TOOLS — ONLY AS GOOD AS THE PERSON THAT SOLD THEM TO YOU?
I recently decided to replace my old safety wire pliers that were starting to rust from sitting long
periods of times without use. As a publisher, I mostly sit behind a desk. But occasionally I still change the oil on my aircraft or tinker on other things that require safety wire. So, I purchased a new pair of safety wire pliers, supposedly the latest and greatest, for $90 plus tax! I thought, “Wow, for $90 these should be gold plated!” When I received them, I opened the package and
was stunned to find out that they were made from 80 percent unobtainium, and 20 percent ABS plastic. Yes, the most critical part of the pliers — the return mechanism and forward/reverse selector were plastic (I was later told that these were plastic “covers”)! Regardless, was a bit taken aback given the price I paid. But I decided to give them a chance. I was re-assured by a regular mechanic that “I was getting old,” and that I needed to accept the new stellar materials they are using these days.” I agreed with the first part. Fast forward 60 days — I’m safety-wiring an oil filter when the return mechanism starts to get hard to push back (these are supposed to be automatic return) and then jams! After only four uses, these great safety wire pliers failed! “How could that be?” I thought. “Old guys aren’t supposed to see this coming?” What to do? I start by calling the distributor. Surely,
they would send me a new pair right away! How could I be so naive! Since I was 30 days past when I purchased them, I would need to return them to the manufacturer. Well, $5 in packaging, $10 in postage, and $5 in gas to go to the UPS store, I have returned them. What was a $90 purchase just turned into a $110 purchase! And based on the fact that these are likely
going to be replaced with an identical pair that has been manufactured with the same plastic materials, my guess is that I may be making a return again in the future! This brings me to the issue of support for your tools. Whether you buy online, in a store or from a guy in a truck, you need to evaluate what your tools really cost. And a big consideration of the cost is the quality of the tool and the warranty. Additionally, keep in mind that getting your tools replaced QUICKLY is as important, if not more, than getting them replaced. You don’t want to find yourself in the middle of an AOG repair waiting for a tool to be replaced. Your tools WILL fail — especially if you use them
every day. As a professional mechanic, warranty coverage and/or the ability to quickly replace your tools is paramount. So, ask around the shop. What experiences have you had with your tool provider? If you call them, do they immediately offer to ship you a replacement overnight? How often does the tool truck show up and do you have the number to the tool truck in case of an urgent need to replace a tool? I might re-consider buying from them if it takes an excessive length of time to provide you with a replacement tool. I am fortunate in that I can wait for a warranty
replacement. I don’t’ have an aircraft that needs to be returned to service today or tomorrow. But for those of you that work on aircraft for a living, you can’t be messing around with warranty claims. I would love to hear about your experiences with
warranty claims. Please drop me a note. Thanks for reading!
Publisher, Helicopter Maintenance magazine
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HelicopterMaintenanceMagazine.com August | September 2019
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