I got my order today from udc. I Ordered various odd parts and a couple tires. But when I open the box, it had no bill of sale. Just the usual bumper stickers and a convention invite and return form. Much worse, the sealed snafus and pedal bumpers I ordered where not there. The ups box said 1 of 1 and the tracking number said 1.
So I checked my email and there was nothing except the order list they always send, listing the pedals.
At this point I felt a bit like I had got coal in my stocking, no new pedals today!
Worse, I had never had this happen before. What if they insist they sent it ? I could prove nothing. I knew for sure I would have to complain on the forum. I wondered how many would think I was lying 
, probably more then would say it I figured. 
So I send udc a wtf email, worded more polite then that. I got this reply back a few hours later - "Thank you for your email. I had our parts guy include a small piece of paper with your order indicating that the Snafu pedals and Pedal Protectors were temporarily out of stock. We have placed these items in backorder so that they may be shipped out as soon as we receive more in. "
This was a relief. Extremely careful checking revealed no such note. I was never notified that the item was out of stock (as all other merchants have done). I placed the order Thursday. Now on Tuesday udc has still not undated their site to say the pedals are out of stock.
One of my first udc orders, I paid 100 $ more then A E Bike’s 07 price for a leftover 05 KH. It was actually a demo. The seat post had been cut for a midget.
Helpfully, they included an extra seat post, only it was the cheap 25 mm steel one that doesn’t fit a KH. Their email response was that they would send me a KH post when they got some. They didn’t, so I emailed them again and they sent one. Meanwhile I rode the KH gently with the post barely stuck in for 2 months, with the seat still to low.
Finally the seat post comes and it’s a bike rail type. No one checked my order to see I had bought the air seat upgrade and needed a 4 bolt post.
They sent me the right post, and I sent them back the other 2.
Any bets they won’t send me the pedals until I email them again ?
What is funny is that some of us have been debating Kris lately about why we need to pay a 150 $ retail mark up. I think he said so that shops like udc can afford to hire knowledgeable staff that understand unis. This excellent service can’t be had cheap. At this rate A E Bike must hire Asian monkeys that ship the wrong goods by rickshaw.
Well, except A E Bike got my order perfect, shipped a unicycle at half the cost udc charged for two tires. And has a knowledgeable spokesman to post on our forum and answer questions. Other then that and their low prices they must suck somehow. Maybe they don’t “grow the sport”. Kris realizes we need patience to learn to be good riders, and AE Bike doesn’t teach that anywhere near as good as udc.
That blows…I’ve alway had great service from them. I mostly order stuff by phone though. I like to talk to someone just to be sure everythings going OK. Next time, order by phone. It eliminates problems like this.
ive never had a problem with them at all with UDC
Yeah, I’m just a whiner
You know how it goes. You wait for your new toy and get a rock. If I actually got the pedals I’m sure I would have forgotten about it in 5 minutes. It’s not like I’m going somewhere and really had to have them. That would have sucked.
It is sort of funny that the orders people don’t seem to have read their own catalog ! Terry geezer has to correct their Nimbus prices, and I have to provide the info about what seat post fits what etc.
I will still buy stuff from udc. I may hold some kind of record for bad luck with them though.
I just ordered some new cranks, a rail adapter, and a KH seat from UDC - everything arrived , but they sent the wrong seat! It was the cheapest seat they carry - talk about disappointed!
I e-mailed them, and they apologized and sent the correct seat(I hope). They told me to keep the cheap seat, since it will cost more in shipping than it is worth to return - not to mention my time to package and return it. Unfortunately, I doubt I will ever use it.
It would be great if they included a packing slip, and verified the items before shipping.
They aren’t perfect, but they seem to be very reasonable.
That’s good news for you Don! I figured they’d just let you keep that saddle.
it is a shame when shops sometimes do this, but it is not entirely UDC US’ fault.
but true, i think there should be better communication links, they should phone you or email starighht away when a rpoduct is not in stock
Or update their website more then they do
I just checked and the pedals are still listed as in stock. I don’t really feel like being a udc basher. They do have the best selection of uni gear that I know of.
I bet they could dig up someone uni smart to answer a tough question if you asked. Not that we care. That’s what John Childs is for! 
AE Bike admits they don’t ride or know much about it. They won’t take your cash for stuff they don’t have though.
If I was udc, I would try to meet a sort of basic standard of web shop competence. Otherwise, I wouldn’t change a thing. I would charge 500 + for a KH cause I would know the name means people come there first. I love MY money, I don’t fault them at all for sharing my standards. My guess is they make way more per KH sold then Kris does. Only an idiot , or someone on some odd anti profit trip I can’t appreciate would pause their own gravy train.
Just for fun:) I’ll update this post on how long it takes them to say the pedals are out of stock ! Maybe someone there reads this forum !
Order stuff from compulsion cycles, or from darren. They are both awesome.
Well, I’m getting closer to some pedals
I got this email today from udc.
"Matt,
We are currently unable to get a hold of more Snaful Sealed Bearing pedals. We will be crediting your order for the $64 charge on this item. Please let us know if you have any questions. Thanks! "- UDC
Now, only one week after I placed my order, I know to pick another pedal, or try somewhere else.
Which is more then anyone who is placing an order today at UDC will know. They are still listed as in stock !
