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So no to Chinese Carbon Fiber, aka FU DengFu

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shreddr

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Discussion starter · #1 ·
Long story short, my Chinese CF hardtail FM056 from DengFu cracked at the bottom bracket. I sent them an email with pics and details and asked what my options were. They responded quickly (less than 24 hours) asking for my order number. I scanned the invoice knowing I was 1 week over the 2 year warranty, but the invoice was dated when I ordered it not the 6 weeks later when I got the frame. A prompt reply from "Wendy" informed my bike was out of warranty, sorry. I responded asking if there was anything they could do, even a reduced price on a replacement, no response. A few more emails that were not answered and I will soon be the owner of a Niner Air Carbon I ordered when I realized DengFu won't be helping me out. The Chinese carbon frame worked well, I was very happy with it especially thinking that I had gotten top performance at t bargain price, but I guess you get what you pay for.

Say no to DengFu, once they get your cash you are SOl, customer service seems to be lost on asia.
 
#3 ·
So not replacing a frame outside of a clearly stated warranty timeframe is bad customer service?

That's almost as ridiculous as buying an off brand discount bike from half around the world and expecting that they'll go above a beyond and bend their rules at the drop of the hat.
 
#4 ·
The complaint centers around when the warranty started, or when payment was received or when the product was received? I have to side with the op on this one, if you go into a bike shop and buy a new year old model the warranty starts the day you take delivery of it. And don't spout off with the old and very tired "for the money its worth it" because its not worth it if you cannot rely on honest and prompt warranty service.
 
#5 ·
I agree with tiretraks. If I buy something January 1 2014, and it has a 1 year warranty, the warranty begins January 1, 2014, and expires January 1, 2015.

If I order something January 1 2014, and I receive it March 1, 2014, my warranty should be valid until March 1, 2015, NOT January 1, 2015.
 
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#6 ·
DethWshBkr said:
I agree with tiretraks. If I buy something January 1 2014, and it has a 1 year warranty, the warranty begins January 1, 2014, and expires January 1, 2015.

If I order something January 1 2014, and I receive it March 1, 2014, my warranty should be valid until March 1, 2015, NOT January 1, 2015.
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I agree and almost every state has laws regarding warranty periods beginning upon possesion date rather than purchase date. Unfortunately when one orders from outside the U.S., then there is little that can be done.
 
Discussion starter · #7 ·
scruffy mike said:
So not replacing a frame outside of a clearly stated warranty timeframe is bad customer service?

That's almost as ridiculous as buying an off brand discount bike from half around the world and expecting that they'll go above a beyond and bend their rules at the drop of the hat.
Click to expand...
what part of the 6 week delay did you miss, I had the frame less than 2 years but they started the warranty on the day I ordered it not when I got it.
 
#8 ·
XCGator said:
I agree and almost every state has laws regarding warranty periods beginning upon possesion date rather than purchase date. Unfortunately when one orders from outside the U.S., then there is little that can be done.
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Which is why the OP is saying you are SOL. This is why he is upset. Laws are irrelevant. It is customer service. Apparently this company, based on the information we have, is not giving quite satisfactory customer service for the OP's taste. This sort of information will as well cause others to NOT buy from out of country, or outside of reputable bike shops/manufacturers.
 
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#9 ·
DethWshBkr said:
Which is why the OP is saying you are SOL. This is why he is upset. Laws are irrelevant. It is customer service. Apparently this company, based on the information we have, is not giving quite satisfactory customer service for the OP's taste. This sort of information will as well cause others to NOT buy from out of country, or outside of reputable bike shops/manufacturers.
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I'm agreeing with you, but I also believe it is the type of risk you need to be willing to take if you are buying outside the country.

In any case, it is very poor customer service.
 
#10 ·
FastBanana said:
So you are upset they didn't replace you from that is out of warranty? Ok. Go buy a frame from a big name dealer and pay 5 times the price for it.
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And with that price tag comes a life time warranty from manufacturing defects that those brands stand behind and honor, as well as in all likelihood an IBD that will bend over backwards to take care of you post service for years with any issues you have.
 
#11 ·
Dunno what you guys are talking about. Every warranty I've ever seen is from date of purchase...not date of arrival.

The actual issue isn't the warranty which as much as it sucks and I feel for...its what exactly happened to cause the crack. I hope the OP explains here then adds to the China carbon thread with Pics so others have a larger pool of information to decide from.
 
