AmuseStar Vending Co Posted December 17, 2007 Share Posted December 17, 2007 Very good strategy! However, I do not know if I would buy ore that 1. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CraigMc Posted December 17, 2007 Share Posted December 17, 2007 Kyle, Looks like part of your message got truncated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lurker Posted January 20, 2008 Share Posted January 20, 2008 Sorry for bringing up this old thread, but I just got into this. OK I'll put my flame proof suit on and go out on this limb... Before I found this forum my wife and I found a deal on Craig's List for 30 Vendstars that a lady was selling because of health reasons. Her brother had taken over the route and had let it deteriorate so badly the machines were all finally pulled. They are all less than two years old, I was told, and they all are in good to excellent condition. Out of thirty machines only four were slightly yellowed, one had one broken chute door, and one had one broken tooth on the gear of the coin mechanisim which I discovered later. All the coin mech's turned when I put in a quarter so I fidgeted around and offered her $30 bucks each. She wanted $50 LOL Imagine my surprise when she took my offer! Not even a counter offer of $40 or anything. I paid, loaded 'em up, and brought 'em home. One of the nice things I like about these machines is they are E Z to clean up and come out looking Brand New. I break down the machine and if there is a dull side to a candy bin or the body I use Mag Polish on it to shine it up. Fine sandpaper and Mag Polish works on scratches too. As far as the yellowing goes, I have been able to lessen the yellow look by sanding with fine sandpaper, then ultrafine sandpaper and finally Mag Polish 2 or 3 times to give the canister a polished look. A yellowed lens is another story, and I have yet to find a perfect way to eliminate all of the yellowing to my satisfaction. They have come out with chemicals to brighten yellowed headlight and taillight assemblies on cars, but I haven't tried any yet. All parts are cleaned in our dishwasher and then reassembled. Locks and coin mechs are "shot" with silicone lube, and the machine is placed on it's stand. I also take the extra step of adding a screw to the base/pole connection and the machine/pole connection. I then wipe them all down with Black Magic - Pro Shine and Protectant. Viola! A near new looking, and fully functioning triple threat candy machine waiting to start making money! As far as some of the other "cons" listed by the Pro's... I won't nit pick all of them just a few LOL A "dull gray color" ? Huh? I personally like the professional, and might I say, upscale look, of these machines. I guess it's all in the eye of the beholder. Quarters do not always fall into the coin tray... Mine always do, eventually. Can't see this causing any problems really. Since I know it happens I'll just shake the machine a little before I pop open the back door to service. Product window scratches easily. I'll give you this one, but I have found a way to fix all but the deepest scratches easily. Once all the decals are on and product is in place the scratches sorta disappear anyway. Can only see product from the front. I see this as an advantage and an opportunity. The candy is exposed to much less light so stays fresher longer than in similar machines and it gives me more room to put whatever I want on the sides of the machine, ie... Candy labels, decals, brochure holders, ads, cup dispensers, etc... Machine over priced if purchased through manf. I agree here too, but then I think that's true of all machines, LOL I'm a cheap SOB! Mostly all plastic. Well I can't argue with the obvious, but as I stated above I can make one of these babies look new in no time because they are plastic. The coin mech's are made of Delrin Plastic so I also looked it up on the internet. Delrin Plastic aka Polyoxymethylene... "marketed and used as a metal substitute. Delrin is a lightweight, low-friction, wear resistant thermoplastic..." Cool huh! DuPont's website also says it "simulates the strength of steel". So I'm satisfied the coin mechanisims should hold up. Should... we'll see Chute doors break easy. They do? Only one was broken on those 30 machines I bought, and I haven't broken one yet in all the handling I've done on 'em. Doesn't mean they won't end up being a problem though, only time will tell. Broken into with a screwdriver. Aaaa, OK. I broke into one of my cars once with a screwdriver and that particular car cost $29,000.00 ! LOL I would guess if a thief is determined enough and has enough time they could get into just about anything with or without a screwdriver, including a candy machine. Does not say professional. Hmmm... I hope to overcome this observation by giving my customers excellent service, and superior products. Guess that's all I can do, since my machines are so ugly and are going to fall apart in no time. LOL Well I guess I'll sign off for now it's 1:00 o'clock in the morning and I can't see straight anymore. :shock: L8R, Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CraigMc Posted January 