Curious About Repairs

[lytle78]

In the summer of 1967 I flew from my home in San Antonio to Rhode Island and got a summer job in a factory so I could save a few bucks before I went into the Service. I stayed with my aunt and uncle. Uncle Ovila would take me on Friday afternoons to the Bar next to the Naragansset race track and we would have a few beers. Along with the beer, you could have all the beer trays full of steamer clams you wanted for free.

Well, the bar is gone, the track is (I think) gone, sadly my uncle Ovila is gone - and so are the steamed clams.

Now also gone are free repairs on second-hand detectors at Tesoro. Yes it IS policy. I recently paid $75 for work on an original Lobo and consider it reasonable for what was done. I got the detector back with a handwritten note from Rusty Henry. I am OK with that, all businesses should be that helpful and competent.

I do miss the steamed clams however - uncle Ovila too. About the Tesoro change, I'm not too bothered.

Oh yea, should mention that the factory was in South Attleboro MA. It was an Englehardt Industries facility and we produced the tri-lay clad metal rolls which were sent on to the Mint for the production of all those wonderful clad coins. Guess it's all partly my fault then about the decline of our coinage.

 

[reddirtfisher]

The post by BillF should be considered by everyone. I would rather pay 50 bucks to fix a Golden, Deleon, or Cortes rather than pay 50 bucks to fix a used Compadre. I told the guy on the phone that I didn't pay much more than that for the detector to begin with. At first I told him to "just keep it",...but I think he was going to send it back to me unrepaired. So I thought about it and called him back and told him I would send a check. I think a "sliding scale" for charges would be better. The cost to fix a Compadre could be like $25.00, Golden $35.00, Deleon $45.00, Cortes $50.00. The present $50.00 standard across the board is fine but they should have given people prior notice about a policy change. He could have said something like," We no longer fix these for free,...so next time there will be a charge". I really appreciate all you guys who are sharing your experiences with the service dept. It makes me feel better that I was not "singled out" and that this is indeed a new company policy. Bottom line: New Policy. Give people a warning. Put the new policy in writing. Put it on the website. Put it on the Tesoro Forum. Let the people know something.

 

[nebdirtturner]

I would like to chime in here as well. I talked to Rusty last week about modding my Cibola. He was very very friendly and very helpful. He went in to depth about the new warranty change, he stated at $20 plus dollars an hour in labor costs and return shipping there is no way that they can continue to service second/third owner machines for free. It makes perfect sense why would a company that is in business allow a machine that could have been bought at a garage sale for $10 that was broken, fix it for free and lose a sale of a new detector to that person. Or for the guy who buys it cheap but broke, they fix it and sell it on eBay at a large markup and lose a sale of a new detector to someone who wants one.

BillF does have a good point that any consumer needs to be aware of before buying a used detector that is broken, bargain payoff vs. profitability of a used unit will come into play now. I see a future with "used parts" machines that will be sold at a rock bottom price now which will be good for the guys that tinker. You could end up with a low cost machine that has a bad coil but a good control unit, stem, switches, and guts to make a second "waterproof unit" or a sawed off Compadre pin pointer. I am looking forward to scoring some cheap parts.

As for the suggestion from reddirtfisher about a staggered labor fee, you have to understand that just because a detector sold for a cheaper price doesn't make Tesoro's labor cost, shipping costs, or parts cost to be any cheaper. A pot is a pot no matter what the machine it is in and it will take the same cost to replace it on any given machine, now target ID machines and waterproof machines will have more parts and more higher cost parts that could have to be replaced but they would still be eating money on a used machine.

One other thing Rusty told me was that if you are an original owner and send in your detector it will go to the "head of the line" so to speak and will have a faster turn around time for repairs, as Tesoro is trying to make their warranty to new owners even better, this would put second/third owner machines at a disadvantage in getting them back sooner. Just throwing out this info to everyone here as the system has only been in lace since last month.

 

[BillF]

Richbat had an interesting idea about Tesoro possibly offering warranties to second hand owners of used machines.
I am not sure if this could even work. The cost of a warranty would have to be such that it wouldn't put too much of a burden on Tesoro to continue their policy of repairs and return shipping. At that price point, it wouldnt pay for us as buyers of used machines to purchase it. Its possible it could work IF there was an age limit on the detector, but that has its own pitfalls and probably will never happen. It was a good idea though.
I do wish that if you buy a used machine, do a mod on it, then pay for repairs, that you could request that your mod be left as is. I just think that their argument will be that your mod could be what is causing the problem and that's why they return it to stock specs.
Oh, well.

