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Not sure how many are aware of this, but GT has a new company wide policy to no longer save grips. Apparently a tech stabbed himself with a needle, hence the new policy. Just giving everyone a heads up who goes in expecting to be able to keep their grip.
So.....instead of shifting "butter fingers" onto other duties, they will now toss out customer's grips as a standard practice chain wide? Yeah, that sounds like a company focused on the customer...
:irked:
For the same reason, Golf Works will not save grips either and most golf stores and clubfitters have a similar policy. The consequences of accidentally stabbing yourself with a needle full of solvent can be very serious. If you really want to save $5 that badly then do it yourself.
Thx for the update on Golfworks. I didn't know they stopped saving grips.
I had no idea it was such a delicate operation - I thought they use some sort of hot air tool to loosen and pull the grips off. Needles full of solvent?Quote:
Originally Posted by justsomeguy
The scenario I had in mind was something more expensive like the swapping of a SuperStroke grip. I have one such putter with a mint SS grip and I'd like to try out a different one. Same story with my Scotty Newport - there's no way I want to lose the original Scotty grip.
If it's Capt. Cheapskate (a role I used to play quite well back in the day...) trying to save some well-worn golf prides from his 10 year old clubs....whole different story.
It's not so delicate but if you slip and stab yourself in the hand and inject a few cc of solvent - your are nothing short of f*#ked.
You need surgery for sure. Your hand will never be the same. Amputation is not out of the question.
Amazing it's taken so long for big Golf chains to come to this over $10 grip.
I don't care how much you like that grip, it's definitely not worth it.
Forgive me while I play devil's advocate a bit here...
How is this any different from the potential injury risk to employees when you go get an oil change, a tire change, a tow along the highway, even just requesting a clerk to grab something from a high-up shelf. Minimally trained minimum-wage employees at every store in the world routinely use box cutters when unpacking inventory and stocking the shelves - one slip up and they could be in big trouble. There's a million more examples. Sounds ridiculous, but in each case there is the potential for serious injury...even death if something goes wrong and they don't do the little things right.Quote:
Originally Posted by moneymaker
This is a service that many golfers want and are willing to pay for - is there nothing that the golf stores can do to minimize the risks involved while still running the business and satisfying customer demand? Thicker gloves, protective tips on the needles, additional braces for the club shafts while doing the work, using heat guns instead of solvent injections, etc. There's gotta be a better, safer way...
Again, agreed for standard iron grips but the new SS putter grips are up to $40. The golf stores should charge extra if the customer wishes to keep the original grip (that'd deter 90% of the requests) and should reserve the right to refuse if it's a stubborn bond that would be tricky/risky to take off cleanly.Quote:
Originally Posted by moneymaker
Hell, they sell all this equipment at Golfworks and I don't see any health and safety advisories on the product pages.
The GolfWorks V-Groove Grip Remover
The Golfworks Grip Solvent
If I can't swap expensive grips like I swap shafts and heads, I'll stop buying those fancy grips along with a lot of other people I imagine. That's the last thing these stores need as they struggle to stay in business as it is. I get that no workers should ever be placed in harm's way unnecessarily - what I don't get is that there isn't a better, safer way to do this rather than just deciding "nope...no more".Quote:
Originally Posted by moneymaker
So I guess the safest policy is to give the guy a blade?!!! wtf!
If the guy in question can stab himself with a needle (not even sure how you manage this and i've pulled lots and lots of grips with a needle), pretty sure he's not going to be safe cutting/ripping the grip with a blade (I seem to cut myself as soon as the knife comes out of the tool box! Those things are sharp!)
Pretty sure this is partially a health and safety issue and partially to force the customer into a new grip. Its called retail sales, not retail re-use.
I imagine there are quite a few guys skilled in the art of grip removal on this very forum, who would still be quite happy to "slip your grip" for you. :)
Saving a grip is a customer service issue, the cost and time required its not worth it ! Retailers are more interested in selling you a new grip. Same as golf spikes, most manufacturers are now bringing out shoes with permanent spikes so they can sell you new shoes in two years rather than $16.00 replacement spikes.
I am with babybull. Saving a grip is a PITA most times or should I say more time consuming. If you use a blade type remover there will be left over tape inside the grip which needs to be cleaned. Using a compressor has issues as well and does not work on all grips.
@SnazzyD.
You are correct - loads of other examples in the real world where hands are at risk but definitely less so. But this post was about needles and grip removal not oil changes or box cutters so don't get tangential.
There is only one equivalent injury that rivals injecting your finger with solvent and that is a high pressure grease gun injection into a fingertip. Oil changers don't work with sharp needles. Box cutters are knives - you're heading off down an apples and oranges path.
@Babybull @ kilmidyke - Maybe a business move to sell new grips, but I would seriously disagree. Again the link with shoes is just wrong - no one is at risk of losing a hand changing your spikes - but this is a real thing with needles and grips.
I would suggest to anyone that this is a true safety/business issue.
Any golf store can't justify charging you even $200 for a grip removal if it means a 20-something guy loses a hand - the liability would be in the millions - just too big a risk on their end.
If you REALLY must have your favourite grip back at the potential risk of someone losing a hand... maybe just realize there are others in this world who will think that's ridiculous.
