Ron, Randy:
When and "if" the tower arrives, don't sign the delivery receipt or bill
of lading that you received it until you've gone over the tower with a
magnifying glass.
Years ago I ordered a W-51 crank up tower from TriEx, in fact my
blueprints were signed off by Mr. Tashjian himself as a PE who worked
for TriEx. When it arrived on Carolina Freight I gave it a once over as
it was being unloaded, but didn't notice that a couple welds on the base
were broken in shipment. Apparently someone somewhere had used a
forklift to lift it from the base and cracked the welds at the tower base.
While the freight truck was still on our street I called TriEx and
Carolina to file a claim or get a new tower. Carolina ended up sending
out an "inspector" who wrote a mealy mouthed report he couldn't tell how
the tower was damaged. Carolina took this to mean that I damaged it
within 30 seconds of receiving it so they refused to pay or return the
tower to TriEx. Yeah, sure I paid $1,300 or so just so I could crack the
welds, I told them, but got no where.
I contacted Lanny, K5LP, an attorney I knew and we ended up filing suit
against Carolina. What was funny about the thing was Carolina sent one
of their VPs here to "represent" them in court, but he wasn't a licensed
attorney anywhere. Carolina didn't know that Lanny was a member of the
State Bar of Texas' Bar Grievance Committee, the organization that
investigates and files barratry cases against people who unlawfully
claim to be licensed attorneys (I'm sure every state has a similar
organization or agency). Of course he checked this VP out and found he
wasn't an attorney.
Anyway we ended up prevailing finally during pre-trial on Carolina to
pickup the tower and pay TriEx for a new one without having to go to
trial. Lanny also made the Carolina VP sweat a while making him think
he was going to be charged in Texas with the unlicensed practice of law.
When the new tower arrived it was crated in wood, something the original
one hadn't been by the time I got it and it had "Do Not Forklift"
stenciled all over it. Turns out Carolina had splintered all the wooden
crating in fork lifting and shipping it.
Carolina paid all of my attorney expense and I sent Lanny and his
secretary each a 20 pound smoked East Texas "ham" as a thank you. Lanny
is or was an ARRL volunteer counsel at one time and has represented many
Texas hams in tower cases. Even the ARRL says he's one of the best
Part 97 and PRB-1 attorneys in the country.
Tom, WW5L
Ron Notarius W3WN wrote:
Here's the 'official' word on what happened with Roadway Express... must be
run by former FCC personnel...
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"I am happy to say that the Tilt-Over Section and base plate of the tower
made it to Pittsburgh in 1 piece. However, the tower is nowhere to be found.
While on its way from California to Pittsburgh, it appears that the two
packages somehow got separated. How you ask? I have no idea and neither does
Roadway Express. It seems that the 12 foot X 36” X 24” CRATE got lost.
Roadway tells me that it never made it to Akron or Pittsburgh; the last 2
stops it made.
Anyways, Roadway is looking for the crate with our tower in it and Tashjian
Towers has filed a missing cargo claim, just incase they have to build us a
new one. Thank Goodness for Shipping Insurance!! I have made all the
necessary phone calls to the shipping company and the manufacturer to ensure
we get what we paid for.
If it is truly lost, Roadway will pay Tashjian Towers and they will build us
a new one. I know that is not what I or you all wanted to hear, but at least
our investment is protected." -- de Randy N3ZK
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