LUTS, How can I trust you again?

Actually, I'm quite inclined to believe that the crack happened on it's own, though it is a pity you didn't check closely enough at the beginning... otherwise you would be able to know for sure whether it is due to a poor quality resin cast or from the shipping.

With regards to the time period for the 'warranty' on these dolls, it is a little bit problematic I feel.

On one hand, the companies can't have a long term warranty, because dolls can get damaged by being handled roughly etc, it's not the company's fault and they shouldn't have to pay for owners' carelessness.

On the other hand, because of their lack of warranty, it seems that a lot of companies can get away with poor quality control, because some flaws only show up a few months later (like the crackling skin you mentioned, or the SD10 girl cracking knees *Volks also had it's problems, and they didn't replace the parts for free either, so it's not just Luts that has flawed service IMHO*, or the Bambicrony coloured elves changing colour/fading barely a few months after they arrived), and yet they say sorry, too bad, it's been too long after we shipped it for it to be our problem any longer

Either way, thank you for posting this, from now on I'm going to be very careful to check my dolls from head to toe when they arrive.

 

I know of someone who had really thin resin in the area between the dolls leg sockets... Luts had them send the part in and replaced it no problem.

That is just crazy!
If my friend's MNF is like that when she comes in we are so going to fill the ankles in like they should be!

Dosen't anyone have a MNF they can take pictures of???? Please??

Edit:
Well I made a picture request here. Maybe we can get some results... if this is indeed not normal or something new (a poor redesign if that is the case) perhaps if the wheel squeeks enough, then it will get some grease (and a better designed ankle).

 

See, this is what worrys me about BJDs sometimes. If in the world outside BJD, you buy something for $1,000 or so, you are gonna get alot of gurantees on it- no question. My company sells machinery etc, for that sort of price and upwards, and sometimes we suspect its the mishandling of the customer but we do still replace it/fix it for no charge/very low charge as they have spent alot of money with us. A BJD is a lot of money to spend, and I'm quite alarmed about how little quality gurantee there is on those things. I've heard of so many of these sort of stories where it pretty much looks like a fault with the product but sorry- not our fault end of. seems to be the answer from all these companies. Most products, however fragile when they cost that much have atleast a year gurantee on them....but with BJD that's not the case....that's how I'm starting to feel after reading these sorts of threads....

much sympathy to the OP who now has a broken doll. >_<;;

 

A years guarantee, would'nt that be a wonderful thing! And as you say, $1000 is a lot of cash and most companies for other merchandise offer guarantees don't they?
No doubt people will say that BJD's are a whole different thing and a guarantee would'nt be feasable so why don't companies offer an optional insurance?

 

Oh for crying out loud...
Should people take apart their dolls to make sure all the parts look ok then? No of course not... this was from I can see internal damage done by not engeneering the piece properly. Be it Lust, Volks or any company , when you buy you expect it to last for more than 2 months.

I check my dolls when I get them but I don't take them apart to see if there's an internal problem... come on people be logical about this.

Resin is made to be sturdy, if the doll cracks then there's a flaw in the design or there was a problem at the pouring. It happens yes... but I don't think the custumer should be the one getting the raw deal here.

Like I said I don't care where the doll is from, but really should custumers be gven the...Oh yeah that's sad but it's your problem now cause it's beyond 7 days and you should have inspected your doll... HOW? by doing X-rays?

I got a below quality doll from another company and while they were waiting for my money, they were all chatty and nice... but once my doll was shipped and I received itin such a state... no more replies nothing nada zilch. I was patient I was polite in each of my letters and when they finally replied to me: Oh sorry you have exceeded the time to get a replacement.

I didn't "exceeded" my time, they just choose NOT to take into considerations the letters that were sent during the period... Conveniant isn't it?

And even if you post here and tell people to be weary of this company there's always going to be people who will tell you it isn't the company's fault... That they had a good transaction and therefore it voids all complains you might have.

I ended up sanding the doll for 6 hours before it was satifactory and a workable doll. I am satisfied now but I had to do all the work to make the doll in a working condition. Things companiesshould do...like check the quality of the elastic channels and make sure they have been drilled STRAIGHT.

But hey probably my fault for not checking if the channels were drilled properly at the factory by myself huh? sorry if I sound biter but this really make me angry when people post a problem and many people try to discredit it.

 

I totally agree with the last poster.