20, 2008 Share Posted January 20, 2008 At least you bought them cheap enough. You really can make money with any vending machine if bought right. With the Vendstar however you won't get the life out of them that you will with others. I doubt that there are any 20-30 year old Vendstars out on routes. Craig Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lurker Posted January 20, 2008 Share Posted January 20, 2008 I know what ya mean Craig. But I also know I won't be running a bulk vending route in another 20 or 30 years either. :? Probably when we sell the route for one reason or another, after we have it built up, we won't get quite as much money out of it because it will have Vendstars on it. I can see that as a possibility. Truth be told, I will be going to 1-800 Triples from here on out, and I didn't mean to sound so much like a Vendstar salesman. Just sorta wanted to explain why we decided to go with Vendstars right off the bat. One thing I believe is possible, I can see Vendstars being easier to place in corporate, and office enviroments, etc... because they don't look quite so carnivalistic, (if that's a word). Not saying all other brands look bad, it's just all I see around here are either bright red or fluorescent yellow machines. (Which should probably tell me something, huh... ), Some conservative office manager, may just let me in because I have a "low-key", nice looking, coservative machine. I don't know if that's true, just my stupid brain working overtime. L8R, Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thrash Posted January 21, 2008 Share Posted January 21, 2008 you better watch out vendstar might be looking for a salesman, Dave. LOL. you have to start some where in this biz. there probably something bad with every kind of machine. JR. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmuseStar Vending Co Posted January 21, 2008 Share Posted January 21, 2008 You really mean Con Artist, not sales man. Kyle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lurker Posted January 22, 2008 Share Posted January 22, 2008 Con Artist? Care to explain? Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmuseStar Vending Co Posted January 23, 2008 Share Posted January 23, 2008 Nothing against you! Look at this, and read the stories: http://www.ripoffreport.com/searchresults.asp?q5=Vendstar&searchtype=0&q1=ALL&q3=&q2=&q7=&q4=&q6=&start=0 Kyle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
philo Posted January 24, 2008 Share Posted January 24, 2008 Gee: From what I just read it appears the the Vendstar people get a clean bill of health and the locators are the rip off artists. Regards, Philo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lurker Posted January 24, 2008 Share Posted January 24, 2008 OK Kyle, that's cool! I thought you took exception to something I said. I've seen that website before. Let me say thank you for bringing it up. It's always funny to me how two seperate people can view the same thing so differently. It doesn't really mean a whole lot when anybody can get on a website and post anything about a company they want. Some of it may have been true, but what parts of are and what parts aren't? It's impossible to tell. It was some time ago I looked at it, but what I remember about it was this. The people complaining the most were complaining about the locator. (Granted, it was the one Vendstar recommended in most cases), and when there was a complaint about Vendstar itself, one of their spokespeople, (I say spokespeople because I don't remember who it was), always had a rebuttle stating they never sold any machines to a person by that name in that town, or inviting them to call and they would take care of their problem. So here was the bottom line. I wasn't buying anything from Vendstar directly. I wasn't going to use their locators. At that time there were no complaints, that I remember, about the quality of the machines. So not many of the reports made much of an impression on me. Since you posted the link I went and looked again. Here are some highlights from the first Report I read (#292443)... "Rip-off Report Investigation: Vendstar / MultiVend committed to customer satisfaction, pledges to address all complaints & inquiries. Commitment to Rip-off Report Corporate Advocacy Business Remediation & Customer Satisfaction Program. Vendstar employees go above and beyond the client's expectation in the pursuit of excellence in every aspect of the business - Consumers can feel confident & secure when doing business with Vendstar! Most complaints are not about Vendstar / MultiVend, problems with locating services making it look bad for the company..." and "After a recent mailing to everyone who filed a Rip-off Report, it became apparent that Vendstar is sincere in their commitment to remedy any and all customer concerns..." and "One of the surprises that came from the Rip-off Report investigation was the complaints that had little to do with Vendstar / MultiVend." and "Because of our investigation and the sincere efforts put forth by Vendstar, Rip-off Report is proud to give Vendstar a positive rating." and "Vendstar has found that the main