I did some major workshop setup over the weekend, and came across a package of wood finish I had ordered from Rockler for a project I’m in the middle of. There are 3 quart-sized cans, 1 of shellac, 2 of polyurethane.
Before that order, I had bought shellac and polyurethane from Amazon. The shellac arrived intact, with similar lid-locking tabs. But the polyurethane can was shipped loosely protected in a box, and arrived dented with a warped top and what looked like signs of leakage. No lid-locking tabs.
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When I ordered from Rockler, the 3 cans were shipped with metal lid locking tabs, and within their own cardboard sleeves. There was some packages around the perimeter to keep everything nice and tidy in the box.
Even though they charge more and shipping is slower, I’ll be ordering my wood finish from Rockler from now on. Or perhaps another woodworking supplier, if I need something Rockler doesn’t carry.
There are other products I’d pay more for.
I ordered a workbench from Amazon in April, and it arrived in sad condition, with parts falling out of the flat-pack box. I ordered Durham parts cabinets from Zoro twice before, and they always arrived bent and damaged.
I ordered parts from one electronics and industrial supplier, and there were problems after problems. Customer service had to go through a regional rep, and everything took sooooo loooooooong. Mouser? My parts bags are numbered and have useful info on the labels. After ordering hundreds of parts from Mouser, I have yet to run into a problem *knock on wood*. My last email inquiry went quick and smoothly.
Mouser sometimes charges more than other suppliers, and so I used to split my orders multiple ways to ensure the lowest possible project cost. The same with industrial suppliers – I’d source tooling and materials for a project from multiple suppliers to ensure the lowest cost.
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But I’ve been moving closer and closer to valuing customer service, shipping competency, and on occasion pre-purchase and post-purchase support as more important than being able to achieve the lowest purchase price.
Part of this comes from how free time has become scarcer and more valuable, and the other part born from the many hundreds (if not thousands) of online orders I’ve placed over the years.
Oh, I’ll still sometimes shop around to save money, but it’s often to save big bucks. If the total difference to buy from my preferred retailers is 5%, I’ll spend that extra money and feel good about it. More than that, and I’ve got some thinking to do.
What will you spend more money on, and why?
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Nathan
might blow a few minds but part of the reason I still try to buy locally in a shop if I can.
I want to put hands on a product occasionally and I don’t want to leave shipping up to the wind.
I don’t know I’d buy any chemicals on line unless I just HAD to.
I agree about the service thing though. 2 parts – there are stores I trust and others I don’t be in previous experience or just reviews. And I only use certain shipping methods.
Some times I will indeed pay more for 2nd day FedEx vs either waiting on the postal service or letting this choose whatever and finding a DHL package that had been tossed At the door laying in my driveway.
(yes both purple and brown have their issues etc etc not trying to stir that up)
Example electronics – namely computer stuffs I pretty much only buy from NewEgg these days. Why – always great service – always well packed. So yes I am getting to be more and more particular these days too.
Stuart
I didn’t really have a choice. I couldn’t find the poly locally, and the shellac was only in gallon quantities.
For computer parts, I’d have good experiences with both Amazon and Newegg.
Jonathan
Ditto for Computer/electronics, on Amzn an Newegg,
PSA: for Newegg, they offer Vets and AD personnel a free 1 year Newegg Premier with free Returns, free 3 day or less shipping and dedicated 800#. (Normally $50).
Caveat: I used to buy open box/Warehouse deals from both but have stayed away, as the testing for bad/defective/damaged equipment and missing items doesn’t appear to exist at either and the discounts have moved closer to 10-15% off from 40-60%.
Even the “Recon/Recert items” have had issues. Bought an Acer recertified 2n1 10″ laptop for my 12 yr old daughter (daily deal), first had a bad wifi module, 2nd came locked login password on Win10 [no longer easy to reset or run a PW recovery program on Win10 OS].
After two nonfunctional ones, they just refunded her money. But it cost me more in billable hours than the cost of the laptop dealing with CS, repacking and trips to FedEx, not including time trying to troubleshoot the wifi issue.
Again echoing Stuarts comment on free time becoming scarcer and more valuable.
I’ve stopped buying used on most things except high dollar items as the downtime and repair cost can end up costing more than new, and it seems that more and more you just end up buying other peoples problems.
Side note, I do prefer being able to deal (sometimes) with local B&M stores that sell on line for some items that are not stocked/displayed. i.e. HD, BB, Lowes that offer free S&H. As it can be faster and easier to deal with issues and returns. Yet it seems that CS is almost an oxymoron at many local B&M as the entry level work force is being filled by more and more millennials and apathetic Gen X’rs.
Jonathan
link for free 1 year trial of Newegg premier for Vets/AD/Reserve/NG personnel
http://promotions.newegg.com/nepro/16-1748/index.html
John
I’m not sure if they were the other supplier, but I’ve found Digikey to ship quickly (I’ve ordered on Tuesday night once, only to receiver Wednesday evening, and never past Thursday morning… for 8 Canadian Pesos…) and they always put things in individual bags with barcoded labels (they even put how many you bought on each tag).
