So, I bought a 24-70mm f/2.8L - and UPS lost it

DrDavid

I picked up a 24-70mm f/2.8L for a wedding I am shooting this Saturday. I ordered it last week, and it was supposed to be here on April 14. No, April 15. Ooops.. April 16.. Errr.. Never.. :huh

So I called up J&R and they reshipped me a new lens, shipped overnight (at no cost). Of course, I have *two* charges on my credit card right now, but, at least I'll have my lens for the wedding...

WHY oh WHY can't UPS deliver a single lens when they're supposed to? argh...

Thanks for letting me vent. I feel better now :rolleyes
David

DrDavid

Ok, so, *after* I just bought a second copy of the lens and AFTER UPS said they have no idea where the lens is what shows up at my door? The lens! WooHoo!!

I'm still mad at UPS, but, at least I have my lens (and, my B+W 77mm filter came too! #010 MRC)

David

Robinivich

Gotta love UPS, glad to hear the first one actually arrived!

I just received my Wimberley F-2 flash bracket from UPS, though I shouldn't say received, I actually drove a half hour to pick it up. I'd spent the whole afternoon yesterday anxiously looking out the window, and then refreshed the tracking info to discover that the UPS driver had in fact visited, found I didn't have funds available to cover customs fees, and will try again tomorrow, all this without him actually visiting my house, hmmmm.

It's not like it's hard to find, my address is in 1' tall white letters on a small but well mapped street. My theory is that UPS must not pay, or supervise, it's drivers very well...

SavedByZero

DrDavid wrote:

Ok, so, *after* I just bought a second copy of the lens and AFTER UPS said they have no idea where the lens is what shows up at my door? The lens! WooHoo!!

I'm still mad at UPS, but, at least I have my lens (and, my B+W 77mm filter came too! #010 MRC)

David

Didn't you ground track the shipment??

PineapplePhoto

So now you got two copies of the lens? I could use the "extra" one

DrDavid

PineapplePhoto wrote:

So now you got two copies of the lens? I could use the "extra" one

No, I'm going to "Return to Sender" on the second lens. What a pain.. I feel bad for J&R as they shipped the second lens free of charge based on what UPS was telling me (that they lost it).

David

The Mack

You do realize how many millions of packages they move daily?
It happens.

i_worship_the_King

The Mack wrote:

You do realize how many millions of packages they move daily?
It happens.

Averages around 14 million daily. Uncle works in the IT dept at the regional hub . At christmas it approaches the 40M mark (so he claims.)

Kudos to J&R for helpin' you out though.

Moogle Pepper

i_worship_the_King wrote:

Averages around 14 million daily. Uncle works in the IT dept at the regional hub . At christmas it approaches the 40M mark (so he claims.)

Kudos to J&R for helpin' you out though.

No it is true that during Christmas they move around 40 million boxes. Fedex, when I worked there, moved 33 million or so. UPS moves more than FEDex so I would expect that your uncle is right.


Well at least you got your lens! don't forget to the return to sender address which is really my house!

DrDavid

The lens is amazing! :ivar It's super sharp.. From wide open to stopped down it's sharp. I'll post some images later, but, very impressed so far..

Now, I just need to refuse the package when UPS tries to deliver it today. J&R is simply amazing; they bent over backwards to make sure I had a lens for the wedding I am shooting this weekend Highly recommended!

David

DI-Joe

I ship a lot of various things and over the last 5 years or so I've had UPS "lose" thousands of dollars worth of gear and items. Last year I closed my account with UPS and opened a Fedex Account, I haven't had a single package so much as be late let alone get lost...

UPS lost a car engine.... a CAR ENGINE on a PALLET!!! I'm still bitter about that.

The Mack

DI-Joe wrote:

I ship a lot of various things and over the last 5 years or so I've had UPS "lose" thousands of dollars worth of gear and items. Last year I closed my account with UPS and opened a Fedex Account, I haven't had a single package so much as be late let alone get lost...

UPS lost a car engine.... a CAR ENGINE on a PALLET!!! I'm still bitter about that.

That's what insurance is for.

DI-Joe

The Mack wrote:

That's what insurance is for.

yeah, perhaps for stuff that's replacable. Not on-off builds though with custom machined parts. Insurance doesn't get you your hours back. I'd rather just not lose the stuff to begin with. I abhor UPS with a passion.

dancer52

We get stuff delivered by UPS all the time. No problems here. However, with FedEx, I usually have to go to their office (an hour away from my house) to pick stuff up. That is a pain.

Either way, glad you got the lense. Mine's suppose to be delivered today by UPS. Tracking says it's out for delivery. I can't wait!

SloYerRoll

DI-Joe wrote:

yeah, perhaps for stuff that's replacable. Not on-off builds though with custom machined parts. Insurance doesn't get you your hours back. I'd rather just not lose the stuff to begin with. I abhor UPS with a passion.

Essentially, they aren't accountable for their actions.

But they are a necessary evil and I'll continue to use them. At least they aren't as bad as FedEx..

claudermilk

Honestly, from my experience all the major shippers are about equal overall. It sucks when they blow it on occasion (I've seen some doozies), but they all do it every now & then.

Good for J&R to react quickly. I've used them for audio stuff & have had good experience. To them, eating that shipping charge is just a cost of doing business & keeping a customer happy--and it worked. I'll bet you will look at them again after this, which was their motive.

Cason

DrDavid wrote:

The lens is amazing! :ivar It's super sharp..David

What if the 2nd lens is sharper? I guess you will never know since you are refusing the shipment.

