David W. Richardson
Chapelgrove Films
I have a wedding shoot coming up Saturday, and I want to use my ProAm crane/jib.
I've always used it on a tripod before, but I only have one tripod that can handle it, and I'm always worried the head is going to break off from the weight. So I finally decided to get the ProAm USA stand for the crane/jib.
I ordered it from Amazon two days ago for $59.00. Got the free 2-day (Prime) shipping.
The stand arrived today -- broken. A piece of the shaft was broken off. It was usable, but unsightly and not as steady as it should be.
I contacted Amazon and arranged to return it. No problem. When they receive it, they will credit the purchase back onto my credit card. But there was no time to order another one and get it here by tomorrow unless I wanted to pay for overnight delivery, which would have cost almost as much as the stand itself. I declined, and resigned myself to not being able to use the crane for this wedding.
Then I contacted ProAm USA through the email on their website. I explained what had happened and included pics of the damage, because I felt like it had been shipped from the factory that way and they should know about it. All labeling on the box indicated it went straight from the factory to Amazon, and from Amazon to me. No reason why the box should have been opened. And the missing chunk of the shaft was nowhere to be found inside the box. It's hard to imagine that particular damage occurring in-transit, so it must have been broken when it left the factory. Anyway, I sent them an email. Not angry, just informing them of a quality issue.
A very nice lady named Jennifer responded very quickly. Long story short, they let me order the same stand from their website for the same price as the one on Amazon, and are shipping it to me via UPS for FREE with a guarantee that it will arrive here tomorrow. It's only UPS Ground, but they're just an hour down the road from me, so getting it here tomorrow should be no problem.
That works for me!
I've always used it on a tripod before, but I only have one tripod that can handle it, and I'm always worried the head is going to break off from the weight. So I finally decided to get the ProAm USA stand for the crane/jib.
I ordered it from Amazon two days ago for $59.00. Got the free 2-day (Prime) shipping.
The stand arrived today -- broken. A piece of the shaft was broken off. It was usable, but unsightly and not as steady as it should be.
I contacted Amazon and arranged to return it. No problem. When they receive it, they will credit the purchase back onto my credit card. But there was no time to order another one and get it here by tomorrow unless I wanted to pay for overnight delivery, which would have cost almost as much as the stand itself. I declined, and resigned myself to not being able to use the crane for this wedding.
Then I contacted ProAm USA through the email on their website. I explained what had happened and included pics of the damage, because I felt like it had been shipped from the factory that way and they should know about it. All labeling on the box indicated it went straight from the factory to Amazon, and from Amazon to me. No reason why the box should have been opened. And the missing chunk of the shaft was nowhere to be found inside the box. It's hard to imagine that particular damage occurring in-transit, so it must have been broken when it left the factory. Anyway, I sent them an email. Not angry, just informing them of a quality issue.
A very nice lady named Jennifer responded very quickly. Long story short, they let me order the same stand from their website for the same price as the one on Amazon, and are shipping it to me via UPS for FREE with a guarantee that it will arrive here tomorrow. It's only UPS Ground, but they're just an hour down the road from me, so getting it here tomorrow should be no problem.
That works for me!
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