Re: I'm done with Flexsteel
bought my 2 flexsteel chairs in August 2010, took ownership of them in October 2010.
Last week one of the recline assemblies seized and the other was getting close. Had the furniture repair guy come out and he agreed that ever since they moved their operations to China, the quality has gone WAY down and that he repairs these chairs often. My brother in law has 2 chairs from circa-2005, and they are tough as nails. Also, they don't squeak when you sit in them, etc. they have never had problems with them.
The repair guy knew exactly what was wrong before he showed up. We flipped the chair over and of course the mechanism has dug into the wood (that explains the wood falling from underneath our chairs).
Now I don't mind stuff going over to China (*I believe* that our nation has benefited from the fact that we don't make cell phones, linen, etc anymore). But when the quality drops off that much, it is rather problematic.
I hope the chairs are better than when they were delivered after the repairs.
Re: I'm done with Flexsteel
Turns out that buying from China is more expensive after all, if you include headaches, repair costs, and replacement costs of some piece of furniture that would have been a lifetime purchase, if it was US made.
Re: I'm done with Flexsteel
Wish I had researched Flexsteel better than I did before buying. I usually spend days searching for reviews and complaints. I definitely did not stumble across this forum or the gardenweb before plunging into the abyss. Yes, a little hyperbole can go a long way. I actually got thrown off while shopping in the store - I went for the Grandview line but found it was way too small for my height. My legs were hanging off the thing when reclined and my head was thrown back due to low rear seat cushion height so I started to consider other Flexsteel models and landed on the Latitude due to the really soft leather and "cushions". So, I'm now another victim of the Flexsteel myth. Even if their USA furniture is somewhat better - the fact they put their name behind such terrible junk as Latitude (China) disqualifies them in my book. Faithful in a little - faithful in a lot . . . Spent over $5,500 for a power loveseat w/ console, sofa and recliner and a day after delivery a motion component on the first piece delivered is broken. The authorized and trained Flexsteel repair person just left after replacing a sheared off pressed-on fastener with a non-manufacturer bolt / washer / nut he had in his car. I thought one of the neighbors was walking up to the door when he arrived - didn't expect someone in an old white undershirt and hole-y jeans. Turns out he is a local handyman that rigs things for Flexsteel and other local stores when they break. He indicated the retail store communicated the wrong phone numbers to him for my repair request - even showed me the text. He would have shown up the day after I called in the repair had the contact info been right. He said the store cursed him and hung up when he called to tell them they had given out the wrong info. I think that used car lot next door may be theirs too. Nice guy and was honest about the Flexsteel construction quality. He related that he has had Hancock and Moore at home for 25 years - need anything more be said? I definitely added his contact info into my phone - I'm sure I'll be using it. Not looking forward to the leather issues however. Tony won't be able to handyman fix that. Time to consider some mitigating SureFit slipcovers. Guess this is as good a reason as any to get back to the gym and shed some pounds - don't want to stress this stuff any more than a Chinese sized person would. :-/ MikeSpeak is right - after I have to repeat this purchase in a couple of years I could have afforded the Hancock quality-level after all. Here's hoping Flexsteel (and the local retailer) gets what's coming to them - Carma :-) Sorry for all the emoticons but this is post the only therapy I'll be getting.
Anyone know if the (Montage) MFS-4 5 year premium combo protection plan is any better than the Flexsteel it insures?
Re: I'm done with Flexsteel
Was that a warranty period repair? If so, do not accept the nut and bolt 'fix' and insist that a new mechanism be supplied. That is the correct way to repair a motion piece under warranty, not a kludge like that.
You can see why I dropped the line....
Re: I'm done with Flexsteel
It is. Just delivered two days ago. This proves the Flexsteel warranty is nearly worthless considering this is what they sent and I have to assume it's all they got. The thing that gets me most is not being able to deal directly with the manufacturer. The local retailer's competence or caring can be a crap shoot and Flexsteel should know that or exercise better control over which are allowed to represent their brand. From all I've read today they just don't care about customers or quality. I can't tell you the trouble I went to to discover their phone number. It definitely wasn't posted on their site - just a form field with no real reply back once I used it.
Yes I can . . . with clear eyes now
Thanks for all the great info - for dropping these goofs and telling it like it is