Partington Stand Owners - Help

[admin_exported]

I've been having some bad luck with my new stands, the Ansa's had many flaws, the Trophy stands that turned up yesterday also have a bare patch with no paint on the bottom plate (which would be visible).

My question is that both the retailer where i bought the stands and Partington say i'm unlikely to get a 100% clean pair as they are hand made. What are your experiences?

The retailer has a new set with a faint hairline scratch on that wouldn't be noticeable when in place (i asked him to check any replacement they want to send me) - but should i accept these based on what i've been told?

If it weren't for the fact we havent seen others we like i would probably just go with another manufacturor after these two.

Thanks for any input you may have.
Ed

 

[Anonymous]

I have no problem with my Dreadnought Broadsides. Maybe your dealer is trying to sell you "B-stock"? Being hand made should not make something bad quality, think the dealer is talking out of his behind.

 

[Anonymous]

Thats why i spoke to Partington (Gail Partington to be precise) and she told me the same thing.

Since you have no defects no matter how minor (for the price i'm assuming you checked when you got them) I see no reason why I should either.

Thanks very much.

 

[The_Lhc]

Sounds a bit fishy to me, I got a pair of Partington Dreadnaughts that were display models in Sevenoaks Poole and I've not noticed anything wrong with the finish on them at all.

 

[chebby]

Black gloss Trophys here. The finish is perfect.

 

[Frank Harvey]

Hello all

Ed, it was our website that you purchased from.

I have spoken to Gail, who told me that she said that because the stands are hand made, they will never be perfect - there will always be some blemish or issue with most of them. Given that the stands are gloss black finish also makes it harder for them not to be marked somewhere along the production.

The other day we unboxed several pairs of Trophy stands to find a perfect pair for you, and all had a blemish or mark on them, which I believe the HiFix guys relayed to you our findings. This isn't the first time we've had this issue, but as stated before, they'll never be perfect as they're hand made, no production lines.

If we have any B Stock products (which we don't from Partington) it is always stated, this is illegal otherwise. generally we don't sell B Stock over the web because our customers can't see what they're buying, with regards to finish. All partington stock is brand new direct from Partington. Obviously the last thing we want is to be spending money sending and collecting various stands back and forth, so secretly selling B Stock would be counter productive.

We have spoken to Peter Partington, who is happy to have a chat with you to put your mind at rest and to sort the issue out. You can reach him on 01474 709 299.

Regards

David

 

[Anonymous]

sorry to here your bad luck fast eddie

but i don't think hifix are trying it on.

as i purchased my partington dreadnoughts in silver from hifix.

which arrived boxed and in perfect condition no blemishes and the customer services guys were really helpful when i rang up b4 puchasing the stands to see what stands they recommended.

also they were the cheapest on the web considering how heavy the stands are it was still free p&p which is quite rare these days.

cheers hifix

 

[Anonymous]

Both sets of my partingtons are fine.

You have to remember that the stands are hung on a rack upside down to have the paint adhered to them, by a bloke (or lady), using a spray gun applicator, then either powder coated, or spray painted, then they go through an oven to bake the paint hard. Due to any items where paint is applied and handling takes place (which is nearly 100%), then small scrapes etc are unfortunately going to happen, at either the manufacturer or at the shops.

I worked in the automotive trade designing interiors and exteriors for big automotive firms cars, then 5 years in the Body in white sections, and it is very hard to stop small scrapes etc.

I would never expect a large unpainted section to be visible to the eye, and if your's were like that, then they some how got through Partingtons visual inspection before final assembly pacaging took place.

David has gone through the majority of his stock by the sounds of it, and I am sure has found the best pair available. Return yours, and get the new pair.

Mine in the lounge are in black, and have a few small scrapes on them, which I would expect and accept, due to the nature of manufacture. If they had large dings or unpainted sections, that would not be acceptable on the other hand.

Also, the paint used on the stands is for protection and visual reasons. It would not be viable to use 2 pack paints to automotive levels on then, due to the spraying, drying and conditons needed to use the paint.

Get in touch with David again, and I am sure you can sort it out.

