Yes. This is why I stock up when available. I do wish they had a way to notify when they are back in stock.

Yeah, it's definitely frustrating. Not fun for people who want bulbs, and obviously bad business to have to turn away eager customers. It's not intentional, of course. I can go into the ins and outs of why this is happening, but I don't want to be in the business of making excuses.

Things will get better, we promise. Now that we've figured out how to run this business, the only thing left that stresses me out is running out of stock. My dream is that it never happens, but that's probably not feasible with over 1000 different bulbs.

We've had a healthy stock of green and yellow frosted 1SMDs (both wedges and bayonets) dating back to November (or earlier), though some are low in just the last week. So for some reason, your experience doesn't seem to align with our actual inventory levels. Please reach out via PM so we can figure out where the disconnect is...you should have been able to buy these all along!

Perhaps unbelievably, our e-commerce provider does not allow this. It's maddening. It might be the thing that gets us to switch to a different platform. For now, you can email [email protected] and ask us when we'll get X back in stock. The answer will always be "a few week", but we'll put you on a list and send you a personal email when it arrives.

I have noticed inventory issues too. I just went ahead after a while of waiting and made due with comparable leds though I still would like a few that are out of stock. I understand that this is a new business for Ryan and it will take some time to get all the workings of it figured out. I do like Comet the most and do not want to go elsewhere - the selection of LEDs is amazing.

Ryan and the Comet teams customer service and affordable pricing means I'll put up with the limited availability of 1 or 2 bulbs. It is frustrating having to wait but I've really enjoyed working with them.

Totally understand! Technical limitations that seem to be easier for other sites must be infuriating. I don't mind the wait, and thanks for having a kick-ass product!

I have been using Coin Taker but all of a sudden have been getting poor service.I decide to try Comet but they were out and I had to shop some where else.

I just placed a decent order of 1 SMD 5050 bulbs frosted in green and other colors in both #47 and #555, so it is possible you just hit bad timing as nothing was out of stock the other day when I ordered.

I have always had great experience both with Art and now with Ryan. On the upside they are just bulbs and I am sure more will be available soon. Maybe adding a back order or notification sign up for when things are back in stock may be helpful.

I have bought from Comet. Quick service but low inventory. I'm the type of person that want to get my stuff yesterday but it doesn't always work that way. I respect that the new owner of Comet is getting used to running the business.

I have been dealing with Cointaker for years and they have always been responsive and helpful. in fact the only issue I really see as far as buying anything pinball related is Mad Amusements. He's a dirtbag and a thief.

Just got a shipping update from my order over the weekend. Put a smile on my face.
"Dearest Rob -------,

Thanks for ordering from Comet Pinball! Jeff happily skipped through the aisles, grabbing each of the items you asked for, putting them into a special blue plastic container with little black dividers between each item. Then it got placed on the Ready Rack with dozens of other eager bulbs - before being double checked by Janet, the only member of the team brave enough to undergo Lasik.

All the while, we couldn't help but wonder: what *is* Rob going to do with all this stuff? What game(s) will it be going into? What will the finished product look like? Feel free to send us pics your creation - we love seeing them!"

comet kicks ass, any bulb supplier you use will occasionally be out of certain items, i see no reason to start a thread crying about it.

That would be nice if you were able to help Ryan with a glitch in the inventory system

which you could have handled in a private pm, instead of starting a post with a derogatory title against a business is the point I'm trying to get across, but you probably don't understand that being a burger king employee, and not a business owner yourself.

Na na na na na na na na na. Megaaaa dooouche!

Any publicity is good publicity, and you have something against BK employees???

This for sure won't get me to stop using Comet-in fact, it reminded me i need to order new bulbs.

I have been dealing with the out of stock issue since they took over the business. Maybe just a learning curve on keeping inventory and the hold-ups from China. Hopefully they get it sorted out before another vendor steps in and gobbles up the business.

I've only had issue with common lights. Wanted 200 of one white light, but had to settle for 100 sunlight and 100 warm white. Or they didn't have a 7 bulb trough light, so I ordered a 3 light instead.