I agree that sometimes it’s worth it to spend a bit extra, if it means less waste / less spillage / less risk of damage. Orders fulfilled by Amazon are usually great, but I’ve also had liquid products poorly handled.
Stuart
Wasn’t Digikey.
I’ve only ordered from Digikey a handful of times, with never any issue. I remember that one time it was because they carried something I couldn’t find elsewhere, and another time it was because they carried 12V battery boxes (8x AA) for far less than anywhere else.
My last order from Mouser had over 100 components. Each was in its own bga, sometimes an inner bag, and each outer bag had the part number and a brief description.
Some of the parts are for an upcoming project, others are for general “I’m gonna need this” future project use.
I organized the parts and cut out the label. I’ve found leftover parts from past projects, and parts for projects that hadn’t left the ground yet, and sometimes I’m left squinting to read a part code.
I ordered dozens of parts from the mentioned but unnamed supplier, and none of them had line numbers – it was a HUGE inconvenience.
ed ski
Its hit or miss. Mostly, its been getting miss.
Bought stainless workbench-tool cabinet from Costco for $680 no tax, free sh.
It arrived (freight) damaged and I refused it. They shipped another (delayed) from California to NJ. It arrived (hottest day) and it had damage that I could deal with (small dimple on back…no one would see). That took 4 weeks to have an item.
Also ordered 4 cans (case) of Zinser Mold-killer Primer. Can’t buy locally. No one, not even HD/Lowes/Ace carry this. That arrived in case, with 3 cans clipped and one with dent (one of three clips popped).
Some freight carriers are just par. UPS is a terrible carrier. They want to charge you for changes to delivery. They won’t give a decent time frame of delivery (by end of day…really?). Drivers are either green (wrong address, don’t ring door, won’t leave with neighbor), seasoned (professional, courteous) or on their way out (throw items, in a rush, …). And I will say, most damage isn’t by the driver, its at the distribution/hub where larger items crush smaller coming off the conveyors (seen it!).
Newegg, someone mentioned, used to ship bare HDDs wrapped in bubblewrap. HDD shows up, all the bubbles are popped. Now, they use HDD packing (shell) in double box. But still, a HDD can’t be shipped like a shirt or pants.
Matter of fact, I am home now, waiting for UPS. Why did I have to take a vacation day? Because the vendor failed to note that the item would “require” a signature. They won’t allow “sign slip” or online “sign” release. (its a $200 pull-behind garden tool…aka aerator/dethatcher). So I have to stay home because the item “on truck for delivery … end of the day”… (Last I looked, end of the day could mean 5pm, 6pm, 8pm, heck even 11:59pm..right?).
So, I am doing some housework… (grrr I need to get to Lowes and get some Cat6 cables, Drylock paint,… grrr)
Jonathan
Amazon can be just as bad with packing for some items,
In Jan, I bought a half-height pcie wifi card (matchbook size) only protected by the anti-static sleeve, but in an open ended cardboard envelope, shipped with a 12oz SDS drill chuck that was in a thin cardboard wrapper no bubble wrap or anything, shocked that it didn’t fall out as the ends were just folded in and not taped and that the pcb card wasn’t snapped/cracked by the weight and mass of the chuck and the overall handling at hubs.
Agree about Brown, I’ve not made purchases from retailers that only deal with Brown, ground takes 5-7 days even if it is shipped from the same city or across country. I’ve seen packages arrive and stay at the Portland hub (I live in Portland) for 3-4 days before being sent out for delivery because they are ground and not 2nd day , etc. I would rather have a DHL/FedEX ship to USPS than Brown Ground. [/rant off]
Satch
Hit or miss depending upon circumstance. For instance, I just discovered kctool was twenty-five miles away from my home. Where else are you going to find German hand tools locally?
Prices are higher than chadstoolbox and they do not carry the entire line but warranty works over the counter. And I found the Wera imperial Tool Check set in stock this morning for 79 dollars. Win
WIlliam Butler
I’ll pay more if the company has great customer service. Sherwin Williams for example. When I walk into the local store nearly everyone greats me by name. Super helpful, very nice people. Companies that know my name will have my business.
ktash
I try to buy at my local hardware store when possible. It is such a pleasure to just walk in, get my item, and leave. They are always cheerful and courteous. If they don’t have it, I’ll try the local big box stores. I still like bricks and mortar and would hate to see a further deterioration of locally available tools/materials.
The trouble is that items these stores used to carry are now only available online.
The exception is around Black Friday/holidays. I’ll still try to buy bricks and mortar, but will also just go with the lowest prices.
I do like both Rockler and Woodcraft. Woodcraft should offer free shipping over $35, or even $50. Often I’ll go with Rockler because of the shipping costs. But both offer good quality items and good customer service.