DrDavid

RTP wrote:

What if the 2nd lens is sharper? I guess you will never know since you are refusing the shipment.

You're NOT funny! I'm sure the 2nd lens is a dud. Definately.

Besides, Irvine, CA is only an hour's drive from me (Canon's US service center). So, I can always drive down there and get my lens fixed if needed.

David

DrDavid

Ok, here's one of the first images taken with the lens...


Does everyone think it's sharp enough? Or, should I get a different 24-70mm? This is pretty much straight from the camera (with just WB and tone fixes). (To see the original image, just click on the image above )

ISO100 70mm @f/5.0 - 1/800sec

David

Moogle Pepper

Nope not sharp enough! Send it over my way, and I will check it out for you!!

DrDavid

Moogle Pepper wrote:

Nope not sharp enough! Send it over my way, and I will check it out for you!!

Wow.. That's so sweet of you. Watch for it in your mailbox!

David

Travis

DrDavid wrote:

I picked up a 24-70mm f/2.8L for a wedding I am shooting this Saturday. I ordered it last week, and it was supposed to be here on April 14. No, April 15. Ooops.. April 16.. Errr.. Never..

So I called up J&R and they reshipped me a new lens, shipped overnight (at no cost). Of course, I have *two* charges on my credit card right now, but, at least I'll have my lens for the wedding...

WHY oh WHY can't UPS deliver a single lens when they're supposed to? argh...

Thanks for letting me vent. I feel better now
David

I had the same thing happen with a flash unit. UPS said delivered but no delivery. I called UPS and they took a loss claim report. The next day the flash miraculously arrived on my doorstep. 3-weeks later I get a phone call from UPS asking if I still wanted to keep my claim open. Glad you got yours in time for the wedding!

mwgrice

My favorite UPS experience was a piece of computer equipment for a PC I was building (I think it was the motherboard). Tracking showed it had arrived in Middleton, WI, at the time within walking distance of my house. So I figure I'll find it on my doorstep when I get home.

When it wasn't, I checked tracking again. At some point that evening they had it in Oklahoma, and then Texas...

DrDavid

Travis wrote:

I had the same thing happen with a flash unit. UPS said delivered but no delivery. I called UPS and they took a loss claim report. The next day the flash miraculously arrived on my doorstep. 3-weeks later I get a phone call from UPS asking if I still wanted to keep my claim open. Glad you got yours in time for the wedding!

Should have told them you wanted to be paid out for your flash You could have gotten a free flash!

(just joking... doing that would be totally wrong... )

David

Scott_Quier

claudermilk wrote:

Good for J&R to react quickly. I've used them for audio stuff & have had good experience. To them, eating that shipping charge is just a cost of doing business & keeping a customer happy--and it worked. I'll bet you will look at them again after this, which was their motive.

- And look at all the great press they are getting here. Granted, we don't have the circulation of, say, the Wall Street Journal, but .... word does get around!

evoryware

I was going to go to J&R for the first time after the Superbowl parade but I still haven't made it.

I've had horrible experiences with UPS. Very inconsistent. My 40D shipped UPS and they dropped that off with the new doorman no problem. My 40D never showed up as shipped which is even worse. It showed as at origin.
My 4GB memory card, they wouldn't deliver unless I signed. $1300 camera vs $80 memory card what's more important to have me sign for?

When I worked for CompUSA Business most of the stuff I shipped that went through them ended up damaged or lost and I had to do an RMA then reship it Next Day Fedex.

Free Fedex Ground took 1-3 days from Texas and California. Paid UPS Ground took 4-7 days from the same states. This includes my own purchases from say newegg for computer parts.

I never had an Ebay sale or purchase package arrive undamaged.
My 19" monitor box was broken and open and the bezel was off track. I had to re-align it.

Only problem I have with Fedex is they outsource large packages to another company that really sucks.

Scott_Quier

evoryware wrote:

My 40D shipped UPS and they dropped that off with the new doorman no problem. My 40D never showed up as shipped which is even worse. It showed as at origin. My 4GB memory card, they wouldn't deliver unless I signed. $1200 camera vs $80 memory card what's more important to have me sign for?

This is often more a function of the seller's requirements - they are the ones that request and pay for the "signature required" - and it does cost extra.

Not trying to defend one shipping company over another, but you may want to look at the terms of the sale.

marlof

DrDavid wrote:

WHY oh WHY can't UPS deliver a single lens when they're supposed to? argh...

In the place where I live, there's a UPS hub. When something is shipped to me by UPS chances are 100% so far (out of two times), that the driver only reads the name of the place, doesn't read a name or address, and takes the parcel to their own hub. Then, they show it in their tracking system as "delivered, center signed". When I complain, the center resends it, and I get it. Sometimes a week after the initial delivery. I'm no UPS fan.

DrDavid

Ok, here are some sample images... These photos (with the exception of the flower) are STRAIGHT from camera. Oh, and the bird is a 100% crop. But, there was NOTHING else done to them. No sharpening, color, etc.. I wanted to show the lens quality off

This is a 100% crop:


And some photos of my girl..




And, a flower shot (this is the only image that I did anything to.. The other photos above were *directly* from camera.. Nothing, and I mean NOTHING done to them except for RAW->JPG):


I *love* my lens!

ziggy53

Looks like keepers. (Lens and little girl. )

Moogle Pepper

It's my next purchase after the macbook pro!