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KNOCK-OFF VALVES: WHY WE DON’T SELL THEM
So many customers ask us, why doesn’t BlastOne sell anything other than Schmidt blast pots and valves?
It’s a fair question. So here’s a true story that demonstrates why.
We recently quoted a Schmidt pot with a TeraValve to a tank blaster from Tennessee. He ended up buying a competitor’s pot because it was a “little cheaper.” He bought it on a Friday, brought it back to his shop, hooked it up and started blasting! It was magic, worked perfectly and he couldn’t have been happier…that is, until Monday morning when he found that his abrasive metering valve was already jammed up with grit. Needless to say, he wasn’t happy when our Account Manager followed up with him that Monday to see if he was still interested in our quote. We were a day late and a dollar short on getting the sale, but our team member also felt bad they hadn’t warned him that you get what you pay for – hence this Primed Insight.
Some competitors think selling rebuild kits and replacement parts will make them money, but we certainly don’t believe that creates loyal, happy customers.
Most blasters who are using knock-off valves are doing so for one reason – they believe they are saving money.
Here are some facts.
- Schmidt TeraValves will go an average of 12 months of regular use before they require a rebuild. Our entire rental fleet of blast pots carry Schmidt Valves with the majority of them being TeraValves. We’ve found that they will outlast any other valve by two to three times the lifespan.
- Knock-off valves will last an average of 1-2 months simply due to substandard overseas manufacturing, lower tolerances and relying on outdated designs.
- We’ve found that many of these substandard valves will adjust themselves out while blasting, and then you end up blowing thru abrasive. The TeraValve has a powerful gasket that makes it a bit more difficult to adjust, but prevents pressure and vibration from loosening the dialed-in adjustment.
- In our years in the blasting industry, we’ve consistently found that you can save an average of 100 lbs. of abrasive per hour by using a genuine Schmidt metering valve.
