Discussion on all milling machines vertical & horizontal, including but not limited to Bridgeports, Hardinge, South Bend, Clausing, Van Norman, including imports.
johnfreese wrote: ↑Thu Dec 06, 2018 6:11 pm
Unfortunately Fastenal now only sells business to business.
Hmmm. I wonder if that's true in all areas? I haven't stopped by the local Fastenal in a while, but they've offered mixed service in the past, from not selling small quantities to over pricing, even charging shipping on items forwarded with other stock. They've not encouraged the casual customer, but the local store has advertised that it was open to the public. I'll have to stop by the next time I'm in town to see if they have followed suit. Wouldn't surprise me. Of all the corporations I've done business with, I rate them amongst the lowest in service and customer care.
H
Wise people talk because they have something to say. Fools talk because they have to say something.
Ray's Lapidary Machine Repair is the name I use . I once fixed my wife's saw. The girl behind the counter is nice to me, maybe I look like her grandfather.
A man of foolish pursuits, '91 BusyBee DF1224g lathe,'01 Advance RF-45 mill/drill,'68 Delta Toolmaker surface grinder,Miller250 mig,'83 8" Baldor grinder, plus sawdustmakers
johnfreese wrote: ↑Thu Dec 06, 2018 6:11 pm
Unfortunately Fastenal now only sells business to business.
Hmmm. I wonder if that's true in all areas? I haven't stopped by the local Fastenal in a while, but they've offered mixed service in the past, from not selling small quantities to over pricing, even charging shipping on items forwarded with other stock. They've not encouraged the casual customer, but the local store has advertised that it was open to the public. I'll have to stop by the next time I'm in town to see if they have followed suit. Wouldn't surprise me. Of all the corporations I've done business with, I rate them amongst the lowest in service and customer care.
H
In some jurisdictions the regulatory burden on retail businesses is much greater than that on "business to business" firms.
Our local Fastenal says open to the public and says everything except "get lost" when I enter. 2 other stores in Columbus have the same attitude. You can see broken open boxes of bolts on the shelves but cannot buy Them.
Our Fastenal is open to the public.
Nice enough folks, but way to pricey. I set up an account there to get a whopping 5% discount, which makes my Fastenal price 30% or higher compared to MSC. So, if I have to have something right away, I'll get it. Otherwise, I'll wait a day & get it from MSC. Their warehouse is close. And any order I make with MSC over $49.99 is freight free, as long as it's UPS. Not hard to make an order over $49.99.
They have bins with a whole lot of grade 5 & grade 8 capscrews etc. I never went in there for just a couple of anything that wasn't big....like 3/4" or larger though.
There used to be a similar store near me when I lived in Amsterdam; 'Nohos' they were called.
They had a fantastic assortment, whatever odd fastener you needed. But they hated to sell ones and twos, and would manifest that in an unfriendly counter attitude.
For a while, they instituted a minimum purchase amount of $30 or $40. Then they went back on it just before they went under.
A specialized fastener shop opened up in the nearby shopping town here in Portugal, but they were gone within a year.
Now I buy from UK internet shops, but the postage is slow and expensive. I suspect that after brexit it will no longer be practical.
Here in Europe, threaded rod comes with painted ends, the color indicates the hardness. Green is the good kind, I think 8.8 but maybe higher. It's available from better hardware stores, but not at the big DIY places with the banners and flashing lights.
"Painting the ends" has a long history. It really means something. When I was bidding against actual machinists, they knew which bars they wanted and which to avoid. I bought a fair large lot of tube and solid. My Dodge van had a serious heavy rack atop, heavy shocks and springs. I was loading so much it was going to be unsafe. The inside was loaded too. So this guy comes around and asks if I would sell him certain rod and tube. Sure I did but I knew the code/paint that he was after.
The other thing is to duct tape the painted inches of the end or otherwise paint it to a long bar. It is a real clue.