New scope arrived damaged - questions

[Coyote00]

Brand new to this other than a cheap scope as a kid but looking to share now with my kids.  

Ordered a celestron starsense explorer dx130 direct from celestron but during shipping the primary mirror came loose and damaged itself and the secondary.  

Contacted them and they want me to return just the scope for repair. I realized it would be easier/faster if they just sent me a new primary and secondary mirror and I just replace them myself, doesn’t seem too hard, already removed the secondary to get the primary out before sending back.  Any thoughts?

The only other damage is the inside of the tube is scratched up from the mirror sliding back and forth during shipment. Would these scratches affect the scope’s performance at all? Thanks. 

[John]

I would want a complete replacement.

The scratches would not affect the performance but they would knock it's value if you choose to sell it.

And you will need to collimate the replacement mirrors once they are installed.

They should just send you a complete replacement scope (no repair) and cover the cost of the return of the damaged one.

 

[teoria_del_big_bang]

I agree, I would definitely return for a complete replacement and not repair.

Steve

[DaveL59]

easier to take another boxed scope from stock than to have to source a replacement pair of mirrors that likely aren't sat on the shelf for the supplier.

[Louis D]

More than likely, they'll send you a refurbished scope.  You can check this by making an indelible mark somewhere inconspicuous on the scope that you know to be unique to you.  The scope they return "fixed" will be someone else's return that went through the repair process earlier.  You'll be able to tell because it will have wear marks somewhere, and yet different from your original scope.  That, and your mark will be missing.  This happens a lot with warranty returns.  It's doubtful they would bother with reblackening the interior of the tube since they probably don't have the local facilities to do that.  Another problem is that the warranty return process can last 2 to 3 months because they're under no obligation to hurry.

[TerryMcK]

In the UK we have different regulations pertaining to purchases/returns etc. which are bound in law. I’m guessing by your handle and wording that you are not in the UK so may be subject to different purchasing regulations. Best to check your rights with regards to returning items in your country which may be different than the UK.

That said I agree with Steve, Dave and John

[Coyote00]

Thanks for the input, unfortunately they told me they no longer have them in stock and can only refund or repair.  They are covering all shipping costs, but it is a valid point about value on resale. I’m not worried about collimating and would probably buy the tool regardless.

[Coyote00]

1 minute ago, TerryMcK said:

In the UK we have different regulations pertaining to purchases/returns etc. which are bound in law. I’m guessing by your handle and wording that you are not in the UK so may be subject to different purchasing regulations. Best to check your rights with regards to returning items in your country which may be different than the UK.

That said I agree with Steve, Dave and John

Is this a UK specific forum? Sorry if it is, I didn’t realize, but yes I am in the US. 

[Coyote00]

3 minutes ago, Louis D said:

More than likely, they'll send you a refurbished scope.  You can check this by making an indelible mark somewhere inconspicuous on the scope that you know to be unique to you.  The scope they return "fixed" will be someone else's return that went through the repair process earlier.  You'll be able to tell because it will have wear marks somewhere, and yet different from your original scope.  That, and your mark will be missing.  This happens a lot with warranty returns.  It's doubtful they would bother with reblackening the interior of the tube since they probably don't have the local facilities to do that.  Another problem is that the warranty return process can last 2 to 3 months because they're under no obligation to hurry.

Well I got a deal on this because I bought it as a refurbished scope directly from celestron, but they said they will expedite repair as it arrived broken and not just being sent in for normal warranty work. 

[TerryMcK]

No not UK specific but the answers you got were from a UK perspective and what goes here might not be right in the US

[DaveL59]

5 minutes ago, Coyote00 said:

Well I got a deal on this because I bought it as a refurbished scope directly from celestron, but they said they will expedite repair as it arrived broken and not just being sent in for normal warranty work. 

at least you got a result if they can turn it around quickly 🙂

You can always repaint the inner of the tube later on if you want, or flock it which would probably perform better.

