Stipe shocks
 

Three months ago I ordered a set of shocks from Stipe and never got a response. I have called them (no answer) emailed and sent a letter with no response. Are they any longer in business?
Thank you for any information!
Don

Re: Stipe shocks
 

You may have ordered between production runs. It takes a while sometimes. But I can’t explain their communication breakdown. Keep calling.

Re: Stipe shocks
 

So the vendors are out? Bert’s and Snyder’s had them not long ago

Re: Stipe shocks
 

Specialty Motor Cams site lists them as out of stock. They may be manufacturing for the model A parts sources only these days but I don't know anything for sure.

Re: Stipe shocks
 

Ordered my Stipe shocks in May and received them in Aug. (2021) Well worth the wait.

Re: Stipe shocks
 

Snyder’s and Bert’s don’t sell shocks made by Stipe. Snyder’s get theirs made elsewhere. I don’t know where Bert’s get theirs from. Bratton’s make their own shocks which are different from Snyder’s. Stipe is still in business, the gal in the office isn’t always there. Tony and his guys are busy in the shop and don’t have time to be on the phone. Keep trying, they will answer.

Re: Stipe shocks
 

Re: Stipe shocks
 

I was there on Sept 13th and had a tour of the shop and talked with several of the crew. On a white board in the office they had a list of the shock orders. I was at the bottom. They told me they would be starting another batch of shocks in October. The office people were not there when I visited. My calls to them earlier on were answered. It is an impressive place with nice folks. Bill

Re: Stipe shocks
 

Competition in a limited market can kill production and especially if the profits are too low to justify the effort.

Re: Stipe shocks
 

Stipe is quality.

Made in USA!

Re: Stipe shocks
 

Yes Stipe is quality but without good quality customer service they will soon develop a bad reputation!

Re: Stipe shocks
 

Over the last couple of years, the guy I work for had to start screening calls due to the very high amount of bogus calls that were being recieved during working hours. He would check the messages to see if any new potential customers were calling. If they left no message then they got no return call. The amount of phone calls wouldn't let any of us get any work done if we were constantly answering bogus calls. Affording a receptionist during the virus outbreak just wasn't plausible since business fell off so much.

I can see how this can affect a small business so I'm not going to say anything one way or the other. If folks want to get in touch and they don't call back then that's a problem but they may not get back right away either. This is a sad state of affairs but it isn't all the proprietor's fault in a lot of cases.

Re: Stipe shocks
 

I think we need to be patient and a little more understanding of the vendor's situations. A lot of places are hurting because of Covid and the length of time it has been drawn out.

When I ordered a Mitchell O/D a while back I was told to expect it to be a 12 weeks before they ship. Only Steve and Cindy were working in the shop at that time.

Even before Covid there was a waiting period for Stipe Shocks. Back in 2014 when I ordered a set I had to wait 3 months to receive them.

Well worth the wait in both cases.

Re: Stipe shocks
 

Times two on both replies from Rotowrench and Ruth. It is very hard to get production done when you are answering tire kickers phone calls.

Re: Stipe shocks
 

I see, you forgive Stipes but not Macs! Where is the fairness. Bottom line it is very poor customer service no matter what the name of the company is. This is not about wait times for product it’s about ignoring customers!

Re: Stipe shocks
 

A small business has far fewer employees to handle correspondence compared to larger outfits with many more. If your product is one of the best, and you sell all your production, you can be more selective on how you run your business, especially in these past 2 years. This might effect us many more years to come, so patience might be a good thing to practice.

Re: Stipe shocks
 

No comparison.

Re: Stipe shocks
 

Re: Stipe shocks
 

I thought that Stipes essentially stopped making shocks a couple years back. They were complicated and not much of a margin for him. He started again making small batches occasionally mostly as a courtesy to the Model A community.

Am I remembering that correctly?

Ken

Re: Stipe shocks
 

Mac's is a corporate division of Ecklers which is a fairly large organization that purchases from manufacturers and retails a lot of the parts they supply. Stipe's company is a Mom and Pop type organization. I don't really see the comparison except in a general way since they both supply reproduction and specialty parts but that's about it. Bill Stipe's Specialty Motor Cams outfit likely manufactures most of what they sell. Eckler's doesn't really manufacture all that much of what they sell. Eckler's has always had a reputation of holding on to customers funds of parts they don't have in stock and then the customer is treated like a mushroom until they finally fulfill an order to completion. This may also have extra charges for shipping. Some companies like this have higher than normal shipping rates which can also be problematic.

Stipe tells customers up front that it's going to take a period of time to complete the order. The customer just has to have the patience to wait the estimated period or they should do their business elsewhere. The two companies don't compare unless Stipe doesn't fulfill the orders at all or is very late past the estimate on the completion of the order. Only then could they be compared as equals.

Many Mom and Pop organizations have a sign up in there shop that says they have the right to refuse service to anyone. Does this keep folks from doing business with them? If they stick by their word then that's a good reputation in my book.