waassaabee
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 11/26/07
Posts: 2697
Loc: Central California Coast
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I emailed Celestron a couple of days ago regarding a 'No Response 17' error. Keep in mind I bought my CGEM in May and due to weather, probably don't have 50 hours on it. Now that the weather is clearing and nights are longer, it wants to act up a bit. I asked about a H/C swapout, but they want the mount as well. I asked if they could put my Trouble Ticket in the queue, and I'd drive it down when my time came up. They tell me that wouldn't help as it would still be 30 days even if I drove it down to them (maybe I'm not getting through...). It's a warranty repair I explained... And when they had my non warranty CG5 it was there close to three months, but the work was done in two days (I call frequently). So I'm just curious if anyone has any insight to Celestrons operations. By profession I am a logistics engineer for a large aerospace contractor and have never encountered a reputable organization with policies such as this. Is there a magic word or secret handshake I'm supposed use?
And my previous telephone communications with them were not what I'd call satisfying.
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Gary
34N 120W
-My kingdom for blue squares!-
WO Megrez 90FD/TV 0.8x FR/FF
AT8RC
mini Borg 50/Q-Guide/PHD
CGEM
Canon 350D Hap Griffin Baader mod - o.o
My Friend Flickr
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George Methvin
sage
Reged: 01/30/06
Posts: 460
Loc: Central Texas
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Its call the golden rule...the man with the gold makes the rules. Sounds like you do it there way are no way at all, not much you can do I guess. I work for the Goverment and it sounds like they are taking a lesson for them. If it makes sence it will never be used but if its a idea that will never work it get used....LOL Good luck.
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waassaabee
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 11/26/07
Posts: 2697
Loc: Central California Coast
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Just like the addage:'If it works, fix it till it's broke...'
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Gary
34N 120W
-My kingdom for blue squares!-
WO Megrez 90FD/TV 0.8x FR/FF
AT8RC
mini Borg 50/Q-Guide/PHD
CGEM
Canon 350D Hap Griffin Baader mod - o.o
My Friend Flickr
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Lane
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 11/19/07
Posts: 1512
Loc: Frisco, Texas
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I sent a Sigma camera lens in for the free firmware upgrade so it would work properly with my D300. I did not get that lens back for 8 months. In fact I bought a Nikon lens to replace it after the first 2 months went by. When it finally came back I had no real need for it anymore. I figure the actual upgrade probably took them 2 hours.
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Mounts: CGEM, ORION SIRIUS, AT Voyager/motorized
SCTs: C6, C8, C9.25, C11,
Refractors: TV Pronto, Orion ED80
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waassaabee
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 11/26/07
Posts: 2697
Loc: Central California Coast
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Another example of poor customer relations!
I'm waiting to hear what C has to say today! Seeing as how I've only gotten the error twice, I'm planning on running it till it breaks.
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Gary
34N 120W
-My kingdom for blue squares!-
WO Megrez 90FD/TV 0.8x FR/FF
AT8RC
mini Borg 50/Q-Guide/PHD
CGEM
Canon 350D Hap Griffin Baader mod - o.o
My Friend Flickr
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Chris Rowland
sage
Reged: 02/28/05
Posts: 268
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What about the people who's repairs would have been delayed because you wanted yours done NOW?
Chris
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payner
sage
Reged: 03/22/07
Posts: 434
Loc: Bluegrass Region, Kentucky
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I have only once had to use Celestron's repair shop for warranty service. It was for my CGE tripod leg. They were timely in response to getting a RMA so I could ship it to them. They told me it would be about 30-days for the tripod to return; all things considered I didn't think that was unreasonable. I received it back in like-new condition in three weeks. A pleased customer. I think they will work your repair in as quickly as they can, but given how the unforeseen often arises they give themselves some wriggle room.
Randy
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Santel MK91 Deluxe Rumak
Takahashi FS-128
Takahashi FS-152
Takahashi TSC-225
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waassaabee
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 11/26/07
Posts: 2697
Loc: Central California Coast
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Quote:
What about the people who's repairs would have been delayed because you wanted yours done NOW?
Chris
I'll have to read my post again... I don't believe I said anywhere I wanted it done now. What I DID say to C was put my trouble ticket in the queue and send me an email a few days prior to it coming up and I'll drive it down. (I still wait 30 days, but I can use the mount till then...)
Do you work for Celestron?
