So let me start this off by saying that this post is by no means meant to be an attack towards VEX. I have been competing for years, and have never enjoyed anything more than competing.
Earlier this week, I ordered the HS sprocket kit for usage on one of my bots.
When I received the package today, the items were in there, however they were the older versions which did not have the high strength bores to put the inserts into.
When I go to the VEX robotics website, the photo gallery on the HS sprockets page shows the newly designed sprockets as the product that we will be receiving if we purchased it.
With this being said, am I the only one who is experiencing this?
And if not, is there any reimbursement or return policy for this “false advertising”?
The High Strength Sprocket Kit used to be incompatible with the high strength shafts. This was changed following NbN (I think) Worlds.
The old HS sprockets were supposed to be discontinued from production but still sold until the stock ran out.
I don’t know about @Arrash’s situation or what happened at the warehouse, but it should be noted that the sprockets described are indeed technically High Strength Sprockets, just not the new versions.
It’s probably a simple case of somebody finding an old box of sprockets that had fallen back behind a stack in a closet or something. Since I don’t think the part numbers were changed when they made the design change, somebody probably took one look at the package and tossed it into the bin of sprockets. If you don’t like what you received, then contact Vex and ask for an exchange. I don’t think this is a case of “false advertising” as much as an inventory glitch.
The real issue here is VEX opted to keep the same part number for what is essentially a new product. You can argue that’s it’s functionally equivalent but for the purposes of inventory management and advertising there should have been differentiation.
Only purpose for keeping the same part number was to ensure all the old stock could be sold and a smooth revenue transition could be achieved. Important for sure but so is customer perception. I suppose it only affects a small percentage of VEX customers who care about subtle differences?
Anyone know what you actually receive when you order High Strength Sprocket 4-Packs? If you look at the pictures 6,24,30T are 1/8" and 12,18T are 1/4".
The High Strength name has been consistent between 1/8" and 1/4" shaft holes.