reason they have disgruntled clients is because of the failure of the clients businesses to produce profits. While Vendstar has made it explicitly clear they do not guarantee nor represent minimum or maximum earnings, once the client perceives their business venture as a failure, their first impulse is to blame their failure on their relationship with Vendstar.. The only problem is the client is still responsible for managing their business and making it successful, not Vendstar. Vendstar's support professionals are there to support and guide them, but the ultimate responsibility for success remains squarely on the customer and their effort to make the business work. " and "Rip-off Report also found a number of Reports were filed by 2 people, filing mutable Reports posing as different people." and "Consumers can feel confident and secure when doing business with VendStar / MultiVend.... Sincerely, ED Magedson- Founder EDitor@RipoffReport.com http://www.ripoffreport.com" There was alot more but I got tired of copying and pasting. I'll get down off the soap box now. Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bacho Posted January 27, 2008 Share Posted January 27, 2008 In my opinion and it's just my opinion, you can like it or hate it, a vending machine is a vending machine in the eyes of the consumer. I have yet go into any establishment and hear a parent deny their child a gumball, toy or candy from a machine because it wasn't professional looking. The consumer is looking at buying the product, not the machine. It doesn't matter what color it is because a child will spot any machine up to 100 yards away. LOL Being unprofessional would be to supply the consumer only one choice of product. With a triple, there are 3 choices and greater chance of more vends. Afterall, we have multiple choices when we are shopping for machines, don't we? Choice of product are the keys to being a true professional. A clean machine, no matter what make it is, will provide much more revenue in the long run. I plan to buy 4 or 5 of these and then replace them with doubles after a few months. It's a good way to see what product will move the fastest and eliminate the slow mover. It's also a quicker ROI which will enable me to expand my route. Like I said previously, these are just my opinions. It's the way I plan to start with minimal investment and build from there. This review, however, did change my mind about buying more than I stated because of maybe selling the machines after I establish my route. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CraigMc Posted February 1, 2008 Share Posted February 1, 2008 My God ! Are you people all stuck on the biz-op idea of triples ! Take a reality hit. Not one vendor that does this full time for a living uses triples. New people to the trade get sucked into thinking more is better and buy them. Those wanting to get in cheap buy used Vendstars. Disagree with me all you want. In a year or so you will see the light. Only then it will be to late most likely. By then you will be disgusted with vending and throw in the towel. The point I'm making is to learn from the sucessfull ones. That info is free flowing if one would only listen. Craig Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gum_father Posted February 1, 2008 Share Posted February 1, 2008 "You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make them drink" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lurker Posted February 1, 2008 Share Posted February 1, 2008 Seems to me Craig you're the one that needs the "reality hit". Not everyone is the same, not everyone wants single head bubblegum machines. I'm not running racks of singles, or kiosks of 20 or 30 singles all lined up in a row. I assume you have heard of these, right? I'm just running a single machine with three heads on it. I'm not stuck on ANY biz-op idea. I just like the look of the machines, and the fact that they offer 3 different selections. You said: "Those wanting to get in cheap buy used Vendstars." In my case, yes I was able to get them cheap, and get started in business for myself. So this is bad? Have you ever really looked at a "real live" Vendstar. Have you ever owned one? I'm guessing you haven't. You also say "Not one vendor that does this full time for a living uses triples". Yet when I look around at the machines in my area all I see are either triples or U-turns. I guess everyone around here is UNprofessional huh? LOL I'll tell you what, if I throw in the towel in a year because I'm running Vendstars, I'll happily give them to you! Oh that's right you wouldn't want them. OK then I'll give them to your favorite charity. OK? There's more information "free flowing" out there than what you know in your own little world. This thread is supposed to be about REVIEWING VENDSTARS, and NOT about slamming people that use them, so get off your high horse and quit belittling people that don't share the same ideas as you. ...and as for you gum father, thanks for contributing sooo much good information to the conversation. Your thoughts on the matter are truely appreciated. No really they are, really. One last thing I would like to say on this matter of everyone here hating Vendstars and the people that use them...