Fun times at TSC awhile back...

I ordered a PTO Lever Knob from TSC a few months back because they apparently don't stock them (they are common across tons of tractors, not just my WD). Anyway, the guy working the service counter tells me that it should be in within 3 days.

Two weeks later, I stumble back in, and the guy there says "did we call you?" and I said "no". So he begrudgingly checks on my order which did not come in, telling me that "they'll call me when it comes in" repeatedly. I shrug and leave.

Two weeks after that I come back in, same guy is there. He says "did we call you?" and I said "no". And he says "we'll call you when it comes in" and I stopped him and said "No, that's why I'm here. You haven't called me in nearly a damn month for a part that should've been in within a week. I'd have driven to Iowa to get it myself if I knew you were so incompetent."

So he's tired of dealing with me already so he passes me off to one of the girl's working in the store. She checks the computer for me and finds that - *GASP* THEY NEVER ORDERED MY PART! She says this is actually a common occurence for said employee, and I was pretty ------ at this point.

Anyway, I was there for almost an hour as she and I combed through parts catalogues while she tried to manage other stuff at the store (thanks to other incompetent employees) and finally we found a book with the knob and she ordered it right there on the spot for me. And within 3 business days of that, I had my new knob.

In fact, I showed up the next week to get it, and I said "I'm here about a PTO lever knob" and the guy goes "Excellent, it just came in on the truck yesterday!" and couldn't have been nicer. So, I'm 50/50 on them. Half of their employees know their parts and are pains in the arse, and the other 50 don't really know tractor parts but are willing to help.

I much prefer the latter, honestly. They actually did call me when it came in, except if I hadn't been so persistent how many weeks or months could have gone by with NOTHING. The note with my name, number, and part I was ordering was on the metal pole with a clip on it next to the order computer for weeks without so much as a hint of being moved on. So aggravating. :evil:

It's been going on with them for more years than some of you have been alive. I ordered an overhaul kit for a Farmall H from the Lansing Michigan store back in the late 60s and had the same thing happen. I called a couple of times over a few weeks and had the a$$hole on the other end say he'd check on it then hang up on me. I found out after three or four weeks that he hadn't orderd it.
My latest greif with them though,was getting Clipper belt lacing for the round baler. The stuff is made 50 miles from here and the nearest TSC store where I could find it was 500 miles away in Danville Ky.

Years ago when Central Tractor Parts was still in business, they had a store in Amsterdam, N.Y. There was one young fellow working there who grew up on a farm. He was real good with the machinery parts and other farm related things. There was also a semi-retired man who had worked in a hardware store most of his life. He was real good with that stuff. You would be lucky if any of the other employees could even tell you where the front door was!

I don't order anything through TSC, its just too much of a hassle. Look up nnalert, they still have a catalog and it looks shocking similar to the one that Central Tractor used to hand out. The service is good and parts show up at your door.

Like most mid size and larger companies, you'll have a few people really pulling the load for all the lazy ones who only do what they absolutely have to in order to get by.

Cant say Ive had much trouble with TSC, but I never have had to order anything from them either. Pretty well just get my dog food and a few odd and ends for the farm there. Now Oriely Auto well thats another story. I mite be the only person ever asked to leave the store but that was after hearing the manager thats rite the manager and the person helping me talkin in the back that I was an idiot and didnt know what i was talkin about. Ive farmed and worked on equipment and trucks my whole life. Not a mechanic or an expert by any means but I know the difference betwwen a U-joint held in with a strap and one held in with a clip. So needless to say I dont go there anymore.

You just described the parts department and parts manager at the local John Deere dealer. That's why most all of the Deere equipment has left here and I do business with the Agco dealer.

Quality help is really not important to these places and that is why they try to stick to product that pretty much sells itself (as long as it gets placed out on the salesfloor). Then you have the issue if you order the part is it in fact in stock at the company warehouse despite what the store computer says? If you order it from the vendor is there an order minimum the store employee is not made aware of? Is the company in good standing with the vendor or is there a payment issue that stands in the way of product being shipped on time? Management hates an hourly employee standing around on the phone (even if there is a valid need to do so for the sake of an order) so does the order get handled promptly or does it wait till it is convenient for management to work on it?
These were some of the issues I faced when I worked for CT after it stopped being a family owned company. Nothing ------ me off more than being responsible for a bunch of phone orders and then scheduling me to work when the companies I needed to contact were closed i.e. nights and weekends. I lived too far away from the store just to do it on my own time.
I went to interview for a TSC store that had recently opened in the area. I got intel from a friend I have that worked for CT then TSC and he told me it was pretty much SOS. I went to the interview and told the manager what I wanted to have happen before I would hire on. Manager would assure nothing so I passed and I think they just wound up hiring some tackling dummy instead.
I don't see it getting better soon.

