Nailed By Puresmoker.com

[StringDancer]

Caveat emptor.

One should always take time to read the fine print, of course. But not long ago, I was running short of chrome 801 attys (I prefer the look of the chrome attys with my VP1), and my usual suppliers were out. I had long ago purchased a kit from PureSmoker and it was a decent purchase, and on checking their site, they had the attys I wanted, so I sprung for a 5-pack... without reviewing their warranty. Which, upon later inspection, doesn't exist. You buy from them, you get 'em "as-is".

Well, the first PureSmoker atty tasted funny, didn't produce the customary vapor, and eventually died entirely within 10 minutes. Well, pooh... but I've been vaping long enough to know you'll get a defective atty every so often.

The second atty exhibited similar behavior... very scant vapor, tasted like crappy old tobacco juice, and clearly on its way to an early demise. I'm sensing a trend by this point.

Upon writing PureSmoker requesting that I return the entire lot for a replacement, I was told:

"I sincerely apologize for the inconvenience, but as is stated on our website, bulk atomizer purchases do not carry warranties. Therefore, we cannot issue any replacements for the atomizers you purchased. We have had no other reports of a bad batch and have no reason to believe that the entire batch is defective. I apologize for the inconvenience, but we cannot issue any replacements."

Polite enough, I suppose. And I DID order without looking at the site's warranty on products sold, so ultimately it was my mistake and responsibility. Nonetheless, I wasted almost $50 on a site that apparently has no interest in reasonable customer support and service... very regrettable. I'll not make that mistake again. PureSmoker.com has seen the last dollar from me.

BTW, here's the pertinent section in their TOS:

"This site and the materials and products on this site are provided "as is" and without warranties of any kind, whether express or implied. To the fullest extent permissible pursuant to applicable law, www.PureSmoker.com disclaims all warranties, express or implied, including, but not limited to, implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose and non-infringement."

Let my mistake be your lesson. Avoid PureSmoker.com. If you get bad goods, they'll leave you hanging.

[USAFSGT]

Right on man, thanks for spreading the word. I'm sorry to hear that happend to ya. If I had some atty's that you could use I'd send em to ya in a heart beat. They will definately be on my "do not buy from" list. I'll let all the guys here on base know as well. Good luck in finding what you are looking for.

[Vacker1229]

PureSmoker has been good to me when I started. Actually an excellent supplier, I am now all grown up and have found so many other suppliers; some with great prices and some with excellent service. This e-cig thing has grown in leaps and bounds and is now so very competitive.

I also order the 5-pack or more - basically in bulk.

I checked with my regular supplier (not PureSmoker) and this is what I found. I also checked some other sites and they to do not offer warranty of "bulk" purchase, as it is discounted and it would not be cost effective due to shipping costs.

Guarantee

We normally offer a 28 day warranty on the our Electric Cigarette atomizing units. However on our Multi-Packs each atomizer works out at less than $7 Each . Therefore we offer no warranty on this item. The atomizers though are exactly the same as the single units we sell.

and my other thought is, i typically pick one and use it so the others just sit unused until whatever warranty/guarantee or any other promise of performance would run out anyway. Not like i check all 5 (or more) to make sure they work. We all have suffered through the occasional battery or atty that does not work but due to the touchy situation of legality of this particular product sometimes you need to just bite the bullet. True it is not a deal if some are DOA but there is fact that bulk is highly discounted. Although this could pose a problem if you are buying these to add to stock to turn around and sell as a supplier, and if that is the case I surely would not pay over $5 a piece for bulk price.

Sorry to hear you had an issue with PureSmoker product -- Always read the fine print!! Clearly a lesson learned by you and a warning "buyer beware".

[jmhester]

The same thing happened to me with totally wicked. Bought a bulk 5 pack of 801 atty and, of the 2 I've tried so far, they died within minutes. I have not tried to return them so I can't vouch for their CS but I think sometimes with atty, you get what you pay for.

[StringDancer]

In the interest of unbiased reporting, I had written PS detailing my dissatisfaction. PureSmoker responded to my email saying they do offer a 7-day warranty. But like Vacker mentioned, I don't sit and test each in a bundle of attys, so most of them would be out of warranty by the time I actually use them.

I know these are consumables, and don't mind the occasional dud. But when the first two of 5 attys are duds, that's already a 40% fail rate, and I'm guessing it's a bad batch. Plus, these attys taste strongly of a juice I don't like, which isn't normal and is definitely annoying. All which pretty much kills any benefit from a bulk discount. Inasmuch as I'm now stuck with these tubes, I'll go ahead and see if any of them work properly, and report back later on that. If they're all duds, then I'm still miffed at PS for selling defective product and reaming me on the deal.