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Gary
34N 120W
-My kingdom for blue squares!-
WO Megrez 90FD/TV 0.8x FR/FF
AT8RC
mini Borg 50/Q-Guide/PHD
CGEM
Canon 350D Hap Griffin Baader mod - o.o
My Friend Flickr
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waassaabee
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 11/26/07
Posts: 2697
Loc: Central California Coast
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Randy, My previous experience with Celestron was by no means a nightmare, and the CG5 came back as good as new. I'm just curious why they continue to be 30 days behind the curve for as long as they've been in business. If a repair takes two days, then receiving, checkout, packing and shipping shouldn't take 28. Maybe it's the corporate thing (the Golden Rule). I know small business can't survive like that.
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Gary
34N 120W
-My kingdom for blue squares!-
WO Megrez 90FD/TV 0.8x FR/FF
AT8RC
mini Borg 50/Q-Guide/PHD
CGEM
Canon 350D Hap Griffin Baader mod - o.o
My Friend Flickr
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Adrian Lopez
sage
Reged: 10/22/08
Posts: 267
Loc: Puerto Rico
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Quote:
I don't believe I said anywhere I wanted it done now. What I DID say to C was put my trouble ticket in the queue and send me an email a few days prior to it coming up and I'll drive it down. (I still wait 30 days, but I can use the mount till then...)
That's an interesting idea, but ultimately you're making a request that falls outside Celestron's established procedure. It seems they have adopted a "first come first served" procedure that's ordered according to the time they actually receive your equipment rather than the time the repair ticket was issued. They'd have to alter their procedures in order to assign your mount a different spot on the queue than all the other equipment they get that particular day.
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Celestron Omni XLT 120 (f/8.3) Refractor
William Optics 1.25" Dielectric Diagonal
Celestron 4, 6, 9, 15, 25, and 32mm EPs
Nikon Action Extreme 8x40 Binoculars
Canon Digital Rebel XT
RA Sweep Calculator (find objects without GoTo)
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waassaabee
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 11/26/07
Posts: 2697
Loc: Central California Coast
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Quote:
Quote:
I don't believe I said anywhere I wanted it done now. What I DID say to C was put my trouble ticket in the queue and send me an email a few days prior to it coming up and I'll drive it down. (I still wait 30 days, but I can use the mount till then...)
That's an interesting idea, but ultimately you're making a request that falls outside Celestron's established procedure. It seems they have adopted a "first come first served" procedure that's ordered according to the time they actually receive your equipment rather than the time the repair ticket was issued. They'd have to alter their procedures in order to assign your mount a different spot on the queue than all the other equipment they get that particular day.
I guess it's some of that Hopey, Changey stuff....
I wonder... if I sent them an empty box to put on the shelf, and a note with my phone number inside... 
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Gary
34N 120W
-My kingdom for blue squares!-
WO Megrez 90FD/TV 0.8x FR/FF
AT8RC
mini Borg 50/Q-Guide/PHD
CGEM
Canon 350D Hap Griffin Baader mod - o.o
My Friend Flickr
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Stew57
member
Reged: 05/03/09
Posts: 83
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If they have a 30 day backlog of repairs they need better QC or they sell an awful lot and could put some more techs on. NO excuse for such poor service. Makes me regret my celestron purchases.
I wouldn't last long if I conducted my business like that.
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7331Peg
professor emeritus
Reged: 09/01/08
Posts: 723
Loc: North coast of Oregon
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I'll stay with the smaller companies (such as Astronomics/Astro Tech, Televue, Stellarvue, Feathertouch, Losmandy, Kendall, Agena) just because of this kind of thing. I read a previous thread about a person driving over to JMI, which was nearby, walking in, and getting a repair taken care of on the spot. That kind of service is what makes dealing with the smaller companies a real pleasure. Unfortunately, it seems the larger the size, the less flexibility they show in dealing with repairs.
John
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Dennis Sakva
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 10/19/04
Posts: 1307
Loc: Kiev, Ukraine
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FYI No response 17 error is 99% due to bad cables. They are too rigid and often loose contacts. Replace them with softer cables and you problems will go away.
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skybsd
professor emeritus
Reged: 02/01/08
Posts: 599
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Hi,
I think you're being a tiny bit unrealistic about what you're expecting here.
If Celestron's turnaround time (which, by the way isn't a big secret) for resolving RMA'd equipment is 30-days, then its 30-days - why is that so hard to accept?
As suggested by previous responders, in all fairness, it should not matter one bit if you drive it down to Celestron (or any manufacturer for that matter), once it arrives, your item goes into the queue - simple.