 

[BarryL]

I would like to chime in here as well. I talked to Rusty last week about modding my Cibola. He was very very friendly and very helpful. He went in to depth about the new warranty change, he stated at $20 plus dollars an hour in labor costs and return shipping there is no way that they can continue to service second/third owner machines for free. It makes perfect sense why would a company that is in business allow a machine that could have been bought at a garage sale for $10 that was broken, fix it for free and lose a sale of a new detector to that person. Or for the guy who buys it cheap but broke, they fix it and sell it on eBay at a large markup and lose a sale of a new detector to someone who wants one.

BillF does have a good point that any consumer needs to be aware of before buying a used detector that is broken, bargain payoff vs. profitability of a used unit will come into play now. I see a future with "used parts" machines that will be sold at a rock bottom price now which will be good for the guys that tinker. You could end up with a low cost machine that has a bad coil but a good control unit, stem, switches, and guts to make a second "waterproof unit" or a sawed off Compadre pin pointer. I am looking forward to scoring some cheap parts.

As for the suggestion from reddirtfisher about a staggered labor fee, you have to understand that just because a detector sold for a cheaper price doesn't make Tesoro's labor cost, shipping costs, or parts cost to be any cheaper. A pot is a pot no matter what the machine it is in and it will take the same cost to replace it on any given machine, now target ID machines and waterproof machines will have more parts and more higher cost parts that could have to be replaced but they would still be eating money on a used machine.

One other thing Rusty told me was that if you are an original owner and send in your detector it will go to the "head of the line" so to speak and will have a faster turn around time for repairs, as Tesoro is trying to make their warranty to new owners even better, this would put second/third owner machines at a disadvantage in getting them back sooner. Just throwing out this info to everyone here as the system has only been in lace since last month.

I would think move to ""head of the line decision"" would be and will be a bad decision on Tesoro's part if a Fella Pays a fee to get a tesoro repaired and his detector got there a week earlier than one from an original buyer of a detector . I see this as a poor business decision It could cause someone that has been loyal to a tesoro Detector all their life to say wow just because I bought a used Tesoro that are suppose to be in the top category of detectors I am being penalized because I bought a detector that is no longer in Production but it is a very good detector that I would like to have and use could cost them some sales later of new machines to this person! JMHO though !

 

[richbat]

This moving to the head of the line thing is a bit childish don't you think? Look at like this,when you go to get your car repaired and you been going to this mechanic for many years and one day you get there and some one else is already getting something done,is that mechanic gonna stop working on that customers car and move you to the front of the line?I think not unless he doesn't care about his business.I do not buy that "If your the original owner stuff you move to the head of the line"if this is the case,then your gonna see alot of faithful Tesoro owners starting to look elsewhere for new machines.I don't care if your the orginal owner,the president of the USA or some rich prince from India,if you work like that then your future isn't gonna be very good.Here's how I hope it is and that's that:Your repair will be done in a timely fashion and done in the order as the repairs come in.I do agree though that like said above about the Compadre scenario being sent in for repairs,just don't make any sense to buy a used one for $100 just to send it in for a $50 repair when you could buy a new one for almost that amount.

 

[Matt_SC]

If somebody buys a new Tesoro, then Tesoro makes a profit. If that person buys a used Tesoro, then Tesoro doesn't get the profit. If putting original owners at the front of the line helps increase sales of new Tesoros then I can see the logic in it.

 

[tabman]

If somebody buys a new Tesoro, then Tesoro makes a profit. If that person buys a used Tesoro, then Tesoro doesn't get the profit. If putting original owners at the front of the line helps increase sales of new Tesoros then I can see the logic in it.

I think it admirable.

The people who are the original purchasers who have a warranty and are not paying for service get treated as well or better than the paying customers.

That's a warranty worth having.

tabman

 

[BarryL]

I have bought new Tesoros as well as old Tesoros . And as I said if this is Rustys new Idea of new warranty addition to help a original owner then so be it but as soon as I get my Banditio back from paying to have it fixed which I had no problem in doing so since I bought it used I can say this I will not buy Another Tesoro detector . As I stated this kind of action is totaly absurd. I for one would like to hear this come from Rustys mouth on this public forum that if a person has sent in a detec tor to be repaired and has paid to do so that this machine will be put on the end of the repair list for a warranty repair that has come in a week after that will make up my mind for sure. How



about it Tesoro or Rusty is this True. I HOPE NOT

 

[tabman]

I don't think those people who are paying for service should get treated better than those owners who have a lifetime warranty who are not paying.

Both are getting first rate service. There's really nothing to fuss about.