[Louis D]

20 minutes ago, Coyote00 said:

Well I got a deal on this because I bought it as a refurbished scope directly from celestron, but they said they will expedite repair as it arrived broken and not just being sent in for normal warranty work. 

What you got was a customer return that they just sent back out without doing any quality checks.  Unfortunately, this is pretty common in the US.  You have no way of knowing how long it will take them to "repair" it nor how well done those repairs will be made.  Once you agree to a repair instead of a return, you are then hostage to their timeline with no legal or financial recourse.

[Coyote00]

1 hour ago, DaveL59 said:

at least you got a result if they can turn it around quickly 🙂

You can always repaint the inner of the tube later on if you want, or flock it which would probably perform better.

Just looked up flocking, will probably do that since I have the scope almost completely apart anyways.  
 

I have a trip in a few weeks that I want to take the telescope on and comments about being at the mercy of their repair dept even though they said they would expedite concerns me.  I think I will just see if they will send the replacement parts and put them in myself.

[Coyote00]

50 minutes ago, Louis D said:

What you got was a customer return that they just sent back out without doing any quality checks.  Unfortunately, this is pretty common in the US.  You have no way of knowing how long it will take them to "repair" it nor how well done those repairs will be made.  Once you agree to a repair instead of a return, you are then hostage to their timeline with no legal or financial recourse.

Likely, but of course they listed it as “fully inspected with full warranty of a new scope”

Edited October 5, 2020 by Coyote00

[Coyote00]

Well they won’t ship just the mirrors, so instead of saving themselves shipping costs and repair time, I will instead be sending the whole tube back. Oh well, will stay on them and see how long it takes to get it back. Thanks everyone for the advice!

[Chefgage]

Me personally if they are offering a full refund I would go with that. You bought a scope new which should arrive fully working and in new condition. Unless they refund some of the cost and then send you a repaired scope then maybe that would be ok. I would not accept a another scope unless it was a brand new one but like what has been said you might just get one that has been previously returned by someone so not strictly new.

 

[PeterCPC]

+1 for refund.

[DaveL59]

7 hours ago, Coyote00 said:

Well they won’t ship just the mirrors, so instead of saving themselves shipping costs and repair time, I will instead be sending the whole tube back. Oh well, will stay on them and see how long it takes to get it back. Thanks everyone for the advice!

Not surprised really, if they'd sent you mirrors and let you fit them they can't then still cover the scope under warranty since you will have taken it apart and repaired it. If they do the repair then they will warranty their work and the entire scope which is how things usually work. Same with everything else such as cars etc.

[John]

I agree - if they won't or can't replace it then get a full refund and they should cover the costs of returning the scope.

 

 

[sputniksteve]

I would take the refund and keep the scope. You then have spares should you need them, or a project. You could buy another mirror set from elsewhere and use the tube. 

How much did you pay for it?

[Louis D]

2 hours ago, sputniksteve said:

I would take the refund and keep the scope.

You have to return the scope to get the refund. 🤔

[Coco]

My Orion Optics VX6 did that,  after a few heated emails with John @ OO  about them collecting not me sending it back that agreed, they sent a replacement scope back with the same mirror figure report!  err no, pick it up again..  🙄

[sputniksteve]

1 hour ago, Louis D said:

You have to return the scope to get the refund. 🤔

Details, details.

[Coyote00]

Keeping the scope and taking the refund would be nice but was not an option.  
 

So I bought the scope as a refurb scope, paid $300 instead of the $400 price with full warranty and direct from celestron which it appears they don’t normally sell direct other than these refurbs. 
 

They don’t have any more refurbs in stock hence the reason they can’t just send a replacement if I return this one, and they clearly  aren’t going to send a new in its place.  They will probably send a new tube back with mirrors as basically everything internal is damaged and the tube is scratched up which I am fine with either way.  
 

The other parts all look new and function perfectly, I figured on a scope which has limited “wear” items buying refurb was a safe gamble since they are really simple items in the end (at least for a manual scope and no computer) barring the primary coming loose during shipping.