I think I am going to reverse the charges on a purchase I made a few weeks ago.
Is anyone else here having trouble contacting or getting what they ordered from SSS???
I ordered a barrel and bolt head in the middle of September 2012. I have been getting the "it will be a couple of weeks" excuse from Lisa since January.
In March she responded to an email letting me know that the barrel and bolt head were "on her packaging table ready to be shipped out".. never got anything.. about a month later Lisa finally responded to my emails questioning where my package was and she said " sorry that was for another customer with the same last name as yours"
Haven't been able to get any response back from them since that. Can't call them either cause they won't answer their phone now..
Anyone have another way to contact SSS????
Last edited by thomae; 05-22-2013 at 09:35 PM. Reason: Don't need 25 question marks in thread title
I think I am going to reverse the charges on a purchase I made a few weeks ago.
I had my first dealing with SSS in 2008, it was also my last. Worst customer service I have ever experienced. Since then I have had tons of dealings with Northland Shooters Supply and Stockade- and they have been fantastic. Awesome products, awesome customer service.
I got impatient as well on an orderI made. Recieved a partial order a couple of weeeks later. Communication was rare and inconsistant. I recieved the last of my parts order about three months later with the message that they thought that they would never get them back in stock.
Conclusion; They will make good on the order and chances are they are doing everything they can to get you the order. They do not have a real time stocking system that lets you know the status of parts or your order and never will. There are 500 new savage owners everyday and many of them whant to upgrade and modify. SSS has a big reputation for savage parts. FWIW Gunsmiths work on a different time frame.
I am familiar with "gunsmith time"..... I was told by Lisa when I placed the order, it would be a month or two to complete the order. I translated that in my head to 3-6 months.
It just boggles my mind about the lack of customer service with this outfit. I called the credit card company a couple of days ago and there is nothing they can do to help past 120 days.
Has anyone ordered a barrel directly from Shilen?? I called them a couple of weeks ago to inquire about turnaround time and was told 2-4 months..
All that I can tell you is that I will never order anything from them again.
I had to reverse charges as well. I used all of my patience. Pacific tool and gage, Northland Shooter and Savage gunsmithing have some savage parts as well and that has completed some of my builds
I am familiar with gunsmith time. Lisa told me 2 months when I first placed the order. I translated that to 4-6 months. I called the credit card company and there is nothing they can do past 120 days.
Anybody ever order a barrel directly from Shilen? I called them a couple of weeks ago to inquire about turnaround time and was told 2-4 months.
Pt&g has your bolt head. Jim atNorthland may have your barrel. Also look into criterion.
I ended up going with a Krieger barrel blank and had my Smith chamber and install it just like a Remington. It's way wait to get a barrel that way, often a better one also. Look up Phoenix custom rifles. They did mine and it turned out awesome. I'll let u know how it shoots after the weekend.
I ordered a custom Shilen from Northland. Great deal and on time.
For what it's worth and if it makes any difference to anybody else, I've dealt with Sharp Shooter Supply for at least 6+ years and never,
"I mean NEVER" had any problems with delivery time of availability of parts.
I send them an email, tell them what I want, include my credit card number, sit back and wait.
Not too long after my email, I'll get a reply from Lisa double checking my order and when it will be shipped. I make it a point not to be in a hurry.
I know ahead of time I'am not the only one ordering parts so I take that into consideration.
The gun smith and parts business isn't a one day thing and at times Sharp Shooter Supply has problems getting the parts "they" want.
If you don't like the way they (SSS) do business, don't gripe about it. Go somewhere else and wait in line like everybody else.
Barrels from Shilen, Pac Nor, etc? I've gotten them in 4 weeks but that doesn't happen very often. Closer to 4 months if you're lucky.
If someone has a barrel in stock that you want, jump on it because it may not be available tomorrow.
You want Savage parts, try to find them.
SSS is a "one man/woman" operation. They can only do so much.
Jim Briggs at Northlander? Good man to deal with.
Oz never gave nothing to the Tin Man, that he didn't already have.
That's kind of a downer, I was wanting to order one of their bolt handles but I don't want to end up in perpetual order limbo.
Pacific tool and gauge has Savage bolt handles.Originally Posted by din
Hrmm, the only one I could find on their site was part of a bolt kit, and crazy expensive. I really like the design of the SSS one, not really wild about any of the others I've seen.
