How long did it take you to receive your bazooka?

[bazookagoldtrap]

Long story but I'll try to make it quick. Since USPS damaged the sniper in shipping Chris at BGT said he was going to make a claim with them so he wanted the sniper back with pictures of the damage as it arrived. He said he'd provide a return shipping label. I never received it. I emailed the pictures of the damage and never heard back about it. Chris sent me the router damaged loaner since I had already been waiting a while. I have not heard back about sending the loaner or damaged unit back.



It sounds like you work for BGT? I'm sorry yours or whoevers business it is is so busy that you all cannot keep up with the demand. That sounds like a terrible dilemma that most business owners dream of. It's also kind of pathetic to use it as an excuse for mistakes. So you're saying I should be satisfied with a product that was shipped to me as a loaner and has manufacturing damage on it? The edge is very sharp and I've cut my hand on it. As a paying customer that right there is horrible service! And you are also saying I should pay to ship things that back to you for a refund?

Hello All,

Goldwasher sent me a message today about this thread, and I know it's time for an "official" response.

For those that aren't in the know, the West Coast has had a tremendous amount of rainfall since the end of December. Last year at this time, it was business as usual here at Bazooka.. January through the end of tax season is our yearly "rush" period.. usually double the sales of any other time of year. The thing is that years of drought affected our sales histrionics for our domestic market, and that is what we basically planned off of with room for slight increases or decreases.

Well, we were dead wrong. Since the 1st of the year, West Coast sales make up 80% of our volume, and sales are quadruple versus last year. Dealer orders are more frequent, and the quantities are up. New dealers are coming on board worldwide. Bazookas are now in over 45 countries. You may think, "Well, that's a great problem to have." Unfortunately, we are a small shop of good ol boys who started out providing a relatively new concept in a small niche. Never did it occur to us that it would grow to the level it has (which is still relatively small compared to our larger competitors).

At the same time Murphy's Law reared it's head. We lost our production manager to reasons I won't get into, and had to let go a few others. Goldwasher got a job closer to home, and that was big loss but we are very supportive as he's a busy guy. Training new employees is time-consuming, and mistakes happen.. which eat into production. To this day, every Bazooka is hand-built. That will be changing in the near future as we are in the process of having parts computer cut so we can focus on assembly.

The past few months have been gut-wrenching trying to keep up. The phone rings off the hook, and emails never end. I could spend 10 hours a day just on those things. I now understand why Doc doesn't offer a phone number. Because of volume and lack of skilled help, it's been all hands on deck to get these out and Service has definitely suffered.. Which is completely my fault. We are learning, and it's a constant evolution.

On top of this, my wife and Todd's fiance are both expecting, and due this summer. I probably don't have to say anymore.

Purple Gold, I'm sorry. In no way are you responsible for any charges related to the nightmare you've experienced, and I hope I never implied anything to the contrary. I added your replacement to the queue, but because it wasn't tagged with an actual order number it may have been bumped. I will get it out as soon as I can, and we won't be dicking around with returns.. just keep it as a spare. I will contact you personally in the next few days. Thank you for your patience.

We appreciate each and every one of our customers, and truthfully it's the only reason we do this.. We sure as hell aren't getting fat & rich doing it. Mistakes have been and are being made, but we're trying hard to learn from them so hopefully we can grow into a more efficient company. If you have any questions, I can be reached directly at chris at bazookagoldtrap dot com.

With Regard,

Chris Young, Manager
Bazooka Gold Company

 

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[Aufisher]

Congratulations on the future little miners guys!

 

[KevinInColorado]

Exciting to see both the biz and your families thriving and growing...you deserve it!

 

[Goldfleks]

The product is completely worth the wait. I'm over the moon with my box. It's so easy to setup, very easy to pack in due to how light it is, and gets the gold.

Found my first picker Tuesday. Plus a mess of specks so tiny I could barely snag with my tweezers.

Plus it's kinda fun showing the pros on the river the different style of sluice box. As a newbie it's neat to be able to share something with them for a change.

 

[KevinInColorado]

Tweezers? Get yourself a suction pipette for fifty cents and make life easier

 

[Goldfleks]

Tweezers? Get yourself a suction pipette for fifty cents and make life easier

I have that Garrett gold guzzler thing from my starter pan set. I tweeze up the fines when putting them in my little vial.

How does the pipette work?

 

[arizau]

My way of gold transfer for storage and display.......Transfer dried gold (I just let the gold dry in the pan) via a funnel into the vial after dumping onto a piece of creased paper or if the vial opening is large enough, dump direct from the paper. Careful not to spill.

 

[goldenmojo]

So how's my box look?

Couple of sprinkles for my first time out with my own gear. Thanks Todd! Made my day! Nothing like a box that a total amateur can toss in the water and still find some color with a couple buckets. I ran 10 half buckets total mostly overburden, got some color and a nice break from the city.

Met a lot of nice folks out on the East Fork as well.