(at least that's the way it seems to me). There would probably be more people using this forum if they didn't think they would get attacked simply because they mention they use Vendstars or some other triple machine like 1-800's or Seaga's. I was going to start reporting my collections in the revenue forum in a couple more weeks, but since I'm just running these crappy triples I guess I won't be making any money, so I won't have anything to report. Dave P.S. I placed another one of these piece of crap triples today, and the store manager loved the machine because the one they had before was just a single selection. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bacho Posted February 1, 2008 Share Posted February 1, 2008 Are you people all stuck on the biz-op idea of triples ! Not one vendor that does this full time for a living uses triples. New people to the trade get sucked into thinking more is better and buy them. Those wanting to get in cheap buy used Vendstars. Disagree with me all you want. In a year or so you will see the light. Only then it will be to late most likely. By then you will be disgusted with vending and throw in the towel. The point I'm making is to learn from the sucessfull ones. That info is free flowing if one would only listen. What gave you the idea I wanted to get into this full time? This will be a perfect part time business for me because of my full time schedule. I also like the idea of not having to punch a clock for someone else. If buying 4 or 5 triples is a biz op in your eyes, I stand corrected. Common sense tells you that if you have a single bringing in $10, wouldn't it make sense to try a triple that would bring in $20 or $30? Whether it's plastic, metal or colorful, green stays the same color! As for getting into the business cheap, yes that's what I'm looking for. I'm not as fortunate as you are because I have other commitments in life that require my hard earned money. If it means buying a unprofessional machine like vendstar and replacing it with a professional machine later, so be it. I've never thrown the towel in on anything I do. I do however, read and research extensivley before I venture into any project. This board is a godsend and I do listen and learn from the seasoned pros when they post here. Just because one seasoned pro bashes a product doesn't mean I will change my mind about buying it. Especially when that pro thinks everyone has tons of money to invest in a professional machine. Now that really sounds like a biz op to me! Sorry about this thread getting out of hand folks. I just don't like hearing crap from a person that never tried the machine. Especially in a review thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmuseStar Vending Co Posted February 2, 2008 Share Posted February 2, 2008 Well why not get a $300 vendstar, throw $50 in it, and stick it out at that hair salon on the corner of town and TRY and make $20 or $30? Because THAT IS NOT POSSIBLE MY FRIEND. Vendstar is a biz. op. Look at all your successful vendors. What are they using? What you you see MOST on the street? What do you see MOST selling on Ebay. Vendstar, 1800 NO? On Ebay what do you see? Vendstar, 1800? Yes, but why are they going for $50 each? Because someone thought the way you did, and did not succeed. It is hard enough getting 1 product to turn, let alone 3. When you are in this biz, you must slim your products down to as many as possible. Kyle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ANDERSONVENDING Posted February 2, 2008 Share Posted February 2, 2008 Ok guys, Time to stop bashing those that choose to use those machines.I have some as well (though most are in my garage).Its the same as saying your method of making money is better than thiers.This thread is about giving an opinion on a specific type machine and THATS ALL. Enough already. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caserri Posted February 2, 2008 Author Share Posted February 2, 2008 Just in case anyone missed this post... Welcome to the review section here at VENDiscuss! I encourage you to write up your review of the vending related items you have experience with. Please adhere to these simple guidelines when posting your review. Post your review only about items you have personally used. If you know someone who has used an item and they did not like it, do not post a negative review. Ask your friend to join and post his or her own review. Give as much information in your review as you possibly can. A fact or feature that you feel is un-important may be very important to another member. Please refrain from product bashing. I encourage you to provide your honest opinion about a product however please do not refer to the product as "a piece of trash" or similar.Thats about it! I have gotten numerous requests for this section so hopefully it will prove informative to many members here. Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lurker Posted February 2, 2008 Share Posted February 2, 2008 Hey I agree totally! I'm getting tired of defending my decision to go with these particular triples anyway. They're like a cheap hammer. Don't cost as much as the name brand, not as pretty maybe, may not last as long, but by dang they'll hammer in that nail just as quick when it's all said and done. Besides, I find it hard to believe any of these guys really care about what machines I use anyway. Peace out! Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bacho Posted February 2, 2008 Share Posted February 2, 2008 Amen!! I'm done defending it also. I'm sorry this thread got hijacked and I was lured into contributing to it. I have too much respect for Steve and the true professionals that frequent this forum. I apologize to the good people here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pusherman Posted February 2, 2008 Share Posted February 2, 2008 lurker wrote: Hey I agree totally! Besides, I find it hard to believe any of these guys really care about what machines I use anyway. there are too many attitudes like this on the forum lately. people think that everyone that gives an opinion or tries to tell someone about a machine or a certain way of doing things is bashing them. believe it or not some of the people here have been there and done that. they give you their advice for free, expecting nothing in return. you may not like the way they say it to you but they are trying to open your eyes. true everyone has their own way of doing things and may use different machines, to each his own. but dont think that they are not trying to help you. there are alot of very experienced operators that are members of this forum. many of them dont post alot, i wish they would because i am grateful to any of them that have knowledge and are willing to share it. there are not too many places you can go to ask questions about your business and get answers and help anytime you need it. there are people on here that are willing to tell you things that took them months or even years to learn on their own. they share this info that dramatically reduces your learning curve for nothing in return. good luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grumpy Posted February 2, 2008 Share Posted February 2, 2008 Pusherman well said, and I agree totatally. Not all people are great communicators and as we age and get more life experience we tend to be short and curt with or responces, at least I do. When I write on this forum I really have to slow it down as I would in person say what I need to say in the fastest shortest form if needed I can explain at the time. But in a forum your post does the talking and there is not always a chance to explain what you said if you offended someone before they are offended. Grumpy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scobrien Posted February 2, 2008 Share Posted February 2, 2008 I have had no issues with my 25 vendstars at this time and i bought them used. I cleaned them up and they look great, some had yellow tint, but i used HEADLIGHT RESTORATION cleaners to clean and they look brand new! I read so much bad about the vendstar 3000 but so far im happy, easy to change out candy, easy to clean, yes they are plastic but seem to be pretty strong. For a start there working good for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lurker Posted February 2, 2008 Share Posted February 2, 2008 OK! Since you want to ignore Steve's request about keeping the thread on track, and continue the debate, I'll post one more time off topic. This is just an explanation of why I posted what I posted. Pusherman said..."there are too many attitudes like this on the forum lately. people think that everyone that gives an opinion or tries to tell someone about a machine or a certain way of doing things is bashing them..." Nothing is further from the truth. I'm always looking for info and advice, if I wasn't I wouldn't be here, would I? That is what this forum is for isn't it? BUT, did you read the same post by CraigMc that I did? He starts out with, "My God!" and continues ranting "Take a reality hit!" among other things. He also makes false blanket statements like, "Not one vendor that does this full time for a living uses triples." He's not trying to help anyone, he's trying to belittle us and in so doing make himself look like the "true professional" he imagines himself to be. LOL I mean you don't really think he's trying to save me from making a mistake by using Vendstars do you? If you do that would be too funny! Grumpy said..."...But in a forum your post does the talking and there is not always a chance to explain what you said if you offended someone before they are offended." If you read further back I took Craig's first post to me for what it was, advice. But when someone starts ranting and telling me to take "a reality hit" etc... it becomes rather obvious there is no other explanation than this... He's just trying to show everyone what a big man he is on this forum by putting down other operators who don't agree with him. That's it! I'm done now. My next post will be back on track. Let's ALL get back on track. Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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