Would you pre-order from eFx?

[h3pilot]

Would you pre-order from eFx?
(pay $ before they have a product to ship)

Their web site says pre-order information is coming "soon" for the ANH Hero Stormtrooper helmet. It looks cool, but....

The Vader Legend helmet pre-ordered in APR 2011 and looks about 6 months late.
The TIE Fighter pre-ordered in OCT 2010 with no end (or even update) in sight.

 

[planet]

From all the horror stories I have read so far I would not
ever order from them. Two years after taking money from some collectors and still not delivering your finished as a reputable business .

 

[Thibault]

I give this thread 2 days before being locked !!
:lol

 

[James Kenobi 1138]

Yes. I have, and I will again.

Efx is good people.

 

[Mara Jade's Father]

I have pre-ordered from them as well. But I understand that it can be difficult as you may not like giving money for something you do not know when you will receive. There is also the issue that your money flow may not be as liquid in the far future and you may not be able to afford the remaining payment.

You can always watch the staus of numbers pre-sold. Some items can sell out in the first few hours while some are around far after the release. You can try waiting to the last possible time to make pre-order.

The other option is to by from a reputable third party that does not charge your card till it ships. It may cause your dilivery to be a week or so later than getting it direct from eFx. I am not sure whether redfordfilms.com does this or not but their prices are the same and they have free shipping over $50.

Bottom line, if they offered an item that I really needed to have, I would have no problem pre-paying eFx even without a firm release date.

 

[Zombie Killer]

I have and would and they are on a dwindling list of companies i will preorder from. I have way more patience for items that are late then i have for items that are built like crap. If the delays are because they are trying to fix mess ups then all the power to them. Unfortunatly there are a few too many companies whos main concern is getting the product out in time rather then it comes when it is done right. I'll take a late product done right over one on time with poor QC.

 

[OldKen]

H3pilot. Your first or second post on the RPF included the fact you were banned from another forum for speaking against eFx...

I pm'd you that day and asked what the problem you had was, simply because I do have an order with them...

MOST of your posts out of your 15 include eFx...

Obvious this is a personal problem or vendetta... This thread you are trying to use to stir up others to do the bashing for you...

Sorry, seeing a pattern.

You are this interested in this company and have soo much knowledge about props... Yet you only recently joined the largest prop forum on the planet?

Something doesn't sit right...

 

[BrundelFly]

Without QUESTION.

However, Im biased, and know how they operate, and how much care they put into stuff.
If they wanted to just ship crap, and make a buck. Everyone would already have Everything they have on pre-order.
They have really strict standards, and when quality does measure up, they send it back.
Is it possible to get it 100%? Anyone who says YES!! has never done manufacturing in China. They are determined to get it as close as they can given the constraints they have, one of them being understandably impatient people. ;-)
My two cents.
Frank

 

[Rylo]

Of course I would, they're a fantastic company. Sounds like a fanboy trolling, first few posts and all.

I'll add to what Frank's already said:

Listen, delays happen; it's simply the nature of this business. To suggest otherwise makes one's ignorance of the craft audible.

It takes a great deal of effort to land this stuff and any number of delays can happen between here and Asia. In the end, they always deliver top-notch product. They're one of the best outfits out there. Simple as that.

-Rylo

 

[BoboFatt]

Wow H3pilot, you're just like the Energizer Bunny aren't you? Do you post anything other than complaints about eFX? Looks like you're not getting the repsonses you were fishing for. Maybe you should just put the pole away and just give it a rest.

+1 to oldken

 

[Kerr Avon]

I do have to say a valid question is made about $350 deposits and getting no product 2 years later, with little to no communication to the preorders. Can anyone here verify that this is happening regarding some SW licensed helmets from them?

 

[BoboFatt]

I do have to say a valid question is made about $350 deposits and getting no product 2 years later, with little to no communication to the preorders. Can anyone here verify that this is happening regarding some SW licensed helmets from them?

This was posted by a member of the "other" forum. Someone that works with Bryan...

From 4/30/12:

I talk to Bryan regularly. He is fine, but working on many projects simultaneously. So that makes it difficult to stop by the forum and post regular updates. But he is very much aware that there are lingering questions about products and ship dates that he wants to address here in the very near future.

In general the company is fine. I will say that much of Bryan's attention lately has been taken up with the Marvel property simply because there is a tremendous amount of work to do at the front edge of a new license. That's not to say that SW is being ignored. Quite the contrary in fact.

Keep on the lookout though. I'm sure you will see something from him here in the very near future.

From 5/5/12:

Since this have at least balanced out somewhat I don't mind posting a brief update.

The Vader Helmets were delayed another week due to lack of delivery of the display bases by the vendor. Everything else is packed up and ready to go. As soon as the bases arrive they will be packed in as well, the boxes sealed and put into a container.

