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| "So What's the Turnaround?" |
| As of March 14 2018, Barry's 8 Track Repair will have been on the Internet for 12 years, making my company one of the youngest in the classic car radio repair industry. However, based on the monthly website traffic of ALL companies specializing in the repair, restoration and conversion of classic car radios and 8 track players, my company has already become the world's most popular service in my chosen area of specialty. This is not a coincidence, but the result of tremendous amounts of hard work, personal sacrifice, friendships and referral exchanges with other shops, and continuous ongoing effort to offer solutions and services not available with any other company. Thus, the answer to the common question of turnaround time begins with these topics: Capstan Resurfacing Mine is the only shop in the United States that uses a sandblaster powered by a 6.5 HP air compressor for proper capstan resurfacing. I've seen the largely ineffective results of using sandpaper which also roughs up the bearing surfaces (not good), wire wheels which only make a shiny surface even more shiny, but in the vast majority of cases, the capstan slippage was never addressed during previous repair efforts at other shops. Look inside any used 8 track player, and you'll see a shiny 1/4 inch band around the capstan. This is where the abrasive tape material has worn it smooth, making it unable to grip the tape for speed consistency. This shiny band should not be there, and it won't be there when you receive your repaired 8 track player from me. This is one of the reasons my shop has become so popular, with a resultant continuous heavy workload. The added maintenance requirements of a compressor, blaster and media take TIME from the bench. Motors I currently stock more than 3000 NEW 8 track motors, which on many machines has become a very frequent failure item and nearly impossible to find. The type of motor I use for most car units was roughly one year in development and has proven quite successful over the long haul. Other shops might have an old unit from which they can salvage a working motor - but virtually NO shop is set up to install a NEW motor in virtually all Delco, Ford, Chrysler and AMC models. In my shop, a new motor is INCLUDED in the price for these units. Moreover, my new motors have adjustable speed whereas very few original motors offer speed adjustability. This is another reason my shop has become so popular, with a resultant continuous heavy workload. The added research and inventory requirements and measures to adapt my motors to various machines take TIME. Heads New playback heads for the 8 track cartridge format have all but disappeared - except in MY shop, because I keep a sharp lookout for new heads and purchase ALL that are available when I find them. They are not cheap at an extra cost of 125.00 to install a new one, but on some machines it is necessary due to many hours of wear. An excessively worn head has ZERO treble and/or can emit a continuous loud static noise. Most of the extreme cases are found in 1966 Ford AM-8 track units as this was the first year they were offered and the car buyer had to request it. Thus, many of these units were played into the ground which wears out the head after several years. This is another reason my shop has become so popular, with a resultant continuous heavy workload. The added responsibilities of searching for new heads and inventory requirements take TIME from the bench. Full Delco System Conversion The process of modifying the 8 track half of the many separate-component Delco systems is a development researched, perfected and implemented by ME. This means that mine is the WORLD'S ONLY SHOP that offers this level of conversion on a Delco system. Because a converted radio requires non-grounded speakers to deliver maximum audio power, it will not work with the separate 8 track player which forces a common ground. This is another reason my shop has become so popular, with a resultant continuous heavy workload. These inventions and developments don't magically appear before my eyes - they take TIME from the bench. Permanent Solutions vs. Band Aids While working in the many electronics factories that contribute to my overall experience, a common complaint was that procedures and overall company operation had areas of extreme inefficiency. This is largely due to one thing: GROWTH. As any type of company grows in size and popularity, procedures and measures that were once just fine for a small workload are no longer effective when the workload doubles, triples or quadruples in size. There are three ways to handle this: 1) Don't change anything and eventually be faced with a workload that is next to impossible to keep up with, 2) Add corrective procedures and measures on top of the existing procedures as a continuous temporary solution, or 3) Shut down production for weeks or months in order to completely tear down and start over, completely eliminating existing procedures and building news ones from the ground up. In most cases, tearing down and starting over is not an option, especially since it involves the decisions and actions of many workers - with the main bottleneck being the top brass who are not about to sacrifice revenue by allowing production to cease while corrective measures are created and put in place. It's not their problem, "just deal with it". If their ongoing