Is it possible that you actually believe that there'd be a tech sitting there with nothing else to do when your mount comes in?
To add more perspective, Celestron mounts (and telescopes) in Europe that need repair also get sent back to Torrance, and into that same queue.
I'll tell you what.., 30 days sounds loads better than the 6 to 8 mounts we get told here in Europe.
Regards,
skybsd
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Luigi
Post Laureate
Reged: 07/03/07
Posts: 4938
Loc: MA
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>>>If Celestron's turnaround time (which, by the way isn't a big secret) for resolving RMA'd equipment is 30-days, then its 30-days - why is that so hard to accept?<<<
If it's 30 days, but it takes only two days to resolve, then the item is spending 28 days on a shelf somewhere collecting dust. Who benefits from this, the customer, Celestron? At times (with other manufacturers, not Celestron), I suspected it was a policy adopted to dissuade customers from sending items in for service, encouraging them accept minor problems or issues they otherwise wouldn't, and thereby reducing the amount of warranty work performed. I certainly have nothing to suggest this is the case with Celestron.
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17.5" f/5 Dob. IM-715 MCT. 120ED. Lunt 60mm Ha.
Zeiss, Leica, Fujinon, Nikon, Pentax, Bushnell bins
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wsuriano
member
Reged: 11/13/07
Posts: 78
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I had a problem with the HC on my CGEM and they wanted the whole mount back. However, I tried the HC from my CG5 and told them that the mount worked fine with a different HC. With that, they accepted just the HC. Beg, borrow or steal (not really) another HC to make sure it can be isolated as an HC problem and then call them back.
Bill
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Meade 8" LX90 GPS w/wedge
Meade 5000 80mm APO
Vixen 5" Newtonian
Orion 120mm f/8.3
Orion ST 80mm
Meade ETX90 PE
CGEM
CG-5 ASGT
iOptron MT
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GShaffer
professor emeritus
Reged: 02/28/09
Posts: 644
Loc: Augusta GA
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Where did he say he wanted it done NOW?.....He asked if he could be put in the repair que and drive it down when they were ready for it.
Quote:
What about the people who's repairs would have been delayed because you wanted yours done NOW?
Chris
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APM 8" f/9.0 Achro
Meade 6" AR6 f/8.0 Achro
Celestron C11, Intes MK67
Vixen ED102SS, FL102S, ED102S, NA140SS, R200SS, WO Megarez 80 w/TMB Fluorite Optics
SV70ED, AT66ED
LXD75/LX200, Ioptron Mini-tower, SP, GP-DX, CG5 ASGT, LXD650, GM-8, GM-100, G11, Gemini 40
4" portable AP convertable 44" or 70" pier
APM 100mm Binos Millenium Mount, Dobstuff 10" DOB
Augusta GA
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waassaabee
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 11/26/07
Posts: 2697
Loc: Central California Coast
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7331Peg, I had seriously considered a G11 at the time, but with Gemini it was starting to add up $$... My CG5 had treated me well, and I was familiar with the controller so CGEM made sense.
Dennis, It seems to be related to the short cable on the hand controller. Some situations stretch it to a point I think it breaks contact at the mount connection. Maybe an extension is in order to reduce the strain.
skybsd, The 30 day is no secret, I knew that going in. And it's the one thing that makes a lot of people hesitate to deal with Celestron. All I'm suggesting is a flexible policy that might actually foster better customer relations. I'm big on process improvement and their process hasn't changed since it's inception, so we all just roll over and accept it.
Why don't they certify technicians worldwide at some of their Premier Select Dealerships? Let them bench stock some high failure rate parts. It's not rocket science.
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Gary
34N 120W
-My kingdom for blue squares!-
WO Megrez 90FD/TV 0.8x FR/FF
AT8RC
mini Borg 50/Q-Guide/PHD
CGEM
Canon 350D Hap Griffin Baader mod - o.o
My Friend Flickr
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Phil Cowell
sage
Reged: 05/24/07
Posts: 376
Loc: Southern Tier NY
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Quote:
7331Peg, I had seriously considered a G11 at the time, but with Gemini it was starting to add up $$... My CG5 had treated me well, and I was familiar with the controller so CGEM made sense.
The Gemini is a German product. If it fries you'd be going through the same process with the electronics. I found the support for the Gemini upgrade I added to a CI-700 to be sadly lacking.
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If it'll fit on a sig you don't have enough
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