Look up tactical works dot com. They carry the sss bolt handle. Also stockade, they make a bolt handle.
Just checked. They have a teardrop style in stock but not the one i think you're wanting. However, they are excellent people to deal with and have a "notify me when available" button and I've used that option. It works.
Problem here is I was flat out lied to by Lisa before I ordered the parts. She knew there was no way that they were going to complete the order in a month or two. If she had told me it was going to take over 8 months, I would have never placed the order with them in the first place.
I sent her an email last month sometime letting her know that I was not satisfied with their service and that if they were not going to be able to complete the order, we needed to make arrangements for a refund of my money. I have not heard back from her since that.
""If you don't like the way they (SSS) do business, don't gripe about it.""
This is the first order I have ever placed with SSS. I assure you I will never place another one with them. I will gripe about it, because I have a legitimate gripe.
If any one doubts what I am saying here, I will gladly supply them with all the emails exchanged between myself and SSS over the last 8 months.
I just hope that other people don't have to have the same experience with SSS that I have.
Thanks for your reply
Things always seem so straight forward in our analysis - but they never are once you dig into it more...
Here is my assesment (in my limited experience with SSS ...which is more than a couple and less than several dozen orders)
[1] Lisa and Fred are very simple folks and do not have the means to invest in complex invenotry and order management systems.
[2] Lisa and Fred are very honest and helpful folks (but like most of us, they are human and make mistakes - which get complicated due to thier own communications issues with each other)
[3] They are not a big opperation - so they do not get serviced (by suppliers) like we'd hope or think.
[4] Fred is a very picky fella... good for quality of work as a Savage expert and Smith - but bad where CS and delivery schedules is concerned.
[5] There was at least one long period of time when Fred was sidelined with a serious injury to his hand and suffice to say this was a very bad time for SSS all around. I feel for them, but I understand how that impacts a business and it's reputation when things don't go well...
Overall they are great people and are the best at what they do (which is to build the best Savages possible). They wouldn't be my first choice for parts unless they have them in stock and no mods are required (no offense intended).
I love them, and inspite of a couple of frustrating experiences. In the end, I was pleased with what I got (even if it wasn't when I wanted to get it) and they are reasonably priced and fair.
If there is one thing I'd like to see them do is to try to incorporate some technology into their workflow management. This would save them from some of these frustrating experiences on the part of their customers (but not always). Other than that, I just accept them for waht they are: a small Mom-n-Pop shop thatproduces some of the finest work possible.
Obviously - we can all choose to do business with whomever we wish. SSS wil NEVER be everything to everybody. I think that's good. Personally, I don't want all you guys to like them because it'll just mean more delays overall (for me).
All the best SSS...
Last edited by jhelmuth; 05-23-2013 at 11:43 AM.
.22LR * 6.5x47 Lapua * .223 Rem * .308 Win * 260 Rem * Large Cojones!
[I]"I can prove anything by statistics except the truth."[/I]
Glad you have had good experiences with them. The one thing that I hear over and over through this thread and others is not a frustration with them as people, or even with the quality of their work as much as the lack of communication. Running a small business is tough- I've done it and that's why I don't do it anymore. But in business, like any relationship, communication is key. I never got anything but the run around, when I got anything at all.
And now you've gone and done it - ya done pissed me off so now you're going to get an ear full...
1. You have 5 posts on this site, all in this thread which you started specifically to piss and moan about SSS. That right there is a good clue to me that you're nothing more than a troll and I should probably do the rest of the site a favor and just ban you - but I won't - at least not yet.
2. This nonsense (the entire thread) is why we typically nip these anti-(insert vendor name here) threads in the bud as soon as they start. All they do is turn into a handful of folks crying foul and another handful defending the vendor and it accomplishes nothing.
3. If you have a problem with a vendor address it with them as they're the only ones who can do anything about it. Pissing and moaning about it anonymously behind a screen name on an internet forum accomplishes nothing and just makes you look like a whiny little ....
"Life' is tough. It's even tougher if you're stupid." ~ John Wayne
“Under certain circumstances, urgent circumstances, desperate circumstances, profanity provides a relief denied even to prayer.” —Mark Twain
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