Gwyn lewis & terrafirma

[rusty_wingnut]

I want to add, that when I bought Gwyn's shock mounts earlier this year, he pushed the Terrafirma product as it was the best ratio between price and performance.

I feel gutted for him, without people like Gwyn we end up going nowhere in terms of development.

gwyn supplied my shock mounts tacked together and I finished the welding. Another good reason to buy from him over Terra****ter.

Yours - tearing those big stickers off his shocks later.

[will_warne]

That about sums up the ****s nicely

The few times I have ever dealt with that bunch = wallet emptying enthusiats

a la Scrapion school of chram and customer service stylee

not interested in any form of service other than a smile as they removed your money

Have no time for them, stopped dealing with them years ago and went elsewhere

actually anywhere else where service was more genuine .....and less trouser and pants tugging down time

Nige

My experience of them is actually very different. Over the years Frogs Island 4x4 have supplied me with a huge number of parts and offered me a lot of assistance. Most recently they've supplied me with a pair of ARB diffs at a price no one could beat - in fact no one else could come close (including vendors in the US when the exchange rate was better)!

I'm also surprised that this has happened as Ed Priscott and Gwyn Lewis have known each other for a long time - they both used to compete back in the early days of challenging. It makes very little sense as you can see the reason behind making a similar product and undercutting someone but doing this and selling at a higher price makes little sense. Could there be another side to the story (eg Gywn not having enough capacity to supply the numbers needed)????

[SteveG]

Could there be another side to the story (eg Gywn not having enough capacity to supply the numbers needed)????

Oh don't spout bull****e Will - If that was the case they should have taken the ethical route and spoken to Gwyn about licensing his design to manufacture themselves. Instead they've ripped of his designs and there is no excuse.

And before anyone chimes in with "This is what happens in the big wide world of business" - yes it does, but it doesn't make it ethical. People are quite within their rights to publicly question the ethics of company that use these tactics and promote boycotting purchases from them.

Steve

[white90]

Will

lets not forget the ££thousands you spent with them....

which helps in the pleasantness stakes!

This whole business stinks.

[smo]

Would be interesting to have Terrafirma come on and give their side of the story and "defend" their actions.

[Bowie69]

Would be interesting to have Terrafirma come on and give their side of the story and "defend" their actions.

My thoughts exactly.

Would be nice to hear from Gwyn as well, you never know there might be a friendly mature business relationship between them.

[will_warne]

Oh don't spout bull****e Will - If that was the case they should have taken the ethical route and spoken to Gwyn about licensing his design to manufacture themselves. Instead they've ripped of his designs and there is no excuse.

And before anyone chimes in with "This is what happens in the big wide world of business" - yes it does, but it doesn't make it ethical. People are quite within their rights to publicly question the ethics of company that use these tactics and promote boycotting purchases from them.

Steve

Steve, I was only suggesting a possibility. Jumping straight to conclusions based on what a 3rd party has said does not sound like a fair apprasal of the situation. Hearsay and rumour are not conclusive evidence. No one on here knows all the facts of the situation. I'm certainly not going to side with either party here as I have a lot of repect for Gwyn - I've always found him very helpful and informative. I've bought from him in the past and I'm sure I will again in the future. All I was doing was trying to add some balance to the witch hunt.

I notice that neither Gywn nor Rob has said anything. As commendable as it is to 'rise above it' it would be good to hear the story from the horses mouth.

[gwyn lewis]

Well i thought i had beter put my point forward, i have had a lot to do and haven't had time to reply

It all started at Billing last year as Allmakes had a stand by Jimbo`s GIGGLEPIN (so it is all his fault) as my Land Rover

was on his stand,Eddie took an interest in my suspension kit and we got talking , he wanted to get a shock produced