I remember getting a bad batt or atty (I forget which) from Arno once. It happens. Well, he replaced it free, and didn't request that I spend more cash returning the thing. He trusted me to not be pulling a fast one, and I didn't (and wouldn't) abuse that trust. So FWIW, he sets the standard for top-rate customer service, as far as I'm concerned.

Now if only Arno carried chrome 801 attys. (hint, hint)

[nana]

Well, maybe this will prevent me from buying in bulk. I don't want to take a chance that even one wouldn't work, let alone 2, from a package and just be out the money. I'm getting to be a tightwad and want quality at a decent price. I've been very happy with the suppliers I've used so far, but doubt I would even give these guys a chance now. My charger did not work when I got my VP2 and they were wonderful about sending me a new one. I really like quality customer service and that's what I got from VaprLife. I will continue to use them. I'm a loyal person and when someone does right by me, I stick with them. I do have one supplier I'm not so sure about at the moment, but will wait and see how that works out for me. I do like to get others opinions though and tend to take advice and avoid the ones that might not be so good. So thanks for the information.

[StringDancer]

One other factor... if buying in bulk, one can't beat the unit price of buying straight from China. I've done this several times, buying 10-15 kits at a time, along with spare parts, to sell to friends and people I meet. But in this instance, all I wanted was a 5-pack of attys, and when I factored in the higher cost of shipping from China, I actually saved money buying retail and spending less on shipping (plus the unknown factor of Customs intervention).

On the other hand, I've yet to get a defective product from China that wasn't covered under warranty for well in excess of 7 days.

[Vacker1229]

Well, I wouldn't toss the atty yet. I have had bad batts and attys and one day I decided to go through all inventory and played around with different combinations from different suppliers and manufacturers and low and behold one of the bad parts mysteriously worked. Apparently it just didn't make the connection some how. The old question "is it a true DSE or generic atty and is it connected to a true DSE or generic batt". Also parts are now (only god knows) way beyond the 2.0 era already in to the 5.0 version and more. Hang in there -- maybe run it through a good cleaning in a sonic cleaner - rejuice it up and give it a go. Ya never know it could come back to life. I have boxes labeled good, bad, iffy and all are labeled by suppler and date purchased, i love the ziplock snack bags & Sharpies which are perfect for this type of OCD.

The "Help it Broke" section has tons of stories of bad attys.

[GDub]

One other factor... if buying in bulk, one can't beat the unit price of buying straight from China. I've done this several times, buying 10-15 kits at a time, along with spare parts, to sell to friends and people I meet. But in this instance, all I wanted was a 5-pack of attys, and when I factored in the higher cost of shipping from China, I actually saved money buying retail and spending less on shipping (plus the unknown factor of Customs intervention).

On the other hand, I've yet to get a defective product from China that wasn't covered under warranty for well in excess of 7 days.

This is very true, I have only ordered bulk from China one time but my experience was great. I got 10 BE112s and 50 empty carts for $86 after shipping. I know not really all that "bulk", but I have never used the BE112s prior to this and didn't want too many if I wasn't a fan after using them. So far all the BE112s are working well (just the ones I've used up till now) and the shipping was fast, about 5 days I think. I'm looking for a supplier to purchase bulk LB 801s but have not had much luck.

[Hawk]

@ Stringdancer:

Just a thought, but the bad taste in the atty's may be the packing grease they use to keep them moist. Almost all of the atty;s I get come with that crap in them. I blow them all out, and leave them upside down for a couple of minutes afterward. The ones I have not blown out, have crapped out on me almost immediately. It seems that the packing grease screws em up if it's not removed. Maybe this will help on the other 3 units you still have from them..

[Christopher]

This can be supplier as well, some suppliers will add none flavored juice to the atomizer to make it's working before it's sent out.

[Vacker1229]

possibly old stock that's been sitting and got vaped when dry.

[VapnRealtor]

Sorry to hear about your dissatisfaction with PS. I just got in a bulk shipment of 25 atty's from them consisting of 901,510 and Low Bridge 801's and so far they all have been working great so far and the price was awesome too. I've been vapn for 6 weeks now and have placed a few orders with them and have experienced great customer support all around.

I also got in a 10 pack of attys from TW and found out 1 was bad and when I contacted them they said to send it back so they could check it out. I sent it and a few days later I got a new one and a pack of unfilled carts too. IMO they went over and above anything I was expecting.

I know there have been some negative things said about both companies TW in particular but "knock on wood" my experience with both has been perfect.

