ACE Yokes

[XOrionFE]

Is ACE a regular company or is it a couple of guys selling yokes out of the basement shop?  Reason I ask is that I have been trying to purchase their 737 yoke and they are very unresponsive.  Finally left a voicemail on Thursday night and I got an email response from them Friday but they said they had customers ahead of me and would try to get back to me over the weekend.   So far I still havent heard back from them.    Their website seemed to suggest these yokes were available but I am questioning that now.   Also questioning whether this is good choice due to slow or lack of communications.

Has anyone tried the PFC yoke?   Obviously a much more established business.   Yes, ACEs looks better and would be preferrred but I also would like to have trust in the company I am buying that they are responsive to any issues that may arise.   Seems like if they are not very prompt when there is a sale opportunity how good will they be when it comes to support.

I know Trevor mentioned they were good.  Anyone else have a comment?  Or comments about PFC?

Thanks,
Scott

PS - I want to fly! :-)

[Trevor Hale]

Hey Scott,

These guys do run a full business..  And they are very Busy.  Last I checked they will filling an order for 11 of these 737 yokes.

I will personally state my reputation on ACE.  And there isn;t many companies that I would say that about.

Just my personal Preference.  Not to mention I have seen the quality they offer.

Just like anyone else in the flightsim business.  Patience is required.

Trev

[XOrionFE]

Thanks Trevor,

Just wanted to make sure they werent a small shop.   I am just too impatient of a guy :-)
I guess.

I know in this hobby you really have to wait on vendors.  I am used to it being the other way around in my business where if you dont respond to a customer fast or at least communicate then you lose them.  Wish my customers were like us :-)

[Trevor Hale]

Tell ya what Scott.  if you haven't heard from them by this time tomorrow, let me know and I will call Ali Personally.

Trev

[AceTeam]

Scott,

Yes you are correct. We are a very small shop with bunch of guys working.

You emailed us on Tuesday. and you got a response on Tuesday.

You had trouble contacting us as per your email so you filled out the contact form on thursday. You got a response within 24hrs from us at 1 AM friday morning.

As per my last email.(Friday) I requested you to wait till we start working on your order at which point you will receive an email to make the payment. I indicated "hopefully over the weekend" As it is right now, we have our plates full. You will have to wait until previous orders are shipped and we start on your Yoke. This is a busy time for us.

PFC makes excellent products. I've had the opportunity to use there products. quality is top notch and they have been in the business for over a decade. Service is no less than any established company but I can bet you won't get a response to emails from them at 1 a.m in the morning.

You won't find any customer on the internet with any issues with ACE 737 Yoke. If any issues did arise they are promptly fixed over the email or phone. Our fault ratio is 3% and those customers got replacement yokes sent to them.

Regards,
Ali

[XOrionFE]

Thank you Ali,

This is the best response I have had from you. 

Your first response on Tuesday said for me to let you know when I was ready to order and you would send a paypal invoice.  I responded immediately and said i was ready.  I didnt hear back from you which is why I called on Thursday and left message thinking maybe you didnt get my emails ( I did get some bounces from your mail server stating it was unavailble when I tried to send so you may want to check that).   I still didnt get any invoice details at this point.  Your email on Friday just stated that you had a few orders ahead of me and would get back to me like you said.     

Please forgive me for wanting to checkup on you guys as I have had some bad experiences before in this hobby and so I like to solicit the community for advise.     Trevor's response is good enough for me.     Thank you for clearifying your timeline.  That is all I really need to know.

I will await your invoice as I still wish to buy an ACE unit.       Just let me know if your timelines start getting really stretched out.

Scott

[AceTeam]

Hi Scott,

No problem at all. It is your right as a customer to check up on vendors. The only problem in this equation is to find customers who can give you any feedback. All are happy I assume hence no replies.

Trevor has used ACE 747 yoke and I thank him for supporting us in this post.

Scott for me I'd rather deal with a company where I can voice my opinion/concerns directly to the person running the show. Not with some service rep who doesn't care about the company or the customer.

No one has that leverage with the big guys.

Thank-you for choosing ACE 737 Yoke. I will be in touch with you as soon as our current orders ship this week.

Regards,
Ali

[FLY737]

Hi guys and girls,
last week I have ordered two ACE 737 yokes (CAPT + FO) for my cockpit and the communication with Ali was prompt and correct.
Can't wait until Austrian Airlines takes them from Toronto to Vienna!
I also relied on Trevor's 747 yoke test report (in another forum) and I will keep you posted about my experiences!
Cheers
René

[Trevor Hale]

Hey Rene..

Great to have you here.  I hope they arrive in time for World Flight..  I know you will not be disappointed.

Trev

[mpl330]

Hi Guys,

I have been lucky to be in a position to have got hold of a 2nd hand ACE yoke and column and I must say I am impressed. Solid build and easy to set up, USB and auto detected.
I have made 2 mods so far, 1 was adding a trim switch guard and the other was to replace the original checklist with a more substantial version. I notice they now also produce a 'professional' check list which looks the business but is a little pricey for my wallet at the moment.

Cheers
Mike

[FLY737]

An actual update to my order at ACE:
As a new customer to ACE I answered Ali a lot of questions and he replied to all of them in a very short time, then he checked the best shipping possibility for me and last Friday I decided to send my cudos on their way across the pond.

Today Ali informed me by mail, that TOMORROW my new pair of 737 yokes will board the cargo compartment of an Austrian Airlines B767, flight OS72 from Toronto to Vienna !!!

Wow, I'm calling that "customer satisfaction" !!!
Can't wait to loosen the screws from the transport boxes ... 

