ordering parts

[Andrew]

Just a quick couple of questions.
In the past I have purchased mu parts from SS and things have been great. I have also read a few rumblings about V.B. and their parts not fitting very well or for that matter lasting.
I had another Sunbeam owner ask me about their soft tops, rad hoses and tim bits. I was not sure what to say other than that I had know of some fellows not being very happy with some engine parts.
Can anyone tell me about V.B. and their soft tops, wind screen rubber seals and trim bits?
Regards,
Andrew

 

[Fastback]

Andrew:
In all the years I've ordered parts through V.B., I have NEVER had a "customer service representative" remotely familiar with Alpines take my order. So why bother? I'll rather pay Rick at S.S. TWICE what V.B. asks, because he and Richard are involved with their business and their customers. Never been dissatisfied. That's my two cents.
Wayne

 

[Jay Laifman]

Many many years ago, I bought a tonneau from them for my SV. It was the wrong size, like off a few inches in one direction. I returned it, reiterated what car I had in case the S1-2 tonneaus were different. They sent another and it still did not fit. So, while in that case they did cooperate and send multiple parts, and took them back in the end, they could not supply the right part.

Also, I bought a carpet kit from them once. The "Deluxe" kit. It had a number of pieces that were completely inapplicable, the right footwell carpet did not fit, and the quality was a fraction of the kit I ultimately got from. Sadly, it was probably over a year from when I ordered it until I discovered it was bad. So, no amount of yelling got them to take it back.

Your mileage may differ.

 

[Green67Alpine]

I found it's worth it support the Sunbeam community. SS and CS are fine folks to deal with , and that's the difference they are Sunbeam Folks not order takers.

Tom j

Proudly supporting the Sunbeam Community (for almost a year now )

 

[Nickodell]

Good news and bad news re. VB. I bought a soft top some 12 years ago and it fit fine. I bought the same DeLuxe carpet set and mine, too arrived with a couple of key parts missing, and some strange and weird-shaped bits that didn't fit anywher (looked like offcuts). They did take it back.

 

[Andrew]

Thanks guys:
It is good to hear what I thought was true. I will pass this information on in hope that a fellow Sunbeam owner will be happy during his restoration.
As always it is great to be a part of SAOCA and the information that is received is fantastic.
Regards,
Andrew

 

[Series6]

One last point on the Subject

As far as Rick at SS, he's helpful. I don't think he's that much higher than VB. Ask him a question and he'll help you thru an issue. He's located and sold me used parts. He's there when I needed him. SS has saved me $$ also.

VB has been ok when I ordered from them. I had a switch from them fall apart in my hand taking it out of the box. They replaced it no questions asked. My issue (this week) is that they are probably better versed in the other Brit cars and GMC/Chevy trucks than Sunbeams. We need to support vendors who support us. Rick is exclusively Sunbeam and is my first choice, followed by Classic Sunbeam (Nice people) back east and then if they don't have it I'll call VB.

Get off your soapbox, Nick....

 

[howard]

I've ordered parts from VB and would prefer not to order from them again. DO NOT order the windshield frame-to-body rubber! Get it from Rick at SS. His is actually curved the right way, whereas the VB rubber is just straight and would've been difficult to fit. At least, on my car.

 

[Rsgwynn1]

What are SS and CS? I have the VicBrit catalogue. Do these other places have websites?

 

[alpine_64]

SS= Sunbeam specialities, CS = Classic Sunbeam

they both ahve websites and online catalogues.

 

[alpine in calgary]

I dealt with VB once and will not do so again.....the chaps at SS are really good.....everything I ordered from them is top notch and great and their customer service is fantastic....they made a mistake and sent me a head gasket...when I called about it they sent me the proper valve cover gasket for free and paid the shipping as well

 

[Pumpkin]

web pages

The one good thing about this forum, is either the completeness of information,,,or the incompleteness of same.. The web pages of said sites are as thus. Sunbeam Specalties , located in California is www.rootes.com. They have a great catalog and terrific phone support. Rick is the main man, Richard has been around in the past.

The other one is Classic Sunbeams, Located in funny name New York, www.Classicsunbeam.com, Curt is the main man and great support also, both carry mainly the same type of materials and some times one will out do the other, but like most have said " they will try to bend over back wards for you" .

