Mercury Outboard parts - what's happening?

[timschap]

I've never written a complained about any manufacture so this is going to be a first for me. I ordered a counter rotation Stainless Steel Prop from the local Mercury dealer in April. First it was going to be six weeks, after six weeks it was going to be mid August. I've just been told its now 12 more weeks (here in Rhode Island the boating season ends for the most part in October). In mid-July I figured I'd order and aluminum (until the Cadillac SS came in from Mercury). I order the prop from i-Boat, came in a week. Of course two weeks later I bounced it off a rock, back to i-boat for a new prop, again one week!!!! Maybe it's time Mercury fired it's current Supply Chain VP and hired i-boats person ... OH and the dealer has $500 of my money as a deposit!!!!!

Has anyone else had problems that go beyond the normal explanation from Mercury?

 

[dingbat]

I've never written a complained about any manufacture so this is going to be a first for me. I ordered a counter rotation Stainless Steel Prop from the local Mercury dealer in April. First it was going to be six weeks, after six weeks it was going to be mid August. I've just been told its now 12 more weeks (here in Rhode Island the boating season ends for the most part in October). In mid-July I figured I'd order and aluminum (until the Cadillac SS came in from Mercury). I order the prop from i-Boat, came in a week. Of course two weeks later I bounced it off a rock, back to i-boat for a new prop, again one week!!!! Maybe it's time Mercury fired it's current Supply Chain VP and hired i-boats person ... OH and the dealer has $500 of my money as a deposit!!!!!

Has anyone else had problems that go beyond the normal explanation from Mercury?

It's not on Mercury.....
Supply chain shortages and delays are becoming a huge problem right now.

The CPU we require to build our equipment has been on back order since April. Not expecting any until the end of November at the earliest. Used to be 2-3 week delivery. We're forced to turn down new orders because we cant get the materials we need to build them.

Anything to do with machine/fabrication supply chain are in a world of hurt right now. Can't even find warm bodies let alone someone actually qualified to do the work

 

[GA_Boater]

Shipping is almost non-existant worldwide.

I don't know where you get your news, but slow shipping is a subject in all the major news outlets. Almost every day has stories about chip shortages in the auto industry.

 

[hardwater fisherman]

I tried to buy an aftermarket trim/tilt for my 40hp merc. A fairly large company in Montreal that I have bought from before has nothing in stock. And they are no longer taking orders for this year because they do not know when they will get more.. Someone that sounded like maybe the owner took my call.. He sounded out of breath like he had to run to get the phone. PrinceCraft is in the next town from me.. There yard is almost empty... They mostly build boats during the winter and then lay off workers for the summer. The winter of 2020 they where shutdown because of lack of materials ... Now they have some material but there lacking welders and other workers..

 

[Chris1956]

The answer is to order from places who have the item in stock. There are lots of places on the web to get a prop. Pick one who has what you want in stock for a price you are willing to pay.

Just so you know, I bought a prop for $300 recently. It was also available at places for $350, $400 and even $600. It came is 2 days, since it was in stock.

 

[Scott Danforth]

Ford has almost 100,000 vehicles they can not deliver because of computer chip shortages

Toyota does not have foam for seats, neither do furniture manufacturers and boat upholstery manufacturers

Appliance companies do not have steel and plastic bits to make appliances

China produces most of the stainless steel (have for a few decades), so the raw stainless that Mercury puts into castings is late coming into the country.

its a global supply chain issue.

Additionally COVID has the ports locked down, so shipping is at a stand-still. we are still recovering from the guy that tried a 3-point turn in the Suez canal