John
That attention to shipping is what separates “free shipping” from “free shipping and handling” 😉
Chase
I bought 3 cans of stain from either rockler or woodcraft a few years ago. 2 had those nice box covers with tabs, one did not. Everything had a nice coating of cinnamon dye from the one unprotected can. They don’t always do it right.
Kevin M Smith
If Amazon doesn’t have it, then I don’t need it!
Pete
Metal clips or not, when the lid is damaged the seal could be broken causing the contents to come out.
99% of the time my amazon purchases have been perfectly delivered. I did have a package with a megapro that got eaten by the sorter belt. Damaged the megapro handle slightly, i didnt mind though. Its a tool thats ment to work, i actually ended up stippling it.
Ive found that then i NEED something i had better order it right THEN from amazon so when i get around to the project its ready and waiting instead of having to run around wasting time and fuel trying to find the right product OR enough product.
skfarmer
i buy most things local. at least what i can get in the towns 10-15 miles away. throw in the large town 45 miles away and the selection is much broader allowing me to get a bit more specialized. the only time i really order is when i have trouble sourcing things at the even larger town.
i cannot afford to not patronize the local places. if they are gone i am shit out of luck. i am concerned for the guy that runs the local farm supply store. there is a tsc opening soon and while they are a fine store, the local guy has a lot or stock of hard to find things and offers service after the sale with a small shop and a knowledgeable staff. he will still get most of my business.
Jim Felt
skfarmer.
Ultimately your situation reflects what has happened in city after city and now town after town. The lack of quality/qualified local vendors due to shifting demographics and buyer indifference. Good for you for sticking with the qualified local guy!
I’m glad here in Portlandia we’ve still got a fair number of great local vendors in many disciplines. But for how long? Dunno.
Ian Random
I love to order $1-2 Chinese garbage from China to mess with, cheap fun after six weeks of waiting. Anything over $15, I’m going to a domestic supplier and the more it costs, the pickier I am about the seller.
RCW
Shipping is a last resort for me, I will drive a long way to pick something up if possible, shipping of large items , or heavy items is a major crap shoot at best.
MichaelHammer
I have always lamented Boston traffic, but I suppose it’s worth it. I read the comments and realized I can everything you’re talking about within eight miles of my house. However, when I do order online for cheaper prices I use the same trusted sites over and over. It’s more than just the condition of the items upon arrival, it’s your personal,information at risk. Trust has value.
BTW: mildewcide paints are nonsense. The mildewcide wears off within one year, much faster if exposed to sun.
rjbphd
Stay away from Panther Corp from California. .. ordered ‘special blades’ from them.. they took my money and claimed it was shipped… okay ,why you can’t find the shipping order on FedEx site, two days later ,oh its UPS shipping… for the next four business days, asking where the order, ‘it’s coming tomorrow ‘.. screw them, finally got my credit.. 16 days later when I could pick up a blade at slightly higher cost at local store.
skfarmer
it is great to find a deal and pay less but in the end do you save much? your dollar leaves home. your tax money leaves. the local store is gone when you need plumbing fixtures on a weekend . your neighbor loses his job or maybe you lose yours. is it worth the savings? if you live in a metro area maybe these things don’t happen…………or do they?
Stuart
Most of what I order is not available locally. What is available locally is at a much higher and often unreasonable markup. I can hardly find the time to work on projects, let alone travel 30, 60, 90 minutes for something I can get delivered to my door. And let’s say I do make the trip. Maybe half the time, it turns out the item isn’t in stock, or is wrong in some way, damaged, etc.
I tried hard to find the finish I needed before ordering online, and I didn’t want to settle for substitutes.
Hang Fire
Good service is really important. I used to computer parts shop from everywhere (remember Computer Shopper?) Now Lowe’s and Home Depot sell Ethernet cable, but I still have to go online to find computer components.
About 10 years ago I ordered a high demand video card from a smaller online dealer… but first I wrote an email and made sure they had it in stock. They did. So I ordered and put it on my Debit Card. It immediately got placed on backorder with a 2 week estimated wait. I called and asked what happened and they had no clue, or at least pretended to have no clue. I canceled immediately and it took more than 2 weeks to get my money back. But after many indifferent experiences, I started getting much, much more choosy about where I ordered stuff.
That was just one of many bad experiences, and almost all of these places have been driven out of business by Newegg, Fry’s, Amazon and MicroCenter. The ones that have survived provide good local services.
Local shopping is great if it exists. Even if it exists it’s not always wise.
For example I recently purchased OTA HD antennas and cut the cord. I could have purchased a $149 Honeywell amplified antenna from the local Home Center along with another $50 of non-quad-shield cable. The antenna box was banged up and taped up. Instead I bought everything from Amazon for less than $100, including the Quad Shield cables, and everything arrived in perfect condition.
I agree about chemicals. Anything that requires a hazmat fee for return is probably a better candidate for local purchase… if possible.
MikeD
If looking for Electronics parts try Digikey, orders delivered next day (even in Canada)! And prices are much better than local prices.
The Canadian taxes are included (???) but it means no customs paperwork charges, which are frequently much more than the taxes!