Positive experience with Precision

severalsnakes · 05-02-2017, 04:49 AM - **11 Likes**

I feel compelled to make a post, because it's normal for people to only be vocal if they're wronged and disappointed. This is totally valid, but it does skew perception.

I bought my K-1 from B&H and received it sometime in late March. I dropped it from my lap while stepping out of a car in mid April and, as far as I could diagnose, the shutter ceased to open. I sought out the quote on Precision's webpage ($312.50) and got a work order to ship it in. It was delivered to Precision on April 20 and marked as "IN REPAIR" on April 21 (my birthday - how depressing). On April 28 the status changed to "OUT OF REPAIR", they charged my credit card for the quoted amount, and I had a tracking number immediately. It was back in my hands on May 1 (shipped to my work address as I requested), with a ticket stating it had the shutter replaced and was generally cleaned and calibrated. It was returned to factory settings, and it still has the scuffs from the fall, but they did leave my screen protector on. ;-)

Besides the embarrassment of dropping the thing, the fee for repair, and suffering without it for (a mere) two weeks, it was totally painless! The camera works perfectly and is making those beautiful camera sounds instead of scary clunky ones.

Cheers!

**rod_grant** · 05-02-2017, 04:53 AM - **1 Like**

good post.
it is always pleasing to hear the good experiences!

Unregistered User 8 · 05-02-2017, 04:59 AM

Excellent news and outcome Sara. As Rod said, too often only the " bad " experiences are shared. Happy shooting, and happy birthday for the 21st !!!

**BigMackCam** · 05-02-2017, 05:42 AM

That's great to hear, Sara, and good for you in posting this. Nice to learn of a positive experience... I'm sure you're not the only one, but as Pete says, usually we only get to hear of the bad stuff...

rangercarp · 05-02-2017, 06:28 AM

Hopefully this is the new normal. I do not recall seeing any Precision bashing threads in a while. Thanks for sharing.

GlennG · 05-02-2017, 06:48 AM

That's encouraging, and thanks for sharing. I should check on my DA 16-50 that I sent in a while ago, but have not heard anything. Did you do anything to get the prompt repair?

Update: I just checked. My 16-50 was received on April 20 and went into repair the same day, but has not come out of repair yet. I am suspecting there is a difficult problem, though that was not apparent with the lens. Hmmmmm........

**bobbotron** · 05-02-2017, 08:27 AM

Great to hear Sara, it is nice to hear positive feedback about these services.

rangercarp · 05-02-2017, 10:35 AM

Originally posted by GlennG

My 16-50 was received on April 20 and went into repair the same day, but has not come out of repair yet. I am suspecting there is a difficult problem, though that was not apparent with the lens. Hmmmmm........

It could be that being logged as "into repair" really means "we have received it at our facility." Or it could be that they are waiting on parts that need to be ordered in. If that was the case it would be nice if they added that note to your status.

C_Jones · 05-02-2017, 10:36 AM

Nice to see some compliments for Precision that are deserved. They have helped me in a positive manner in the past.

severalsnakes · 05-02-2017, 11:07 AM

Originally posted by rangercarp

It could be that being logged as "into repair" really means "we have received it at our facility." Or it could be that they are waiting on parts that need to be ordered in. If that was the case it would be nice if they added that note to your status.

I believe they do exactly those things, actually! There's kind of a flow chart on the website so you can check the repair status. 'Received' is separate from 'In Repair', and there's a separate note that pops up on the 'In Repair' window if they're waiting for parts. I didn't have to wait for parts, but I saw the screen shot in another thread... I forget who the OP was.

rangercarp · 05-02-2017, 11:49 AM

That is good to know. Sounds like they have a good system. Glenn, I hope you get an update soon.

GlennG · 05-02-2017, 12:43 PM

Originally posted by severalsnakes

I believe they do exactly those things, actually! There's kind of a flow chart on the website so you can check the repair status. 'Received' is separate from 'In Repair', and there's a separate note that pops up on the 'In Repair' window if they're waiting for parts.

Yes, that is correct. I tried to paste a snip, but could not do it. I did not see the repair parts window, though. The four status boxes are received, in repair, out of repair, and shipped confirmed.

**clickclick** · 05-02-2017, 05:44 PM - **1 Like**

I've got to add another vote of good service from them. It was a warranty repair on a DA 16-85 that had the zoom mechanism lock up. Even though it had to be sent back to the Pentax factory ultimately, the overall turn around wasn't bad for a round trip from the East Coast to Japan and the overall time you'd expect for diagnostics. I had a human call me pretty quickly after sending it in and feel the communication was pretty good. And of course, the next obvious question is how long? I'd have to look at the receipt to be 100%, but in the 3 week time frame. Again, for a round trip to Pentax and back, I don't think too bad at all.