FWIW I of course have not gone thru all of my atty's cause I got a good supplys worth and I'm just commmenting on the ones I have used so far.

Derek

Edited November 19, 2009 by VapnRealtor

[Vacker1229]

Sorry to hear about your dissatisfaction with PS. I just got in a bulk shipment of 25 atty's from them consisting of 901,510 and Low Bridge 801's and so far they all have been working great so far and the price was awesome too. I've been vapn for 6 weeks now and have placed a few orders with them and have experienced great customer support all around.

I also got in a 10 pack of attys from TW and found out 1 was bad and when I contacted them they said to send it back so they could check it out. I sent it and a few days later I got a new one and a pack of unfilled carts too. IMO they went over and above anything I was expecting.

I know there have been some negative things said about both companies TW in particular but "knock on wood" my experience with both has been perfect.

Derek

Actually Derek - I'm with you - nothin' but props to both suppliers. and lots of other too. Heck S_it Happens!! whoyagonnacall-Vapebusters??

[VapnRealtor]

Actually Derek - I'm with you - nothin' but props to both suppliers. and lots of other too. Heck S_it Happens!! whoyagonnacall-Vapebusters??

I agree and IMO the title of this thread is a little out of line cause PS didnt do anything wrong at all.

Derek

[Vacker1229]

I can understand his frustration, so it is what it is and we are all entitled to our opinions. Since I've started I have spend well over $1K and that includes alot of duds but whatever, I learn from mistakes I make -- guess he will read the fine print now won't he?

Never assume cuz it makes an ***-u-me

[Christopher]

Easy Guys. I don't want this to turn into a flame thread.

[warthog]

Because this is such a competetive business the only "value added proposition" is Customer Service. Suppliers should realize that great CS and a little loss on a low dollar item will pay larger dividends from consumers in the future. Just a thought....

I send my business to those who have offered great CS with these sometimes inferior products or errors.

[VapnRealtor]

Because this is such a competetive business the only "value added proposition" is Customer Service. Suppliers should realize that great CS and a little loss on a low dollar item will pay larger dividends from consumers in the future. Just a thought....

I send my business to those who have offered great CS with these sometimes inferior products or errors.

Absolutely and any supplier that does not realize that won't be in business to long.

Derek

[JBIRMfromPHOENIX]

I can understand his frustration, so it is what it is and we are all entitled to our opinions. Since I've started I have spend well over $1K and that includes alot of duds but whatever, I learn from mistakes I make -- guess he will read the fine print now won't he?

Never assume cuz it makes an ***-u-me

the cost $2.50 to $3 bucks from china for a supplier. give him a break, you assume someone is going to back up their product without having to read a page of bs. the manufacturer offers a warranty, sometimes one year too.

Edited November 19, 2009 by JBIRMfromPHOENIX

[VapnRealtor]

the cost $2.50 to $3 bucks from china for a supplier. give him a break, you assume someone is going to back up their product without having to read a page of bs. the manufacturer offers a warranty, sometimes one year too.

They do for 7 days and the OP stated that. C'mon no supplier in their right mind would offer a 1 year replacement on an atomizer.

Derek

[VapnRealtor]

Never mind I read your post wrong. I see you said the Manufacturer. I've never dealt with any chinese manufactures for E-cigs but have dealt with many for other types of products and I have never experienced them to offer a warranty like that. The Chinese that is.

Derek

Edited November 19, 2009 by VapnRealtor

[Bajan]

Because this is such a competetive business the only "value added proposition" is Customer Service. Suppliers should realize that great CS and a little loss on a low dollar item will pay larger dividends from consumers in the future. Just a thought....

I send my business to those who have offered great CS with these sometimes inferior products or errors.

I agree. For my part I am willing to spend a few extra $ to know that what I buy is top quality and is going to work well. I think we have all dealt with the question of if what we ordered is going to be worth the cost. In the end, the security of knowing that we will be getting good merchandise is worth it. I prefer to buy from those that I know will ship a quality product, and if there is a problem, they will make good. If I get crap, even at a crazy low price, I will never buy again. Selling a product in bulk for a deep discount that you don't stand behind can only serve to hurt your business in the long run. The cost of one bad review is quite steep, much more than a 5-pack of Chinese atomizers. Your customers are your life blood, few deep cuts and you are dead.

Shane

[profbeard]

I know that in the case of TW, their multipacks do not have a warranty BUT they will replace DOAs - I therefore check attys on arrival...

[NeRo9k]

Sorry to hear about your frustration. I've ordered from puresmoker as well as 7 other suppliers; I only emailed a couple of them, but all I received was great service.