fees. Offering a warranty and then not being able to fix the problem is a violation of PA's Consumer Protection act. I purchased a warranty through a big name company and then the product was destroyed through no fault or negligence of mine. They denied the warranty claim. I sued and got the three times the original price and I got $250.00 for my own time as my attorney. (I am an attorney). I would sue them for three times the cost of the entire unit. Once the bean counters start seeing summonses come through the door, it will change their tune.

There is an expression around here, "Rare as replacement parts for a Chinese motorcycle." Maybe that is the problem. Thompson Center ran into that with their life time warranty on their firearms. A fire at the factory destroyed the machinery to make replacement parts, so they just ran out and stopped honoring the lifetime warranty on those particular guns. That is very bad business juju.

[scott spencer]

Aside from the customer woes, I'm curious about what specifically is going bad in the motor? Cap, centrifugal switch, bearings....? Is there anything you could fix if they sent you the part?

[Mike Heidrick]

Cian at woodnet may be able to follow up with powermatic.

Id be looking at a baldor replacement and have them purchase and send it.

[Rick Potter]

I would return it. Why should you be the repairman for a new machine?

[Simon MacGowen]

I would return it. Why should you be the repairman for a new machine?

I have always been amazed at the length people (including woodworkers of course) would go trying to "fix" their new purchases, after encountering a poor response from the vendors (customer service) where they bought them.

"Try this and try that" is the grand advice you hear often on forums instead of suggestions like picking up the phone and escalating and returning the item when all fails. I am not talking about cosmetic issues or simple checking but taking apart the tools, finding replacement parts, etc.

I know many people struggle with reading even the basic manual instructions (granted, many are rubbish and are like written by aliens who don't speak English) and they have no clue how to set things up (hence the geek squads) or operate. To assume a woodworker would know how to fix a machine is to assume a woodturner is also good at making chairs.

Simon

[andy bessette]

...I think I'm entitled to a new motor or better yet, since they've made a mess of this, a new machine...

This is your problem...too high expectations. They already said they'd pay to have it rebuilt. Send it to a rebuilder and quit complaining they aren't treating you right.

[Jim Becker]

I would return it. Why should you be the repairman for a new machine?

The saw is almost a year and a half old; it's not a "new" machine just purchased. The issue here is about warranty service and it sounds like the vendor is going to take care of him. Sadly, however, it's taken way too long for them to make the decision to pull a part off of a machine to solve a supply issue.

Parts replacement sans labor is pretty much "normal" for a lot of equipment these days, even during a warranty period and even/especially for higher-end gear.

[Brian Holcombe]

This is your problem...too high expectations. They already said they'd pay to have it rebuilt. Send it to a rebuilder and quit complaining they aren't treating you right.

Sounds like your expectations are too low. But likely fair after 1.5 yrs to have either a new motor or a repair.

[Lyn Baker]

Update: After five weeks, a replacement motor arrived via UPS this morning. The motor was robbed off of a new machine. Unfortunately, the motor was packed very poorly and was damaged in shipment. I haven't contacted the service rep yet; he's the next email. The cowling around the fan is bent up so bad, the motor will just barely make a revolution; I'm turning the shaft by hand; I've not installed the motor on the machine. So, this has gone from bad to worse. I'm going to let him know about the situation then I think I'll rob the cowling off the bad motor and maybe I'll be okay. Going forward, it's crossed my mind to divest myself of all my Powermatic tools and find a company that will take care of their customers. When I pay $5,000 for a tool, I expect, no I demand service after the sale. I have not received that at all with JPW, LLC.

[Mike Henderson]

This is your problem...too high expectations. They already said they'd pay to have it rebuilt. Send it to a rebuilder and quit complaining they aren't treating you right.

The OP said that there's no one within 100 miles who rebuilds single phase motors. So maybe he could find someone who he could ship the motor to to have it rebuilt. He'd have to pay the shipping both ways, and the cost of rebuilding. My experience with motor rebuilders is that they're not exactly quick, especially for small jobs with non-repeat customers. So he'd be out the motor for another month or so.

Then, he'd have to collect the cost from Powermatic. Again, my experience is that once you pay for something, it always a chore to get the company to pay for everything, here to include the cost of packing and shipping. They often say, "We only allow $xxx for packing and shipping."

Hopefully, when he got the motor back from the rebuilders it would work, but I've received motors that did not work for long after rebuilding. If that happens, who's responsible? Does he have to go chase the rebuilders, or is Powermatic going to stand behind the problem because they told him to go get it rebuilt?

So I agree with him - the motor went bad during the warranty period. It's the responsibility of Powermatic to get the saw fixed.

Mike