I’m seeing reports on the forum of people getting a hard “no” on machine replacement requests instead of just the normal aggressive pushback. I’ve got a monitor on their warranty page and haven’t seen any changes in the language that would suggest it’s now parts-only.
In the past I’ve requested replacement machines for things I could have fixed myself, but they involved non-consumable items which were covered under warranty and not normally expected to need replacement.
Does anyone expect Betty Homemaker to be required tear open her A1 and replace an AC board if it fails? Did that change now?
Basically, we shouldn’t have to repair machines ourselves if BambuLab messed up assembly and delivered a faulty machine, no matter how easy or hard the repair is. If the customer agrees to a self repair, that is perfectly fine, but it should be a voluntary choice.
Apparently we all got already too used to BambuLab handling warranty claims with spare parts. But actually this habit violates customer rights in a lot of countries.
I’m surprised that no other manufacturer has brought this to court as violation of competition law.
That repair is actually very betty homemaker easy I wouldn’t expect Mrs. Betty to do the H2* toolhead cooling fan thing, or Z axis replacements though. Those seem intimidating even for veterans lol
Corporate rights are more important than customer rights at the moment so I dunno. At least they send parts? Creality tells you to go kick rocks and buy more belts lol
People might not have the tools. Or the manual dexterity. Or the eyesight. They might just be totally ill-equipped to do any kind of “precision” work. Not everyone is able to do the kinds of things we’d be tempted to take for granted as doable by all… It’s why even simple stuff like a ladder comes with instructions - and people still manage to get it wrong.
If you buy your Bambu from a retail store, if it’s defective, you can return it no-questions-asked. You might pay a little more vs. direct from BBL, but if you’re looking for consumer protection, that’s the way to do it.
For example, in the US, Micro Center cells Bambu. They have a very robust return policy…
Until now i did not have to go through support for anything, but i am using Bambu machines less and less nowadays. Had 6 at one time and bought a few more from people that couldn’t repair them and sold them for a few bucks (really cheap) on the marketplace. At the present i have one (H2S Laser combo) only. It’s being used for printing random stuff until i can sell it for a fair price (hard because of being the laser one).
But since the H2S is mostly used by my wife, if anything needs a replacement, Bambu will have to do it because my wife won’t put a finger on any of those parts, not even a fan replacement . And since there is a 2 year warranty (EU), they are obliged to repair the machine themselves and even cover the shipping if necessary.
Thing is, one needs to have the knowhow, and also the technical abilities, to use them properly … which in most cases, as it has already been said before, not everybody is “well equipped” to do so.
Thing is, one needs to have the willingness to learn. Most part replacements are not that bad and the wiki is detailed enough to walk you through it.
For example, I have given some A1 minis to a few of my coworkers children to try and get them into the hobby. One of them had the infamous nozzle blob that destroyed the part fan and the hotend heating assembly, I ordered the parts and had them sent to their house. This 14 year old girl was able to replace them easily with no previous experience, just by reading the wiki instructions and watching some youtube videos.
All that doesn’t matter. If they deliver a faulty product, then they have to repair or replace it. If you are willing to repair it yourself, great. But this can only be an additional option. If you don’t want to repair it yourself, then Bambulab has no right to insist.
And it becomes even more obvious if their parts didn’t solve the issue and they still insist in you doing the repair of a damage that they caused.
What I would expect them to say:
“You can send in the printer for repair or replacement. That will take 2-3 weeks. Alternatively, if you want your printer up and running faster, we can also send you the parts so you can do the repair yourself without shipping times. What do you prefer?”
I got an H2C three weeks ago that almost immediately developed bed leveling and nozzle offset errors. Tried one round of parts replacement that didn’t fit the problem, I asked for a replacement unit and they agreed and sent me the shipping tag immediately.
For those residing in the EU, here is what you should know, in regards to the applicable mandatory legal warranty for the products (3d printers) you’ve bought.
Commercial Guarantee (warranty).
This can either be included in the price of the product or at an extra cost. This warranty does not replace the legal guarantee, which is always a minimum of 2 years, and you must inform the consumer that this will not affect their right to the legal guarantee.
Implementation of legal guarantees and warranties in each country
Each EU country implements the rules slightly differently. You can read more about how you should implement the legal guarantees and warranties in each EU country via the links below.
I wouldn’t expect Mrs. Betty to do the H2* toolhead cooling fan thing, or Z axis replacements though. Those seem intimidating even for veterans lol
. And since there is a 2 year warranty (EU), they are obliged to repair the machine themselves and even cover the shipping if necessary.