Those are two contradictory statements, if you think about it. It can be very much worth it to the customer, hence the demand for that particular service. From the store's perspective (your apparent viewpoint), I get that they'd rather not busy their staff with a low-margin service like this (plus the potential safety issue I had no idea about) but they risk customer dissatisfaction by not doing just that. And again, I am only talking about expensive putter grips - it's a waste of time/money from the customer's point of view to try and save/reuse a regular iron grip.Quote:
Originally Posted by the babybull
Anyone who works in a client service industry will tell you that it's often the little things that go a long way. Store A wants to chuck the $40 grip I just bought from them last month...phht, I'll try out Store B or C to see if they'll do what I want them to do as a paid service.
Store A loses that foot traffic - instead of me browsing around for more high-margin crap I really don't need while I'm there, I don't even walk in the door. And if I end up getting what I want at Store B or C, I may never go back. Low-margin services are the equivalent of loss-leader sale items to a supermarket...they get you in the door and keep you coming back.
Of course, but they'll surely sell less of the premium (high margin) grips once customers come to learn that it's a one-and-done decision they're making. Golfers, perhaps more than any other sport community, love to tinker...with new clubs, swings, shafts, heads....and (putter) grips.Quote:
Originally Posted by the babybull
I'm on my second set of (probably very high margin) spikes for my Footjoys. One of the spikes had broken off and the guy at Golftown managed to get it out for me - free of charge because of the "golf days" promo being run at the time. I walked out of there a very satisfied customer, far more likely to give them my business the next time I needed something or some work to be done.Quote:
Originally Posted by the babybull
Flip that to a pair of shoes that break down after two years with spikes that can't be replaced. Unless I am playing 30x a year, I'll be switching manufacturer.
Replacement spikes = foot traffic in stores (no pun intended)
Providing services that clients need = happy customers in said stores
Happy customers in the store = more purchases of (usually) higher margin items.
It's not tangential at all. There are plenty of jobs where the day to day work is potentially dangerous if the job isn't executed carefully and safely. People do those jobs because there is a demand/need for it, and only those who are trained and capable to do those potentially dangerous jobs should be in that position to begin with.Quote:
Originally Posted by moneymaker
As above, this is very much an apples to apples comparison - workplace safety is a big topic because there are risks everywhere.Quote:
Originally Posted by moneymaker
You're painting such people as selfish, entitled sorts who'd callously risk the safety of a worker in order to satisfy some trivial request. That's not really the case here.Quote:
Originally Posted by moneymaker
Let's put this in perspective with a truly ridiculous sequence of scenarios that employ the same sort of 'worst case scenario' thinking that you're basing your argument on.
- The guy I pay to do my lawn care accidentally sprays himself in the face with the stuff they treat my lawn with and blinds himself
- The store clerk helping me get that item from the top shelf falls off the ladder and breaks his neck
- The mechanic working under my car loses a leg when the jack he improperly setup fails and he gets crushed
- One of the roofers reshingling my roof doesn't use his safety harness, slips and falls and ends up paralyzed
- They Hydro One guy who comes out to do repairs after a recent storm - he forgets to kill power to the box he's working on and electrocutes himself
- The fry cook at the restaurant where I ordered a burger and fries for lunch slips while carrying a hot load of oil to be disposed and burns himself terribly
I could go on and on. The point here being that these are all potentially dangerous jobs that can end up in disaster if the people doing those jobs aren't careful and/or the workplace isn't made as safe as it can and should be. And fortunately, these things don't happen very often.
How is this any different when it comes to golf grip work?
And once again, why does the job itself have to be done with potentially dangerous tools and processes as described here? This isn't a black or white argument as others have pointed out that taking grips off carefully is a pain in the butt (that's why people pay others to do it...) but it can be done without the use of potentially dangerous needles and solvent.
I wasn't trying to stir the pot as much as it turns out, but some of the counterpoints being made are off base...
Was in the Golfworks store recently ansd asked if they stiil remove/save grips and the answer was yes.Quote:
Originally Posted by justsomeguy
You can install pure grips without tape and they blow off in a couple seconds. Pretty sure you could do the same with star grips.
I have an awful swing and haven't had a grip shift on me yet.
This solvent sounds insanely unsafe, you would think they could develop a non toxic version, no?
They do but still has petroleum products. Removing grips with air can also be potentially harmful when removing grips that were installed with double sided tape.
Quote:
The GolfWorks FP 142+ Grip Solvent
The GolfWorks FP 142+ Grip Solvents are non-flammable and non-toxic. The FP 142+ solvent features a high flash point (142+) and has very little odor making this solvent perfectly safe for use in small confined spaces. The FP 142+ solvent evaporates quickly and is petroleum based with extra additives to make any type of grip tape immediately slick for easy grip installation. The FP 142+ Grip Solvent is available in a 4 oz. Pump Spray Bottle, a Quart Spray Bottle and a Gallon container for large volume shops.
The GolfWorks FP 142+ solvent can be shipped via air freight and internationally without additional hazardous charges.
Dear Snazzy,
I am in the industry I give great customer service, I save grips when I can and I think you are a bit of a know it all!
I can tell. I don't doubt it. You're missing the point I was trying to make. Once in a blue moon, maybe... :-)Quote:
Originally Posted by the babybull
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This has been an interesting if at times contentious thread. Even for a designated know-it-all like me, I had no idea there were such risks involved with grip related work and I'm surprised there isn't a safer, easier method for doing this - or for putting the grips on in such a way that it's easy/safe to remove them down the road (surely that's the best approach).
Many people want to reuse the more expensive grips they have, so there's a demand for this paid service. But if it's really this potentially dangerous the way things are now, then I can agree that it's up to the golf industry to either figure out a better/safer way or stop doing it and probably take a hit on high-end grip sales.