Re: Cracking Open the MR Falcon to fix front LED. SEE POST #16 AND #17... IT'S THE B
It might be easier to narrow down when Jason does a test with the proper resistor I sent him several weeks back so we can see if the battery test rules out an internal circuitry problem. The battery test uses a 9 volt. My power pack said 9V output, and the 9 volt battery powered my lights nice and bright.
Spinning the phono plug on my base pylon is what helped tear the wire inside away from the soldering points, I wouldn't be surprised with the rest of the crappy engineering regarding the base that information regarding the 12V was incorrect also.
Since MR never responded to me after our last correspondence about the base or any support regarding this issue with all the testing I've done, I'm no longer concerned about sharing their correspondence with me here, since I don't plan on ever being an MR customer again.
JV
******************
Hi. I bought your Millennium Falcon Signature Edition back in November of 2006. I put it straight into storage without opening it and upon moving, finally had a place to display it this past December of 2008. Right out of the box, the front portside mandible LED light did not work. After quite a bit of research, I have discovered I am not the only MR customer that paid a lot of money for this collectible, to have the front mandible light not work and discover that MR's stance was that it's "out of warranty". Well as mine was only unpacked and put on display after spending two years in storage, this is an unacceptable position. I took the front panel of my Falcon off where the problem LED was. After removing the LED to replace it, I figured I'd test it anyway with an alternative power source and I discovered it works. After reconnecting it, and connecting a 9 volt battery to a male phono plug jack and connecting it to the lower gunport of the Falcon, all the lights on my Millennium Falcon collectible now work fine. Which means that the problem, is in the power supply in the mirrored base as it sends current to the Falcon. The switch on my base was always wonky to begin with, and never stayed on. You had to wiggle it back and forth and he power to the Falcon was always inconsistent, and indicative that the problems with the Falcon's lighting have to do with the mirror base with all the flickering of the lights as you had to try to position the on/off switch in a manner that would keep the lights on for a few moments before going out (with the one mandible light never turning on at all). Please read this thread at the Replica Prop Forum all the way through to the end.
http://www.therpf.com/showthread.php?t=60946 The only solution I see in being able to make my Falcon light properly with the AC base, is to take the base apart to address the faulty wiring issues under the mirror panel that lead to the frosted support pylon. But it is impossible to remove the mirror panel without cracking it. My only solutions are to find a vendor who can provide a replacement mirror panel so I can effect repairs, or find out if you, Master Replicas, can direct me to the vendor that made the bases for your Millenium Falcon so I can try to buy a replacement base, even if the item is out of warranty and you don't have the license anymore, the bases are not licensed items, and I would like to restore my signature edition to be able to power up the way it should have out of the box without this problem or "out of warranty" excuses. Please respond and please don't tell me you can't do anything because it's out of warranty. I want a display base that works, the problem is not in the licensed Falcon replica, and if I have to pay to buy a working base I will. But I need you guys to respond to all the research I took on identifying the cause of this problem for so many customers. It's not an isolated issue, it's prevalent on many of the prop collecting forums where customers of yours who have bought Millennium Falcons from you have posted.
******************
Hi Jerry,
We apologize for the frustration with your Millennium Falcon. Although we do not officially condone self made repairs, we respect and appreciate your attempt at finding a solution to your assumed LED/wiring issue (well what the F am I supposed to do since MR won't offer any support? JV). We cannot even begin to imagine the difficulty of making such a decision and applaud your efforts and detailed reporting on sites like the RPF and Rebelscum; this is obviously not for the faint of heart and must be a unique experience (yeah, like I really had a choice with your *****ty warranty and electronic engineering).
As stated in your e-mail, this item is out of warranty and we no longer have the license with Lucas to support any type of replacement. As much as we would like to offer a replacement mirrored base, unfortunately the item is out of stock and has been permanently discontinued.
We are in the process of contacting the appropriate people responsible for creating/manufacturing this item and we will let you know as soon as we hear back from them to provide any information pertinent to your issue (how'd that go... if you ever really contacted them? - JV).
Thank you for your patience,
Tom Vargas
Online Manager
Master Replicas
This email and any files transmitted with it are confidential and intended solely for the use of the individual or entity to whom they are addressed. If you have received this email in error please notify the system manager. This message contains confidential information and is intended only for the individual named. If you are not the named addressee you should not disseminate, distribute or copy this e-mail. Please notify the sender immediately by e-mail if you have received this e-mail by mistake and delete this e-mail from your system. If you are not the intended recipient you are notified that disclosing, copying, distributing or taking any action in reliance on the contents of this information is strictly prohibited.
