The controller is 18 months old. In controller life, this is a very old controller. Here are the things we worry about:
Did the customer tamper with the mod by opening it? If so, how much damage was caused to the modchip wiring? Was there any damage that cannot be fixed without replacing the entire gamepad?
How filthy is the controller? We've found everything inside controller, up to and including MAGGOTS. Cleaning a controller that is disgusting inside is not free.
Is the controller worn out from regular game play? Bumpers? Joysticks? How many parts will need to be replaced to return the controller to as close to 100% condition as possible?
Did Viking360 actually install this controller, or did the customer purchase it from a third-party, such as RapidControllers, East Seattle Controllers? Did the custom buy it off Craigslist from an unreliable source?
If the controller is not a Viking360 original, we will not service the controller, period.
All of these questions have to be answered when we process a return that is 18 months old. I'm sure you can understand our position. In many cases, we've had "Customers" trying to pull some sort of a scam. Quiet often, they have had a friend try a DIY chip install, fail trying the install, then they try to mail the controller into us, claiming that it is a Viking360 original and that it is our fault.
We simply can't and won't quote work before we get to see the controller. We are honest with you up front that our basic repair fee is $75 but can go higher depending on damage, filth, wear n' tear, and of course whether or not this controller is even a Viking original. As I stated before, you can and will get a better labor rate from Frewdrow with
http://eastseattleelectronics.com. We'd be happy to have you mail the controller in for an evaluation and a quote for the work.
If your goal is to get a free repair, I'm sorry, but that is just not going to happen. No amount of arguing is going to change our out-of-warranty repair policy. If you were truly aware of this problem within the first three months, then you should have mailed it back in, instead of waiting 18 months or more to return the product. Trying to manipulate the facts or argue with our moderators here in the forums is not going to result in a free repair. It makes us just want to refuse doing any work for you, in fear that no matter what we do, you'll try to dispute the credit card charge after we charge you actual time n' expense if we do repair the mod.
We've had customers like you before - the kind who come into the forums to start an argument - and 100% of the time it turns out that these kinds of customers are not honest with us about the nature of their problem. My guess is that you did not purchase this controller from Viking360 or you or a friend has already opened and tampered with the mod causing damage. These are the two most common scenarios we've discovered with out-of-warranty Legacy controllers.
Again, we'd be happy to take the controller in and quote you for the work. Even if you decide not to approve the repairs, we can mail the controller back to you, but you must pay the return shipping fees either way.