Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!sdd.hp.com!wuarchive!emory!hubcap!rchampe From: rchampe@hubcap.clemson.edu (Richard Champeaux) Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga Subject: Re: Montgomery Grant? Message-ID: <11026@hubcap.clemson.edu> Date: 18 Oct 90 21:08:54 GMT References: <1990Oct18.064518.464@darwin.ntu.edu.au> Organization: Clemson University Lines: 78 In article <1990Oct18.064518.464@darwin.ntu.edu.au> caldwell_t@darwin.ntu.edu.au writes: >I am considering buying a harddisk and interface from Montgomery Grant. >Has anyone had any experiance with this firm. The reason I ask, is that >living in Australia, I have a fair distance problem if something goes >wrong. > >Thanks for any help. > > Malcolm Caldwell CALDWELL_T@DARWIN.NUT.EDU.AU > Darwin Australia FIDO 3:690/648.3 NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! Don't buy from Montgomery Grant! They are scum! For instance, they are not an authorized Amiga dealer, and are therefore a grey market dealer. (They buy their Amigas from whoever will sell to them.) The fact that they are not an authorized dealer is particularly obvious from the fact that they sell Amigas through the mail, which Commodore forbids. They also have hidden costs, such as shipping. Look closely at the ad, they charge 5% of the cost for shipping and handling, and that's just within the U.S. I bought my Amiga 2000 from them (a story which I will tell below) at an advertised price of $1399. This was a very low price compared to other mail order houses, which is why I ordered it from them. However, they then tacked on about $200 (a little over 10% extra, since I requested it 2nd day air) for shipping and handling, which made the total price close to the other mail order houses. I had to send my Amiga back to them, and it only cost me $15 to send it UPS ground, including $1500 of insurance (it would have cost me $35 to send it back UPS 2nd day air). My Montgomery Grant story: I bought my Amiga 2000 from them for $1399 + $200 shipping. I received it promptly. However, the Amiga box itself (it was shipped within another box) was very abused and had had shipping labels cut off it. The computer was obviously used. The fan was very dirty (not dusty, dirty). The case was bent so that it didn't sit level and rocked. The mouse was obviously used. It's feet were worn and it's ball and rollers were dirty. Worst of all, it was an Amiga 500 mouse and didn't even fit through the hole in the 2000's case. The serial number of the computer didn't match the number on the box. The box said the computer came with Kickstart 1.3, yet the computer had Kickstart1.2. And finally, the drive didn't work. After some screaming over the phone, at my expense, they promised to give me a factory sealed Amiga. I agreed and sent the computer back with a fairly nasty letter included, one copy inside the outer box, and one in the Amiga's box. I received a replacement and have been happy with it ever since. After relating my story on the net, I received several letters from other people who had experiences simmilar to mine. One, for instance, was with a monitor. Oh, and by the way, I believe that computers bought from a grey market dealer are not covered under Commodore's warrenty. Even though you are buying a hard disk and controller, not an Amiga, I would avoid dealing with them. Just the fact that they are a grey market dealer would be enough to discourage me, because if they are dishonest in that respect, they might be slimy all over. Of course, my experience with them was 2 years ago, and they might have cleaned up their act. Yeah, right, they're still selling amigas mail order. If you are still dead set on ordering from them, call them up and ask them how much they will charge for shipping, and then call other places and compare the prices. I have a feeling that Montgomery Grant won't end up being all that much cheaper, if any. Looking at their ad, I notice that they now discount the shipping to 3% for orders over $1200 dollars. However, I also notice the sentence "Trade-in your used commodore or amiga equipment for a new, better model" Gee, I wonder what they do with the trade-ins? ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Rich Champeaux PLT: The plotter device for the Amiga! rchampe@hubcap.clemson.edu Ask for it at your neighborhood FTP site! "They say I'm lazy, but it takes all my time." ------------------------------------------------------------------------------