Ken Allen -- Performance Hobbies

Hello All,

Longtime lurker and appreciate the forum greatly and was hoping for some advice. I am concerned that I cannot reach Ken Allen. I have emailed and called repeatedly after placing and paying for a large order. While his communication was great initially and he promised delivery a long time ago I have not heard from him for a long time and he did not deliver my order. No answer to emails and my repeated calls have just gone to Voice mail. While of course I am disappointed (was to be gift for my son) and seemingly have lost my money, my first concern is that he is all right as he seemed like a great guy and comes highly regarded. Do any of you all know if Ken is still in business or if something has happened? I appreciate the advice. Thank you.

Mark

Hello All,

Longtime lurker and appreciate the forum greatly and was hoping for some advice. I am concerned that I cannot reach Ken Allen. I have emailed and called repeatedly after placing and paying for a large order. While his communication was great initially and he promised delivery a long time ago I have not heard from him for a long time and he did not deliver my order. No answer to emails and my repeated calls have just gone to Voice mail. While of course I am disappointed (was to be gift for my son) and seemingly have lost my money, my first concern is that he is all right as he seemed like a great guy and comes highly regarded. Do any of you all know if Ken is still in business or if something has happened? I appreciate the advice. Thank you.

Mark

Ken is my go-to man for all of my rocketry supplies. He has never failed to fill an order for me. He is a one man operation, and travels all over the East coast to go to launches, so he can be a bit difficult to get a hold of. Private message me your name and I'll see if I can get a hold of him for you.

I too have never had a problem with Ken.

He just recently did a lot of business with holiday sales, and I've emailed back and forth with him repeatedly in the last week, so I know (as of then) that he's still available. Hopefully all will be squared away with your order soonest.

Thank you. I sent a private message to you Blackbrandt with my info. Glad that he is ok and I hope that someone can contact him for me...

Tigris said:

Thank you. I sent a private message to you Blackbrandt with my info. Glad that he is ok and I hope that someone can contact him for me...

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Just talked to Ken, (well sort of--he is on his way back from Charlotte, taking the back roads and the reception sucks)... He is going to call me back when he gets on the interstate...

Ken is a good guy, but this is not the first complaint I've seen regrading his communication.

He's still in business. Sometimes I have found that the items he lists on his web site are not always in stock hence the long wait. He always comes thru in the end, maybe not as quick as some would like.

Who's Ken? (sorry, inside joke)

I placed an order in May and I'm still waiting for some of it.

(I'm patient and I figure I'll bug Ken some more next Spring...no reply to my last inquiry though.)

Hay Tigris,

I just spoke to Ken over the phone and he states that he has communicated with you (? after your post). He is completing your order. I have found Ken to be reliable and to fill all my previous orders. Hopefully this has all been a case of miscommunication. I agree with the heads up given by blackbrandt, dixontj93060, Fred Wallace & Tom Keith.

Fred,
KG4YGP
L2, Tripoli 15606
member of ROSCO

Thank you Fred for the call to Ken. I have not heard form him since this post despite many emails and calls -- including a call and email today post posting. Perhaps he is confused. If you don't mind I will private message you my contact information.

I just emailed him yesterday and got a quick response.

Ken can sometimes be hard to get ahold of. He already knows his website Sux. I talk to him at least 3 or 4 times a week. Don't give up, Ken is one of the good guys here. First, try calling, LEAVE A MESSAGE if you don't get him. Next email or text. He prefers phone. I will let him know you are looking.

Ok, I just spoke with Ken. This is how Ken operates. He is at a launch almost every weekend. He does NOT carry his complete store with him. Alot of the time, he will stay away from home weeks at a time. If you call with a restricted /hidden number, you will not get any answer. Too many telemarketers. Call, leave a message. If you email, be sure to put a header on it. Mark, Kenecoyote, he is aware of your issues and is working on them.

Thank you all for the help. He has emailed and said he would contact me with an update tomorrow. Appreciate all of the help.

I just heard from ken by email and he said he would contact me tomorrow with an update on the outstanding order. I thank you all for your assistance and appreciate the thoughtfulness of this community. Mark

jimzcatz said:

Ok, I just spoke with Ken. This is how Ken operates. He is at a launch almost every weekend. He does NOT carry his complete store with him. Alot of the time, he will stay away from home weeks at a time. If you call with a restricted /hidden number, you will not get any answer. Too many telemarketers. Call, leave a message. If you email, be sure to put a header on it. Mark, Kenecoyote, he is aware of your issues and is working on them.

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These suggestions have worked for me in the past too Jim. I've purchased from Ken in person at launches in NC and PA, via phone and his web site and always had excellent service. I do know he spends a lot of time on the road - its great to have a dealer who supports our launches in person.

Ken is a great person to work with but he is the only one running his business so reaction times may very from time to time especially if he is out attending launches .

Overall Ken is a great person to deal with

when you email Ken in the subject heading put "rocketry" and he will know it is not a spam email

Birddog

Agree... Ken's a great guy.

Unfortunately, Ken doesn't show up at all the MDRA launches anymore. He always did stuff for me the went above and beyond: Back before drilled delays, he would swap delay kits if he didn't have a motor pack that you wanted; he had hardware for loan; he stocked a wide variety of useful stuff that you forgot to bring; if I needed a motor/part for a launch he wasn't attending, he'd meet me at random places around the Beltway to hand it off; if there was a line (and there always was) he'd let me take my motor and pay when the line was shorter (I always did). This was for a guy who certainly wasn't buying enough stuff to make him rich.

And he always was fun to talk too (which was both a big plus and part of the reason the lines were long )

jimzcatz said:

Mark, Kenecoyote, he is aware of your issues and is working on them.

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Thanks for the update Jim! I've spoken to him in the past and also appreciate the earlier dealings I've had with him (and I'm aware of the situations as well) so I figure he's earned my patience.

Also I should add that I may eventually hit him up for a deal on that nice 6" FG X-15, so that does help with patience on the few parts outstanding. :wink: