Status of Fulcrum and Orders

[tutmeister 719]

Hi all, and especially to our customers and backers. I am very sorry for the current state of communications and production. I also understand that there are some very frustrated customers and rightly so. I feel like all we have managed to do is miss deadlines and annoy customers. It is no secret around here that we are been seriously late with shipments, this has been for various reasons.

Firstly, let me assure you that Fulcrum are still trading and producing. I know there have been questions about our status and even that we might be a scam. I can assure you that we are not a scam! We are still producing the best flight controllers available and we will meet all our orders without fail.

Production

We have had production issues that have delayed this massively, I had to let a staff member go and have not replaced them, we have had supplier issues and various other things that are internal. I have been back on the tools making parts and assembling and communication has lapsed because all email communication, forum posts, supplier liaison and the rest of the company duties is up to me. So all I can do is say sorry for that. I appreciate the extreme patience that has been shown to us, without which the company would not have survived so thank you sincerely.

So, orders. I am aiming to have all orders of yokes caught up within around 4-5 weeks, so that is all the really old orders up to the more recent ones. I have heard that the lead time of metalwork that we are missing is 3-4 weeks. We have yoke handles and all the wiring and internals here and assembled into sub sections so once we get parts we can start to ship.

Throttles

Throttles are in the same boat I'm afraid. Metalwork is the hold up and it is from the same production line. These will start shipping when the case metalwork arrives.

Email

I am going to email our customers with this update too. This brings me on to email issues. For some reason our website email changed to have an extra www inserted into it. This should have been fixed now and enquiries@fulcrumsim.com seems to be working.

We have had some requests for refunds, and I completely understand peoples reluctance to support a company not delivering on time, rest assured that your orders are safe as we have paid for the stock and have most of it on the shelves.

I know the past few months have damaged the reputation that I have tried to build for Fulcrum, thank you deeply for the support shown and the patience. We will definitely get there!

Chris

 

Edited June 4, 2023 by tutmeister

[polosim 872]

Business is business and things like this can happen all the time, even in larger companies, for my part the situation you are going through is totally understandable. To make the situation clear, if I placed an order for a Yoke today, how long would I have to wait for its delivery?

[tutmeister 719]

6 minutes ago, polosim said:

Business is business and things like this can happen all the time, even in larger companies, for my part the situation you are going through is totally understandable. To make the situation clear, if I placed an order for a Yoke today, how long would I have to wait for its delivery?

Hi, if it was today, you would be at the back of the queue so after the 4-5 weeks catch up. We have always aimed to be off the shelf but never quite managed it!

[Ron Attwood 3,562]

Thank you Chris. My blood pressure has now returned to normal.😉

In the words of Mike Patey "Back to work!"

Edited June 4, 2023 by Ron Attwood

[polosim 872]

31 minutes ago, tutmeister said:

after the 4-5 weeks

It's not a terrible lapse of time. Hoping that you will soon be able to overcome all the obstacles caused by delays and that they will be able to catch up. You make an excellent product of very high quality, you deserve a great success. Thank you for the clear communication with the customer , it is always essential.

[billium01 11]

Ok that works. Thanks for the note. I don't need a refund. Order number 3010. 

[Donka 669]

Chris, as a customer, all I ask for is timely updates on progress of the products that have been ordered, bearing in mind I paid in full for a product > 6 months ago. I don't question the product or the support (both first class) but, for those waiting, communication absolutely is key.

[Ron Attwood 3,562]

1 hour ago, Donka said:

Chris, as a customer, all I ask for is timely updates on progress of the products that have been ordered, bearing in mind I paid in full for a product > 6 months ago. I don't question the product or the support (both first class) but, for those waiting, communication absolutely is key.

He gets it.

[MistaX 3]

Thanks for the update, Chris.

[Patpoe 0]

Dear Chris,

I tried to reach you by mail, but to no avail. Fortunately i read this post on the Avsim forum, so i understand now the situation that you and your company are in. I still have a modified Saitek yoke ( Leo Bodnar), and throttles that i can work with reasonably well. I look forward to receiving the yoke, and throttles somewhere during the summer hopefully (#3129 and #3140). 
Wishing you all the best.

Keep communicating, best regards👍😉

Pat.

 

[kevinfirth 1,488]

Excellent post, I'm not in a position to buy a throttle yet, but having experienced the quality of both the yoke, and the customer service, the delays you are experiencing don't bother me at all.  I'll be buying a throttle when the finances permit! Keep it going Chris 👍

[aspegicus 0]

Hi- please cancel my order #2965 
 

it has been 8 months waiting now. Can’t deal with this any longer. I just sent you an email to confirm cancellation.

Antoine R.

[Patpoe 0]

Hello,

Please cancel my orders #3129 and #3140.

I am afraid this is all going nowhere. 
I also send you an email regarding the above cancellation. 
 

Pat.

[Stuwy 2]

Hi Chris, stuart here. Well I’ve waited longer for my bravo throttle on preorder that ended up arriving almost a year later than published (crazy huh).

I won’t be cancelling my order. 
#3076

but hopeful it’s sooner rather than later

 

 

[mrcultureshock 75]

I'm gonna wait for the throttle (Order #2931). Since it's been a long while since I placed the order (I had also bought the yoke before), would it be possible to have a nice discount on the jetliner levers for the throttle?