 

I think it is quite an even discussion actually, some sticking up for LUTs some for the original poster, some seeing a little of both sides.

If it teaches us all to look inside our dolls as well, then it is a good thing. No we shouldn't have to, I competely agree with that, but it is clearly good to be cautious.

 

There appears to have been a declination in quality control in customer service in nearly all companies over the past few months. You may recall the AngelRegion fiasco where no one even GOT their dolls for weeks and weeks past their due to ship dates, one even going to two months.
Then came the "bambicrony quality control" where they shipped dolls full of air bubbles and cracks...
Now it seems even LUTS is crumbling.

The BJD hobby is becoming more popular, where the "fad" has set in, which is putting additional strain on these companies, forcing them to up production whilst unable to EXPAND operations, and the result is this lack of quality we all suffer with now.

I am quite surprised that LUTS have succumbed, they always struck me as the one company in the position to expand - the large, well-trusted, busy company, who sells dolls from countless OTHER companies too, but it seems that even they have limits. This worries me as I've ordered a kid delf that's due to ship from them very soon...

I'm sure they'll get their act in gear when enough people complain - They are a company, and as such, NEED customers to survive.

 

acexkeikai- Kudos to you. I couldn't agree more. bread17- I don't see why people keep telling you that it's your fault you haven't inspected the doll right when you got it, because even if it wasn't cracked... Looking at the inside of the part, it's obvious that the casting is just horrible, low quality- especially considering that Luts is a big and reputable company, they aren't amateurs. I'd expect something like this to come from a private seller who's a first-time caster or something similar, not from a company like Luts. And a casting like this doesn't change over time nor it can be caused by the user [not as far as I know, at least], so it really doesn't matter how much time has passed since you got it. Most people I know won't start unstringing their dolls just to check the inside of their parts the moment they get the doll- a damage like this can only be found when you're restringing etc., which can take a while. Thus, I think that Luts' claim is quite unreasonable in this case. The crack- maybe, I can understand that. But the poor casting and quality? Not after two months and not after two years.

 

After reading this, I have started to get very, very worried about my own situation, as well. I've always heard good things about LUTS' customer services and the quality of their dolls - it was one of the things that helped me choose their company, but I have to admit that in the past few weeks, I have heard some nasty customer accounts regarding the way that they have been handling customer complaints, and I'm very concerned about not just my order, but everyone else who is ordering from LUTS at the moment. Ironically, I only heard about these problems after I ordered my own doll from LUTS - so it looks like I might have picked the wrong time to buy, even though things have gone quite smoothly between me and LUTS so far (they held back the things I had ordered as they waited for my wire transfer to go through, for example. Not sure if that's a standard thing or not, though, since this is the first doll I have ever bought).

One of the main factors that convinced me to jump into the BJD hobby was the fact that the products always looked as though they were worth what you paid for them - they were quality dolls, and that made me a lot more comfortable when it came to deciding whether or not I was actually going to buy one. Like a lot of people, I really don't like the idea of paying &#163;600/$1,000 for a doll, only to find out that it has been damaged during shipping/making, and that I will/might still have to pay for a replacement in spite of the fact that it was not my fault to begin with. And just to clarify, this is not me criticizing the fact that Bread17 didn't find the crack in the leg part when she first received her doll, this is my opinion in general. It unfortunate that Bread didn't spot the crack sooner, and it's even worse that the replacement part was of the same quality! It's really got me worried, now.

 

Wow, I should check my SDF more often nows! I didn't really have to do it with the SD16 boy, but after reading this thread, it makes me worry DD8

 

Your poor Shushu!!!!!!! That leg looks over-all defective.

And your poor El! I wonder if there's such thing as defective resin...

 

There is many ways resin can be defective. Temperature effects it, impurity in the batch, being pulled from a mould before it's fully set, having a bad mix, moisture and humidity.... Resin can turn bad, and at this time of year in those countries that produce dolls, it unfortunately isn't too good for making resin.

 

Oh dear, I always thought that since Luts was one of the bigger, more respectable companies, it wouldn't come into such problems. I agree with EksDee! Perhaps it is the growing popularity of the BJD hobby that is causing this problem. As I haven't seen any complaints recently, until this. Actually, this is the first complaint I've seen about Luts.

This is why, sometimes, I don't like to share my favourite things with others, be it music or movies or even restaurants. Ever heard someone say "they made my music so mainstream"? I know it's selfish but when things like these happen...