I figure it's a sign of busy times, I love the comet price and processing. They'll be my go to guys for my next order

odd

I must just be lucky. I exclusively use comet due to quality, consistency, great servive, and of course price.

I am yet to have an issue with ever encountering backstock, even post sale.

Granted I may be part of the issue as I ususally order a whole bunch at once and can be unpredictable in my purchasing patterns

I'll wait on Comets if they are out of stock or you can usually find another replacement of the color choice you needed,so much to choose from.
Thanks Comet!

Been waiting over 17 days for some of their led's to get back in stock.

Aren't all LEDs from China ?

china (resized).jpg

i would check with them, it seems some of the stuff is in stock, even though the website shows it not.

I have and they're not

Comet is definitely not the same.

I had to quit selling one of my mods because Comet was always out of stock on the bulbs I needed. Fortunately, I was able to find a source directly from China. I can sell my mod again.

I wish Art would have never sold his business. He truly was/is an asset to pinball.

I am very pleased with Comet. Their price is by far the best and I get my order in 2-3 days every time. I love Art but I get my orders a little faster now. The assortment is amazing and if they are out of 1 or 2 items occasionally out of hundreds of choices that is understandable. All I know is I can LED a pin for about 30% less than I did 2-5 years ago with a way better selection.

I'm hoping for a handful of LEDs to come back in stock too.

Ill be happy to recommend close substitutes if anyone needs.....

Comet is great! Always a pleasure to do business with them. Quick shipping and quick responses if there's a minor issue.

Absolutely ^^^^ great prices!

Hang in there everybody. Anything we're out of has been ordered. Maybe I can bring Art back on as a consultant to deflect all of the bad will our stock issues have generated?

Not bad will per se, just "sad" will

My pinballs need to look better.

Dire Straits rift "I want my L - E - D- 's "

I love comet as well. But....to be honest I have a cart full of leds that never get ordered due to missing stock.=lost revenue..

you could also update the thread title...

Just sayin... It is a pretty shitty way to treat a company you like to support and one that does a good job. Everytime this gets bumped, you are basically bad mouthing Comet and turning people away from them.

Kind of BS considering I have not once had an issue with OOS bulbs. Not a very nice way to treat a good business.

I've always had a great experience with them... never bad.. I will continue to go threw them.. in fact I need to order next week .
.

So I proposed this to them a while back when I was getting ready to make my first purchase. I wanted 2 led they were all out of stock so I asked if 1 SMD would be the same price. I got a nice "no". Looking back it was a real douche move on my part. By the time it's all said and done I bet they're making 5-10 cents on each bulb sold (at least the 1-2 Led and 1 SMD because the market is so competitive the more expensive flashers and what not probably have a decent mark up). Comet offers free shipping on a reasonable order amount and I don't get that from pinball life, pbr, or Marco or anyone else I can think of. ive spent almost $50 on my last 6-7 parts orders just in shipping. 5 orders from Comet $0 in shipping.

Ordered recently and was just as happy with service and product as I was with art. Still the best in the business. Candy was a nice touch. Thanks again comet!

Don't let this thread deter you guys.

I have ordered from comet since day one... and it does seem that there is always one two items out of stock.... but this was with art as well.... it does make sense with the amount of items they stock... I keep track of what is out of stock each time and it is never the same thing... if it was then I would see a problem. I love comets product and service!!!!

Great leds and pricing. It's a plus for us since they are in Boulder. Give them a little time to adjust to running their new business. They will get it right. Ryan is a hard worker

curious, have you still been unable to order what you wanted? What specific bulbs are you trying to order?

I honestly have never once had an issue with anything being OOS at Comet and the prices and service are so good that I would never come whine about a few oddball bulbs being OOS on a forum or be so passive aggressive with a thread title and now revised title. It is still a BS way to treat a company that is good, provides a good product, and actually response to emails very quickly.

Are you whining about some stupid color changer one off that only you have even ordered and they probably should just remove entirely from their website or are you having a legitimate issue with a common bulb that should be in stock? either way the only correct solution was to email team Comet and work with them.