Good or bad, I do most my business with Rick at SS, he is in my time zone, and that makes it real easy for me. I am quite sure if I lived on the east coast or so it would probably be Curt..
So now you have some info ..
Chuck

 

[64beam]

Hi,

I once tried to order some small parts from VB until they tried to rip me off with the postage. I expect to pay a reasonable amount for shipping from the USA to Australia, but they were very unreasonable and unwilling to use anyone but a courier. After many emails to no avail, I cancelled the order and vowed never to use them again.

Regards, Robin.

 

[AlpineII]

I have ordered from VB in the past but have to say that I use SS and CS exclusively. As already said many times, both Curt and Rick are great resources and seem to understand what customer service is about. And both of them have helped me find used parts when I was in a pinch.

And the VB shipping costs to Canada are outrageous, sometimes more than the cost of the parts!!!

 

[v13311]

What's with VB Anyway?

I just received my spring catalog from VB. Perusing the pages I couldn't believe the prices for some of their inventory. For example: $55 for an upper tail-light lens! $650 for a 7" Servo! The sad fact is that I have had good luck with their parts in the past and I hope that they will continue to offer Sunbeam parts - but they won't get my business any more. Most of my business has gone to SS and CS but I like the idea of competition to keep the price of ALL parts down. I can't believe folks will pay these outrageous prices for their products so I see folks gravitating more and more to other suppliers who remain more in line with respectable pricing. This would be an argument for VB to quit the Sunbeam line, therefore, giving the others an opportunity to raise their own prices.

Thoughts?

Ed

 

[P. Scofield]

SS= Sunbeam specialities, CS = Classic Sunbeam

they both ahve websites and online catalogues.

I agree, great folks at both. Just be prepared to listen to Rick tell the you about the $15,000 he spent on the dash pad mold back in the day. I think he has sold 10 million dash pads since.

 

[mxp01]

I recently discovered I needed a clutch for my SIV. I called SS, but they said thir parts were on back order for six weeks. I called CS, but never received a call back (as promised) from their "tech guy," to answer an inquiry I had on a gasket set.

I placed my order with VB on Monday night. The order included parts for both my Alpine and Sprite. I have a four day weekend coming up, so I was hoping to replace the clutch and replace the seals in both vehicle engines. VB charged me $22.50 for a $150 order. The order has been "in shipping" since Tuesday morning and has yet to be turned over to UPS. I called their customer service yesterday, but was told it "would likely ship" on Thursday, and I "might" get it on Friday. I live 8 hours from Kansas City, but UPS doesn't deliver on Saturday, so it appears this weekend will be a total loss.

MXP

 

[Series3Scott]

I just received my spring catalog from VB. Perusing the pages I couldn't believe the prices for some of their inventory. For example: $55 for an upper tail-light lens! $650 for a 7" Servo! The sad fact is that I have had good luck with their parts in the past and I hope that they will continue to offer Sunbeam parts - but they won't get my business any more. Most of my business has gone to SS and CS but I like the idea of competition to keep the price of ALL parts down. I can't believe folks will pay these outrageous prices for their products so I see folks gravitating more and more to other suppliers who remain more in line with respectable pricing. This would be an argument for VB to quit the Sunbeam line, therefore, giving the others an opportunity to raise their own prices.

Thoughts?

Ed

I was just speaking with Curt at Classic Sunbeam this morning and this topic came up. He's uncovered situations where he's sold some of these very items to people, and they turn out to be for VB, who then marks the part way up and sells back to the public. Same thing on ebay - it got him so mad he's now set up an ebay store for his Alpine parts. Stick with Rick and Curt and support their business - they support us.

 

[napa 1]

I have replaced just about everything in my car that can be replaced and have used SS for the majority of the items. VB can be ok for some non crucial parts but just for example I ordered a few items from VB that I couldn't get, at the time, from SS (out of stock or back ordered).....

Clutch master cylinder. Looked fine, until I tried installing it and found that the fork was too narrow to fit over the connection point on the clutch pedal!

Hose Clamps. Ordered original style wire type hose clamps for the entire engine bay..only the smaller ones fit, the larger ones are way too loose when tightened fully!

Dash switch. In pieces when I opened the box

Tach cable. Looked fine as well, but 1) the interior cable is too large to fit in receiving hole on the distributor and the thread on the connection doo-da does not match the thread on the distributor connection!

Master cylinder repair kit. Rubber pieces, dust cover etc. completely the wrong size.

Its SS and CS for everything from now on.