(Well as you won't honor any kind of extended service because of this problem, I don't really feel obligated to honor your email confidentiality statement. How do you like that? Don't like it? Sue me. Now you know how I feel being let down but it wasn't after spending $3K for something that wasn't engineered properly-JV)
******************
Dear Tom-
Thank you for responding.
Had an adequate policy been in place for consumers regarding this item, I would not have taken matters into my own hands self-diagnosing this, but because of the warranty issue there was no other option. I can only imagine current frustration by collectors who might still be purchasing these brand new, in the box from E-Bay or other suppliers who still have some inventory on the secondary collector's market to open them and discover the defect and be told that they're out of luck because of the warranty issue. No one should have a problem with these when they came out let alone now just because the manufacturer did not design the bases in such a way that power was adequately directed into the model. Furthermore, had I discovered this at the time I purchased it, there still would have been enormous aggravation having to ship the entire model back and forth for replacement at MR's expense and sacrificing the ability to keep a model that has a pretty good paint job, all because the manufacturers missed something with the faulty wiring in the less valuable mirror base. I would imagine the manufacturer could have cost MR a lot of money if there were owners who shipped these back because of the lighting issue when they discovered it during the period the models WERE in warranty. It's unfortunate also that MR has been notified of this defect by others and that they did not have the resources to get to the bottom of this given the widespread amount of complaints from buyers that faced the same defect.
Do you think that there will actually be some response from the people responsible for the mirror bases regarding the widespread defect effecting owners of the Falcon and if they may be willing to make some more that work for those who wish to purchase one or offer some kind of solution?
JV
******************
Hi Jerry,
We stand behind and consider our policies and warranties adequate for every product released and find your situation unfortunate as stated in the previous e-mail. We wish you didn’t have to take matters into your own hands either, but we must follow our policies (yup... conformity and not really worrying about customers who dropped 3K on this kind of collectible is sterling customer service-JV).
Each item released from Master Replicas is thoroughly inspected by a team of expert quality analysts who perform a thorough inspection to ensure everything is of premium quality and in 100% working order (really? So how is it this never lit completely right out of the box?-JV). Any item that does not meet our specific requirements are either discarded or refinished and inspected again. We do not ship anything that does not meet our strict quality standards (newsflash! You did-JV). However, rare oversights on a very small percentage of select items have occurred, this is an unfortunate reality with hand made custom prop replicas. We heavily document any issue to ensure it does not happen again (the amount of complaints in collector's forums I've seen regarding this "very small percentage" makes it seem percentage enough... not to mention all the other buyers who don't know about our collector's forums to register dissatisfaction regarding their experiences with the faulty bases-JV).
After the item leaves the factory there are many variables beyond our control that could contribute to a faulty product which is why we offer what is widely considered to be a generous 90 day warranty. We make every effort possible in educating all customers who order directly through us on our policies and encourage inspection upon delivery. We work very hard to ensure each customer is satisfied with their purchase and if a defect is discovered upon inspection we believe it is worth the time and effort to deliver on our promise (blah blah... pass the buck-JV).
We understand and can appreciate the mindset of the “hardcore collector” who directly stores the item without inspection, but that is solely at the risk of the consumer and any defect discovered beyond 90 days is unfortunately beyond our control (well then f* you and MR too- JV).
In regard to the Millennium Falcon, we had a very limited amount of returns that fell well below even our own expectations and consider it to be a successful product. We have not received any “widespread” reports of complaints via e-mail or phone beyond your own. Any and all complaints/comments that are sent in our direction are investigated and responded to (a lie... they're all over the collector's forums, he just stated so above regarding the Rebel Scum forum. Liar- JV).
In response to your inquiry regarding the further production of display bases for the Millennium Falcon, unfortunately there are too many legal/contractual reasons why we cannot have this item reproduced. In my original reply I indicated,
“…this item is out of warranty and we no longer have the license with Lucas to support any type of replacement. As much as we would like to offer a replacement mirrored base, unfortunately the item is out of stock and has been permanently discontinued.”
I have sent a message to the manufacturer of the display base and I am currently waiting for a reply. I have asked if they can possibly provide any type of assistance or insight in correcting your issue and provided a link to the RPF and copied our correspondence. I’d like to note that there have been some staffing changes since this item was released so it may have an effect on when I have a reply that will be beneficial to your predicament. I will let you know as soon as I have something available (everyone hear the circkets chirping?- JV).
If you have any further questions, do not hesitate to give me a call or e-mail (yeah so I can be told again MR isn't gonna do squat despite the fact I've tried troubleshooting their manufacturing defect- JV).
Thank you,
Tom Vargas
Online Manager
Master Replicas
(925) 979-1500 ext. 130
(Yeah, thanks... thanks for nothing Tom- JV)
