[interested_observer]

My Acratech GP is about 10 years old now. The other evening I decided to go over and shoot the Arizona Falls - it's a little hydro electric generating facility on the Arizona Canal in the middle of Phoenix run by SRP (Salt River Project) - with lots of water falls. I had setup to take the shot - it was going to be a pano. Took the first image and then went to rotate the turntable clamp to the next position for the frame and the unit was binding up quite a bit. Anyway I finished up and the next day, I shot Acratech an email asking them about it. They said, just send it over and they would open it up and check it out and replace what ever needs replacing. They would have it turned around in about an hour - no questions asked. All I need to do is to cover shipping. Easy enough.

Now to be fair, I have left the head on my tripod in the back seat of the truck for several years now. It gets hot here in the Arizona summer sun. I know - that during the summer I go to pull it out and it is too hot to handle - 160 deg to 180 degrees F at least. So, it is my fault. I really don't know if they designed the unit to stand up to that amount of abuse - but it has lasted this long, working first time - every time, up to now. No way I can complain. I really love that ballhead.

I do have to say that is a really nice level of service.

Attached Images

 

---

Last edited by interested_observer; 09-16-2016 at 07:00 PM.

[ramseybuckeye]

That's awesome!

[victormeldrew]

It's getting increasing rare, but there are still some gems out there. I bought a pair of earbuds some time back (about 18 months) and they were pretty cheap ($20 ish), but recently started fuzzing on the right ear - probably through being in and out of pockets too much. But they were sold with a 2-year warranty so I thought I'd give them an email, expecting the usual 'send it in, we'll look and see if it's your fault first' reply. Instead they just said "destroy them, send us a picture, and we'll send out a new pair next day". Sure enough, brand new pair of buds in my hand within 24 hours!
I nearly fell over!

[interested_observer]

I just received a call from Acratech. My GP ballhead is on its way back. They replaced the base unit. Apparently the heat from storing it in truck - thru numerous Arizona summers, part of the rotating mechanism started to bind. So, for the princely price of shipping - about $5 each way - I essentially have a fully re-conditioned/new unit - no charge for parts and labor.

She noted that I do have one of the earlier units - as the anodizing that they used years ago, has turned an ever so slight purple tint to the black with the heat. They have experimented with numerous anodizing techniques/materials and found one now, that stays black black across all conditions. It could be bright purple with bilious yellow poke-a-dots and it would not matter to me. It just works and works very well - first time, last time, all the time.

Anyway, I could not be happier. I do have to say that when I talked with them when I purchased the unit, they said - anything goes wrong with it - just send it in and they would fix it. You can't ask for anything more than that. I wish all companies would stand behind their products like Acratech.

[MJSfoto1956]

+1 for Acratech.

They even converted an earlier model GX for the new design for a nominal fee.

Michael