Is this really all over 1smd frosted green and yellows? If so then 2 things:
1. Stop color bombing games. It looks like crap
2. Buy the 2SMD and stop being so cheap

from what I see, both the 1SMD and 2SMD in frosted Yellow and Green are in stock currently?

Substitutes are a very good thing....

Hilton is correct.

If 1 SMD is OOS try, 2 SMD...especially in color, same price.
or Grab it in fluted...different lens, if not GI, where physically seen, it may not match others but it looks fine.
Faceted lens..what people get in MM and now RFMR....

Worse case, send an email.....substitutes, back stock not showing, and ETA, can help get through almost any issue....

Lastly, as I do, stock $50 worth of White LEDs, your favorite....100 bulbs in GI is good for 3 games....worth it if one hates
waiting...Then a few colors.....at worst, if something specific is out, you can light with white or warm white...after all, thats what was there before, and if absolutely no substitute, come back and change it later.

I realize after all the years, that free shipping works, and for want of perhaps a "perfect order 100%", people will wait, or get upset,
but at worst, is a small shipping charge, or email Ryan and Janet for help.

Comet is great! Happy Customer. I just do like Art said, I order bulk GI bulbs and keep them around for when needed.

Also here to support Comet. Ive have had OOS "issues" with them but substitute a different bulb, and 10/10, dont even realize that "OMG ITS NOT THE SAME BULB!!!" Ive done a handful of games and they have always sent my order in a timely manner. Even with shipping costs, they still have a great price. Im going to continue to use Comet for all my games.

I love comet and they will continue to get my buisiness, I understand these things happen, but to give you an example of problems I am having with stuff being out of stock:
I have over $200 in my cart I'm ready to buy. I'm doing the 300 piece bulk order as my main purchase and then a bunch of other randoms. So I'm going through the tedious process of adding the bulbs I want for the 300 bulk order, and oops Blue SMD frosted is out of stock. Well I guess I could get clear or no cover, but I don't really want that because I like the look of frosted and if I want clear or no cover I can just take the cover off my frosted so I have ultimate flexibility. So I guess I'll wait until they come back in stock.

Come back maybe a week later. Go through the tedious process of putting the 300 piece bulk order together, sweet, my blues are in stock, continue with order, oops now reds are out of stock. Fuuuuuuuck.

Come back later, same process, warm white out of stock. FFFFFFFF

Now like I said, I'm really not that mad about it, because I understand these things are tricky, people buy em up fast, ect. Plus I'm not in a huge hurry to get these bulbs as I have not fully decided the direction to go with my game yet either. But it is somewhat frustrating when I just want to get the purchase out of the way so I'll have the things I need on hand.

Hopefully it gets a little smoother soon like Ryan said, and guys, please, try to find a way to streamline this 300 piece bulk order madness lol. Also it would be nice to have the option of 2 smd in the non faceted lenses too but I understand if thats not possible lol

Regardless, I've had really good luck with both owners as far as all my previous orders go and I plan on continuing to send my money to them! Keep up the good work other than my minor complaints!

I wonder if they can set up the ability to place your entire order with a note of "please pick and ship once backorders arrive" This would allow you to pay and then as soon as the Blue SMD frosted came in, then they would drop those in your box and off it goes?

Something similar to amazon where it notifies you of backorder items and you get the option to either ship in multiples or hold the shipment till all pieces arrive.

I too love Comet and have ordered lots of LEDs from them, I also use Titan at times too - usually when Comet is OOS on something. It's not just odd-ball products either, right now the 1 SMD non-ghosting, warm white, clear 44 bases are out of stock - this is my go-to bulb for inserts and I ran out of them mid-game. I don't want some inserts looking different than others and I've tried the frosted bulbs in these inserts and they don't look as good, so I'm waiting for them to be stocked again. It would be great to be able to place an order with instructions to ship once all items are available, or at least be able to be notified when something you need is available again. This isn't whining, it's asking a company you prefer to do business with to make an improvement or adjustment so that it's even better to do business with them.