Poor Ikelite QC after service

I recently sent my Canon 50D housing back to Ikelite to have the seals reburbished. After over 125 dives with the unit over the previous year I had noticed a very small leak on one of the buttons. I was contacted by Ikelite and they informed that due to a few minor cracks in the housing that they would replace the outer shell for no charge. I questioned Ikelite as I am usually very careful and had not noticed any damage. I was told that they were minor stress cracks where the camera base met the back of the housing and would likely not have caused any problems. At the time I was very impressed with the support Ikelite placed behind its product and waited patiently for the housing to be returned.

After I received the refurbished housing I assembled it with the camera and it became apparent that many of the buttons and knobs were not able to actuate the controls on the camera. Several of the parts that were screwed to the housing (port locks) were so loose they were almost falling off. Six buttons and two rotory knobs either did not reach the camera or were barely capable of doing so with what I feel was excessive force (i.e. my thumb hurt I had to press the buttons so hard). As a result I just spent the past 2 hrs and most of my spare parts kits -fixing the recently refurbished housing. Many of the issues appeared to be nothing more than the plastic tabs on the end of each button being cut too short, but I also had to resort to the use of a file to extend the "flat" on two of the rotory knobs in order to allow the controls to function. All of these issues would have been evident and could have been fixed if a camera had been placed in the housing and tested.

In the past I have been relatively happy with the customer service I've received from Ikelite. But it would appear that the quality control is beginning to slip.

Lawrence

What did Ikelite say when you talked to them about these problems?

When I called them today 1) They expressed surprise that the buttons didn't work and offered no real solutions "they should work" 2) they sugggested that I loosen the set screws on the rotory knobs and pull it back slightly to allow for additional length to engage the camera. I was then told to get back to them if I couldn't figure out how to fix it.

As for 1)- I'm unclear how this can be a surprise given the number of recent threads on this forum alone regarding control issues. With 2 its not possible to do this without modifing the control shaft by enlarging the flat area.

Once again all of the issues would have been obvious if Ikelite's quality control was sufficient. I was able to resolve the issues but I should not have had to sacrifice my spare parts or my time to fix something which was just in for work.

Lawrence

I am surprised to hear your issues. I have had nothing but great service with them, including the rebuild of housings.

I have not seen the posts indicating a decline in their service. Are they on this board?

On a few occasions after a rebuild, I have had to extend the knobs, but that took less than a minute. Maybe they did not explain it well?

I agree, you should not have to use your spare parts to fix it.

i would certainly ask them to replace your parts.

Again, I am very surprised with your issues, I have had great service from them.

I'm sorry to read of your problem. All housings- new and serviced- are individually tested with the our shop cameras. It can be difficult to resolve control problems over the telephone or email, as other factors in installation of the camera in the housing can affect control alignment (tightness of the camera mounting bolt, possibility of stripped threads in the tripod mount of the camera, etc). It is also not impossible that there is some variation among cameras of the same model which could affect alignment in the housing.

We are happy to arrange for the return of your housing for prompt attention and repair as necessary. If you believe that different control tips would solve your problem we would be glad to send anything necessary to reduce time the amount of time your housing is out of service.

Kind regards,
Jean / Ikelite
IKELITE Underwater Systems