e-bogo.com Shinai [Archive] - Kendo World Forums

Ross

22-01-2004, 03:00 AM

Hi

I have just started Kendo and need to purchase a Shinai or two.
Nobody here in South Africa is able to provide me with Shinai at this time.

I have bee surfing the web and found what I think looks like a reasonable deal from e-bogu.com. The shipping etc looks good and is well within my price range at the moment (for two Shinai in case I break one).

Any comments on e-bogu.com products?
The item I am looking at shipping is:

http://store.yahoo.com/kendobogu/ketawesishoo39.html

Thanks for any advice...

Ross

R A Sosnowski

22-01-2004, 03:52 AM

[SNIP]
Any comments on e-bogu.com products?
[SNIP]

I have gotten Kendo Kote, Naginata Uwagi, and Kendo books & Tapes from e-bogu. Service is great and the quality of the merchandise has been very good. I had a chance to meet the owner and his assistant at 3WNC in San Jose, CA, last June -- both were very friendly and very helpful.

HTH.

Ross

22-01-2004, 03:03 PM

I have gotten Kendo Kote, Naginata Uwagi, and Kendo books & Tapes from e-bogu. Service is great and the quality of the merchandise has been very good. I had a chance to meet the owner and his assistant at 3WNC in San Jose, CA, last June -- both were very friendly and very helpful.

HTH.
Thanks Ray

I placed an order today and look forward to getting my equipment.
Will let oyu all know what the service to South Africa is like.

Ross

stuartwilson

22-01-2004, 04:37 PM

I have bought most of my equipment from these guys as well as bogu and shinai for my son. The service is fast, the quality is very good (I have a 2mm set, from their "Combination Set 2" that I have been wearing about a year and a half. They are very responsive to inquiries, too. :cool2:

Brian C.

24-01-2004, 08:56 PM

I too have to say that they were great. I just placed a large order with them and it was here really fast. I know lots of people who use E-Bogu and they too are all very happy. Not to mention that they have really nice items. Good luck to you. Its a small world out there, my wife happens to be from Jo-burg :) . Take Care.

Respectfully,
Brian C.
St. Louis, MO

Ross

30-01-2004, 04:07 PM

Just some feedback about using e-bogu.com as an international customer... DON'T!!!

I ordered 4 Shinai and 2 Shinai bags last week Thursday morning South African time. The order was recieved by e-bogu.com at 21:49 on Wednesday evening e-bogu.com time.

Their web site clearly states that if the order is placed before 11am on that day, it will be shipped on that day. If not before 11am it will be shipped within 24 or 48 hours. I take it my order was well in before 11am Thursday their time.

Shipping according to e-mail from e-bogu.com should take 7 to 9 days. About where we are now.

Yesterday I queried my order and was told that it should be shipped yesterday. That is 8 days after I placed the order. That is pathetic service as far as I am concerned.

Now all I have to do is find out from my Credit Card people if I can withdraw the payment.

Anyway, international customers, stay away from e-bogu.com.

Ross

Chopstix

30-01-2004, 05:47 PM

Ross,

That's abit drastic don't you think? Perhaps the people at e-bogu has an explanation?

Hai_hai

30-01-2004, 09:51 PM

Smokeblender

30-01-2004, 10:02 PM

Well... I ordered my Shinai from them 4 days ago and they still havent sent it...

So, I guess ill have to wait for at least 10 - 15 days more... thats a bit unfair.

aru-ma

31-01-2004, 11:29 PM

I have a question for those who had ordered shinais of e-bogu from outside the US/Canada, did your shinai actually arrive within 2-3 weeks? I need to know because I'm about to order a bulk (about 10/20 pieces) for my club.

