Serious Synergy Problem!

[zaytser 0]

Hi guys, I am new to the board when it comes to posting but I have been reading the subjects here for quite some time. My dilema is that I broke my left Handed Si-Core Synergy Iginla just past the heel, within only to days of buying it (second ice time). I could feel the blade whip back with every pass I received and finally in one snap shot the blade whipped back and never returned to its original position. I immediately got pi$$*! off and wrenched the blade back and forth until it broke away. Now I beleive that this pattern is more susceptible to break than the rest because the pattern curves back at the the heel and then forward fromt he middle to the toe, giving some extra whip along with the shaft. I normally would never buy this pattern, and I usually use a Drury of Modanno, but they are hard to come buy in a left handed 85 flex in the Si-Core Grip, and the stick overall was the best I ever used (except for the week blade). Now this is where It gets weird. A couple weeks before my stick broke a guy I was shinnying with broke his Iginla in the same spot and since it was under warranty he sent it away. A couple weeks later on the day I broke my stick he advised me to try to get the store to warranty my stick becaue he was called back by Easton telling him that they would not warranty this stick because they suspected that he tried to curve it. I watched him tape the stick and there were now signs of any tampering or heating of the blade. So what should I do? Both of our sticks broke in the same spot and I don't want to send my stick on a courier "prepaid" or "insure it" if I use Canada Post and then find out Easton won't send another one because the blade looks as if it had been heated. The only way they may think that blade was heated is because of the fraying of the weaves when I wrenched the blade off after the blade worped. What do you guys think? Thanks for your help and for being patient with my long post. <_<

[Chadd 916]

Send it back, you only have a couple of bucks to lose on shipping and you should get your stick replaced. Easton has been very liberal in replacements lately, I'm surprised your friend was denied.

If they don't replace your stick, don't buy another Easton product, it's the only leverage you have against a company. If they do replace it, all is right in the world.

[zaytser 0]

I just talked to this guy at shinny again earlier today and it seems that Easton won't even send back the broken stick. So basically this guy has paid $250 Candain, for absolutely nothing. What bunch of rotten ass#$%$. I can't beleive this. I also already talked to the warranty department about this and even gave them my item nunber and the guy there was very rude. I guess I will have to put a synthesis blade in it. $350 Canadian down the drain. Never again will I buy an Easton stick. Total hor$%!#. The sad part is that I really like the feel of their sticks.

[kosydar 0]

Not saying I don't believe you, but Easton has always had an excellent warranty department. Like Chadd said, they've had a very liberal return policy, and if that has changed like you say it has, its from people abusing it.

[Bo from Boston 0]

Easton's folks are burned out by the high number of pissed off customers who call in looking for replacement sticks. Its like the typical customer service person...eventually, when your dealing with unhappy customers, you start to get a bad attitude towards all who come into contact with you since you know your going to be on the receiving end of some grief (whether you personally deserve it or not).

Some diplomacy and above all RESPECT should be used in your dealings.

Having said that, it should be black and white what the decision is going to be. If its in warranty, it should be replaced. There should be ZERO subjective thinking on the part of the Easton employee about return priviledge. If they are in a bad mood or just had an awful call with another customer, the next few callers should not have to bear the brunt of their attitude in the form of a rejection. I have heard the "call them in the morning" stories as it seems they get more "sensitive" throughout the day.

If they made a more robust product, their would be fewer calls and ultimately the cost will be lower...I am sure you all realize replacement rates are factored into their sell price into the channel.

If that number got out I think a lot of people would question buying their products....

[JR Boucicaut 3760]

In Easton's defense (gasp!) the warranty is not set in stone. IF they feel that the stick has been altered in any way , they do not have to cover it. It's as simple as that. I'm not saying that you are trying to rip them off, and you sound very genuine about what happened, but I'm just presenting the other side's viewpoint.

[Bo from Boston 0]

That is very true - if you mess with your sticks, it voids warranty. Good point JR

If your stick is not altered and within the timeframe of return, there should be no problem.

Be cordial and hope for the best when you call...if they refuse you for what you consider "no good reason", take Chadd's advice and don't purchase their product anymore.

[Chadd 916]

If a stick looks like it has been altered, they shouldn't replace it. I can remember too many stories from people about snapping sticks intentionally just to get a new one.

[zaytser 0]

Thanks for the replys guys but I am not going to bother with sending the stick in. I have no idea what tell tale signs there are when determining if a blade has been heated or curved, but I can tell you that the guy I play shinny with is very dissapointed by Eastons business dealings and I can verify that there were no curvature bubbles on the blade from heating it. He had bought the stick that day, and I watched him tape it up. Funny thing is that he was really excited about using this stick, and I had told him he wouldn't regret his decision about buying it, because I myself have had two synergy sticks that lasted a long time and are only good for practice now from all of the abuse they have taken.

Unfortunately for us we didn't beleive the horror stories about the trouble some other guys had when trying to get their product warratied.

