[BULK] - Re: [pct-l] Manufacturer BearVault comments

[msaenz at mve-architects.com (Mike Saenz)]

I would have previously refrained from commenting on these BearVault
e-mails, BUT...

I am now the proud owner of a BV300 (woo-hoo!). Actually, my buddy just
ordered one for me, including it in a bunch of other stuff he's getting
for our upcoming trip. I was just informed yesterday that my BV300 has
just arrived, but I've not seen it yet...

So....

"...cycle time variations."
What does THAT mean? (just curious)

And- What percentage of lids have this defect?

"These oversize lids are only 0.02" larger than nominal, so you cannot
spot them visually."
How can I tell if my lid is defective? Considering that a manufacturing
tolerance fine enough to allow product failure with a 0.02" deformity,
any lid that is affected by this "cycle time variation" can be
legitimately called "defective".

Will BearVault be replacing defective lids?

Considering the "growing pains" BearVault has (and apparently is still)
endured, I am still sold of the product. I've been watching the previous
"beta versions" of the BearVault and their design adjustments from the
various field reports that have come in for the past couple years and I
kept hoping that the BearVault became at least as bear proof as the
Garcia can. I like the weight difference, transparency and volume of the
BV, compared to the Garcia can.
All said and done, I'm still very happy to finally have one of my own!

Michael Saenz, Associate Partner
McLarand    Vasquez    Emsiek   &   Partners,   Inc.
A r c h i t e c t u r e  |  P l a n n i n g  |  I n t e r i o r s
MVE       MVE    Institutional       MVP    International
w  w  w   .   m  v  e   -   a  r  c  h  i  t  e  c  t  s   .   c  o m

-----Original Message-----
From: pct-l-bounces@mailman.backcountry.net
[mailto:pct-l-bounces@mailman.backcountry.net] On Behalf Of Brian
McLaughlin
Sent: Thursday, August 18, 2005 10:32 AM
To: bearvault; pct-l@backcountry.net
Subject: [BULK] - Re: [pct-l] Manufacturer BearVault comments



> We want to point out an issue with our newer model BV250s and BV300s 
> which the user needs to be aware of. We use a manual mold for the 
> production of the lid and this can result in some lids being slightly 
> oversized due to cycle time variations. These oversize lids are only 
> 0.02" larger than nominal...

I'm fine with all this up to here. It seems a clear explanation of the
problem, er, "issue".

> They work perfectly well if you close the lid correctly.

While I can sympathize with the problems of a small manufacturer making
a specialty item for sale to a small market, ultimately this is a
quality-control problem rather than a failure on the part of customers.
It is disingenous to say the oversize lids work "perfectly well."

> We point out that this can happen in an insert in every unit we sell. 
> The insert points out that this is easily remedied...

As a technical writer, I know the futility of getting customers to read
an insert, or to remedy a problem in a product by 'correcting' their
behavior. Like it or not, people expect manufactured goods to behave
uniformly, and not to vary from batch to batch. One could argue we are
'spoiled', but if so, it's just something manufacturers must learn to
live with.

I am very glad to hear the manufacturer plans to invest in better
machinery that will result in more reliable tolerances.
I'm sorry they have encountered problems that aren't due to the
integrity of their design, but only to slight variations in the
manufacturing process. That's rough. I'm sure they're frustrated by this
situation.

> ...we need you to correctly close your BearVaults if they have an 
> oversize lid or else you all may lose the option of buying a larger, 
> lighter, easier to use bear canister.

I hope they succeed at their business, but I'm sure that if they fail it
would not be their customers' fault. The tone of these comments very
unfortunately sound like they'd like to imply otherwise. 

Just my $0.02.
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