Thanks

JSchmidt

31-01-2004, 11:35 PM

I ordered some videos and books from E-bogu and it did take them a few days to actually ship it.
I suspect that they may not ship international orders everday, but service was still 'quick enough' for satisfy me.
Now, Tozando, on the other hand....(took them over 2 months to ship 2 shinais, despite telling me several times that they had been shipped)

Smokeblender

03-02-2004, 09:16 AM

Well... I take everything back I just said about Eöbogu, my Shinai just came. Didnt have to wait long :D

orayakab

03-02-2004, 11:23 AM

Having internet shopping is great but unfortunately people tend to want to receive the items just as fast as they order them..

They take it for granted and forget that if shops such as e-bogu didn't exist, they wouldn't have access to purchasing quality Kendo equipment and shinais without having to go to Japan.

Considering that in the past, if you wanted a good dobari shinai for shiai, you would have to purchase them in bulk when you visited Japan or have someone purchase and send or bring back shinais to the states....

Now you can order online and even select the type of shinai you wish to purchase such as dobari, koto, standard, women's, etc...you can even visit the showroom to select your shinai....something that was completely unheard of in the U.S. until 3 years ago....

Considering the past options, I think it's reasonable that products arrive within a couple of weeks.

Orayakab, U.

Ross

03-02-2004, 02:29 PM

Having internet shopping is great but unfortunately people tend to want to receive the items just as fast as they order them..

Orayakab, U.Yes I agree with you, BUT when the web site states a certain time period and you receive a e-mail confirming this period, then I do not think it is unfair to expect them to follow through on their promises.

If they can not make these times, fine, just do not tell people they can, rather put up the real times and people will not complain as much.

I finally have a tracking number some 14 days later and my shipment is still sitting on US shores. Apparently there was an issue with the length of the package. Surely it is only common decency to inform the buyer (me) that there was a problem and that they would sort it out as soon as possible. If they had done that, I would have no issue as I understand that things do not flow smoothly all the time.

It is a pity really as I was ordering the Shinai to see what the service was like and would have been placing an order for my full Bogu once I was happy. A simple e-mail explaining the problem would have made me a avid supporter, a failure to send such an e-mail has lost them a customer.

Ross

amatsuda

06-02-2004, 10:48 AM

Yes I agree with you, BUT when the web site states a certain time period and you receive a e-mail confirming this period, then I do not think it is unfair to expect them to follow through on their promises.

If they can not make these times, fine, just do not tell people they can, rather put up the real times and people will not complain as much.

I finally have a tracking number some 14 days later and my shipment is still sitting on US shores. Apparently there was an issue with the length of the package. Surely it is only common decency to inform the buyer (me) that there was a problem and that they would sort it out as soon as possible. If they had done that, I would have no issue as I understand that things do not flow smoothly all the time.

It is a pity really as I was ordering the Shinai to see what the service was like and would have been placing an order for my full Bogu once I was happy. A simple e-mail explaining the problem would have made me a avid supporter, a failure to send such an e-mail has lost them a customer.

Hmm...I'm sorry to hear that you are not satisfied with the service. I'm sure that with any business, systemic hiccups can and do occur from time to time. Their business is continuing to mature and their customer base is growing rapidly so perhaps there may be a backlog of orders...I don't know...

I have found their service pretty good...and the relative speed of the orders arriving after ordering have been acceptable...My first bogu order came within 2 months, the second one took 3 months after placing the order...

Before companies like e-bogu, I had to have my Sensei in Japan guess what type of shinai I preferred and buy them in bulk and ship them to me...Now, I can buy a variety of e-bogu shinai at a tournament, online, or even fly down to LA to buy shinai...In the past, if your shinai broke the first few practices...basically you were SOL. However, when I had some problems with a shinai splitting on the outside...Taro replaced it no questions asked...

Also, for bogu orders..in the past I waited anywhere between six months to almost a year for my orders of various bogu parts...They would take a while for them to be made and if I wanted to inspect the merchandise before taking possession, I would have to go to Japan.

When certain things were not right with my e-bogu order, they corrected them right away...For example, I ordered a black/grey Same Do and when it arrived it wasn't quite the color we had expected...it was a weird lime green/beige color...This is the one that was on their clearance section forever...I heard someone from southern california purchased this Do...anybody know who?

