Pretty much done with HobbyKing, Do not buy their AM-1005 5.5s or the XT150's

[ray schrauwen]

I'm peeved but, not really surprised.

The old standard AM-1005 5.5mm connectors now have the contact surface area decreased by 50%!!! The XT-150's have a decreased surface area of approx. 30%.

I don't think there is much left for me at HK and it's time to buy connectors from Steve and/or Castle.

First my original shipment from May got lost in the mail now, this crap. What a waste. Buyer beware and I'm sorry for directing people to these connectors.... Oh Boy...

I'll post pictures later.

[siberianhusky]

Thanks Ray! Was about to order some in the next little while, guess it's back to Castle at the LHS.
Cheers

[martin]

Hobbyking have recently changed their customs declaration, they always declared at 30% of the price paid. Now here in the UK if you buy from the Hong Kong warehouse they state the full price + shipping costs, so UK customs cane us on duty to pay. I had heard previously that HK were in trouble with the UK tax & customs, when I asked Hobbyking about this situation they said they had to do this as it was out of their control.

[tlandauer]

The only things that I have ordered from HK were the Turnigy 120 and 180 ESCs when I was in a hurry from a build. But it took so long that OSE had restocked them in the mean time and I ordered from Steve. HK's items arrived so much later that I was holding the box wondering what was inside, lol....
Its like the air combat jargon "launch and forget", with HK, its an "order and forget" exercise.

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[ray schrauwen]

Eventually this will apply to EVERYONE and eventually there will be very few or no middle persons in your own country that sell direct. The game plan is to make storefronts for everything with no product in stock, just one there to let you look and fondle it. If you want to buy, it's shipped to you direct from China or from a closer warehouse. People think I'm crazy for prophesying this. It will not be over night but, it's happening already in some smaller countries.

Hobbyking have recently changed their customs declaration, they always declared at 30% of the price paid. Now here in the UK if you buy from the Hong Kong warehouse they state the full price + shipping costs, so UK customs cane us on duty to pay. I had heard previously that HK were in trouble with the UK tax & customs, when I asked Hobbyking about this situation they said they had to do this as it was out of their control.

[ray schrauwen]

Pretty much. I was o.k. with this until my first shipment went "lost" and now I have to wait 4-8 weeks for a resolution and I opened a new case about these connectors that I will be shipping back. This time I used DHL for $15 and it got here darn fast!! It matters not because I'm done with them. They no longer have the basics I need or anything I would want. It was a good ride there for a while huh? Better to support Steve, Rocket City and, dare I say it.... Castle A few others too, sorry i've forgotten them at this time. Looks like MOJO for batts and Castle or the LHS for connectors. Man.....

The only things that I have ordered from HK were the Turnigy 120 and 180 ESCs when I was in a hurry from a build. But it took so long that OSE had restocked them in the mean time and I ordered from Steve. HK's items arrived so much later that I was holding the box wondering what was inside, lol....
Its like the air combat jargon "launch and forget", with HK, its an "order and forget" exercise.

Sent from my Droid using Tapatalk 2

[ray schrauwen]

Pictures... They made the 5.5's with only 5mm of contact length compared to 8.65mm in the past so, not exactly 50% less but, I'm not taking chances on them.

The XT150's used to have 7.6mm of contact length and now have 6.2mm.

Definitely going with Castle or MP Jet stuff, theirs look very nice too.

Didn't bother with the XT150's. I'll take pics of them after HK gets back to me.

[kfxguy]

I wont ever buy from them again. One instance ill quickly tell you. This was last year so i dont remember exactly what happened but they canceled my whole order for some reason. So two months pass and I had forgotten about it. Never got an email from them. My son reminds me because it was a motor and esc for his boat. I call them and after about an hour of being put on hold and playing dumb with me (maybe they werent "playing" i dunno) he comes to the conclusion my order was canceled. No reason why. I didnt get a refund either. Just canceled it and nothing. So after me having to get rude with them (i hate when it comes to that to get somewhere with a business) they reinstated the order and after about 3-4 more weeks it came in. You know what, life is too short to be waiting this long for parts. May times ive ordered from china and received stuff in less than a week. i just dont buy from them. they have nothing i need i cant get elsewhere.

[tlandauer]

What a story! I would have had a stroke if I had to deal with them the way you had to do...
Glad your son reminded you. I still remember shaking the box and scratching my head and wondering why I have received a box from HK. lol...

[Luck as a Constant]

I ordered from them once. They canceled my order, kept my money. I had to notify my bank, who took care of it for me
No I never shopped there again.
Hobbypartz has been good along with kintec and Ose. Never an issue


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[gsbuickman]

Here's a heck of a deal for you :-) . these are the 5.5mm connectors that I use all my lipos and all my boats. I've never had a problem with them and I run 2s - 6s on them....

http://www.ebay.com/itm/310894441835?_trksid=p2060778.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

[Muskoka1]

Add me to the list. I will not buy anything from them anymore myself. Currently in another Paypal claim with them for an order that was placed 8 weeks ago and still hasn't shown up. This isn't the first time. The most annoying thing is, it takes sometimes 2 weeks just for them to get something out the door, pathetic. I've been buying a lot more from local folks, or a offshore vendor that has a North American warehouse, except Hobbyking.

Glen

[jaike5]

Been tell'n you they are crap for years..... little slow on the learning curve EH !!!
Cheers, Jay.

[ray schrauwen]

I know you're joking Jay but, the AM-1005 was the best 5.5mm connector out there for the $ for the longest time, they just changed it. I can show you AM-1005's that are several years old with little or no wear on them. Just because you spend full pop on name brand stuff doesn't mean it is the 'best'. I've bought some name brand crap too. Anyway, you get your open mono sorted out after Michigan? There were some crazy azz sparks coming from that puppy before you put it under the table with fried connectors.

[ray schrauwen]

He will not ship to Canada. Would you be willing to buy for me and ship in first class padded envelope to me? I'd pay you for everything. I would not mind checking these out as they look to have nice machining. I'm not losing much if they don't meet my standards, lol... I'll send you $20 paypal gift, ship as "hard object" and shipping might only be approx. a couple bucks, seen it done before.... no insurance needed.

Send me a PM if you want please, thanks...

Here's a heck of a deal for you :-) . these are the 5.5mm connectors that I use all my lipos and all my boats. I've never had a problem with them and I run 2s - 6s on them....

http://www.ebay.com/itm/310894441835...%3AMEBIDX%3AIT