Tackle Shack

Reviews 5

RO

Robert Cartwright

Everything that follows is my personal opinion. I have only been there twice and exchanged emails once. I have no affiliation with any other scuba shop and am not a disgruntled ex-employee. Just a potential customer that has been discouraged by this shop three times. Avoid this place. Take your business elsewhere. If there was a negative star, Id give it. Staff is self-important, rude and condescending, and now they seem to like to tell potential customers that PADI is the superior agency over other agencies - which is total BS. There are superior business models and superior trainers, but no superior agency. My thinking on why they would say such a thing is that Tackle Shack just hooked their star to the PADI wagon and chooses to push this so they can charge more. Way to alienate potential customers who have already told you they are certified by another agency! Additionally, the shop is small and unimpressive, but their prices are exactly the opposite. And despite what I read in previous comments, there are definitely other ScubaPro shops in the area. *** I cant respond to a response in Google reviews, so Im adding this comment: The owners explanation about PADIs success is what I was referring to by "superior business model." Knowing what I know now after a decade of diving, I would have went a different route than the agency I chose - but I still wouldnt choose PADI. Thats my personal opinion for my own reasons. Most scuba divers know the joke about the sinking boat with instructors and students from the three largest agencies. I dont really have an opinion about the prices for each. I never got that far with the rep I spoke with. That being said, my post is actually about the practice of alienating and insulting your customers, not which agency is "superior." Being a business owner (or employee) doesnt excuse anyone from practicing common decency. Freedom of Speech is a great privilege, but it cuts both ways. Most successful business go out of their way to welcome paying customers; not discourage them. If you behave this way, expect people to speak out. Many of the reviews that precede mine show the same opinion. ***

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SR

Sr. Stew

When someone asks very specific questions, infers about particular conditions, explains their usage, etc, you would expect to get clear cut responses with added info, vs their personal opinion that does not relate to the subject. If I want to buy a $300 wet suit dont talk about your dry suit or dry suit classes and the types of wrist gaskets and the thickness of your under layer. WTF talk about neoprene thickness for wet, I repeat, wet suits. I ALREADY OWN A DRY SUIT. I needed a free diving suit, but you didnt listen the whole time. I spent over $1000 at your competitor, because I was not going to listen to you about regulators. And if you have the parts for things in stock. Dont tell me to come back another day when someone else will be there that knows that dept. , especially if I have the part number and know what to look for. Glad someone else was listening after 5 minutes of your rambeling to show me where to look. If I was the owner you would be fired. You lost $1000s of future business for the company. Oh and $20 for dry suit gaskets is not expensive, but you want to sell me an interchangeable gasket/ring system, why? Where are you coming from. I didnt even need them and you went on about how expensive new gaskets are. You can take classes on how to replace the $20 gaskets. WTF. The more I think about my experience the more ridiculous I realize you are. It goes on and on and anyone who knows you, knows who Im talking about, because you interupted and chased off the other salesmen talking to me, and that actually helped me, and they avoided you like the plague when you came around. You are rude, dangerous for people to learn from or buy technical equiptmnt from bc you do not listen and someone will get the wrong thing and get hurt if they trust this shop and you come walking up. 3mil wet suit suggestion for the winters here; common! 52-63 degree water, WTF thats hypothermia waiting to happen.

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A

A Private User

Terrible experience at TackleShack, would give it a zero if I could. Mike Szarzynky, the manager, was rude, belligerent, and generally unpleasant. I rented Scuba diving equipment from this shop. The tanks were under-filled by about 15% (due to a defective gauge at the shop as discovered later). Apparently my friend’s $1000 computer and the rented gauge on their equipment were to blame according to Mike. My friend only got 30min at <30 feet out of this tank. Mike said that my friend should stop smoking butts to breathe less air. The thing is my friend wasn’t there, nor did Mike know him. The rented compass was also broken. Mike said it was rental equipment and I shouldn’t expect it to work. Who needs to navigate under water, anyway? Both of the tanks were leaking air when we tested them the night before the dive, so we replaced the O-rings and returned one of the tanks full for demo purposes. We chose to dive a friend’s AL80 instead. Of course that didn’t matter because we obviously didn’t know what we are doing according to Mike. The only saving grace of this shop is that one of Mike’s employees actually took the time to test the equipment and verify the correctness of our claims. One thing is clear, no more business for TackleShack. They might be good for other things like renting sailing boats, but don’t come here to get your scuba rental equipment.

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Denise Brumley

I bought a Hobie Pro Angler14 elsewhere but called the shop from the water as it was closer to where I was fishing, I had just broke my Hobie rudder cable due to my own negligence. I was told to bring it in and they would fix it right away. The owner of the store fixed it himself and barely charged me anything for the hour or so he and another man worked on it. It was all done while I waited. So glad I didnt have to leave it for a week or something. I had hit some oyster beds with the rudder and the rubber cable (cord) was all sandy from constant use and finally severed in two pieces. They cheerfully cleaned, repaired (replaced the whole line and ensured it was taunt and aligned correctly. Then they ubed it up for me even taking off some of my accessories and replacing them. They had some good tips for regular maintenance. I had a great experience. I would go back in a heartbeat and plan to sign up for a dive class and go spear fishing with a group that gathers at the store. The owner is a bit salty, a very candid Vet (calls it as he sees it kinda guy) . He was always very polite and funny, maybe some people take it the wrong way but I was impressed. Mike (Denises Husband without a google account)

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Jennifer Lounsberry

My family went in to have a look around. We were greeted by a nice woman who asked if we would like water and provided it instantly. We began looking around the store at all the kayaks and we were impressed. As I started to walk to the other side of the store I heard an older man with white hair talking to the sales woman about how he was a good customer and she walked away from him and that was wrong "Did she understand that?" The whole way he spoke to her was demeaning and rude. I figured he was just a nasty customer. As he begins to walk towards myself and my daughter, she accidently steps into his path. I pulled her out of his way and apologized but he just does this rude "ugh" noise and walks behind the counter. Based on his conversation with the employee I am guessing he was the manager or maybe owner. Regardless of how frustrated you are you dont show it in front of your customers and you dont talk to your employees like they are trash. Didnt you just chastise one of your employees for not treating a customer appropriately even though she was the only nice person we encountered?

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