Goldfleks It looks like you have a good setup on your box. It is running fairly flat and if the gold is smaller that is the way i like to run mine. You can lift the back of the sluice up and stuff a 1" flat cobble under it (watch the intakes that you don't shove a rock in it) and that will give you a little more speed and may relieve and stalling of rock if you are having that issue. It will drop the water level down to about the 3/4 level on the back fin. The amount of flow you have looks like the box won't float away but an extra rock wedged downstream of the big white one on the nearest side will ensure that it doesn't. Where we are the rivers have some force and you can end up chasing your BGT if not rocked correctly. Looks like you are on the gold. Good luck in your future pursuits.

 

[KevinInColorado]

I have that Garrett gold guzzler thing from my starter pan set. I tweeze up the fines when putting them in my little vial.

How does the pipette work?

http://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&ke...vptwo=&hvqmt=b&hvdev=t&ref=pd_sl_92jrhzrwtw_b

...like the gold guzzler but much more precise. Available for super cheap at a prospecting store, science teachers' supply shop or of course online.

 

[HMiller]

http://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&ke...vptwo=&hvqmt=b&hvdev=t&ref=pd_sl_92jrhzrwtw_b

...like the gold guzzler but much more precise. Available for super cheap at a prospecting store, science teachers' supply shop or of course online.

Pack of 500, WOW. I'd never need to hunt for mine again.

 

[KevinInColorado]

Pack of 500, WOW. I'd never need to hunt for mine again.

Well, you don't have to buy THAT one, just showing the idea ;-)

 

[nuggetshooter323]

Got my email that my Miner is in the mail. I can't wait to get it in the water, just as soon as Colorado Springs/Denver region maybe doesn't have any more friggen monster spring blizzards!

 

[Feannyvin]

Thanks Chris for posting this. I ordered some 20+ days ago. I will now rest easy and wait. Your hands are certainly full.

 

[Tuolumne]

here is the secreto of the bazooka tesoro. Cant wait for delivery? Just drive up to the second oldest store in Alta California in Placerville at the hardware store. They usually have a full line stocked sitting in the front window, thats where I got both of mine. Albert has lots of good info to boot!

 

[utah mason]

Been 22 days since ordering sniper. Hoping I see it this week.

 

[Clay Diggins]

Hello All,

Goldwasher sent me a message today about this thread, and I know it's time for an "official" response.

For those that aren't in the know, the West Coast has had a tremendous amount of rainfall since the end of December. Last year at this time, it was business as usual here at Bazooka.. January through the end of tax season is our yearly "rush" period.. usually double the sales of any other time of year. The thing is that years of drought affected our sales histrionics for our domestic market, and that is what we basically planned off of with room for slight increases or decreases.

Well, we were dead wrong. Since the 1st of the year, West Coast sales make up 80% of our volume, and sales are quadruple versus last year. Dealer orders are more frequent, and the quantities are up. New dealers are coming on board worldwide. Bazookas are now in over 45 countries. You may think, "Well, that's a great problem to have." Unfortunately, we are a small shop of good ol boys who started out providing a relatively new concept in a small niche. Never did it occur to us that it would grow to the level it has (which is still relatively small compared to our larger competitors).

At the same time Murphy's Law reared it's head. We lost our production manager to reasons I won't get into, and had to let go a few others. Goldwasher got a job closer to home, and that was big loss but we are very supportive as he's a busy guy. Training new employees is time-consuming, and mistakes happen.. which eat into production. To this day, every Bazooka is hand-built. That will be changing in the near future as we are in the process of having parts computer cut so we can focus on assembly.

The past few months have been gut-wrenching trying to keep up. The phone rings off the hook, and emails never end. I could spend 10 hours a day just on those things. I now understand why Doc doesn't offer a phone number. Because of volume and lack of skilled help, it's been all hands on deck to get these out and Service has definitely suffered.. Which is completely my fault. We are learning, and it's a constant evolution.

On top of this, my wife and Todd's fiance are both expecting, and due this summer. I probably don't have to say anymore.

Purple Gold, I'm sorry. In no way are you responsible for any charges related to the nightmare you've experienced, and I hope I never implied anything to the contrary. I added your replacement to the queue, but because it wasn't tagged with an actual order number it may have been bumped. I will get it out as soon as I can, and we won't be dicking around with returns.. just keep it as a spare. I will contact you personally in the next few days. Thank you for your patience.

We appreciate each and every one of our customers, and truthfully it's the only reason we do this.. We sure as hell aren't getting fat & rich doing it. Mistakes have been and are being made, but we're trying hard to learn from them so hopefully we can grow into a more efficient company. If you have any questions, I can be reached directly at chris at bazookagoldtrap dot com.

With Regard,

Chris Young, Manager
Bazooka Gold Company

It doesn't get any better than this folks. This is what the prospecting supply business needs - more good people like Chris and Todd - there are several others.

Most people don't understand just how small the hobby gold prospecting industry is. It's really always been about a few folks getting together and sharing their knowledge and dreams. Whether it's Chris and Todd making their wonderful handmade sluices or old man Beck lovingly handcrafting his wood drywashers back in 1937 this is the stuff of legend.