I'll keep ya posted about the progress!
Cheers
René

[XOrionFE]

Lucky you

For the record and since this thread seems to be taking a turn toward a vendor review....I have had quite a different experience.  Maybe I havent heard anything all week because I decided to ask around about this company.  Not sure.  Sounds like we both were ordering around the same time. In fact, I tried ordering the same Friday after requesting an invoice the previous Tuesday I think but to date have not been given an invoice or order confirmation.   I was hoping to hear from them late this week after Alis response on Monday but have heard nothing since Monday.   Oh well...  I am not the type of customer that chases vendors around.   PFC has been calling me all week and I have been holding out for Ace.    Not much longer Im afraid.

I am also considering just building myself as I have a great dual link plan and have also reviewed the setup that Ian did which is ingeniuous btw.  Think I will break out my welder...

[Boeing Skunk Works]

Nothing wrong with doing it yourself. And you can have a real yoke on the top of the pole to boot with the correct Mason trim switch and guard.

Nothing like the real thing.

[Trevor Hale]

Too bad Scott that you have not had much Luck.  Perhaps Just bad Timing.  In fact, I urge you to order your PFC Yoke.. Especially if they are beating your door down for your business.   I am sure you will be happy with it.  Besides.  someone has to still buy their products.

I actually visited The Ace shop On Thursday!  A sea of Yokes being assembled.  Everyone of them are top notch.

Rene..  you will not be disappointed.

Trev

[Bob Reed]

I have not see an Ace yoke but I do know Trevor well. And if he says they are good and the company is sound.. You can bank on it. For PFC.. I own there yoke and it too is very good. Trevor has used it as well. YOu get what you pay for and both of these yokes are qulity products.

[XOrionFE]

ha, you just read my mind Bob.  I just sent you a PM.

I surely trust Trevor.   Not sure why I havent been handled by Ace.  I realize they are busy and that is great.  I also dont mind the wait.  I just dont like (for me) what I consider a lack of communication.   My first contact with them was prompt but then when I said I wanted to order that is where it ended.   I was told that it was 3-5 days lead time originally from time of order but they didnt even allow me to place the order.   Next I was told there were orders ahead of me and they may get to me over the weekend.  Finally I was told again that there were orders ahead of me and as soon as those were shipped during this last week I would be notified.   As of last night...nothing.   I guess when I saw that the other person who seems to have inquired after me is having theirs already shipped tommorrow it just makes me wonder.    Is it not ok to check other builders about their experiences with a vendor?   This is a builders forum and I thought it was also a little funny that the vendor jumped right into my thread when I was specifically asking builders opinions.  I believe their quality is great and trust what everyone has said.   No issue with that....

[Bob Reed]

No No... This is exactly what this forum is for.

ha, you just read my mind Bob.  I just sent you a PM.

I surely trust Trevor.   Not sure why I havent been handled by Ace.  I realize they are busy and that is great.  I also dont mind the wait.  I just dont like (for me) what I consider a lack of communication.   My first contact with them was prompt but then when I said I wanted to order that is where it ended.   I was told that it was 3-5 days lead time originally from time of order but they didnt even allow me to place the order.   Next I was told there were orders ahead of me and they may get to me over the weekend.  Finally I was told again that there were orders ahead of me and as soon as those were shipped during this last week I would be notified.   As of last night...nothing.   I guess when I saw that the other person who seems to have inquired after me is having theirs already shipped tommorrow it just makes me wonder.    Is it not ok to check other builders about their experiences with a vendor?   This is a builders forum and I thought it was also a little funny that the vendor jumped right into my thread when I was specifically asking builders opinions.  I believe their quality is great and trust what everyone has said.   No issue with that....

[Trevor Hale]

This is a builders forum and I thought it was also a little funny that the vendor jumped right into my thread when I was specifically asking builders opinions. 

Scott, Why do you think that is?.....  I personally went out on a limb and called Ali and pointed him to this thread.  Why?  Because I wanted to, not because I was protecting anyone.

Like I said above..  Fell free to buy what product you want.  If you want to buy the PFC then get on with it, if you are happy to wait for the ACE Yoke, then wait..  but there is no reason to speculate either way.

I don't know what communications you have had with Ali, However I would suggest that if you want something bad enough, and you tell a company that you may as well buy another product, then really why would that company jump leaps and bounds for you?

Good luck with your yoke purchase, and I guarantee each and everyone of us is excited about hearing about your new yoke, no matter which one you buy.

Trev

[XOrionFE]

Ali just responded to me a little while ago.   

Maybe we should just close this thread now.  I appreciate all the feedback from everyone here.

Hey, arent you supposed to be sleeping Trevor?

[Bob Reed]

Ha get him Scott!!! No, I don't think we should close the thread. Why don't you just report on what you decide and then give a little review on what you get?

Ali just responded to me a little while ago.   

Maybe we should just close this thread now.  I appreciate all the feedback from everyone here.

Hey, arent you supposed to be sleeping Trevor?

[FLY737]

Gents, today I picked up at two plywood boxes at the airport arriving from Canada and I owe you some pictures:







The look and feel is outstanding, that's all I can say at the moment!

Will be installed during the weekend, final report to come!

Cheers
René

[Trevor Hale]

Fantastic Rene..  I am eager to hear what you think.  Once you get them all setup, please let us know.

[FLY737]

Here we go:

Yokes installed, calibrated, functions assigned, slope in FSUIPC calibration adjusted >>>>> flys like a charm! :-) Little finetuning during next days.

And, of course, some pictures:







Cheers and have a great weekend!
René

[NAX228]

Niiiice looking pit! Yokes just perfect it.
What cockpit software do you run?

[Boeing Skunk Works]

Those look great installed. I'll bet it flys pretty good too.