While I have loved the ease of use of this auxiliary steering unit, it has had it's issues. They came to a head last Saturday when the unit failed an hour into the day's fishing. When I removed and opened up the unit I found the better part of a cup of water inside this supposedly sealed unit. Salt water plus electonics equal corrosion and failure. Upon closer inspection, it appears that the sealant used was not uniformly applied, and that water had entered through the control shaft opening. At the price of these units, the quality/longevity is lacking. The other issue is with the wireless remote unit. The screw that is supposed to hold the unit snugly together is bedded into a piece of plastic. After a couple of battery changes, you can not properly tighten this down, and have to tape the unit together. Despite being past the warranty, I decided that I would pursue the issue.
I arranged a meeting with the rep for the Distributor and told him, in detail, the problems. He immediately arranged for a new replacement to be shipped on a warranty basis. He also indicated that this was definitely not the first unit to have these problems, and that he was quite unhappy with the manufacturers denials that there was a problem. He provided me with the name and number of the individual who heads up Panther's tech support (Dale Hagen 1-800-634-7838) and the company president (larry Grundtner 1-651-203-2172) and suggested that I talk to both of them. I have left messages with both individuals and am awaiting a reply. I will provide an update when I have had my chats with them.
An interesting sidenote is that the new units apparently are being shipped with a seal kit to prevent the problems I (and others?) have had. If anyone else has these units and is having problems, feel free to contact me and I will share info on who to talk to on the Island.
Too much water, too little time
I arranged a meeting with the rep for the Distributor and told him, in detail, the problems. He immediately arranged for a new replacement to be shipped on a warranty basis. He also indicated that this was definitely not the first unit to have these problems, and that he was quite unhappy with the manufacturers denials that there was a problem. He provided me with the name and number of the individual who heads up Panther's tech support (Dale Hagen 1-800-634-7838) and the company president (larry Grundtner 1-651-203-2172) and suggested that I talk to both of them. I have left messages with both individuals and am awaiting a reply. I will provide an update when I have had my chats with them.
An interesting sidenote is that the new units apparently are being shipped with a seal kit to prevent the problems I (and others?) have had. If anyone else has these units and is having problems, feel free to contact me and I will share info on who to talk to on the Island.
Too much water, too little time