We desperately need a directory of marine mechanics with contact info and reviews. This will make maintaining a boat int he SF bay area/delta so much easier. Trial and error is an expensive teacher. It's better to learn from the positive and negative experiences of others. Restaurants have reviews...why not marine mechanics?
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SUGGESTION: Directory of marine mechanics
- Thread starter Waynepj4
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That is basically a good idea but it may be fraught with problems. I am an old skeptic and believe not everyone is honest and many are self serving. If I am a mechanic, the first thing I will do is right a glowing review about myself and urge all my relaitves to do the same. On the other side, a good shop could have a dispute with one customer and that customer could crucify him on this site. Having said that, I think the idea is still a possiblility. God knows I've been hammered before both in boats and cars.
DBH
DBH
quote:
Originally posted by deltabighat
That is basically a good idea but it may be fraught with problems. I am an old skeptic and believe not everyone is honest and many are self serving. If I am a mechanic, the first thing I will do is right a glowing review about myself and urge all my relaitves to do the same. On the other side, a good shop could have a dispute with one customer and that customer could crucify him on this site. Having said that, I think the idea is still a possiblility. God knows I've been hammered before both in boats and cars.
DBH
Agreed..though the idea has problems I think it's better than what we have now which is word of mouth or nothing. Each person on the site has to have a user name so it would be tough for mechanics to give glowing reviews of themselves but still a possibility.
Still, I think a database of reputable mechanics as well as ones to avoid would save all the boaters in the delta/bay area time and money.
Wayne,
The last time you posted, I thought your boat was well repaired and you were happy with the mechanic. Is it safe to say that you've run into additional problems with your boat? A directory is a tough issue because besides the mechanics skills, you have to consider the owner's idiosyncrasies. I know that that there is a boatyard that I won't let touch my boat because of past experience, but have friends that rave about how good they are. Some people want to throw money at a problem, while others want a detailed explanation of the problem. I'm all for word of mouth referrals, but I'm not sure that Les would want to have unsubstantiated reviews of other businesses on his site.
The last time you posted, I thought your boat was well repaired and you were happy with the mechanic. Is it safe to say that you've run into additional problems with your boat? A directory is a tough issue because besides the mechanics skills, you have to consider the owner's idiosyncrasies. I know that that there is a boatyard that I won't let touch my boat because of past experience, but have friends that rave about how good they are. Some people want to throw money at a problem, while others want a detailed explanation of the problem. I'm all for word of mouth referrals, but I'm not sure that Les would want to have unsubstantiated reviews of other businesses on his site.
BayAreaBoater
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Sadly, as with the tide, mechanics come and go, so you might have a good experience one time and a poor one the next...
And then there are the scammers and trolls. They will add their "two cents" worth to the list depending on their mood for the day.
No list will ever be trustworthy...
And then there are the scammers and trolls. They will add their "two cents" worth to the list depending on their mood for the day.
No list will ever be trustworthy...
Wayne,
I too think a list would be valuable. I have asked Les to review this post to see if he is okay with the concept.
I will say that over the last 14 years, I have seen friends, and often groups of friends, be totally enamored with a mechanic. He is responsive, makes their boats run, etc. Then something will happen, for example they break down out of his area, and another mechanic will point out things that were done incorrectly or work performed that hadn't been needed and suddenly everyone's opinion flips to the opposite.
The other thing that I've found is that people are happy to give good reviews in writing, but are hesitant to write a bad review due to liability. You can say anything you want, as there is no record, but write it on a forum and it is there forever. Let's see what Les has to say about this concept. If he is okay with it, I'll make a sticky post/poll at the top of the forum. Perhaps we could make an anonymous poll with mechanics names and let people rate how positive or negative their experience was.
BTW, sorry to hear about the continuing problems with your boat. Hopefully it will be fixed soon and permanently.
I too think a list would be valuable. I have asked Les to review this post to see if he is okay with the concept.
