Voigtlander products from B&H

[George S.]

Well, I emailed B&H twice in the past week, they answered the second one saying they'll have to check with their Voigtlander rep, etc etc. No estimate yet on when they'll have the R3A back in stock.

I located a private seller selling one 1 month old and am waiting for it to arrive with its 75mm f2.5 lens. So I cancelled the B&H order...

 

[George S.]

Just an update if anyone is interested.... B&H just emailed me that the R3a is now in stock, and the price seems to still be $549.95...

 

[wblanchard]

I was emailed from them that mine shipped out last night. Happy days!

 

[tedwhite]

I'm adept at revealing how dumb I am. OK, here goes. Why does the R3a cost $549 when the Bessaflex is only $289?

(Still playing the the Kiev 4A on loan from Rick Beckrich. Loading film, I have learned, is merely slightly easier than brain surgery).

 

[NoTx]

Well, I have had sucess with B&H. But then again, I have done all right with Camera Quest. THough I did recieve the wronge part, he did rectify it asap... so I can't bash him in the slightest. I don't deal with Adorama, as I have only gotten rude responses via email or phone. They do not appear interested in my business.

Gandy or B&H, or for me, I also use Samy's in LA.

Happy hunting!

 

[Huck Finn]

I'm adept at revealing how dumb I am. OK, here goes. Why does the R3a cost $549 when the Bessaflex is only $289?

(Still playing the the Kiev 4A on loan from Rick Beckrich. Loading film, I have learned, is merely slightly easier than brain surgery).

Ted, I don't know that anyone here can answer a question of corporate pricing policy, But Stephen Gandy is a Voigtlander North American distributor & you might be better served to address your query to him. If you go to his websie - www.cameraquest.com - you can post on the cvug users forum. Stephen responds to messages on this site, as do other members of that forum.

 

[George S.]

Even though I mentioned B&H at the start of this thread, I in no way was criticizing Mr Gandy. I've bought from him in the past and been very pleased with his personal service. I attempted to order thru B&H only to save $50.

Well, I placed the order on Jan 2nd knowing full well the R3a was not in stock, and I was in no hurry. I cancelled the order Jan 26th. My credit card bill arrived and it turns out B&H charged my card way back on the original order date - Jan 2nd! I feel this is a very wrong thing to do considering the camera was not in stock, and they really didn't have any idea when they'd receive more of them. My credit card bill did not show that I was credited, so I contacted B&H. They assured me that they already credited me, and it would show up on the next bill. I'm not too happy with them right now.... and will definitely place my next order from Cameraquest!

 

[NoTx]

It normally takes up to 5 business days for a credit to appear on you balance with a credit card company.

 

[George S.]

I am aware of that fact.

What I thought was irresponsible was the fact that they charged my credit card on the day the order was placed when they knew it was not in stock, nor did they have any idea when the item would arrive to them. As it was, it was another 24 days until they received them. Most retailers won't charge you until the date they actually ship an out of stock or backordered item to you. Most manufacturers will use the date the credit card was charged as a start date for warranty purposes, and they do not want to hear you did not put the item into use until a later date. This happened to me in the past, when I purchased an item (camcorder) more than a month before Christmas and it broke. The manufacturers use the sale posting date and not the "first use date" for warranties. You have to be careful and watch everything.

 

[dwpayne]

Isn't it B&H's standard policy that 'special order' items are charged when you order them? They won't let you order something that's merely 'out of stock'. Every time I've looked at a special-order item, the page makes it very clear that you'll charged when you place the order. You might not like their policy, but they're very up-front about it.

 

[George S.]

What exactly is a "special order"? Nowhere (on the page or in my order receipt) was the term 'special order' used. The body was listed simply as "not in stock."

Even if it was their policy (which was not on my receipt either), it would have taken approx. 30 days for the body to reach me after I ordered it . That means I'd be starting off shorted 30 day's worth of a warranty, since the "sale date" would, for all intents and purposes, be the order date.

 

[peter_n]

George, your points are excellent and I'm surprised that B+H acted like this. I opened an account with them and order on an infrequent basis but I'm pretty sure they only bill when they're ready to ship, at least with me.

I'm wondering was this your first order with the company? This wouldn't excuse their behavior but might explain the action of a single employee.

 

[George S.]

Hi Peter,
No, I've ordered before from them, though infrequently also. Once or twice a year is about it. Maybe it was just an employee having a brain fart and didn't realize it was backordered and charged my card right away. They also got an order wrong a few months ago. A flash cord was advertised as a certain one, and I received a different one and I returned it but never got the one I wanted since they had it listed wrong on their web site. (It was a used item, one of a kind, so it was impossible to order the correct one.)