AJ Reeves – what is there service like?

[Ben SpicerParticipant @benspicer30986]

Hello.

This is my first post to the forum ( not sure if in right place ) and I have been reading with great interest other threads on different topics and found them all very helpful.

I now have my first question. Me and my Dad are looking at building a 7 1/4 gauge Denver & Rio Grande loco. The drawings are supplied by Reeves and I would like to know what your experiences with Reeves are like in terms of customer service? I have also looked for other suppliers of the drawings and castings for this locomotive but have found none.

Thanks in advance.

Ben.

[Ben SpicerParticipant @benspicer30986]

[John RuddParticipant @johnrudd16576]

I found them easy to deal with when it came to ordering my V twin steam engine, order placed and received within a couple of days..

[SteambuffParticipant @steambuff]

I have had no problems with them …. Placed the order on-line, goods arrived within a week.

Dave

[Ben SpicerParticipant @benspicer30986]

Hi chaps.

That's good and reassuring to hear. Thank you for your swift replies.

Ben.

[Peter Russell 1Participant @peterrussell1]

What is thier service like? Terrible.

I ordered a set of "Lady Stephanie" drawings and when they arrived I checked that all the sheets (8) were there.

After a bit of a delay finishing off the previous project, I started to study the drawings. It was then that I realised that they were probably at least 4th generation photocopies.

They were difficult to read and in some cases downright impossible to see details.

I rang Reeves only to be told that as it was more than 14 days since I ordered them, they wouldn't do anything about it. The lady I spoke to was curt, to the point of being downright rude.

I am now left with £28 worth of useless drawings and a feeling of having been 'done'.

I will NEVER use this company again.

[Engine BuilderParticipant @enginebuilder]

A friend of mine had some hard spots on some Reeves castings that made the part imposible to machine ( he is a profesional engineer)

They would not exchange them because he had tried to machine them!

How do you know they are are defective until you machine them?

[Clive Brown 1Participant @clivebrown1]

Posted by Peter Russell 1 on 16/11/2022 19:34:31:.

I rang Reeves only to be told that as it was more than 14 days since I ordered them, they wouldn't do anything about it. The lady I spoke to was curt, to the point of being downright rude.

I am now left with £28 worth of useless drawings and a feeling of having been 'done'.

I will NEVER use this company again.

In the Consumer Rights Act, 14 days applies to distance selling if the purchaser has a change of mind, generally for all goods. For faulty goods, the seller is obliged to offer a refund for up to 30 days after which a repair can also be offered for up to 6 months.

If the drawings genuinely are useless and either the 30 day or 6 month period applies then I suggest that Peter re-contacts Reeves to make this point.

[Dave WoottonParticipant @davewootton]

Hi Ben

I'm not going to rant, even though I want to! I bought a complete set of castings six years ago for Don Young's Aspinall from Reeves when they were on offer for a complete set. Due to a house move it was several years before I was able to make a start on the engine. I bitterly regret I did not check the castings more thoroughly when they arrived. First thing to be machined was the wheels which will not clean up to the required diameter, Reeves were completely unhelpful, many of the other castings are undersized and I have had to either fabricate or silver solder bits on in order to use them. The cylinder casting had so many blow holes in one bore I bought a lump of cast iron and machined it from solid. Not worth trying to send anything back, I had one casting they refused to exchange because I had marked the undersize area with felt pen. There is an Aspinall build log on another ME site and the builder has had several similar problems.

As you can see from the above I can't recommend their castings or service.

Dave

[Paul MParticipant @paulm98238]

I have had mostly good service from Reeves although the quality of their castings in some cases can be best described as just adequate.

As far as faulty castings etc, are concerned, as in a previous comment, the Consumer Rights Act comes into play. I would suggest their response is nonsense and should be challenged. If a casting proves to be found defective during the machining process, which was not apparent at first sight, then it is not fit for purpose.

You would not accept that argument if you purchased a car and it developed a fault within a few days of use.

The following video clip is worth a look.

Paul

Edited By Paul M on 17/11/2022 09:01:17

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Please note: I have no personal experience of dealing with either incarnation of ‘Reeves’

.

That, said I will just mention that I treat any new company that resurrects an old name with caution.

 They are not all bad, of course … ‘P.P. Thornton (Successors)’ being a shining example of a good one.

MichaelG.

Edited By Michael Gilligan on 17/11/2022 09:22:57

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