I will say that over the last 14 years, I have seen friends, and often groups of friends, be totally enamored with a mechanic. He is responsive, makes their boats run, etc. Then something will happen, for example they break down out of his area, and another mechanic will point out things that were done incorrectly or work performed that hadn't been needed and suddenly everyone's opinion flips to the opposite.
The other thing that I've found is that people are happy to give good reviews in writing, but are hesitant to write a bad review due to liability. You can say anything you want, as there is no record, but write it on a forum and it is there forever. Let's see what Les has to say about this concept. If he is okay with it, I'll make a sticky post/poll at the top of the forum. Perhaps we could make an anonymous poll with mechanics names and let people rate how positive or negative their experience was.
BTW, sorry to hear about the continuing problems with your boat. Hopefully it will be fixed soon and permanently.
My 9.9hp Honda outboard won't idle correctly. It came back that way from Buck's in Sacramento. I have the receipt and have spoken to them more than once. They have a great reputation, but somehow, my motor was not fixed right. I am not bad mouthing Bucks necessarily, just reinforcing how a good shop can have a "snafu". They told me to bring it back, I told them I wasn't up to it physically at that time. I asked them to send a guy over to the Sac City Marina (short distance) to look at it. They would not.
The engine runs fairly well, but idles way too fast. Hence, I was hoping I could find someone who could adjust it in the water. Maybe I am asking too much?? I have checked the plug and replaced the fuel filter, fuel line, new gas, etc.
Any Honda outboard owners know what the problem might be? It is a 1999 I think.
BTW, I paid for a mechanic to do some work on my Tolly, while at WB, and he told me his boss sent him to work on someone's engines ($85 an hour) and the young man said he did not know anything about that type of engine. He was upset that his boss did that to the people. So if you hire a mechanic, ask them if they have worked on your type of engine before, etc.
The engine runs fairly well, but idles way too fast. Hence, I was hoping I could find someone who could adjust it in the water. Maybe I am asking too much?? I have checked the plug and replaced the fuel filter, fuel line, new gas, etc.
Any Honda outboard owners know what the problem might be? It is a 1999 I think.
BTW, I paid for a mechanic to do some work on my Tolly, while at WB, and he told me his boss sent him to work on someone's engines ($85 an hour) and the young man said he did not know anything about that type of engine. He was upset that his boss did that to the people. So if you hire a mechanic, ask them if they have worked on your type of engine before, etc.
These kind of lists tend to become a place where people try to use them to "get even" with a service provider. I'm not so sure they are a good thing. Not saying it shouldn't be done but how does one make sure it's fair to both sides if you only get one side of the story?
quote:
Originally posted by DLL
BTW, I paid for a mechanic to do some work on my Tolly, while at WB, and he told me his boss sent him to work on someone's engines ($85 an hour) and the young man said he did not know anything about that type of engine. He was upset that his boss did that to the people. So if you hire a mechanic, ask them if they have worked on your type of engine before, etc.
Your primary boat engine mfg, such as Merc and Volvo Penta, offer certification programs for mechanics. Make sure your mechanic, not just the shop he works for, is certified.
For instance, Matt Toly is certified in both Merc and VP engines.
BayAreaBoater
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quote:
Originally posted by Flutterby
For instance, Matt Toly is certified in both Merc and VP engines.
So were some of the mechanics at Marine Emporium and look what kind of service some folks got there...
"Certification" is hardly representative of quality service.
I like to take my boats to a place that has an actual service dept, not an old van full of tools and a dirt lot.
With almost 40 years of boat ownership experience in the Delta and Bay Area, I can count on one hand the shops that I feel are competent enough to work on my boats.
Yet some folks are unhappy with the same shops that I am happy with.
As someone once said, you can't keep all of the people happy all of the time...
It's almost like a Ford vs. Chevy kind of thing.