#12 ·
Everyone is forgetting to ask the OP is this really a warranty problem or did you over stress the frame through a hard landing or crash? The frame lasted nearly 2 years before any problem and then just a week or so previous to the warranty expiration, you have a catastrophic crack in the frame. Not to mention, out of the hundreds of FM-056/057 frames sold just through this forum, you are the only poster to have a problem. Possibly, since your frame must have been one of the first made, DengFu may have created a frame with a defect, but this has been an extremely reliable design.

BTW, with many big name manufacturers, you will pay 4X the price for a carbon frame and also get only a 2 year warranty, only a few manufacturers have a 5 yr or longer warranty on a carbon frame. Oh, and I'm sure a big brand carbon frame has never had a problem.

If it were me, I would just buy another FM-056, spend a half of a day replacing the frame, and go ride your bike. Changing to a different brand frame, you will need new cables, headset, bottom bracket, etc. You will spend half as much again as the Chinese frame buying new stuff to move parts over to a different frame.

Complain all you want, but nothing lasts forever.
 
#13 ·
Wow. If these are really 20-25% of the cost of an air 9 carbon AND they ride well with reasonable quality, it seems like a good case to order two and have a backup or sell the second later.

I have an older Superfly that everyone but me seems to have broken. Most of the riders with broken frames still paid almost 2x more than the chinese frame for the crash replacement.

Maybe I'm mistaken on price but if people are happy with these and they are 20-25%, they sell at a disposable price. Also I expect zero customer service buying anything from some Chinese company with "Wendy" responding to me, regardless of price. However, I would not wait 6 weeks for a frame unless I had another bike.
 
#14 ·
I work for Sprint selling cell phones. The warranty on stuff always starts the day you order it. If I have to order a phone for a customer and it takes a week to arrive their contract still starts from the time it is ordered. Thats just how things work. I have a IP-057 frame on order and I plan to ride it like it was meant to be ridden. If it cracks ill just order another one. Its 400 bucks, that is not expensive for a carbon frame. It would have been nice to see DengFU at least offer you something at a discounted price but that is up to them on that. I went with Peter from XMI he has a better reputation as far as chinese vendors go.
 
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#15 ·
tiretracks said:
if you go into a bike shop and buy a new year old model the warranty starts the day you take delivery of it.
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Not true at all, the warranty starts the second you pay for it.

When it comes to any kind of claim, the only date that's provable or measurable is the one on the invoice. If you've got a shop or a company that will stretch and bend the rules for you then fantastic, but they don't have to and expecting that from a bargain basement direct sales company from China is naive at best.
 
#16 ·
shreddr said:
Long story short, my Chinese CF hardtail FM056 from DengFu cracked at the bottom bracket. I sent them an email with pics and details and asked what my options were. They responded quickly (less than 24 hours) asking for my order number. I scanned the invoice knowing I was 1 week over the 2 year warranty, but the invoice was dated when I ordered it not the 6 weeks later when I got the frame. A prompt reply from "Wendy" informed my bike was out of warranty, sorry. I responded asking if there was anything they could do, even a reduced price on a replacement, no response. A few more emails that were not answered and I will soon be the owner of a Niner Air Carbon I ordered when I realized DengFu won't be helping me out. The Chinese carbon frame worked well, I was very happy with it especially thinking that I had gotten top performance at t bargain price, but I guess you get what you pay for.

Say no to DengFu, once they get your cash you are SOl, customer service seems to be lost on asia.
Click to expand...
So how did it break ?
Any pictures ?
 
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Discussion starter · #18 ·


Here are some pics, still no response from DengFu nor do I expect one. Yes I got what I paid for, a low cost chinese carbon frame that delivered good performance for 2 years. I guess my expectation about the warranty period was :

1. The 2 years was to cover any potential defect that might arise and that if it lasted that long you should get a reasonable product life cycle. I did not expect that the frames are warranted for 2 years because that is how long they last.

2. That the warranty period would begin the day i received the frame, not the day i ordered it.

Yes I got what I deserved by not going to a more reputable brand, but I have had issues with them in the past as well. The reality is that if you ride hard you will break stuff, and I have broken LOTS of stuff in the past, I can only hope I have helped develop better products over the years.

There were also some questions about whether I crash damaged it, the answer is no. Maybe a pedal strike here or there, but no spectacular endos. I was riding it as a rigid single speed, so it was taking a pounding. I was actually more fearful of the headtube coming off, so I am thankful I only cracked the BB shell, although I certainly wouldn't have wanted to drop the crank during a high speed down hill.

Lastly, thanks to those of you who gave me bad rep for expressing my discontent with the poor warranty service, get a life! :nono:
 

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#20 ·
No more China-made crap, for me. They cut every imaginable corner, just to save THEMSELVES(not you) money....
 
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