LL Bean - Striper Talk Striped Bass Fishing, Surfcasting, Boating

Guppy · 02-09-2018, 05:25 PM

Ending the life time guarantee ......
Probably be a hundred guys in waders at their door tomorrow ...

Three of the eyelets pulled out of my 4 year old wader boots... Guess I'll go looking.... Bass Pro's any good?

PaulS · 02-09-2018, 05:54 PM

I can't say I really blame them when you hear the stories that I read today. My favorite was the CEO I believe said that he had a shirt with his name on it that he donated to charity. Someone ended up bringing it back for a credit.
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JohnR · 02-09-2018, 06:07 PM

New policy started today so tomorrow is too late.

Clogston29 · 02-09-2018, 07:16 PM

People take advantage of well meaning policies. Satisfaction guarantee is just to open ended when people feel entitled to a lifetime of use from a $100 purchase. J Crew and several other companies used to have same policy but had to stop for same reason.
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Nebe · 02-09-2018, 07:20 PM

Good for them. It was just a matter of time before they changed this policy. People suck
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Guppy · 02-09-2018, 09:05 PM

I returned waiders after two seasons,,,,
I thought about the boots but figured I got my money's worth....
The next pair will be a dif brand...

ilovetwofish · 02-10-2018, 06:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PaulS

I can't say I really blame them when you hear the stories that I read today. My favorite was the CEO I believe said that he had a shirt with his name on it that he donated to charity. Someone ended up bringing it back for a credit.
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

Bass pro still sells a few that are warrantied for life, online they have a better pick then in the store and better then cabelas.

afterhours · 02-10-2018, 06:57 AM

What happens to waders a couple of years back under the old policy? Many guys bought because of that policy. i understand that a few guys took serious advantage of it.

BigBo · 02-10-2018, 07:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by afterhours

What happens to waders a couple of years back under the old policy? Many guys bought because of that policy. i understand that a few guys took serious advantage of it.

This is my issue. I have a couple of purchases I made that I believe I overpaid for based on the lifetime warranty. Now they want to tell me that warranty is no longer valid?

Rmarsh · 02-10-2018, 07:20 AM

I returned my leaking waders last week. I had paid $300 for them, and the 100 % satisfaction guarantee was the main reason for buying them at LLbean. Weird because they charged me sales tax on the return...which I don't get.
Not sure why it is so hard to make waders with seams that don't leak.....and their $150 wading boots didn't last the season...corroded eyelets all broke off.
Make better products and there will be less returns

Nebe · 02-10-2018, 08:10 AM

if your waders have leaky seams and it’s a craftsmanship issue, they will still exchange them.
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5/0 · 02-10-2018, 08:35 AM

It took me years to buy thier waders bc I knew and was told they were lifetime warranties and also knew I would breach them,
Yeah I was old school and was a neoprene guy but, finally caved and bought my first pair back in 13 and felt guilty on the first leak bringing them back and getting a newer version of what I bought the previous year...

Any hoo, got a new pair every year at someone's expense and lost touch with reality,but deep down knowing nobody works for free.

I don't,do you?

I don't blame them at all,I'm a huge contributor / buyer of LL Bean. I still have jackets that are 20 YO and are up to snuff.

Yea I'm gonna miss that trade in of my waders, but the bottom line is being responsible for what we own and purchase.

5/0
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piemma · 02-10-2018, 08:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by afterhours

What happens to waders a couple of years back under the old policy? Many guys bought because of that policy. i understand that a few guys took serious advantage of it.

So I had a guy I surf fished with for 10 or 12 years (died a few years ago.) He would beat the piss out of Bean waders for 3 or 4 years and send them back for a new pair. He did it with waders, boots, jackets. Totally abused the policy.

Rmarsh · 02-10-2018, 09:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Guppy

Ending the life time guarantee ......
Probably be a hundred guys in waders at their door tomorrow ...

Three of the eyelets pulled out of my 4 year old wader boots... Guess I'll go looking.... Bass Pro's any good?

Went to Bass Pro a few weeks ago to pick-up some new Simms wading boots....nothing in stock. Clerc said he could place an order, told him no thanks, I want to see, touch and try boots before buying. My LLBean boots were a total failure...lost my sales receipt so didn't bother to return.

numbskull · 02-10-2018, 12:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rmarsh

Went to Bass Pro a few weeks ago to pick-up some new Simms wading boots....nothing in stock. Clerc said he could place an order, told him no thanks, I want to see, touch and try boots before buying. My LLBean boots were a total failure...lost my sales receipt so didn't bother to return.

Bears Den carries them but check in advance if they have the size and model for which you are looking. Be aware that in addition to a standard size Simms makes short and long versions of each model as well.

MakoMike · 02-10-2018, 03:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rmarsh

I returned my leaking waders last week. I had paid $300 for them, and the 100 % satisfaction guarantee was the main reason for buying them at LLbean. Weird because they charged me sales tax on the return...which I don't get.
Not sure why it is so hard to make waders with seams that don't leak.....and their $150 wading boots didn't last the season...corroded eyelets all broke off.
Make better products and there will be less returns

LL Bean doesn't make (manufacture) anything.

