Spider Marine

[armido]

Pete,

As indicated in my long introduction to this thread, I ordered the starter from Spider Marine yesterday. I also said I'll not speculate as to the level of service and or support you can expect from Spider marine in general. I will add to this thread as the blanks are filled in. How long did shipping take? Did I in fact experience any delays at airport customs. Is the item I've received in fact a Hitachi, no name brand or other well known manufacturer? The purpose of this thread is not to flame Spider Marine, but to hopefully receive input from people who have purchased from them and share the experience - good or bad. This is an opportunity for Spider Marine to provide some answers as well.

Thanks for asking.
armido

[minaret]

Originally Posted by armido

Pete,

As I said, this post is a discussion of Spider Marine, nothing more nothing less. I did not begin this thread in order to invite posts from people criticizing my choice to buy an aftermarket rather than an so-called "genuine", OEM part. Being nice does not mean enduring demeaning or critical personal slights by people who would make a different choice of how to buy their goods. Just because you use "Spider marine" in your post does not change the basic message - which is off topic.

From the rules:

"Stay on topic by keeping discussions relevant and on track."

armido

Did you just moderate a moderator? Ballsy....

[armido]

Minaret,

I considered your suggestion. However my nearest "friend" would be my Brother living in the Seattle area. The potential complications I considered were additional cost for shipping to my destination from farther away, cost of shipping to the Seattle area and time involved. Also, the extra steps involved introduce the possibility of further complications related to delivery and receipt.

armido

[armido]

Pete,

As I mentioned in the long introduction to this thread I ordered a starter from Spider Marine June, 30. I'll fill in the blanks as my experience ordering from them unfolds. How long did delivery actually take? Were there any lengthy delays caused by airport customs? What is inside the box? A Hitachi, no-name, or starter manufactured by another well known company?

I did not start this thread to flame Spider Marine, and I will not speculate as to the level of service and or support you can expect generally. Hopefully people who have purchased from Spider Marine will share their experience with us, good and bad. It would be great if Spider Marine provides input as well - answering for example why they indicate they manufacture products they sell.

Thanks,
armido

[armido]

To all:

The cost quoted by the Spider Marine sales rep to ship via UPS was about $30 more than via USPS. $97 USD. I followed up with a question concerning availability of parts to repair my damaged OEM starter - since he claimed the starter they sell is dimensionally identical - and how much additional cost would there be for shipping if they were included? His answer? They only sell complete units. A company who manufactures this starter but does not sell repair parts? A further clue they do not actually manufacture the starter as claimed. This is why I followed up questions concerning their role. Are they a distributor or manufacturer? Both? Please refer to the introduction to this thread for details. I received no further response to my emails, or assistance having the starter shipped via UPS.

armido

[ohdrinkboy]

If you corresponded with Spider Marine in the way you have communicated in this thread, I would not be surprised if they sent it on a slow boat, the wrong way around the world.

[SailingwithSoul]

Oh boy... I'll be right back. I need to grab some marshmallows and a fire extinguisher.

[armido]

SailingwithSoul,

I've been cruising long enough to recognize the value of good humour.

Wonderful.

Thanks,
armido

[armido]

ohdrinkboy,

I've already considered a variation of that possibility. But delivery on a slow boat would not be the way I chose for them to deliver the starter now, would it?

armido

[Celestialsailor]

Dear Armido...Generally, people will stop by your posted thread and give it an eyeball if it's a couple of paragraphs. Yours was almost a novel. People get glazed over pretty quick. It's a forum etiquette thing ya know.
I dealt with Spider when I ordered an alternator in 2004. I found them to be uncommunicative. I would take it that your emails to them were much like your posts here. My emails to them were short and they still would not answer them.

[armido]

Celestialsailor,

Emails replies I received from the sales rep almost never answered my questions although they could have been answered in most cases with a yes or no. So our experiences are similar in this respect. Initially my emails were brief and to the point since the questions I had were simple and not difficult to answer. The longest message is the one in my introduction, inquiring about Spider Marine's role and whether or not they were in a position to ensure the products they sell are on par qualitatively and performance wise with OEM equipment. It is important that they contract production of at least some of their products with the manufacturer. It suggests they do have some control over which materials and standards of performance the products must meet. An important reason I decided to go ahead and order from them.

armido

[ohdrinkboy]

Originally Posted by armido

ohdrinkboy,

I've already considered a variation of that possibility. But delivery on a slow boat would not be the way I chose for them to deliver the starter now, would it?

armido

LOL....passive aggressive mistakes happen.

[Pete7]

Originally Posted by minaret

Did you just moderate a moderator? Ballsy....

Yes he did However I am curious to see what happens next, we haven't seen the half of this saga yet

Should we run a sweepstake on when the starter arrives on the boat?

[armido]

Note:

The starter shipped via USPS on July 02, 2012

Appears the drift of this thread, regardless of who is contributing is beginning to collide with the following rule.

Trolling and cyberstalking are NOT allowed and are grounds for account restriction or banishment. Trolling on this board includes posting controversial and often irrelevant or off-topic messages with the intention of (or anticipated result of) baiting other users into an emotional response or to generally disrupt normal, harmonious on-topic discussion, especially when a pattern of such posting is apparent.

armido

[Sailmonkey]

Were you an engineer or a lawyer prior to going cruising?