To top it all off, those who are paying for service that don't have a warranty are getting service preformed at a fair price.

tabman

 

[plidn1]

You men, and ladies, can condemn me all you want for what I am going to say. I was not going to comment on this post nor was I going to tell the following story. But now I feel the time has come.
I think Tesoro is in a panic and running scared.
Let's look at some interesting Observations and facts.
First, Tesoro has a general sales meeting on an Internet forum asking their customers what is wrong with their product by asking how can they change the product to please you. This tells me, sales are way off and the company is in trouble. This meeting should have been held behind closed doors with the upper staff. And depending on the answers given to the question, some people would now be standing in the soup line.

I own a compadre I bought new from a, in home dealer. I liked the detector so much I bought a vaquero from the same dealer which I have bought several other detectors from. Not only that I have personally sold 4 other compadre's for this dealer. Granted it is not a high ticket item, but it represents 6 tesoro sales in less then a year. All new.
The two tesoro's I purchased and got no sales receipt. I did fill out the warranty card and sent it in leaving a stub with no way to identify that I was the original purchaser.
Two weeks ago I was hunting with the compadre and it started Falsing at the ends of each sweep. Now I have close to 1500 HOURS on this detector (with 35 years of detecting experience). I am very familiar with it's quirks. I live in an area where there is very little EMI and when it does occur the detector rattles like crazy. But it does not false.
Thinking I had a coil going south, I took the advice of many of you that have said several times, call Rusty. So I did. All I wanted to know is if this was some kind of quirk caused by outside interference or should I send it in.
Without letting me finish with my question, I got the tongue lashing of my life on the phone. First I was told it was emi and that they would set the sensitivity back and I could lose depth. Then I was asked why I called him and if I had bought it from him personally.
Then I was drilled on weather or not I was the original owner and if I had been inside the control box and or did any kind of mod to it. Then I was told that the company was losing money on those detectors on a warranty claim and I had already used up more time on the phone then they made on the sale.
He told me I was talking to him at a dealer level and that I should have contacted my selling dealer. I told him I had what I thought was a warranty problem and that's why I called. He said I should have gone thru the service department and not him. I explained that is what I thought I was doing and asked to talk to the service manager. He told me he was the service manager.
Then he ranted and raved about other service problems he was having, all the warranty work he wasn't going to be able to get to because he was talking to me at $20 an hour or some figure, tada tada tada.............................

HEY, That was enough. I have been in retail sales for 45 years. I ran an auto dealership for 10. I don't need his gas.
I am a paying customer.
Needless to say, since the phone conversation, I have not used my compadre and probably will get rid of it.
Rest assured, It will be a cold day in hell before I buy or refer a customer to a tesoro product.

Now we have a shift in warranty policy that was their choice. It clearly states in the manual, too original purchaser only. What they did up till now has been a courtesy they extended. I don't blame them on that point. But they need a better way of identifying original owners.
I will not put up with that kind of great service from them or anyone else.
And I repeat, this is why I believe Tesoro is in trouble.

 

[Matt_SC]

I'd like to think (but really don't know) that Tesoro doesn't have such a backlog of detectors to repair that it would add much to the turnaround time to have a used machine fixed. I have both new and used Tesoros and I don't have a problem with their (alleged) new policy. Also, I paid a lot more for my new Outlaw than either of my used Tesoros, so in my opinion, I payed for the lifetime warranty and the service that goes with it up front.

 

[BillF]

Regardless of whether its a new machine with warranty or used machine that is having service paid for, service should be performed on a first in-first out basis.
Placing one type of paying customer above another is a sure fire way to alienate a customer base.

 

[BarryL]

Neither do I Tabman Iagree with you I just dont agree with the go to the front of the repair line just because a person bought new. If you are paying their cost to repair one then it should minot matter new or used I for one never complained abojt paying to have mine check or repaired It arrived there on the 27th of Oct as I shipped Priority Mail so I could track it.they contacted me nov 5. To tell me about the charge I said no problem and ppaid it over the phone . I really like the detector and want back in working order just the same as if was under warranty

 

[Neil]

You men, and ladies, can condemn me all you want for what I am going to say. I was not going to comment on this post nor was I going to tell the following story. But now I feel the time has come.
I think Tesoro is in a panic and running scared.
Let's look at some interesting Observations and facts.
First, Tesoro has a general sales meeting on an Internet forum asking their customers what is wrong with their product by asking how can they change the product to please you. This tells me, sales are way off and the company is in trouble. This meeting should have been held behind closed doors with the upper staff. And depending on the answers given to the question, some people would now be standing in the soup line.