Nebe · 02-10-2018, 05:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MakoMike

LL Bean doesn't make (manufacture) anything.

You sure about that? I think you are wrong.
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Guppy · 02-10-2018, 05:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rmarsh

I returned my leaking waders last week. I had paid $300 for them, and the 100 % satisfaction guarantee was the main reason for buying them at LLbean. Weird because they charged me sales tax on the return...which I don't get.
Not sure why it is so hard to make waders with seams that don't leak.....and their $150 wading boots didn't last the season...corroded eyelets all broke off.
Make better products and there will be less returns

Same here Bob,,, eyelets popped, still wearing with 3 missing... Dah

Quote:

Originally Posted by 5/0

It took me years to buy thier waders bc I knew and was told they were lifetime warranties and also knew I would breach them,
Yeah I was old school and was a neoprene guy but, finally caved and bought my first pair back in 13 and felt guilty on the first leak bringing them back and getting a newer version of what I bought the previous year...

Any hoo, got a new pair every year at someone's expense and lost touch with reality,but deep down knowing nobody works for free.

I don't,do you?

I don't blame them at all,I'm a huge contributor / buyer of LL Bean. I still have jackets that are 20 YO and are up to snuff.

Yea I'm gonna miss that trade in of my waders, but the bottom line is being responsible for what we own and purchase.

5/0
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So, I guess we'll see ya on the 24th.... Just thought I'd throw that in.. :-)

MAKAI · 02-10-2018, 08:36 PM

I would assume that when I bought waders there a year ago I also purchased the lifetime warranty too. Don’t think you should be able to adjust the terms of a prior agreement.
Where’s the damn manager !
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Sea Dangles · 02-10-2018, 10:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nebe

You sure about that? I think you are wrong.
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👀
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Nebe · 02-10-2018, 10:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sea Dangles

👀
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https://m.llbean.com/custom.html?&sk...d-labor#516915
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Ian · 02-10-2018, 11:45 PM

It’s not a lifetime warranty, it’s a satisfaction guarantee. I’m sure some lawyer somewhere can explain how that means they can get away with modifying the terms after purchase, and that person would be much smarter than me.
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Sea Dangles · 02-11-2018, 08:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nebe

https://m.llbean.com/custom.html?&sk...d-labor#516915
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I knew you were correct sir.
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Ian · 02-11-2018, 10:51 AM

I think they should do what Patagonia does: offer to repair goods that have worn out:

Resole a boot
Patch a jacket or waders
Restitch a seam

Heck, I’d even pay the fee if I could just bring it to a store and that service was available.

I think if more companies started to treat their products as life long products rather than warranty fodder (where every little problem warranted a complete replacement) we would start to see less people abusing the policies.

The end result wouldn’t be far from what we have now: people would be less likely to abuse the policy because they would get their product back but with repairs, and the people who truly value the gear and enjoy its function would still feel like they have a company that has their back when they make a purchase. Plus, you hire some good customer ambassadors to perform those repairs and boom: you’ve got more people singing your conpany’s praises. I’m pretty sure that’s how Patagonia does it.
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spence · 02-11-2018, 10:57 AM

Cleaning out my grandmother's estate years ago I found a really old LLBean carbon steel camp knife with a leather wrapped handle...nearly perfect condition. It's very cool. Favorite thing I took home.
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Sea Dangles · 02-11-2018, 12:22 PM

Don't they still resolve their signature boot?
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5/0 · 02-11-2018, 08:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Guppy

Same here Bob,,, eyelets popped, still wearing with 3 missing... Dah

So, I guess we'll see ya on the 24th.... Just thought I'd throw that in.. :-)

miss you too Gup,yeah I'll be there and I give ya a big kiss and pinch your ass.
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Guppy · 02-12-2018, 07:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 5/0

miss you too Gup,yeah I'll be there and I give ya a big kiss and pinch your ass.
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I should learn to keep my mouth shut....

bart · 02-12-2018, 08:39 AM

I returned mine yesterday and didn't feel bad about it whatsoever. I only fished half a season last year and like others said the boots were completely corroded and falling part. I had gorilla glued them back together at one point. The waders were leaking at the seams and the cord that tightens up the top end had snapped. This was from only fishing April thru July.

The girl I dealt with was really nice. She had me come in to evaluate them. Said they needed to see if there was "excessive use," but I'm not sure what would constitute that. If you wore them once a day for a season would that be considered "excessive use?" Still not clear on that one. Regardless, the girl was nice and she saw all the issues with my gear so no dispute there. She said in the future if anything happens to immediately return the waders so they can evaluate them. I was very happy with the service i received and was happy to relay my experience through their online customer survey.

I still think $350 waders/boots should get you through more than one season, though. I'll probably go with Simms from now on.

Sea Dangles · 02-12-2018, 09:50 AM

Some people have a similar story Bart but they had already returned them five times over the previous six years which can be considered excessive. But those days are over for such examples.
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