Phil

 

[matengawhat]

i have come across problems like this before (not with these stands) and think depends on the person - I am very fussy if I have paid good money I expect things to be perfect when paying top whack - some ppl might let things go - i had an argument once over the finish to a pair of speakers that had passed all the companies quality controls checks but not mine, the annoying thing is that once you know it's there it will really bug you!

 

[Anonymous]

matengawhat: I am very fussy if I have paid good money I expect things to be perfect when paying top whack -

had a girlfriend who always complained about anything and everything ... sadly, the relationship never lasted long ...

suppose there are people like that, ... went to a restaurant a week ago ... guy on the table next to ours ate half his meal then complained about his steak and (loudly and agressively) demanded another .... funny thing is he had already eaten more than 3/4 of the steak

suppose some people live by the code of: If you don't complain, you don't get better service

 

[The_Lhc]

Yeah my partner's daughter is a bit like that, every time we go out to eat there's something wrong, nobody else ever has a problem, in fact it's even got to the point where we'll try hers just to see and there's never anything wrong with it. She gets it from her paternal grandparents it seems, they're exactly the same, I don't think they've ever had a good meal in a restaurant.

 

[Anonymous]

I'm always skint, so always buy cheap 2nd hand stuff .... and always happy and ecstatic when I win an auction on ebay, even before I see the item...

wife says I'm easily pleased and eager to please

 

[Messiah]

Not that it will make much difference but I got my Dreadnoughts from HiFix and have not noticed a single mark on them.......

 

[Miggs]

This is to David at Frank Harvey. Why should something thats hand made not be as good as something from a production line. I would totally disagree with you on that point. I would have hoped that the person who is "hand making" might just take a little bit more pride in the work that he/she is producing. I am from an engineering background and the companys I have worked for would not let pieces of equipment go out the door with a known mark or blemish on them. A hand made piece should be as good as any other piece.

Miggs

 

[Anonymous]

Miggs:

I am from an engineering background and the companys I have worked for would not let pieces of equipment go out the door with a known mark or blemish on them. Miggs

that's why many Engineering companies in the UK have gone bust ... and that's why so many folk involved in Engineering are now unemployed ... and thats why most engineering items are now made in India, Taiwan and China

just winding you mate (or am I?)

 

[Anonymous]

FrankHarveyHiFi:
Hello all

Ed, it was our website that you purchased from.

Hi David, yes it was your site, although i hope you appreciate that I didn't start this thread to try and get a resolution or discussion about my specific case on the forum, only to find out other owners experiences of the finish. Hence not mentioning your company in either thread.

I have spoken to Gail, who told me that she said that because the stands are hand made, they will never be perfect - there will always be some blemish or issue with most of them. Given that the stands are gloss black finish also makes it harder for them not to be marked somewhere along the production.
Yes, this is what Gail and your colleague Mark told me, however not having any experience in manufacturing I am in no position to judge this statement (thanks potboyslim for the confirmation)

The other day we unboxed several pairs of Trophy stands to find a perfect pair for you, and all had a blemish or mark on them, which I believe the HiFix guys relayed to you our findings. This isn't the first time we've had this issue, but as stated before, they'll never be perfect as they're hand made, no production lines.
The only unboxing that i am aware of happened today to check the pair(s) you had in stock. Hence my knowledge of the faint scratch. I certainly hope the ones i received yesterday weren't checked. (Joke)

If we have any B Stock products (which we don't from Partington) it is always stated, this is illegal otherwise. generally we don't sell B Stock over the web because our customers can't see what they're buying, with regards to finish. All partington stock is brand new direct from Partington. Hopefully i didn't imply that i thought this was b stock, only that i wasn't sure the imperfections should be accepted or not.

Obviously the last thing we want is to be spending money sending and collecting various stands back and forth, so secretly selling B Stock would be counter productive.
I quite agree, in fact i already said this to Mark, none of the three parties wants to be spending any more time or money sending stands back and forth. I'm not trying to be difficult since I've been looking at possible stands for months and the only two Gayle and I agreed on were the Partington ones. If you haven't already please check the picture I emailed over.

We have spoken to Peter Partington, who is happy to have a chat with you to put your mind at rest and to sort the issue out. You can reach him on 01474 709 299.