haste results in returned products, the lower ranks are expected to assume the extra responsibilities. But in my shop, we do things the RIGHT way. When I'm in the middle of a job and see where something can be made more efficient - such as building a test fixture that reduces testing time from two hours to 15 minutes, I stop right then and there to design and build that test fixture. While I understand the importance of getting a customer's unit back to him in a timely manner, it's even MORE important that the customer won't need to return it and suffer even more delays. In this manner, my operation runs much smoother on the whole and the product is closer to perfect. While a job might take longer when sent to my shop for service, my return rate is maintained at less than one percent. This is another reason my shop has become so popular, with a resultant continuous heavy workload. For every customer who complains about a lengthy turn time, I have FIFTY who will deal ONLY with me in the future. PROOF of a Job Expertly Done - on Every Single Unit With every unit that must be installed and wired by the customer or the car restoration shop installing it, there is a video DVD included which shows and demonstrates proper operation of all functions, including the readings of 4 channel output level meters to show that balance and fader controls are shifting the signal to the correct speakers. Not only are complete instructions included for proper installation, there is also a customized, individually recorded DVD showing exactly how to operate the unit once properly installed. Needless to say, this has saved tremendous amounts of time and hassle for both me, the customer and the shop who installed the unit. In 99 out of 100 cases, a perceived problem is proven to be the result of improper installation, or failure of the customer to read the manual. This is another reason my shop has become so popular, with a resultant continuous heavy workload. The process of recording a DVD on every job adds roughly one full hour - but pays off in customer confidence. Guaranteed Completion Time Available - For a Fair Extra Fee Due to the demands on my time and talents from incorporating such extreme measures to ensure top notch quality work and assurance that a repaired or converted radio is in fact working fine, my typical turnaround time is as follows: Without purchasing expedited service, I will not attempt to guess how long a job will take. Your name will appear at the top of the list on my "Job Status" page, and you can visit that page anytime you like, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year to see how your unit is progressing through the line of units awaiting my attention. In order to maintain 100% focus on the QUALITY of my work, customers are NOT PERMITTED to call or E-mail me asking for a status report - NOT EVEN ONCE - or the job will immediately be cancelled and a refund issued. I'm not paid to think that far ahead. But for customers who require a certain completion date to coordinate the return of a unit with other car restoration steps, I offer expedited service for an extra fee to compensate for staying up all night and/or sacrificing my personal and family time in order to complete a job within the time frame required by the customer. When the customer fills out my Work Order, he will have the opportunity to select which level of service he desires. I WILL NOT DISCUSS THE SUBJECT OF TURNAROUND TIME DURING A PHONE CALL OR E-MAIL EXCHANGE, PERIOD. As much as possible, my time is reserved strictly for the time-consuming process of QUALITY WORKMANSHIP AND LONG TERM RELIABILITY, thus I don't get into long discussions of subjects that are already clearly stated on this website. Put as simply as possible, the customer has two options on turnaround time - pay extra for a guaranteed completion date, or simply wait until it's done, with the ability to check his place in line any time he wishes. This is another reason my shop has become so popular, with a continuous heavy workload. The more astute customers prefer my strict policies and zero chance for error when large sums of money and potentially irreplaceable items are involved - including my stringent packing requirements to protect their investment. Now that I have spelled out a few of the reasons my shop operates differently from most others, I ask all customers to examine my Work Order which has a long list of terms and conditions the customer must agree to in writing as a condition of doing business. My terms and condition are in place to ensure fairness for both sides and a written record of exactly what the customer wants to ensure the job is done to his specifications, and to completely eliminate any need to send the unit back due to any "vague" agreements. There is no point in reading about my options regarding turnaround time if you're not also willing to agree to terms that are necessary to eliminate any chance for error. Thus, it is recommended to read through the entire Work Order to make sure my shop is the right one for you, and that you are the right type of customer for me. If my terms and conditions cannot be readily agreed to, you should seek the services of another shop and save both of us future hassles. You can read and print a Work Order HERE |
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| A+ |
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| A+ |
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