Just for reference the TIE's are being made at the same factory. A very good factory, but a very small one. So when the TIE tooling had to be redone it made sense to have them start work on the Vader Helmets since they can really only handle one project at a time. It also happened that we were waiting on the final sign off from the TIE model maker which I believe we got just this week. In a sense everything timed out well from a production flow standpoint, because time and production capacity were utilized to the fullest. I realize that is little consolation for those waiting close to 2 years for their TIE. It's unfortunate that it took as long as it did to get the tooling right in the first place, but when you are in the business of accuracy you can't accept close enough.

 

[Roc74]

What has been the longest time from pre order to getting your item from EFX? I dont think they have ever not delivered on a pre order, correct (Taking pre orders then saying sorry we cant make it or something like that?)
Im thinking of ordring those Avengers props, but all these concerns posted here on this forum is making me worried.

 

[WarPig]

I've no problem pre-ordering- especially with respected companies. If it takes longer than estimated, so be it: I would rather wait for a quality product than get something that was pushed out the door to meet a deadline or sales projection.

As for the TIE Fighter, I heard they we re-tooling the wings...

 

[Clutch]

I hate people who sign up because they have an agenda. Or is it vendetta?

 

[Kerr Avon]

This was posted by a member of the "other" forum. Someone that works with Bryan...

So they have taken preorder deposits, charging people's credit cards, and haven't delivered the product in 2 years? I do have a bit of a problem with that, and it'd make me have to reconsider pre-ordering the Captain America shield that I'm waiting to hear a price for. If they put a 'reserve' on the preorder amount, I can accept that, but I don't know that I'd feel comfortable being charged hundreds of dollars for a preorder on a prop that might take two years+ to deliver. I'd be paying interest on the amount I preordered, assuming I didn't pay it off pretty quickly, and after 90 days I really wouldn't have much recourse even with my CC to get refunded that amount if something should happen to eFX.

I think that they should really work on this communication issue regarding these helmets if they are going to keep getting pushed back like this.

 

[MClass]

So many eFX fanboys on here. h3pilot has made some very valid points and I see no reason to attack him just because he's a new member. Think about this way, if you bought a fan-made item from another member on here and they fail to communicate with you AND fail to deliver on their product for months (in this case, years) would you still react the same way? Would you still put a large deposit down for something that you may not get for months and/or years with little to no communication from that seller? Yeah, I didn't think so. I know eFX will deliver on a good quality product, no doubt, but the lack of communication is the problem here. There is literally zero customer service from them. If a company can't answer a simple email or give at least one update on progress per month, they fail in my eyes. There have been way too many people complaining about eFX, not only on the RPF but all across the various forums I visit. It's time for someone at eFX to speak up. And to answer the original question, I will never pre-order from them unless they fix their customer service and communication.

 

[OldKen]

So many eFX fanboys on here. h3pilot has made some very valid points and I see no reason to attack him just because he's a new member. Think about this way, if you bought a fan-made item from another member on here and they fail to communicate with you AND fail to deliver on their product for months (in this case, years) would you still react the same way? Would you still put a large deposit down for something that you may not get for months and/or years with little to no communication from that seller? Yeah, I didn't think so. I know eFX will deliver on a good quality product, no doubt, but the lack of communication is the problem here. There is literally zero customer service from them. If a company can't answer a simple email or give at least one update on progress per month, they fail in my eyes. There have been way too many people complaining about eFX, not only on the RPF but all across the various forums I visit. It's time for someone at eFX to speak up. And to answer the original question, I will never pre-order from them unless they fix their customer service and communication.

He seems as if he has joined the forum only to bash eFx. In another thread I asked him to PM me, and later i sent him a pm asking what the nature of his problem was... Since then I have seen him post in other threads and now start this one.

I do agree that 2 years is a looong wait. Especially if you have money down!


I have money on the Vader helmet, and most on the forum know that I am impatient! :angel

But there is a difference in having an issue with a product, and a personal problem. I may be way off...

I do think bobofatts last post explains what is going on with eFx.

If we want uber accuracy and quality... It's just taking some time. These aren't small personal runs. They are attempting something that's never been done. They've had a rough start on some things but... Idk... They just dont have a magic wand.

God knows i wish they did! :lol

 

[Kevin Gossett]

I know eFX will deliver on a good quality product, no doubt, but the lack of communication is the problem here.

This is the biggest problem I have. I think everyone can agree that eFX produces top quality items, but you can't rely solely on that. There has to be an open dialogue between a company and its customers, especially if there are production issues or delays.

 

[JKKS]

I was really looking forward to their Avengers props (especially the Iron Man Helmet and Cap shield) but the lack of communication is a MAJOR issue to me.
I'm a patient guy and I can wait two years if necessary to get a high end product but if the seller doesn't even bother to keep his buyers updated then there's no excuse it's just bad business.

So my answer to the question is that I probably won't preorder from EFX at all, no matter how great their final products are.