 

Exactly Bread 17 You trusted LUTS to do a good job because you were paying for a good quality doll. Frankly how hard it is to pay someone to check the dolls before shipping? Most large comany do that, I`m not talking about little doll companies that have everything done by one person. We`re talking LUTS here, there`s more than one person working there.

Frankly it goes without saying that if you bought... I don`t know a DVD player at 500$ USD and it breaks after 2 months... you`d be pissed and ask for restitution... Why is this so hard for people to understand here? Luts is a big company, they are a business and not a hobby for them. I like Luts but really bad quality is bad quality and here this is the case.

 

I thought I'd go back and add to what I previously wrote:

I am in no way saying that Luts is right that they should not replace parts. I'm also not saying internal damage should be checked for. But the OP said they had waited two months to open their doll and the crack was clearly visable on it's surface.

I think the minimum you should do when you get a doll is check it for any clear, existing damage right away. Most people do that with any product they buy no matter how much it cost or what it is. If the doll is clearly broken, there should be no problem with the company replacing it. It's very unusual for an owner to keep a brand new doll in a box for two months without touching it - I agree with Luts on this. I really don't doubt that Luts would believe you really left it all that time.

Yes, in the West, guarentees exist for pretty much any product of great expense, but when you purchase an item from another country, you must follow that country's and that company's law. I don't know if there is a simillar type of thing in Korea. So I can understand them making you pay for the replacement part in this case. The break is in clear sight and I doubt anyone wouldn't notice it straight away. So with the break, I agree with Luts, sorry, but I do. On the other hand, I do think that Luts are in the wrong with the quality of the doll and with the cracking skin.

If what was said a few pages back that there was a bad batch released, then I think Luts should do a product recall and replace any dolls sent back to them. They'd loose profits, but gain in customer trust. Luts should never lie and say it is normal, or anything like that. Here, the OP is quite correct that that was a poor quality product.

The inside of the leg is either an example of a poorly designed product or a really bad cast. Luts should return that body to them and replace it with a new cast. That ankle is bound to break by tight stringing or rough play.

And for the last two, as such an issue should only show up after months, Luts should give some level of guarentee for repair or a replacement. It is a lot of money and customer satisfaction should be guarenteed. However, in the case of the broken ankle, I think that yes, you should be able to get a replacement for the poor craftsmenship, but if the ankle was in otherwise perfect condition, you should not get a replacement.

I really have to point out that I'm about to order my third doll (not including a head) from Luts. I have only recieved one of those dolls, which was flawless except from the weak stringing when she arrived (easilly fixed). Luts customer service has never failed to make me smile - until I saw this thread. Luts have always been good at replacing parts such as heads or fingers broken in the mail. I'm actually quite shocked at the chapping and the quality of the inner leg and Luts refusal to replace these parts =(

I'm hoping that there is something common to asian companies that is making some Korean and Japanese companies decline in quality recently. Hopefully, it will pass.

 

I do agree that certain parts should be replaced if the problem is due to bad quality, like the ankle.

Until later on, when I saw the pictures of the inner ankle, I agreed with Luts. They didn't know if it was something they'd done or if you'd dropping your doll from a tall building or something. But I now believe that the break was due to poor manufacture and therefore Luts' fault.

I believe there are only about ten people working at Luts. I also know these dolls are very difficult and take a long time to make. They must get a lot of orders per day - I know that they have sold at least 30 of the new limited dolls today alone. They get more than they can handle as it is, so when someone asks for a replacement part, it takes time, time that could be spent making a whole new product to bring them more money.

I do think Luts are in the wrong in this particular case. I do not think guarentees should be mandantory though. If someone asked the company to replace a part for free every time they broke their doll, I can really see a company going out of business through that. People would be less careful therefor there'd be more mistakes and companies would be having a lot of trouble keeping up with orders and loose a lot of money.

 

I'm sorry, let me clear that up ^^; When you told Luts about the break, did you show them the picture of the inner ankle as well?

I can understand them thinking it was not their fault if you said 'after two months it was broken, I think it's your fault because it was probably that way when it arrived'. They have to assume that their work with that leg was fine to begin with.

But if you showed them the bad manufacture of the inner ankle as well as the break, I have to side with you and they should accept responsability.

You need to prove the break was their fault due to the bad cast of that part. It is then their fault and they should pay. ^_^