[mamorim01]

So I had a working O2 shipped from the States, I warned the guy about the brittleness of the skin but received no response. He actually marked it shipped very shortly after me sending the message, despite taking several days to physically drop it at the depot. That was not a good sign. The unit arrived earlier today and it is a bit of a mess, the plastic skin is heavily damaged as seen in the pics, quite a few small plastic bits more inside the parcel. Horrible, horrible packing, just a bubble wrap around the unit allowing it to float freely inside the carboard box. I just started the claim process but I am really mad, cannot bear to see the parts on the desk. If the bits were a bit bigger I could try my hand at gluing them back, but some parts have essentially disintegrated. :-/

Sorry for a somewhat useless post, I had to vent.

Drat. 

[BackPlaner]

Ohhh, what a drag. I feel your pain man...have a Tezro coming Wednesday via FedEx and I'm a bit anxious about it too.

[CB_HK]

That sucks. I’m sorry you had that happen. It seems to be a trend item in the vintage electronics category in general. People want to sell things, sometimes for high prices, and then cheap out on good packing material. You absolutely should get your money back since this person didn’t want to listen. I hope you’re successful and it’s quickly taken care of!

You’ve likely already thought of this, but if not, get in touch with Ian Mapleson and see if he may have some skins you can get from him to replace the broken ones. He’s one of the few people who I’d never question with regard to packing pieces like that for shipping.

[mamorim01]

Thanks. This definitely should not have happened. I checked their previous listings and they seem to sell a lot of spare parts for automobiles and general machinery, that is the reason why I thought it would be best to ask for extra padding before they shipped, as those kind of parts are entirely different beasts. They just sold two more O2s apart from this one, so if anyone is expecting anything from a seller in AZ, beware...

I must wait for resolution of the claim. So far they seem to argue that because they used eBay's GSP program and nobody checked contents at the US depot, it is no longer their responsibility but eBay's. In other words, that they are not responsible for the package from the moment it was delivered at the GSP depot. Not sure whether that is going to fly, as packing was their sole responsibility. Regardless of who is going to foot the bill, the damage is already done.

If I am allowed to keep the unit I will surely look for a spare skin, scarce as they may be. Odds are I will have to ship it back at their expense, but I will have no control on the outcome.

I have had similar experiences in the past. Far from an extraordinary occurrence, it is just disheartening some times. Appreciate the thoughts.

[amatecha]

Ah man, that is brutal. The case is ruined!! Grrr :( :(

[Jacques]

Really sorry to see that, they don't understand there are a finite amount of these left in the world, and the number of intact machines is getting less by the day. That is shoddy service though, truly terrible shipping and packaging.

Hope you get a refund, not that it will bring the O2 back.

[Silicon Classics]

Welcome to the club of O2 buyers whose systems got trashed in shipping - we are legion. Ian Mapleson might be able to hook you up with some replacement skins.

We've really got to crowdfund some 3D printed metal skins for O2 systems. Replace all the fragile tabs with proper screws & fasteners, prime & paint with custom colors, and silkscreen the original logos. Better than new.

   

[Irinikus]

Welcome to the club of O2 buyers whose systems got trashed in shipping - we are legion. Ian Mapleson might be able to hook you up with some replacement skins.

We've really got to crowdfund some 3D printed metal skins for O2 systems. Replace all the fragile tabs with proper screws & fasteners, prime & paint with custom colors, and silkscreen the original logos. Better than new.

I agree completely!

To build a model with the necessary fidelity will take some doing though!

[BackPlaner]

Yes, if only we had some kind of CAD program or something that could run on, oh I don't know, some kind of visual workstation of some kind...

[mamorim01]

It is not surprising that others have experienced the same issue. Seeing the extent of damage on my unit and how unstiffened the rear part of the skin is I wonder if the safest way to ship them is to simply remove the skin and ship it separately. Regardless, the guys who shipped this one simply did not care.

For what it is worth, the seller requested mediation from eBay and they ruled in my favor. I was offered a full "courtesy refund" including shipping and handling costs, and allowed to keep the unit, which came as a silver lining.

I have been assessing the damage through the morning and it is clear that the blunt of it is localized in the rear part of the skin, where it is mostly and largely unstiffened. The top cover is broken in two, and there is a hard crack on one of the long sides, but I will try my hand at gluing parts together. There WILL be gaping holes on the rear next to the PSU, and there is no way around it, as the plastic has simply disintegrated in tiny pieces which cannot be put together. Most importantly, the plastic tabs that fasten the skin to the metallic casing are torn off so this will take some further effort. There is no way this is going to look anywhere nice, but I am not throwing this skin in the bin. Procuring a new one, at the earliest opportunity, is definitely in my todo list but for the time being this is going to be the plan.

As for reproducing a new case, the interior of the O2 is a metallic box so it is a very good framework upon which one can build something. It should be fairly easy to model it accurately with good reference to the tie-in points, and model the skin with this reference frame. In order to reproduce the spirit of the O2 skin, a plastic mold would be needed as the shapes are very hard, or impossible even, to achieve with sheet metal. In any case, and if anyone might be so inclined, I would be happy to throw my hand at the design, but some input would be needed.

PS. The unit boots!