I guess it is just a case of buyer beware.

[kosydar 0]

If a stick looks like it has been altered, they shouldn't replace it. I can remember too many stories from people about snapping sticks intentionally just to get a new one.

Or driving over them....

[thunderhockey19 0]

lol you guys are never going to let him forget about that are you? :lol:

[kosydar 0]

I actually for get who it was....was it Jake?

[JR Boucicaut 3760]

Yeah. LOL

[thunderhockey19 0]

believe that was him...its been a while since anyone has brought it up. is he on this board or just didnt come here after corebeam?

[kosydar 0]

I just checked, hes here, he just hasn't posted in about a month. I still can't decide which is worse, the truck or the golf course.

[thunderhockey19 0]

lol!, no wonder i thought he wasnt here he hasnt posted in a month or so. i miss people making fun of the guy. :lol:

[Chris_H 0]

Golf course...how did the story go, he smoked a big spliff, went to his this girls house, four bubbas later.......then wakes up on a golf course naked with the girl. I`m thinking that pretty vague but to some extend what he told us. Hopefully someone saved that glorious post, or he sees this, heck, maybe the reason he hasn`t posted is he has another story to tell. (The suspense is rising)

[Harrage12 0]

broke my synergy grip modano just past the heel first time using it. my buddy broke two in one open hockey. the synergy is junk. im currently using a vapor xx.

[kosydar 0]

I guess I will have to put a synthesis blade in it. $350 Canadian down the drain. Never again will I buy an Easton stick. Total hor$%!#. The sad part is that I really like the feel of their sticks.

If you're going to boycott Easton, then you might not want to by a Synthesis blade..

[Ryan 0]

I would love to know how this is "Buyer Beware" when you aren't even willing to return it. The shipping on a stick cut in half is a few dollars at the most.

For one, when the blade broke you shouldn't have ripped the rest of it off. How is anyone inspecting a stick supposed to know what happened then.

In manufacturing, if a manufacturer's defect is found, you will probably see a trend in the sticks that are returned. So, when your stick broke and you send it back, they can see that it might have been a manufacturer's defect as they might have seen previous sticks with the same problem. However, you obviously see the dilemma now with a stick that has been intentionally torn in two.

Your friend would not be able to have his broken stick sent back to him b/c most of the time, once a stick comes in and is inspected, it is added to a bin or box with similar breakings. There would be no way to determine which stick was his as the warranty RA# would no longer be attached to it.

Customer service is a tricky issue. I've been there, done that. Just a couple words of advice. BE POLITE. DON'T DEMAND ANYTHING. People that are polite and friendly usually get EVERYTHING they want. With people that act condescending and demanding no one is inclined to help them or go that extra yard. (not saying you were one or the other)

Our warranty department is VERY good about working with people. Usually when they reject a return it is for a legitimate reason. However, they are people too, they can make mistakes.

I think if you aren't even willing to return it, then you can't blame the manufacturer. You sound like you would rather just complain about it then actually get a new stick. Sorry to sound harsh, but you shouldn't quit before you even try.

[JR Boucicaut 3760]

Well said, Ryan. I'm sure he read GURU's reply as well.

The problem is that people tend to forget that it's a manufacturer's defect warranty - they look at it more as a 2 for 1 deal.

[bdj 0]

rofl

[JR Boucicaut 3760]

Yo! How's the truck?

LOL it's all good, you took it all in stride...

[Cavs019 702]

I was polite to the easton warranty dept. when i broke my drury synergy, and since they no longer make the stick, they sent me an 85 synthesis with drury blade to compensate. Their warranty dept is fantastic. Its likely that they deal with rude people all day,. so dealing with someone polite is like a breath of fresh air.

[zaytser 0]

Hey I was polite and asked lots of questions, about what happened to the guy that I played shinny with. By the way he is not my friend so don't get it twisted. If the warranty guy in Quebec is gonna give me the third degree and just sluff me off then he should be replaced. That is his job and I shouldn't have to put up with rude people when all I did was ask what I should do and where to send the stick. After that I politely asked if he had ever run into a situation where they wouldn't warranty a stick because they suspected foul play and he said yes and that the people that look after that are very good at there job. So since I wanted to know what I should be looking for with regards to signs of heating a blade he said I could not talk to the person who would know about this. Obviously if Easton wouldn't warranty this guys stick which had nothing wrong with it, I was concerned about what would happen to me. And if my warranty gets rejected I should get my friggin shaft back at least. Considering I paid $350 dollars Canadian for it.

Take what you want from this post. I just wondered if anyone else had this problem so I am sorry if I have affended anyone, but I should be able to at least be entitled to voice my opinion.

P.S. Ryan if I had told you the blade went flying off the heel when I took the shot instead of just hanging there by a thread, would it really matter, or make a difference to the inspectors. I wouldn't just break my stick on purpose to get back the exact same stick.