The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area The Electrical Bay Positive experience with Jim Carter

I just ended a chat with Sheba at Jim carter concerning the taillights that I bought from them. The glass lense LG154 light set has the lenses upside down which doesn't really matter to me but they made it right and then some.

Way to go Jim Carter!

I posted this in the electrical bay because I am recommending the lights to somebody in another post. If the mods want it moved feel free to do so.

I agree. Jim Carter goes way beyond the average part supplier. I'd reccommend them to anyone.

I have always had a good experience with Jim Carter and Sheba is always a pleasure to communicate with

I've been doing their radio work for about 14 years now ,they always done right by me, BILL

After reading these recommendations,I am ordering the tail light assemblies from JC also among other items.Thanks again FGTmater

Ok, I feel like a T%%d in a punch bowl here. I will not deal with Jim Carter. After three different purchases that were either the wrong merchandise or billed at a different price than listed on the web site. I plan to spend a lot of money on Shasta over the next few years, and most of it will be with Classic Parts (Chevy Duty) I get good customer service, and good parts from them. Not the wrong parts and crappy attitude I got from Jim Carter. I know that is just my experience, and seems to be the fly in the ointment as compared to the rest of you. I will admit JC has parts that nobody else has, and I may be forced to purchase them. I will search far and wide before I fork over my cash to JC. And that will be after I ascertain that NOBODY else has that part.

...... over the years I have dealt with just about all of them and over the years I have had an "issue" with just about all of them.... but I'm still with JimC.

With that said I have always looked up the parts in a catalog or online BUT always call my order in by phone. By doing this I have them repeat the part # back to me and give me the price which I write down in my "little pad".... and I always get the extension # of the person I talk to. These tips have always been a big help if any problems. Hope things work out for you.

I usually buy on-line from Jim Carter and see the prices before I order. They usually send an email receipt when they ship.

Every vendor makes mistakes. Whether it is Sheba Queen, Mike Taylor, or Jim Carter on the other end of a phone call, I have never gotten less than complete satisfaction.

Tim

I have been pleased with Jim Carter but I usually go with Bowtie Bits as my first choice. They are very friendly there and their prices are usually better than elsewhere.

Well guys,I placed my first and last order with Jim Carter.My order did not ship complete,(1 taillight,not 2,no headliner either)I was never notified these items were on backorder,mind you I wasn't charged for them,but was going to be charged extra shipping.If I'd a been told about items in backorder status,I would had my order shipped complete.Guess thats what the Comments box is for.Talk about first impressions,mine turned out to be not good since I called and asked them nicely to not charge me the extra shipping charge.

...correct me if I'm wrong.(I'm sure you will)
Since JimC only charges the ACTUAL shipping cost, and not a minimum like some folks do, would the cost not be the same?? Except maybe a few cents more for the weight of the second box to ship it in??
On my receipts it shows whats shipped and whats not.

I don't think they charge extra,what did they say when you called?

I believe you have the option of holding the order until all parts can be shipped at the same time. If not, the shipping charges will apply to the second shipping too.

....Steve, your right. Shipping charges are incurred both times but the "total" of the two should be no more than if it was all shipped at once as Jim only charges actual shipping cost. So, if its based on weight the only "additional" charge would be for the weight of the second box its shipped in.

JC charges for the actual cost of each shipment, when each shipment ships.

Comparison of total cost of UPS charges for a 20 lb order shipped in different parts:
5 lbs $15.13 ($60 for 20 lbs total)
10 lbs $16.78 ($33 for 20 lbs total)
20 lbs $23.83

Splitting an order into smaller shipments always costs more (often much more), except for oversized/overweight boxes.

I always forget to ask JC to ship all items at the same time. I do not worry about this with Classic Parts - I wait to order at least $300 of parts (free shipping, even if items are back-ordered).

The shipping cost that got to me,was when I called JC and spoke to Lisa,she said the headliner it self would be at least $25.00 to ship.There is no note in the catalog about this s&h handling for this particular item.Maybe the vendor and I were both wrong,but when I'm handing over my hard earned money for something,I don't want any confusion about what I'm paying for.Thanks for letting me "vent".I'm done with this topic.Adios

I did order the headliner from JC and saw the apparent unreasonable shipping charge associated with it but JC did not overcharge me for any shipping. In fact the headliner will come in a fairly small box rolled up. Get it out of there and flattened out well in advance of wanting to install it. I agree that the potential charges almost scared me off too.

This thread is a bit old but I figured i'd throw my two cents in.

I just placed my first order with them and overall I wasn't impressed. The subtotal + shipping didn't add up to the grand total they sent to me a couple days later. Apparently the price listed on their website wasn't the actual price. So make sure you watch the totals like a hawk.

Also, there is no way they charged me "actual shipping". I guess I am spoiled by Classic Parts free shipping deal.

Oh well, one more vendor to deal with only if I absolutely have to.

Ferndale,

Did you call and talk with Jimmy or one of the guys with JC about the billing/ shipping issues? The reason I ask that is I have ordered a good bit from them and found them to be great to deal with, they sent an incorrect wheel cyl. and made everything right with just a call. Just my experience with this vendor.

I guess I've got two cents to throw in, too. I've ordered from Jim Carter over the years and usually been very satisfied. The only exception was when I ordered taillights. The left one they had in stock, the right one was backordered. They were delivered to MN, then I brought them to Sweden on the plane - overseas shipping is outrageous. When I finally got them both home and installed it was some months later. It was obvious that the two taillights came from different suppliers, and they did not match. The biggest problem was that the red glass was different shades of red on the two sides, but there were other differences, too.
So I wrote to them several times, but nothing much happened. What could they do, give me 2 new lenses? I finally had to order new lenses so that I could be sure I would have the same red on both sides.
I've ordered from them since then, too, and been pleased. I would expect that like most businesses, they have good days and bad days - in my opinion they have more good days.
Karl

I got the price discrepancy taken care of, yes. Maybe I am expecting too much, but I expect to pay what is listed. To change the price of something between me ordering it and them sending me a total without even mentioning it and hoping I don't notice doesn't sit right with me.

I would understand a price difference if they just had their paper catalog scanned onto their website and only updated it every 6/12 months, but they don't.

....whew. I have dealt with JC for 15 years. I've had some issue's along the way but somehow we always got it worked out. I've been all over their store during the Stovebolt reunion and have felt "at home" with all of them.
I'm thin on patience but I know they are not intentionallly trying to hoodly wink us. I am like everyone else. When I want something I want it right then, I want it cheap, and I expect it shipped that day. Well, guess what. It just don't happen that way. If you have had a bad deal with Jim or any of the others I'm sure they would appreciate the opportunity to do better.

Oh, I have learned one thing. I have MY numbers handy and wait until they give me the numbers back to see if we are both on the same page..... AND I ALWAYS ask what my total is. That alone seems to help a lot. Generally when they give me the part number I ask "and how much is it" and compare to my notes. I have enough on my plate without having to call call call to straighten out something I should have done up front.
I guess after 15 years I should be able to get it right...right

I have dealt with Jim Carter for over 10 years and have also visited their facility.

Over the years and the building of 4 Art Deco trucks I had only one issue and that was with some miscut bed wood for my 41 1 Ton
pickup which they handled very professionally and made it right.

They are always my first choice when it comes to a vendor for my projects.

I ordered a pile of brake parts, springs, hoses, wheel cylinders. Now like many ppl I got them and didn't install them for nearly a year, and when I went to i found that one wheel cylinder was machined off center causeing the adjuster not to contact the spring clip that holds it from un-adjusting. I called talked to jim and he sent me a new one and trusted me to send mine back even after all that time. A++