The Bad

As I said in another thread, I think we can help each other by sharing stories, good and bad, about players in the boating market. Here are a couple of vendors I've had bad experiences with:

Xantrex -- had a charger that failed. The option they offered was that I could go buy a new one. (This was 10 years ago and maybe they have improved. I have no knowledge.)

Walker Bay Boats - http://www.trawlerforum.com/forums/s3/walker-bay-boats-39184.html

It’s a shame they make a really nice and simple 8kw generator package but my bad list is Phasor Marine Generators.
First I ordered a 6.5 kw compact gen set. What arrived was an 8 kw with 9.5 kw engine for no additional charge. I didn’t know it for sure yet but I suspected my old generator died of chronic under loading. Turned out to be true. No phone call asking if it would be ok to substitute. The installer was surprised I was not thrilled with the “upgrade”. No answer if or when a 6.5 would arrive. I accepted it.
Second is the only documention received was a Kubota engine manual from a tractor where everything is different. No generator connections drawings to verify the connections were correct for my 120v only setup boat, no spare parts list, no installation guide, no wiring diagrams other than that for a tractor with a key ignition switch.
I was able to coax a xerox copy of the installers hand corrected Phasor spare parts list. They have one name to call for parts. No response from “Contact Us” contacts. I have given up pending future problems.

H20 boat sales in St Jean D Losne in France, they seriously overcharge for repairs and rip off owners who place boats on their brokerage.

I don't think a 10 year old issue with a vendor is relevant at all. I bashed Xantrex in the past (like 10 years ago), when it was under prior ownership. And it's been under new ownership for what, 4 or 5 years now?

caltexflanc said:

I don't think a 10 year old issue with a vendor is relevant at all. I bashed Xantrex in the past (like 10 years ago), when it was under prior ownership. And it's been under new ownership for what, 4 or 5 years now?

Click to expand...

Does anyone know the answer to this or have had recent experience with them? I am a Magnum man myself. But I did have a Xantrax inverter on my last boat that failed.....and ended up having to replace it because Xantrex offers absolutely no repair options. It is either under warranty or if it malfunctions, you throw it in the trash and buy a new one...unless you are electrically inclined to fix it yourself.

Livingston Dinghy. Although they are not taking orders at this time (Worldcat is the parent company), I would not recommend them. Our LV10 arrived damaged due to a completely unsuitable packing crate, would not accept the recommended seawise davit system without significant transom modifications, the recommended oar length was two feet too short, and the recommended 9.9 Yamaha cavitates when two adults are on board.

Plus we had to reinforce the hull side so that we could stow it sideways on the stern platform - something that their advertising stated was already done at the factory.

And the rub rail keeps falling off.

I was told by their customer service rep that Worldcat was the fifth owner of the Livingston name; our first Livingston was a 9' and is still going strong after 30 plus years.