I own a compadre I bought new from a, in home dealer. I liked the detector so much I bought a vaquero from the same dealer which I have bought several other detectors from. Not only that I have personally sold 4 other compadre's for this dealer. Granted it is not a high ticket item, but it represents 6 tesoro sales in less then a year. All new.
The two tesoro's I purchased and got no sales receipt. I did fill out the warranty card and sent it in leaving a stub with no way to identify that I was the original purchaser.
Two weeks ago I was hunting with the compadre and it started Falsing at the ends of each sweep. Now I have close to 1500 HOURS on this detector (with 35 years of detecting experience). I am very familiar with it's quirks. I live in an area where there is very little EMI and when it does occur the detector rattles like crazy. But it does not false.
Thinking I had a coil going south, I took the advice of many of you that have said several times, call Rusty. So I did. All I wanted to know is if this was some kind of quirk caused by outside interference or should I send it in.
Without letting me finish with my question, I got the tongue lashing of my life on the phone. First I was told it was emi and that they would set the sensitivity back and I could lose depth. Then I was asked why I called him and if I had bought it from him personally.
Then I was drilled on weather or not I was the original owner and if I had been inside the control box and or did any kind of mod to it. Then I was told that the company was losing money on those detectors on a warranty claim and I had already used up more time on the phone then they made on the sale.
He told me I was talking to him at a dealer level and that I should have contacted my selling dealer. I told him I had what I thought was a warranty problem and that's why I called. He said I should have gone thru the service department and not him. I explained that is what I thought I was doing and asked to talk to the service manager. He told me he was the service manager.
Then he ranted and raved about other service problems he was having, all the warranty work he wasn't going to be able to get to because he was talking to me at $20 an hour or some figure, tada tada tada.............................

HEY, That was enough. I have been in retail sales for 45 years. I ran an auto dealership for 10. I don't need his gas.
I am a paying customer.
Needless to say, since the phone conversation, I have not used my compadre and probably will get rid of it.
Rest assured, It will be a cold day in hell before I buy or refer a customer to a tesoro product.

Now we have a shift in warranty policy that was their choice. It clearly states in the manual, too original purchaser only. What they did up till now has been a courtesy they extended. I don't blame them on that point. But they need a better way of identifying original owners.
I will not put up with that kind of great service from them or anyone else.
And I repeat, this is why I believe Tesoro is in trouble.

I havent talked with Rusty in quite awhile but his temperment surely must have changed if he gave you a tongue lashing. Always was a really nice fellow to me and helpful as can be. I think Heidi used to be there answering the phone but I think she has retired.
If you sent in a warranty card you should be good. Why you didnt get a sales receipt is on you, no one else.
Just send it in, not a whole lot of repairs can be done over the phone. after 1500hrs on the machine you must know that.

 

[mulletminnow]

Hey Neil,
I talked to Rusty two-three weeks ago for the first time. He was as nice as could be.
Answered My question and offered some advise that will surly be used.
In fact, after talking to Him, I'm going to add a new detector of My own and I think that I have talked My brother-in-law into a Compadre that I will buy from Rusty.
That will make five, last three are Tesoros.

And I do give thanks.

 

[BarryL]

Yes Sir Matter of Fact I just had about a 45 min Conversation with Rusty over the Phone about my Bandito II Micro Max . will be getting it back soon with some Rusty"s Secrets . If anyone was to ever tell me to my Face that Rusty was a rude person , I might not be kind in my reply back to them . That fellow is one of the most helpful and kind person you will ever have the Pleasure of speaking with. I did not however bring up the move to the head of the line quote because I simply do not believe it is true and would not happen . Thank You Rusty and Tesoro.

 

[Tabcollector]

Spoke with Rusty a few months ago and like previous posts it was about 30 minutes of him trying to be helpful and was a pleasure to speak to. I just couldn't imagine him talking to someone like you say, maybe just caught him on a bad day.

 

[plidn1]

My call to the factory was intended to keep from wasting warranty time and workers costs to the company if it didn't have a problem. I don't believe in abusing any warranty just because I happen to have it.
I didn't expect to be told that I was, in so may words, too cheap to spend the $10 shipping to have it checked since it was free to me.
I did expect to be completely listened too and receive an answer. I did not expect a 45 minuet sermon, on my dime, to a simple question. I don't really care if he lived in Australia in the 70's and prospected for gold. What he did in the past has no bearing on the present. His job is to handle legitimate service problems.
I have never been treated that way at Garrett or Whites.
I have never treated any of my customers that way either.
I didn't make this story up. I wasn't even going to mention it.
But the man was rude and condescending on the phone. Had total disregard for my question and it's intention. If that offends some of you, you need to get a grip.
But that's quite all right. I am a firm believer in you get what you pay for.

 

[dan b]

I too had pleasant dealings with Rusty in the past. It seems that most people here have. Your experience sounds unique, and one has to wonder why. I don't know you and I don't mean to sound offensive, but maybe it was your approach. However, at this point it doesn't really matter much. They've lost you as a customer and that's unfortunate for them and you.