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- Dec 10, 2013
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I recently bought a Rigel from ZRaffleticket after he decided to part ways with the hobby. The price for the laser, which had a known history, was too good to miss so I grabbed it.
http://laserpointerforums.com/f39/fs-collection-huge-price-drops-added-kryton-groove-87907.html
Raffle said via PM on the afternoon of the 23rd of February that it'd be posted the next day. It was datestamped the 25th of February.
I paid $200 and a little extra for the overseas postage and we agreed it would be insured to its full and declared value, $200. It soon became apparent that the package didn't get insured, and after talking to Raffle it appears there was a misunderstanding at the post office. He very kindly offered to refund me the money if the laser did not arrive/arrived broken - now that's what you call great "customer care". (That is not sarcasm)
USPS tracking showed it leaving Chicago on February the 28th, presumably on a plane headed my way. For almost the next two weeks there was radio silence. Tracking info on the USPS site didn't get updated and the cretins that pick US post up on our side (Parcel Force) showed no tracking info at all.
At one point, I was beginning to wonder if the Rigel had got lost, which would have been a travesty (I'd be more bothered about the loss of a great laser than the money).
However, on the afternoon of the 13th of March I received an unexpected note from the PO that they were holding something for me which needed duty fees paying on it. Next day I went, paid the fees and claimed my Rigel.
It came in this jiffy bag, wrapped in bubble wrap, inside that tube doobry-wotsit.
The package had clearly been treated gently as there were no dings, dents or tears. It had done it's job... but slightly more padding wouldn't have gone amiss.
The laser works and is nice and stable when warm as previous owners can attest. This is the 593.5 that was also owned by eytyxhs and polished by lazereer, so it's gotten around a bit.
The very front plate of the laser was loose and needed tightening, and presumably holds the IR filter. However, it still leaks a tiny bit of IR (see above image), unsurprising as it's probably a >500mW pump diode in there.
Well, that's really all I can say without turning this into a product review - thank you Zraffle for the laser, shipping fees and customs fees added on still don't change the fact that this was a cracking deal, around half of retail I believe.
Apart from the insurance hiccup, which is really a red herring, I have nothing bad to say. Replies to PM were prompt despite the time difference and once I learned the product's quirks (namely the fact that 593.5 in a pointer is a work of art in itself) it was exactly as advertised.
:angel: :thanks: :beer:
http://laserpointerforums.com/f39/fs-collection-huge-price-drops-added-kryton-groove-87907.html
Raffle said via PM on the afternoon of the 23rd of February that it'd be posted the next day. It was datestamped the 25th of February.
I paid $200 and a little extra for the overseas postage and we agreed it would be insured to its full and declared value, $200. It soon became apparent that the package didn't get insured, and after talking to Raffle it appears there was a misunderstanding at the post office. He very kindly offered to refund me the money if the laser did not arrive/arrived broken - now that's what you call great "customer care". (That is not sarcasm)
USPS tracking showed it leaving Chicago on February the 28th, presumably on a plane headed my way. For almost the next two weeks there was radio silence. Tracking info on the USPS site didn't get updated and the cretins that pick US post up on our side (Parcel Force) showed no tracking info at all.
At one point, I was beginning to wonder if the Rigel had got lost, which would have been a travesty (I'd be more bothered about the loss of a great laser than the money).
However, on the afternoon of the 13th of March I received an unexpected note from the PO that they were holding something for me which needed duty fees paying on it. Next day I went, paid the fees and claimed my Rigel.
It came in this jiffy bag, wrapped in bubble wrap, inside that tube doobry-wotsit.
The package had clearly been treated gently as there were no dings, dents or tears. It had done it's job... but slightly more padding wouldn't have gone amiss.
The laser works and is nice and stable when warm as previous owners can attest. This is the 593.5 that was also owned by eytyxhs and polished by lazereer, so it's gotten around a bit.
The very front plate of the laser was loose and needed tightening, and presumably holds the IR filter. However, it still leaks a tiny bit of IR (see above image), unsurprising as it's probably a >500mW pump diode in there.
Well, that's really all I can say without turning this into a product review - thank you Zraffle for the laser, shipping fees and customs fees added on still don't change the fact that this was a cracking deal, around half of retail I believe.
Apart from the insurance hiccup, which is really a red herring, I have nothing bad to say. Replies to PM were prompt despite the time difference and once I learned the product's quirks (namely the fact that 593.5 in a pointer is a work of art in itself) it was exactly as advertised.
:angel: :thanks: :beer:
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