New Cases for the WiModem232
#21
There were two links previously posted. One had a price tag of about $16-$18, but another ~$16 for shipping. The other was priced at ~$32. I thought the high price for shipping seemed unreasonable, so I went to the second website that offered it pretty much for the same price at ~$32. I did not see the discrepancy with the screws between the two listings.

When I got the product, it was from Shapeways.

Beery
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#22
Hello

I feel I need to address your pricing concerns. The price for either case when I print it is $15.95 for standard resolution, and $17.95 for high resolution in the color of your choice. Shipping is $16.95. Now you need to understand that shipping is expensive. I don't get a special price, and pay what everyone else pays. By the time I pay for tracked shipping (15 dollars), deduct the paypal fees and pay for the packing materials, I'm in the hole a little for the shipping cost (which comes off my profit). You think it's expensive perhaps? I should likely charge more, but so far I don't.

Then I print the case, clean it, install heatsets and screws, test it with one of Jim's modems, and package it. Now you think $32 is high for this? That's fine, and you're entitled to your opinion, but I don't think it's unreasonable considering what things cost, and what's spent to get it into your hands.

As for Shapeways, I only receive a small portion of the price they charged you. (Given that it's my design, I think I'm entitled to something don't you?) Shapeways charges for their service, and for shipping and packaging. Furthermore, they only print in 3D, so cannot include the heatsets and screws. I am also not privy to who buys my models, so I wouldn't know who's getting a model without heatsets and screws. The listing also indicates that you need to get them.

So, in the end, you could have approached me and I would have been more than happy to make some sort of arrangement to mail you the hardware you need for your Shapeways case. It would have been the cost of a stamp and a couple bucks for the pieces.

I do this, not for free, but to make a little money for the effort I expend to produce these models. I don't know about you, but I try not to work for nothing, but still offer a product at a reasonable price.

Nobody likes the cost of shipping, but it is what it is.

Thomas

(01-25-2018, 08:26 AM)Beery Miller Wrote: There were two links previously posted.  One had a price tag of about $16-$18, but another ~$16 for shipping.  The other was priced at ~$32.  I thought the high price for shipping seemed unreasonable, so I went to the second website that offered it pretty much for the same price at ~$32.  I did not see the discrepancy with the screws between the two listings.

When I got the product, it was from Shapeways.

Beery
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#23
That  $15.95 shipping price would be very high if Thomas was located in the U.S., but he's not - he's in Canada.  Hence, the high shipping cost to U.S. customers.
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#24
(01-25-2018, 10:33 AM)admin Wrote: That  $15.95 shipping price would be very high if Thomas was located in the U.S., but he's not - he's in Canada.  Hence, the high shipping cost to U.S. customers.

That was one thing I was not aware he was in Canada.  

As far as pricing, in my original message, I indicated I did not know what the pricing was for 3D printed stuff.  I can perfectly understand the need for tracking information now-a-days and believe me, I know what you are talking about the fees.

I still bought everything as I thought it was worth it to protect the WiModem232.  It was just my initial thoughts on the cost of shipping that took me by surprise. Shapeways sent me the case in something like a 4" x 6" x 6" box when I thought a bubble wrap envelope could have worked just as easily and maybe cheaper.

I too have a webstore where I am importing and selling in my case powered paragliding equipment (www.USWingNuts.com).  I know many times I have customers wanting something "special" from the factory and I have to caution them the cost of shipping will generally be more than the cost of the item due to the manufacturers wanting to UPS/FedEx ship things to the US for tracking purposes.

Please realize I am still happy with my case.  I just had an unrealistic expectation of what I might have to pay for it having never dealt with 3D printed stuff in the past.  The problem was with me, not you or Shapeways.

Beery
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#25
Although that is true, I am in Canada eh... Big Grin It's actually more expensive to ship within Canada (beyond my two neighboring provinces) than to the States. I can ship cheaper to Hawaii than I can to Ontario. Shipping overseas with tracking is in the stratosphere (over $40), for overseas shipping I always go non-tracked air and personally guarantee delivery (it's the only gamble I can do). Non-tracked air shipping overseas is by far the cheapest shipping of all. I can ship to Italy (or anywhere outside of the US and Canada) for about 7 bucks by air. Figure that one out!

Thomas
COREi64

(01-25-2018, 10:33 AM)admin Wrote: That  $15.95 shipping price would be very high if Thomas was located in the U.S., but he's not - he's in Canada.  Hence, the high shipping cost to U.S. customers.
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#26
Hi!