This is not only the first time a dealer has not told me if they have the item I am ordering in stock when I placed my order. I gets better… They have my money ! 
Have any of you ever ordered something from any online store that hit your account before they shipped the item ? I didn’t think that was legal. I was charged last week for an item I was never shipped, as part of an order shipped without a parts list. Good thing not every old guy in Florida has alzhiemers.
Has anyone else here ever got the "Florida treatment " before. From any dealer ?
As i said before i always have good service with UDC. On Saturday i ordered some pedal protectors, got them today no problem. Also i have been called before by UDC because they thought they sent me the wrong order.
Thanks, Del - the pedal protectors !
Dahm alzhiemers ! The pedal protectors. I forgot. They didn’t send me the pedal protectors ! Now I must email them and ask for them to refund that money also.
They will make right by you. They make mistakes, but they usually try hard to solve them. They almost refuse to go onto their own website more than twice a year to update information, and routinely send unicycles with parts that aren’t pictured or in the descriptions. However they will always try hard to make it right (in my experiences). It can be very frustrating to wait while they have your money and you have no product though, I understand. Especially when you get the feeling that you are being ignored. If I were in your shoes, send them an email detailing the ways they have disappointed you and request your money be returned immediately. Maybe they’ll send you a shirt or something to try to keep you as a customer.
I’m not so sure I want a shirt now
Hey, does anyone know a good way to remove bumpers stickers ?
I’ve got a pair of sealed snafu pedals i’d sell you. PM if you interested.
aw that sucks, thankfuly I’ve han’t had any delivery problems with udc uk (well they were 2-3 days late once, but thats not horific)
put it this way, if they can’t surve you, call the next waitor
My experience
WD-40 will help remove bumper stickers.
When I ordered my Nimbus36er (with options) it came without any problems, though it took about 2 1/2 weeks. NO bumper stickers in this order.
In '05 I ordered some parts to fix up my old Schwinn. I got my order short 1 roll of rim tape. Not getting a packing list makes it difficult to tell what they intended to ship. Their reply to my email was:
Dear Craig,
So glad you have cleared up the found Velox rim tape left on the shipping table that day. We did not know which order we missed. We apologize for this and can send it to you via Priority Mail as we goofed. We will ship it out tomorrow. Thanks for being such a great customer!
Best Regards,
Robby, Amy, and John
1-800-unicycle
I got it in a few days, now I can’t find what I did with it, two years later.
On that '05 order, I even emailed them to add some items to my order before it shipped. They were very happy to add the items. Also, they didn’t charge my account for the add on items until after I received them.
Thanks everyone
I just ordered some of these DMK sealed mag pedals.
http://aebike.com/page.cfm?PageID=30&action=details&sku=PD3113
A, third lighter, cheaper than the udc snafus, and with cheaper shipping. They also fit an extra set of red pedal protectors I had lying around. I wanted to order some of those flashing led bike lights anyway. The only reason I ordered the udc snafu’s is because I needed some other junk from them, and I am a lazy shopper.
When I get them I will try to do the John Child trick of installing them without the bearing, to test if the pedal falls off when the bearing falls apart.
I was just joking about the bumper stickers (you know how they always send you some ). I don’t really have a car. Good thing to for this fan boy, because this time they sent me the bumper sticker for Banjo.com.
Anyway, thanks for listening to me whine. I am almost certain your luck with udc will be better then mine ! LOL:)
My luck with UDC is improving
Apparently they do read this forum ! I have received this message.
chissakid
Unicyclist
Join Date: Oct 2002
Location: Marietta, Georgia
Posts: 37
Our service
Hi Matthew.
I’m sorry that we disappointed you. We try mighty hard to please our customers, and sometimes errors get through. We’ve gotten so much better over the years, but we obviously still have room for improvement. Thanks for your patience with us.
We failed in several areas with your order. We’ll address this with our staff. Please accept my apology. We’ll refund the $5.89 for your pedal protectors and we’ll also refund the shipping cost of $14.51. It’s a small gesture meant to redeem ourselves.
Amy has corrected the Snafu pedal listing, and the available pedal protector colors, on our Web site.
If you ever wish to complain directly to the owners, or if you wish to send constructive criticism, please let Amy or me know. She’s at amy@unicycle.com, and I’m at john@unicycle.com. Or call us at 1-800-864-2925.
So far we’ve met 35 people who ride a unicycle and play the banjo, but not necessarily at the same time. (It’s really not good for the instrument.) The Banjo.com bumper sticker we send out with each order has brought a few more banjo customers, and vice-versa. We hope you don’t mind.
Best regards,
john@unicycle.com
1-800-Unicycle (1-800-864-2925)
(chissakid is a Native American word for juggler)
Well I can't complain about that !:) Thanks chissakid and UDC. However, I am a whiner, so I will try anyway.:D
I think it is important to redesign your website to reflect stock in real time.
Someone who is leaving on a trip may get stuck Also, do not charge the accounts before back ordered stock is shipped. Some customers are short on money in their accounts and will not be able to order what they need elsewhere when you do that.
I love your selection and as I pointed out previously I plan to order from UDC again. But that’s also why I’m whining !
I hope I did not give the impression I believed UDC to be basically dishonest. Sometimes I just feel like complaining. For example, actually I do play the Banjo !