I have just sent in a SMCP-DA 14 this past Friday, e.g. took it to the Post Office last Friday, and it shows received yesterday and in repair process today. Fingers crossed, but hoping it will be another good experience.

Not a Number · 05-02-2017, 06:41 PM

The past 10-11 months Precision seems to be having quite a few positive experiences posted. It looks like there are positive outcomes on the work done, turn around time and communication. Improvements include faster turn around times, phone calls with status updates as well as more updates on the online job status. People who say they've heard nothing but bad things about Precision need to look at the recent postings of others experiences and not just read the first couple of pages on the older threads.

mee · 05-02-2017, 06:59 PM

Originally posted by clickclick

I've got to add another vote of good service from them. It was a warranty repair on a DA 16-85 that had the zoom mechanism lock up. Even though it had to be sent back to the Pentax factory ultimately, the overall turn around wasn't bad for a round trip from the East Coast to Japan and the overall time you'd expect for diagnostics. I had a human call me pretty quickly after sending it in and feel the communication was pretty good. And of course, the next obvious question is how long? I'd have to look at the receipt to be 100%, but in the 3 week time frame. Again, for a round trip to Pentax and back, I don't think too bad at all.

I have just sent in a SMCP-DA 14 this past Friday, e.g. took it to the Post Office last Friday, and it shows received yesterday and in repair process today. Fingers crossed, but hoping it will be another good experience.

Ricoh Japan fixed your lens, not Precision in CT then. I look forward to how/what Precision does with your DA 14.

The bigger issue, with Precision, has been with their lens repair abilities. It seems their camera body repair has been fairly good all along. The more complaints seem to be with how they handle lens repair specifically and communication in general. Perhaps it is now their routine to send the lenses off to Japan though if they require serious work?

Either way speed seems to be decent.. and communication seems well in your experience. Hopefully they have learned their lessons and sorted out the issues there.

05-02-2017, 04:49 AM - 11 Likes	#1
severalsnakes Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Kansas City, KS Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,612	Positive experience with Precision I feel compelled to make a post, because it's normal for people to only be vocal if they're wronged and disappointed. This is totally valid, but it does skew perception. I bought my K-1 from B&H and received it sometime in late March. I dropped it from my lap while stepping out of a car in mid April and, as far as I could diagnose, the shutter ceased to open. I sought out the quote on Precision's webpage ($312.50) and got a work order to ship it in. It was delivered to Precision on April 20 and marked as "IN REPAIR" on April 21 (my birthday - how depressing). On April 28 the status changed to "OUT OF REPAIR", they charged my credit card for the quoted amount, and I had a tracking number immediately. It was back in my hands on May 1 (shipped to my work address as I requested), with a ticket stating it had the shutter replaced and was generally cleaned and calibrated. It was returned to factory settings, and it still has the scuffs from the fall, but they did leave my screen protector on. ;-) Besides the embarrassment of dropping the thing, the fee for repair, and suffering without it for (a mere) two weeks, it was totally painless! The camera works perfectly and is making those beautiful camera sounds instead of scary clunky ones. Cheers!

05-02-2017, 06:48 AM	#6
GlennG Veteran Member Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Houston, Texas Posts: 824	That's encouraging, and thanks for sharing. I should check on my DA 16-50 that I sent in a while ago, but have not heard anything. Did you do anything to get the prompt repair? Update: I just checked. My 16-50 was received on April 20 and went into repair the same day, but has not come out of repair yet. I am suspecting there is a difficult problem, though that was not apparent with the lens. Hmmmmm........ Last edited by GlennG; 05-02-2017 at 06:54 AM. Reason: more information

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05-02-2017, 04:53 AM - 1 Like	#2
rod_grant Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Wangaratta, Victoria Photos: Gallery Posts: 6,951	good post. it is always pleasing to hear the good experiences!

05-02-2017, 04:59 AM	#3
Unregistered User 8 Closed Account Join Date: Mar 2015 Photos: Gallery Posts: 8,694	Excellent news and outcome Sara. As Rod said, too often only the " bad " experiences are shared. Happy shooting, and happy birthday for the 21st !!!

05-02-2017, 05:42 AM	#4
BigMackCam Digitiser of Film Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: North East of England Posts: 20,702	That's great to hear, Sara, and good for you in posting this. Nice to learn of a positive experience... I'm sure you're not the only one, but as Pete says, usually we only get to hear of the bad stuff...

05-02-2017, 06:28 AM	#5
rangercarp Pentaxian Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Southern Michigan Posts: 437	Hopefully this is the new normal. I do not recall seeing any Precision bashing threads in a while. Thanks for sharing.