Im glad you like the concept. Opentable does this sort of thing for restaurants. Yelp does it for all kinds of businesses. Every restaurant or business will have some dissatisfied customers but its the trends that are important. A preponderance of good reviews will point to a good mechanic..more negative reviews than positive ones point to bad mechanics...to me it makes good sense...in terms of liability and fairness...the customer is always right and commenting about service is not against the law
I too th aink uut a list wiveus ould behhanat vae luable. ntI have asked Lends to ustreview this post to see if he is okay with the conpt. p
I will say that over the last 14 yearse, I have seen friends, and often groups of friends, be totally enamored with a mechanic. He is responsive, makes their boats run, etc. Then something will happen, for example they break down out of his area, and another mechanic will point out things that were done incorrectly or work performed that hadn't been needed and suddenly everyone's opinion flips to the opposite.
The other thing that I've found is that people are happy to give good reviews in writing, but are hesitant to write a bad review due to liability. You can say anything you want, as there is no record, but write it on a forum and it is there forever. Let's see what Les has to say about this concept. If he is okay with it, I'll make a sticky post/poll at the top of the forum. Perhaps we could make an anonymous poll with mechanics names and let people rate how positive or negative their experience was.
BTW, sorry to hear about the continuing problems with your boat. Hopefully it will be fixed soon and permanently.
[/quote]
I too th aink uut a list wiveus ould behhanat vae luable. ntI have asked Lends to ustreview this post to see if he is okay with the conpt. p
I will say that over the last 14 yearse, I have seen friends, and often groups of friends, be totally enamored with a mechanic. He is responsive, makes their boats run, etc. Then something will happen, for example they break down out of his area, and another mechanic will point out things that were done incorrectly or work performed that hadn't been needed and suddenly everyone's opinion flips to the opposite.
The other thing that I've found is that people are happy to give good reviews in writing, but are hesitant to write a bad review due to liability. You can say anything you want, as there is no record, but write it on a forum and it is there forever. Let's see what Les has to say about this concept. If he is okay with it, I'll make a sticky post/poll at the top of the forum. Perhaps we could make an anonymous poll with mechanics names and let people rate how positive or negative their experience was.
BTW, sorry to hear about the continuing problems with your boat. Hopefully it will be fixed soon and permanently.
[/quote]
BayAreaBoater
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Funny that you should mention Yelp.
Yelp made headlines in todays paper about how their salespeople were strong-arming potential clients into paying the fee to join so the bad reviews would be buried and the good ones more visible.
Sounds par for the course to me...
Yelp made headlines in todays paper about how their salespeople were strong-arming potential clients into paying the fee to join so the bad reviews would be buried and the good ones more visible.
Sounds par for the course to me...
BAB, my comments were specific to a comment Wayne made about a guy being sent out to work on an engine for which he was not familiar. If the guy, not just the shop, is certified, he at least is familiar with that brand of engine. Nothing else should be implied by my comments.
I, perhaps a minority of one, trust our local group to be honest. IF one of us has a point of contention with a mechanic, I would PM or email our member if I needed that mechanic to do some work. The concept is good. As good as our inputs. No system is perfect. (Why do politicians come to mind....)
for those familiar with my situation my boat finally is fixed!! Quite happy. It took a long time, some trial and error but ultimately a job well done. I mean it actually runs better now than when I first bought it. I ran it just to benecia and bk from martinez with my son after work so not far but man... It was very smooth with good power getting on plane.
Results are more important than anything else, even the time I waited to get this boaT running. The results say that my mechNic knows what he's doing. Let me know if you need a referral
Results are more important than anything else, even the time I waited to get this boaT running. The results say that my mechNic knows what he's doing. Let me know if you need a referral
quote:
Originally posted by DLL
I, perhaps a minority of one, trust our local group to be honest. IF one of us has a point of contention with a mechanic, I would PM or email our member if I needed that mechanic to do some work. The concept is good. As good as our inputs. No system is perfect. (Why do politicians come to mind....)