They ordered another Do right away and the made sure that I got the one I would be happy with...

Even if you have to wait a few weeks, it's still easier than flying from South Africa to somewhere like Japan to buy a shinai. Sometimes even with the speed of the internet and technology I guess you just have to be a little patient.....someone still has to physically pull the merchandise or create the bogu...To give you some perspective...The current Do that I have on order is going to take another 3 months minimum to complete....

amatsuda
http://mywebpage.netscape.com/sjkendo

p.s. - I don't think that they are sitting around on their laurels drinking coffee...if you watch the webcam those guys are like sharks in an aquarium..they are constantly moving...

Inouye02

06-02-2004, 11:19 AM

...

p.s. - I don't think that they are sitting around on their laurels drinking coffee...if you watch the webcam those guys are like sharks in an aquarium..they are constantly moving...

no, they aren't sitting around, i was there 2 weeks ago , and they had orders lined up for packing to ship out , and orders for local delivery, and they were still pulling more orders, they are extremely busy , so just have some patience..

Inouye02

06-02-2004, 11:22 AM

Hello Matsuda Sensei, Happy New Year.. Will I see you this year at the No/So Tournament ?

amatsuda

07-02-2004, 09:47 AM

Hello Matsuda Sensei, Happy New Year.. Will I see you this year at the No/So Tournament ?

Hi Inouye San....Happy New Year to you too..I won't be able to make it down for N/S Tournament...will be in the middle of escrow closing...

Ross

12-02-2004, 11:15 PM

So after 23 days, my first Internet shopping experience is over, and my Shinai made it.

I have to say, it was a tough journey, and one I hope not to repeat to often.

First the supplier shipped a week later than agreed upon. Then I decide to ship just as Airborne Express couriers amalgamate with DHL so my shipment gets lost and nobody on this side wants to take responsibility for it.

After much fighting and many hours on the phone, I finally managed to track the shipment down and send the courier to fetch it.

Now that I have my package, I have to say, from the few minutes I have had here at work to look at the Shinai, they seem of good quality and have a very nice feel when holding and swinging them. (The great calendar that came with them also looks real good on the office wall)

Lets hope my next Internet purchase does not go so badly.

Wellhof

09-08-2007, 05:49 PM

I recently drove down to one of their locations in Torrance, California, to purchase my very first bogu, and they were extremely helpful. It is unfortunate that your dealings with them online have been difficult, but I would hesitate in giving such harsh criticism based on one instance. I understand if you have no equipment to practice or compete with, which might be the case, your anger would be justifiable, but having dealt with orders myself, I have found that waiting customers behave irrationally. The company had a perfectly reasonable excuse, and probably only lacked a system of communication with the customer when this unexpected problem arose. Personally, I would prefer that they focus their energy on providing quality equipment to those who need it, but I hope you find a company you are happy dealing with.
W.

sminch

09-08-2007, 06:47 PM

i've ordered three loads of gear from e-bogu and have been hugely impressed - orders placed on a friday have arrived the following wednesday in new zealand. their stuff seems to be good quality (though i've only had my bogu for three months, so time will tell...), they're pretty inexpensive, and in my experience at least their customer service has been awesome. they left out the tsuba from the bokken i ordered but had this sorted within a few hours of me emailing to let them know.

the only thing which has taken more than five days has been the zekken and even then they were well within their estimated timeframes and managed to get them here in time for a seminar a bunch of guys from our club were heading to.

i would have no hesitation recommending them to anyone who needs to order from offshore.

sminch

Mr. T.

09-08-2007, 07:16 PM

It's alive, ALIVE!!!!! (http://www.metal-observer.com/covers/ucov976.gif)

:D

Hisham

09-08-2007, 08:19 PM

Necromancy is in fashion i guess.:D

Paikea

09-08-2007, 11:58 PM

Three years, six months. Is that a record, Neil?

Nice hat, Hisham.

Hisham

10-08-2007, 01:49 AM

Thanks man