TSC is a good place to buy dog food and horse blankets. If you need tractor parts, just do an internet search. You will find the same parts that TSC USED to be known for, and you can get them delivered right to your door. You don't even have to crank up the engine in your car or truck, or put any gasoline in it.

Well it isn't worth the hassle for me, I'll either order off the internet or go to one of my local AGCO dealers for stuff. Which is what I've usually done. At least it was on a little part that was fairly insignificant.

I also dislike being insulted by store employees as if I'm stupid. Nothing ticks my temper off faster. And I can tell that I'm not alone in this boat. Some 20 something who probably can't even change the oil in his own car and with a smart mouth only a mother could love.

The guy was nice after the fact because he's lucky to still have a job! I don't think the guy should be so lucky if he has a history of horrible customer service. There are too many people having trouble finding work to have to put up with service like that. Dave

Know what TSC stands for? Last time I ordered anything from them, the experience was similar. I paid with exact change, and laid a nickel on the counter, and asked the asshat employee to look at it, and tell me what was different about it. When he gave up after lookin at it, I said, Its the last one of mine you'll ever see! Oh, Tsc stands for tough (stuff) charlie!

I'm pretty sure they were associated, at least at one time. Haven't ordered from them in several years, but had good service when I did.

This isn't about TSC, but about 30 years ago, I had a sideline business fixing boats and outboard motors.

I needed a roller bearing for an outdrive unit. The bearing had spun in the housing and part of the number was obliterated. I went to a place called Precision Bearing and asked about a replacement. Some dumpy little dork on the counter with a stub of a cigar in his mug took one look at it and said, "It would be a G--D--- waste of time to even try", handed it back to me, and walked off.

I left in a huff and went to another bearing place called Power Drives and Bearings. I handed the bearing to the fellow on the counter, he took a caliper out of his shirt pocket, took a couple of measurements, reached up on a shelf, and handed me a new one.

By then I was fried. I got on the phone with the store manager at Precision Bearing and had an "interesting" twenty minute conversation about the guy on the counter.

As it happened, on the full time job I had at the time, I had to go into that particular Precision Bearing store frequently to pickup up stuff for the Maintenance Dept. I never saw that dork with the cigar again. Somebody said he disappeared in the middle of the afternoon.

When Central Tractor got bought by Quality Farm and Country, they went bankrupt and closed. nnalert is what used to be Central Tractor's salvage/rebuilt parts operation.

After finding out that the part wasn't ordered.
It would have cost the incompetent employee his job.
I would have raised enough heck that someone with authority would listen to me.

Regardless of the pay scale , these people are their by choice, so they should learn all aspects of sales and costumer relations.
If they don't understand that then give up their job to the next in line.

Hate to hear some young whippersnapper with his buddy s, at a Micky D's bragging about the hard time they gave an old fart that day.

Did you really expect anything different?Go to the cheapie places and get the cheapie service.Its the way it is don't expect 5 Star service at the Fleabag Inn

Sometimes it's not the counterperson who's at fault. Several years back I worked for a Pontiac dealer, and the only one authorized to actually order the parts from GM was the parts manager.

We had a LOT of problems with parts not being ordered, and couldn't understand what was happening until the week the parts manager went on vacation. That week, with the assistant parts manager doing the ordering, EVERYONE's parts got ordered, and at the priority that was specified [some customers were paying a 10% upcharge for overnight ordering, and sometimes the orders weren't being done as overnight priority...so we'd have to refund the 10%, PLUS apologize to the customer].

So what happened when the parts manager came back from vacation? NOTHING. The office manager--who, BTW, manages the entire dealership today--was the parts amanger's brother, and NO complaints got to the owner without first passing through the office manager...so NO parts complaints ever got to the owner.

So sometimes it's NOT the fault of the parts counterperson. BTW...during the 6 months I worked at that dealership, the owner offered a $500 gift certificate to the employee in each department who, in the eyes of their co-workers, made the most effort to ensure quality customer service...and I still have the ring I bought with [my half of] that gift certificate [first wife also got a ring with her half].

Crabbing about TSC seems to be a favorite topic.I went there last Dec to buy 2 pancake type air compressors.I asked the clerk for a flatbed cart.She came back with one and put 2 compressors on the cart.Bought a drill press 2 years ago, 2 fellows loaded in the truck for me.Same thing on bundles of steel fence posts plus the posts were half the price of other store.They sell over alls that have a zippered breast pocket plus one with a buttoned flap so the pockets dont collect hay and sawdust.They have my size and I have a safe place for my check book,cell phone and reading glasses.The flap pocket is big enough to hold a wallet.

About 3 or 4 months ago I purchased a 50# bag of dog food from TSC; consequently my dog, who will eat just about anything, would not eat it. I wound up throwing it into my field for the critters to have, they wouldn't eat it either.