Folks like Doc and myself have the advantage that we have a larger customer base since we serve the amateur and pro miner market. That makes it a little easier for us. I can't speak for Goldhog but in our little business there are times we don't have the time to breathe or eat. No matter how big your business grows you still have to take on the good times and bad times with the same care and passion that brought you to start a business. That's not always easy. It's even harder when the growing pains that come with a popular successful product like the bazooka create obstacles and work hours that would cause most people to quit their hourly job.

I doubt Chris and Todd ever envisioned the growing pains associated with handmaking their invention in unknown quantities. The fact that they continue to do their best to serve their customers and maintain their vision makes them among the best of a small industry. As many have discovered that's not always the case in the prospecting products industry.

We are lucky to have manufacturers like bazookagoldtrap that still bring that energy and integrity to their business dealings. Cherish that and try to help them on their journey. By doing so you are a part of creating a legacy of honest businesses serving a very small and specialized market.

Thanks for taking the time to post here Chris. It is appreciated.

Heavy Pans

p.s. I don't know and have never met Chris or Todd or Doc but I recognize when good people do good things.

 

[utah mason]

Received email from bgt. Sniper has been shipped!! Excited to get it in the water. Snow has receded enough to hike to a small creek I started testing at the end of last year that just didn't have enough flow for my prospector.
Thanks to the guys at bgt. I'm sure I'll enjoy my sniper as much as I've enjoyed my prospector. Next on list mini for my son.

 

[restless spirit]

mine was on the list to ship around the 6th ...im pretty stoked to try it out ..

 

[Goldwasher]

Been 22 days since ordering sniper. Hoping I see it this week.

I just finished your box Chris mentioned it was you when I handed it over for shipping!

 

[Goldwasher]

It doesn't get any better than this folks. This is what the prospecting supply business needs - more good people like Chris and Todd - there are several others.

Most people don't understand just how small the hobby gold prospecting industry is. It's really always been about a few folks getting together and sharing their knowledge and dreams. Whether it's Chris and Todd making their wonderful handmade sluices or old man Beck lovingly handcrafting his wood drywashers back in 1937 this is the stuff of legend.

Folks like Doc and myself have the advantage that we have a larger customer base since we serve the amateur and pro miner market. That makes it a little easier for us. I can't speak for Goldhog but in our little business there are times we don't have the time to breathe or eat. No matter how big your business grows you still have to take on the good times and bad times with the same care and passion that brought you to start a business. That's not always easy. It's even harder when the growing pains that come with a popular successful product like the bazooka create obstacles and work hours that would cause most people to quit their hourly job.

I doubt Chris and Todd ever envisioned the growing pains associated with handmaking their invention in unknown quantities. The fact that they continue to do their best to serve their customers and maintain their vision makes them among the best of a small industry. As many have discovered that's not always the case in the prospecting products industry.

We are lucky to have manufacturers like bazookagoldtrap that still bring that energy and integrity to their business dealings. Cherish that and try to help them on their journey. By doing so you are a part of creating a legacy of honest businesses serving a very small and specialized market.

Thanks for taking the time to post here Chris. It is appreciated.

Heavy Pans

p.s. I don't know and have never met Chris or Todd or Doc but I recognize when good people do good things.

Using the "H" word Barry are we gonna get into that here.......Thank you for the support and understanding coming from a guy like you it does mean a lot.

Like Mylandmatters we are in the top percentage of visited sites on the internet there are two much bigger sluice manufacturers that rank with us and they don't make their money on stream sluices...one of those companies has been around for decades so its pretty cool to rank up there for "hobby" guys as far as sluices go your hard pressed to find a more productive one so I hope were helping at least a few of you guys to LEVEL UP!!!

So everyone knows I am back building bazookas full time now its so slammed I can't not be there.

Everything Barry says is very true. Every part of the Bazooka is generated in the shop and then the box is built. We're pretty good about keeping up on parts its when you are in full production and you get twenty five box dealer orders and several overnight and the phone rings all day that it gets harder to build and keep generating parts.

Nothing to complain about...it's just tricky when your production staff consists of two main people. I think we generated twenty eight boxes since Wednesday...and I plan on having another thirty out by Wednesday.... only five of those have been started!! And we have more to get out by Friday for dealers at the summit!!!!!

If your going to the summit make sure to go see Albert at the Placerville Hardware booth ( you might run into Chris, Todd or myself) or Joey at Adventures in prospecting/Prospectingchannel.com they will be selling Bazooka's....or you could go buy more classifiers from everyone else but, thats just silly!!

If anyone has any questions ever just get in contact with me via p.m. whenever I check the forum at least twice a day to keep up with the chatter and part of my job customer service and R&D I am always available.

As you may have gleaned from the threads we are working hard on securing a cnc router so we can streamline production and work on other things like a power sluice. We are right in the middle of an almost. So, everyone keep your fingers crossed that we are gonna be loading a lowboy trailer with an awesome tool in the next few weeks....HOPEFULLY.

All of this and Todd got married Monday is moving to a new house this week...he is painting bedrooms tomorrow SUCKER!!!!! and is a month away from having a baby girl!!!!

Thank you all for your support and understanding we will continue to dedicate ourselves to our product and our awesome cult of customers all over the world