Terrafirma to go with my kit and i agreed as as it would give me another shock to sell one that would be cheaper

than the OME and dearer than the others i do , and i hoped the quality would be somewhere inbetween as well,

i got 4 shocks to test for them before xmas and i was impressed with them for the price, we discussed buying my products

for Allmakes to sell to all their shops, but it turned out that that all they wanted was the rear shock mount off me, as they do

all the other items themselves , what put me off selling to them was i would be only selling rear shock mounts that would be

sold to around 100 or 200 shops they supply, and my sale of other items would be nill because once all 4x4 shops start

selling the items it would start another price war and the only one to benefit would be the end user, but you also need

to be able to give some technical advice on fitting and things that go with the kit, that is where i am always willing to help

anyone and advise them on what they are doing to there vehicle , this is what happend on friday as Nobby said i was not

amused when i found out it was not my items he had brought, it was not his fault as he was new to the game , but the shop

must have mentioned my name or sold them as mine for him to call me

As for the items Terrafirma do , i knew that they did not do a rear spring re locator that was sutable for that much travel

and i thought they would have modified the dislocater that they do , but they have had made an almost identical copy of mine

wich has taken me years to perfect and a couple of hours to copy, the idea i came up with about 10 years ago took a lot

of trial and error to get to this stage , and as Simon x-eng keeps telling me he wishes he had thought of it first, i also

see things that other companies have developed and wish i had thought of it , it is simple once you have seen something new

but it takes a lot of time to get things right before you can sell it (this is something that WILL once put on this forum when

someone was complaining that something of mine was expensive and he said you are paying for all the design work as well as

the product, and that has always stuck in my mind)

maybe i should have tried to push more of my items onto them , but where ever you get your items from you need to be

advised properly on what you are fitting, as there is more to suspension than people think, i probably don't always get it

right but i am always willing to advise them on what is being fitted even if it is not mine , this is where you don't get

this sort of help off big retailers or internet shops as they dont seem to have the time ?

Hope this has answered some things for you all , and thanks for all your support on this one

I can get back to designing new items now and try to keep in front

GWYN LEWIS

[white90]

Thanks Gwyn!

Now people have some facts they can make up their own minds!

I know what I think and where I'll shop and it won't be in Oxford!

[Nobbymogs]

Thanks Gwyn!

Now people have some facts they can make up their own minds!

I know what I think and where I'll shop and it won't be in Oxford!

Theres surely not a lot too add unless a certain firm would like to air their views, but some how i doubt that will ever happen, but one thing i do know is that over the last few years ive had fantastic service from Gwyn from sales to advice and my money will still be going towards the bloke who does the designing rather than the copying

Nobby

[freeagent]

isn't Terrafirma basically just Frogs Island?

I remember talking to the Terrafirma salesman at old sodbury at the end of '07... he didn't seem to have a clue what he was talking about and couldn't even tell me where the equipment was made...

If they are ripping off Gwyn Lewis then shame on them, but there is nothing you can do about it...

[Anderzander]

Have you been reading this thread ?

[bush doctor]

Have you been reading this thread ?

Yes alot of wind and P!££.

How many of us are using genuine parts only not pattern parts I.E. copies

I have never had any dealings with Allmakes or Gwyn but Gwyn has said himself that he was asked to supply and for his own reasons chose not to. Allmakes liked the product so I'm guessing they got someone else to make them.

[forkrentfitter]

i think you will find mr prickscott from frogs island owns less than 49% of his business,the rest is owned by allmakes,allmakes dictate what goes on,terrafirma suspension kit is of very dubious long term quality,a mate is a manager for another 4x4 specialist under the allmakes thumb,he is forced to sell the stuff but will not recomend it!

[jil6939]

i have had a lot to do and haven't had time to reply

I can get back to designing new items now and try to keep in front

GWYN LEWIS

Watching Dancing on ice doesnt really come under having a lot to do!!! This new stuff you are working on....now it has finnished......is it ice skates for cars....Driving on ice????????

[imspanners]

If they are ripping off Gwyn Lewis then shame on them, but there is nothing you can do about it...

In the very same vain, that a certain supplier was ridiculed by the masses (I believe the power of the internet, had a lot to do with it).

They eventually ended up going to the wall.

Perhaps copying others designs will only end up with them being ostracised, and in the same boat!

(owner of Gwyn Lewis kit via Llama)