PShizzy: The Blog

A buddy of mine clued me in on this a few days ago. ThinkTank Photo, maker of photography bags and accessories, has started an affiliate program. Here’s the deal: Purchase anything from their site over $50 using an affiliate and you will get a free bag (note the image) with your purchase. Using my affiliate code means I get a commission on the purchase, 10%, sent to me twice a year. Here’s how:

• Go to http://www.thinktankphoto.com/affiliates.aspx?code=AP-208
• Enter my affiliate code: AP-208
• Fill out your purchase order
• When you hit “Review Order” a new window will open, resembling the image on my blog. Select your free bag, and continue on.

ThinkTank regulates the prices on their equipment sent to distributors, so prices do not vary greatly from store to store. Buying from them direct means you get a free bag and pay the same you would anywhere else. So, naturally I should recommend that you all go out and buy some ThinkTank gear, right? Well, sort of.

Read on to hear about my personal experiences with ThinkTank, including their equipment, and customer service.

My experience with ThinkTank equipment isn’t complete, but it is a fair sample of what most photographers would use. Over the last few years, I’ve used and owned or still own:

• Two Airport Security Rollers
• Modulus 12pc kit
• Two Extra Pixel Pocket Rockets
• Speed Demon pack

My experience with the equipment is excellent. ThinkTank gear is very well built and thought out. Some of the features, such as the Modulus’ ability to allow pouches to lock on the belt, or move freely, are an example of their design staff consisting of and listening to photographers in the field.

Their Pixel Pocket Rocket is awesome. The design is simple, but effective. I have three. One came with the Speed Demon (which I bought used, and sold off later), one with my Modulus kit, and I bought a third.

The Speed Demon was also a belt, which meant it could take Modulus pouches, or even work as a shoulder bag using the included strap. That gives you a lot of flexibility when you want to mix and match your bags to fit your needs for a given shoot.

And the Airport Security is my carry on bag of choice. It is the maximum legal carry on size for domestic flights, and can hold a lot of gear.

ThinkTank’s customer service is also excellent. In the last few years of using their equipment, I’ve dealt with them on a number of occasions, and each time I’ve come away happy, and impressed.

After buying my Airport Security bag, I put it to hard work. I rolled it to various events with different terrains, from carpeted airports, to blacktop, to loose gravel and cobblestone roads. It was a few short months before the roller frame looked worn down. I contacted ThinkTank, and they quickly told me that in their experience, the wheels go first, and should I have an issue with a wheel, they would gladly send me new ones, free of charge. Should I experience a problem with the frame, and they would replace that as well.

The Speed Demon I bought used was missing the shoulder strap. When I contacted ThinkTank, they said they’d gladly send me one, even though I was not the original owner. So far so good, but it gets better. I had not sent them my address to redeem the shoulder strap until a year later, when I planned to sell the bag to my friend. I asked ThinkTank about honoring their initial offer, and they gladly agreed

Finally, I bought a Modulus 12 pro kit. It is a discontinued model, featuring their belt, shoulder supports, and about 10 different bags, all removable and adjustable. I found one in a store in Ohio, thanks to a reader, and bought it. Unfortunately it was the wrong size belt. I contacted ThinkTank. Again, they gladly offered to switch out my belt for the larger size.

I do not have any other companies to really compare this service to. What I know is that if every company supported their products like ThinkTank, I’d be a very happy consumer. They are a very hands on company, and you don’t get those canned responses with random support codes telling you to RMA something. You get a real person who can give you real support. ThinkTank is very hands on, and that’s great for support. But not so much for their production. Don’t get me wrong, I love their equipment.

But I noticed something funny when I did a little comparison testing: No two bags are really alike. I have two Airport Security bags. Both are v1, bought a year apart. Bag #1 has no TSA locks, bag #2 does. Bag #1 has a small raised area inside the bag for the support frame and roller handle. Bag #2 has a much larger raised area, reducing overall space. But they are both the same version (v1) of Airport Security bags. In fact, I even bought two more used bags for friends of mine, and all four were different. Go figure.

Take the Speed Demon as another example. When I bought it, I read up on ThinkTank’s own site about the bag. It had several features, including a “notepad pocket”. The version I got: No notepad pocket. Small difference, but a difference nonetheless. When I contacted them, they informed me that earlier versions of the bag did not feature the pocket, and that revisions sometimes changed features.

I don’t mind that they update their bags at all. In fact I think it’s great. Where the problem lies is with the revisions being made so frequently, that they don’t consider some changes a new version. None of the changes were dealbreakers that forced me to return anything, but when you’re sold on a product that you saw someone else use, or after looking up the features online, isn’t that the version you want?

These updates occur over time, after each new batch of their products. For example, the Airport Security bag I first bought had only recently come out. The second one was bought over a year later. Feedback from photographers obviously brought about the changes. But that brings about a conundrum.

Buying a bag based on photographer feedback means you get a bag that’s well designed for your needs. Unless you buy it early on in its production, in which case you get to provide feedback for future bag owners.

So that’s my warning. I would heavily consider waiting for any bag ThinkTank makes to have gone through a few revisions before purchase. My older Airport Security bag is larger inside, therefore holds more. The newer one features more airport friendly TSA locks. And waiting too long is what had me scouring the Earth for a 12pc Modulus kit.

Regardless of when or what you purchase though, the equipment is top quality, and customer support is something you cannot put a price on (just ask the countless fans of Alien Bees).

I do hope that if you decide to purchase anything from the site, that you consider using my affiliate code. If it does well enough, I plan to let the commission fund more of the blog in the form of content, reviews, contests or giveaways, etc. And you get a free bag for your troubles!

If you’ve had similar experiences, questions about the affiliate program, or anything related to this post, feel free to comment. Any questions for ThinkTank? Contact them. You’ll find dealing with them refreshingly different than most other customer service experiences.

Thanks

Tags: equipment // 4 Comments »