05-02-2017, 08:27 AM	#7
bobbotron Site Supporter Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: Ottawa, ON Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,349	Great to hear Sara, it is nice to hear positive feedback about these services.

05-02-2017, 10:35 AM	#8
rangercarp Pentaxian Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Southern Michigan Posts: 437	Originally posted by GlennG My 16-50 was received on April 20 and went into repair the same day, but has not come out of repair yet. I am suspecting there is a difficult problem, though that was not apparent with the lens. Hmmmmm........ It could be that being logged as "into repair" really means "we have received it at our facility." Or it could be that they are waiting on parts that need to be ordered in. If that was the case it would be nice if they added that note to your status.

05-02-2017, 10:36 AM	#9
C_Jones Pentaxian Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: NY Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 6,086	Nice to see some compliments for Precision that are deserved. They have helped me in a positive manner in the past.

05-02-2017, 11:07 AM	#10
severalsnakes Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Kansas City, KS Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,612 Original Poster	Originally posted by rangercarp It could be that being logged as "into repair" really means "we have received it at our facility." Or it could be that they are waiting on parts that need to be ordered in. If that was the case it would be nice if they added that note to your status. I believe they do exactly those things, actually! There's kind of a flow chart on the website so you can check the repair status. 'Received' is separate from 'In Repair', and there's a separate note that pops up on the 'In Repair' window if they're waiting for parts. I didn't have to wait for parts, but I saw the screen shot in another thread... I forget who the OP was.

05-02-2017, 11:49 AM	#11
rangercarp Pentaxian Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Southern Michigan Posts: 437	That is good to know. Sounds like they have a good system. Glenn, I hope you get an update soon.

05-02-2017, 12:43 PM	#12
GlennG Veteran Member Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Houston, Texas Posts: 824	Originally posted by severalsnakes I believe they do exactly those things, actually! There's kind of a flow chart on the website so you can check the repair status. 'Received' is separate from 'In Repair', and there's a separate note that pops up on the 'In Repair' window if they're waiting for parts. Yes, that is correct. I tried to paste a snip, but could not do it. I did not see the repair parts window, though. The four status boxes are received, in repair, out of repair, and shipped confirmed.

05-02-2017, 05:44 PM - 1 Like	#13
clickclick Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: May 2016 Location: East Coast Posts: 2,904	I've got to add another vote of good service from them. It was a warranty repair on a DA 16-85 that had the zoom mechanism lock up. Even though it had to be sent back to the Pentax factory ultimately, the overall turn around wasn't bad for a round trip from the East Coast to Japan and the overall time you'd expect for diagnostics. I had a human call me pretty quickly after sending it in and feel the communication was pretty good. And of course, the next obvious question is how long? I'd have to look at the receipt to be 100%, but in the 3 week time frame. Again, for a round trip to Pentax and back, I don't think too bad at all. I have just sent in a SMCP-DA 14 this past Friday, e.g. took it to the Post Office last Friday, and it shows received yesterday and in repair process today. Fingers crossed, but hoping it will be another good experience.

05-02-2017, 06:41 PM	#14
Not a Number Moderator Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: Venice, CA Posts: 10,526	The past 10-11 months Precision seems to be having quite a few positive experiences posted. It looks like there are positive outcomes on the work done, turn around time and communication. Improvements include faster turn around times, phone calls with status updates as well as more updates on the online job status. People who say they've heard nothing but bad things about Precision need to look at the recent postings of others experiences and not just read the first couple of pages on the older threads.

05-02-2017, 06:59 PM	#15
mee Veteran Member Join Date: May 2010 Posts: 7,403	Originally posted by clickclick I've got to add another vote of good service from them. It was a warranty repair on a DA 16-85 that had the zoom mechanism lock up. Even though it had to be sent back to the Pentax factory ultimately, the overall turn around wasn't bad for a round trip from the East Coast to Japan and the overall time you'd expect for diagnostics. I had a human call me pretty quickly after sending it in and feel the communication was pretty good. And of course, the next obvious question is how long? I'd have to look at the receipt to be 100%, but in the 3 week time frame. Again, for a round trip to Pentax and back, I don't think too bad at all. I have just sent in a SMCP-DA 14 this past Friday, e.g. took it to the Post Office last Friday, and it shows received yesterday and in repair process today. Fingers crossed, but hoping it will be another good experience. Ricoh Japan fixed your lens, not Precision in CT then. I look forward to how/what Precision does with your DA 14. The bigger issue, with Precision, has been with their lens repair abilities. It seems their camera body repair has been fairly good all along. The more complaints seem to be with how they handle lens repair specifically and communication in general. Perhaps it is now their routine to send the lenses off to Japan though if they require serious work? Either way speed seems to be decent.. and communication seems well in your experience. Hopefully they have learned their lessons and sorted out the issues there.