As a dealer who does inspect every piece that arrives in their store, I can honestly say that the number of broken pieces that arrive from Harbour Lights is almost nonexistent, especially with some of the recent horror stories that many of you have mentioned here. We did experience the disconnected sail dilemna of Alpena, as Bob M. had mentioned, and, out of 48 Christmas pieces that we inspected last year, only 1 had a problem. The "house" had a flashing light and the "lens" had a solid light (sounds like a one-of-a-kind collector's item).

I respect the fact that everyone has their own preferences on how they want their pieces "handled" before they are shipped out. Personally, I would feel more than a little foolish if one of my customers was the first person to notice a flaw in a Harbour Lights piece. I feel that this is my job; to inspect and find these flawed pieces, so that my customer doesn't have to. Isn't that part of my job as a dealer?

Sure, the first few Harbour Lights pieces we sold in the store were an experience; trying to figure out where to safely grab it, and being sure that it's facing the right direction before you push it into the styrofoam. Now, after thousands of pieces inspected, you learn a few safety tips. If you're buying a piece in person, and the sales clerk looks a little suspect, STUDY THE POSITION of the piece while it's sitting in the styrofoam, before they pull it out. Chances are, once you've spun it around to inspect it, they'll forget how it went in. I'm sure this is what happens when inexperienced clerks inspect these pieces before shipping.

One additional thought for those who don't want their Harbour Lights inspected. . . . If these pieces are basically coming directly to you, without inspection, aren't you actually bypassing the dealer network? Would you prefer that Harbour Lights ship them directly to you? I realize many of you probably stipulate the "non-inspection" because, if you tried to find a more careful dealer, you would lose your autoship number.

Just a thought, that if Harbour Lights considered their dealers to be a liability, they may feel that their customers would rather deal directly with them. ??

Jim