re: 2 the guy who is up his own
everything i've ordered from Jim, i got right away, and in one case, i got some extra stuff i didn't even ask for. after he said he wasn't selling to the public, i ordered from Pirate, and got those right away, too.
the only thing i've needed are sprocket adapters and sprockets. and honestly, i don't really need the sprockets, because i use steel motorcycle sprockets, 'cause aluminum wears out too fast.
from what i see, part of the problem is the release of a product, like the motor mounts. i can understand Jim wanting to get pre-orders for them to cut down his out of pocket costs, and i also understand that sometimes this is a bad idea. the product got hyped, the excitement built up, people paid, and expected to get them.
meanwhile, Jim's not happy with the way they turned out, decides to re-work it instead of sending out a product he knows to be inferior, and the wait continues.
those people that ordered are now investors, waiting on their return.
then, the problem gets compounded by lack of communication. is Jim too busy to answer the phone? is Joe Customer, alias Huffylover69 sending him cryptic emails?
i dunno. there really is no excuse for poor customer service, but i've seen more than one thread here started by Jim as a kind of blanket apology/explanation and he's always offered refunds to anyone who wanted one. i can also see the frustration in Jim's posts, which inevitably turns to hostility.
i'm not taking sides here, because i can build just about everything i need with a hammer and a pair of vice-grips, and i'm working on my own sprocket adapters, so the fate of Manic Mechanic won't really affect my life.
but i would like to say, if you've never used any of his products, never dealt with him, and all you wanna do is start a thread bashing him, and you can't even do it coherently, then i think maybe you should just shut the f%$! up.