Regards

David
I think between Gail and yourselves we've covered everything, so I'll give you or Mark a bell tomorrow since I missed you after work.

Just to finish I think the service I've had from Hifix/Frank Harvey has been great, when ever I've spoken to anyone (mainly Mark and Lee i think) they've been very helpful, and emails answered quickly.

 

[batonwielder]

I hope that we are paying for workmanship and integrity of any equipment as well as the functional and technological side of it.

I personally wouldn't get too fussy about little scratches on speaker stands, but then there's no such thing as easy money.

 

[Miggs]

dim_span, I could not care less. Not all uk engineering has gone bust, some but not all. The reason they are made in china etc is cost, but the quality is very poor. My point is, why pay good money for something that is known to be flawed. Would you accept a new car if it had a paint flaw on it or a scratch down the side of the door, no you would not. The same applies here.

Miggs.

 

[Anonymous]

Miggs:

dim_span, I could not care less. Not all uk engineering has gone bust, some but not all. The reason they are made in china etc is cost, but the quality is very poor. My point is, why pay good money for something that is known to be flawed. Would you accept a new car if it had a paint flaw on it or a scratch down the side of the door, no you would not. The same applies here.

Miggs.

like I said, was winding you up, but to be honest, if I were buying stands that are handmade and hand painted, and they had a tiny scratch, I would not be 'put off' and would be 'gutted' if the supplier had to unpack hundreds of boxed ones looking for 'the perfect pair'

and by the way, your equipment as in your signature: Panasonic TX-L37S10, Toshiba SD390, Playstation 3 (60gb), Nintendo Wii, Saga Saturn ....

you will most prob find that much of that is made in China

 

[Joe10155]

My black Partington Dreadnoughts had no scratches when I got them last year. However, they are a bit "industrial" like.

I wanted them in silver but having seen both silver & black in the shop I realized that the silver ones seemed to highlight the manufacturing marks left below the paint finish. It was nothing major and as the marks showed up so much less in black, that's what I got. So, there are some faint marks on them but unless I am looking for them they are not really noticeable.

I must say though that if I had bought a pair in silver unseen; I would have been quite disapointed when they arrived.

 

[Anonymous]

Joe10155:

My black Partington Dreadnoughts had no scratches when I got them last year. However, they are a bit "industrial" like.

I wanted them in silver but having seen both silver & black in the shop I realized that the silver ones seemed to highlight the manufacturing marks left below the paint finish. It was nothing major and as the marks showed up so much less in black, that's what I got. So, there are some faint marks on them but unless I am looking for them they are not really noticeable.

I must say though that if I had bought a pair in silver unseen; I would have been quite disapointed when they arrived.

mine are in silver but never even bothered to look for scratches as I paid £33 off ebay (and they came with all the spikes, and were filled with attabites)

if they are handpainted, there will always be slight imperfections, no matter how good the painter is (I too am in engineereing and one of my first jobs was at a company that made stoves/ovens and fridges which were also handpainted and enamelled ... and there were always slight imperfections)

 

[Miggs]

I am not knocking China for one minute. What I am saying is that the items we had made in China where finished off very poorly. In fact we had parts made in China, and had them sent back to Liverpool for painting. The actual quality of work was good, but the finishing of the items was poor.

Miggs.

 

[Joe10155]

dim_span, I think your term "slight imperfections" is a more accurate discription than mine.

I think it is all to do with the quality of the finish before painting; maybe due to the fact that it is already fully assembled, so harder to to achive a perfect finish at that price point.

 

[Andrew Everard]

This whole thread would have been better dealt with in an exchange of emails rather than on a public forum, and seems to have fallen victim to the usual sweeping generalisations and tetchiness.

The big red button looms...

 

[Anonymous]

Joe10155:

dim_span, I think your term "slight imperfections" is a more accurate discription than mine.

I think it is all to do with the quality of the finish before painting; maybe due to the fact that it is already fully assembled, so harder to to achive a perfect finish at that price point.

no probs ... hope that the OP will buy the retailer a good bottle of wine for all the effort he and his staff has taken to resolve the matter ... good service if you ask me