Date:         Thu, 12 Feb 2009 08:07:18 -0800
Reply-To:     Loren Busch <starwagen@GMAIL.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Loren Busch <starwagen@GMAIL.COM>
Subject:      Cost of Tech Support was Frugal Mechanic?
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8

 RE: Cheaper Online Parts Surces
I remember a sign I saw in a local pizza parlour some years back: "We don't
argue with the competition that sells for less, they know what their product
is worth"
So let me pose a couple of questions:
Do you wait till the fire starts to buy fire insurance for your home?  Do
you wait for an accident to buy  liability insurance or collision for your
vehicles?  Do you wait till you have a dead battery to buy jumper cables or
a battery charger?  Of course not.  So let me make you an offer.  Would you
pay a dollar or two extra per month to have a technical expert available to
tell you what part you really need for the next repair or maintainence  job
on your rig?  That's what we are doing when we support the online vendors
that support us.  Sure, you can probably find a part a couple of dollars
cheaper somewhere but by supporting the vendors we have we can provide some
assurance that they might still be there, still be in business, the next
time we need them.  And especially when we need to call them and ask for
tech support.  To me 'cost' is 'dollars over time' and 'cheaper' usually
means less dollars in the short term but the high possibility of more
dollars in the future.  I grew up in a machine shop and two rules have
followed me all my life:  "Do it right the first time" and "Use the right
tool".