I'm pleased to hear that you're happy with the case.  If you find the hardware you ended up getting doesn't work out for you, please do let me know and I will mail you the hardware you need.

And, that goes for anyone else who chose a Shapeways case that is reading this that the hardware can be obtained directly from me for the cost of a stamp and a bit to cover the cost of the hardware.  (Think I'll have to pop over to Shapeways and put a comment on the item in that regard).

Wouldn't mind seeing a photo of the case you got from Shapeways.  What color did you get?

Thomas
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#27
I got the black case. My screws and heat sets arrived yesterday. I think I set two of the three heat set nuts probably a turn or two too deep. I was able to get one screw to catch, but the other two no luck. I've got metric Allen wrenches, but not of the size needed for that screw. Any idea if that is a .5 mm Allen or a 1.0 mm Allen wrench requirement?

Beery
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#28
Hi. Let's see if I can help.

The allen key is a 1.5mm key that you need. I know you probably don't want to wait, but I could put one in the mail to you if you cannot find one.

Read through the next part completely, then get your stuff together and try it.

With respect to the heatsets, you can recover from this if you're careful, as early on in my heatsetting career (heh), I sank some heatsets too deep as well, but you can come back from this.

What you need to do, is thread one of your screws into the heatset that's too deep, and heat the screw (which will in turn heat the heatset). Now be careful you don't twist the screw/heatset when you're warming it up. Once it's warm enough, pull the screw (attached to the heatset) out a little. NOT all the way out. Just so the surface of the heatset is slightly higher than the surface of the plastic part. Now let it cool.

Once it's cool, remove the screw, and heat the heatset again with your iron. You should only be on the heatset for about 2-3 seconds. Don't get it TOO hot. When you notice that you could push it in, quickly put the iron down, and take your popcicle stick (or something flat that won't burn) and lay it on top of the heatset. Press down with your thumb. This will push the heatset into the melted plastic and place it flush.

Thomas

(01-26-2018, 09:00 AM)Beery Miller Wrote: I got the black case.  My screws and heat sets arrived yesterday. I think I set two of the three heat set nuts probably a turn or two too deep.  I was able to get one screw to catch, but the other two no luck.  I've got metric Allen wrenches, but not of the size needed for that screw.  Any idea if that is a .5 mm Allen or a 1.0 mm Allen wrench requirement?

Beery
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#29
Thanks Thomas. I've got a local hardware store I should be able to get 1.5 mm Allen wrench from. It should not be an issue and will try what you described. I've actually got to get the allen wrench first to back out that one screw that did get a grip. I used a very small phillips screw driver that was able to turn it just enough to thread but I could not turn it to back it back out to try what you described.

Project for tonight or tomorrow.

Beery
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#30
This post is to outline the trials and tribulations involved in getting a case from Thomas AKA COREi64, and how the final result showed me that there are still honest, caring people out there who are not looking to rip you off but are instead truly concerned with the satisfaction of their customers.

I ordered a WiModem232 case from thomas for my OLED WiModem232.  It shipped from Canada all the way down to me in Southern California, so it wasn't particularly inexpensive, but it was fair considering the circumstances.

When the case arrived I was very excited and took a few pictures, put my modem in the case, and screwed it in using the supplied allen wrench.  Until I heard this "crunch" noise and realized to my horror that my screen had cracked.  I took the case apart and examined it carefully and discovered that the space left for the screen in the case was too small.  I thought about writing a public message because I was pretty upset, but decided to give Thomas a chance to make it right.

He did more than make it right.

  1. He immediately researched the issue and discovered that Jim was using a slightly different model of screen than the previous batch of WiModem232s, which is why the case dimensions weren't quite right.


  2. He gave me a $50 credit on buying anything I wanted from his COREi64 store.


  3. He had me ship the faulty case back to him, and sent me money via PayPal to pay for the shipping.


  4. He shipped me a new case with the correct dimensions for my modem, free of charge.


  5. He had me buy a new WiModem232, and sent me money via PayPal to cover the entire cost including shipping, in exchange for me sending my broken WiModem232 (of which he also paid for shipping) so he could test the new case design and make sure it didn't happen to anyone else.
In my opinion, this is the epitome of first class service and concern for the customer.  No business, large or small, has ever taken care of me as a customer to the extent that Thomas did.  I personally intend to go out of my way to purchase stuff from his store in the future, if he happens to produce something I need.

Here is my new WiModem232, living happily inside its new grey COREi64 case.

[Image: WiModemAndCase.jpg?raw=1]
- Jarrod Kailef, Wearer of Many Hats

[Image: SignatureRow.png?raw=1]
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