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I thought I would give this place a try after hearing all the gushing emotions and rave reviews. 1st I tried a cheapy table saw for building bird houses with my boys, I get the thing home and open it up and it looked like somebody ran a fork (as in fork lift) thru the side of it so I take it back. Yesterday I bought a makita 71/4 powersaw and get it home and the table has a eighth inch crown, so know I gotta haul that back. I think I’m about to learn a lesson here, do all you guys take tools out of boxes and inspect them in the store?
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This will really cheer you up!
I don't know how to create the link but you might want to read the article at
http://www.masterhandyman.com/articlesframe.htm
*Hi Allen,A couple years back I had a similar experience at a Lowes store when purchasing a Delta Contractors Saw,only to bring it back to my shop and find several parts of the fence guide missing. From this you'd think I'd learn. Well, just last week my wife wanted me to pick up 2 spray cans of exterior polyurethane. Brought em home and neither one wouild spray. Took em back and tried every can on the shelf. None would spray. At least this last time I learned enough to not have to make an added return trip.
*A year ago or so, I purchased a Dewalt 14.4 volt combo (drill and saw) from Central Michigan Lumber. They are one of the area's largest distributors. Probably paid about $10 more than at a big box, but I needed it. After 11 months or so, the wire came off the charger; when I walked in with it, they immediately replaced the charger. No receipt, no questions, no problem. That's why you use a local retailer or lumberyard, it's for the service. Nowadays, too many people expect small yard service from big-box retailers, and it just ain't gonna happen.
*... i buy all our tools either at my tool distributor...(Qualer Lane Tool) or at the lumber yard i'm at every day...and yes.. they do come out of the box before they go home... because me and the guy that's waiting on me are playing with it... he's showing me why i want this one instead of that one .... and then we open the box that has mine in it and we check it out....gud for me .. great for them ... maybe they can sell me that little accessory i thot came with it ... or a new case to put it in...also.. the tool distributor services everything they sell... why shop any place else...yur a tool nut.... buy yur tools from other tool nuts...b ps.. they even remember yur name
*I agree i buy my tools from a local tool store and it seems i have very little problems with them. when i do they know me and i never get questioned about this or that. when i buy from a block store like the HD i seem to have one problem or another with the tools, ive returned a table saw, chop saw and other variuos things. i think they either sell seconds or maybe buy in such large quanities that a second or two get put in the invitory.i dunno i just dont buy from them
*I dont know all the details here, but the HD store here in MI has a return policy which credits you full purchase price of tools if you are disappointed or not happy with it, and want to up-grade or switch brands. I know peeps who have taken back chop saws etc.. after over a year of use, not a problem. I havent traded anything yet, but any broken tools go to the returns desk and a new one comes off the shelf and into my cart. For the markup you pay at most of the wanna be places, you`d think they would give you some ass-lube along with their products, but instead they give you a number for the "repair center near you." Service at its best, no thanks. If you find a place that will take care of you, thats great, stick with them.
*Home Depot doesn't carry many tools I want. They don't even have a hammer handle for a 20 oz. Vaughan!What a joke.MD
*I gotta agree with ya Tom. The big boxes bend over backwards here in MI and take ANYTHING BACK!blue
*Had a good experience at Home Depot and a bad one. I wore out a Dewalt 18 volt drill and they replaced it, no questions asked, at my favorite store (Corruna Rd. in Flint) then I took back a defective commercial paint sprayer that would not suck the cleaning solution into it and they made me feel like I just borrowed it to use. Worst part of it was that the job that I bought it for, I never even got to do with the heavy sprayer. I ended up having to rent one. By the way, I am not a contractor, just a homeowner who is a tool collector and heavy do-it-yourself'r.
*I can buy 3/4 oak ply at Home Depot for $42 a sheet. Lumber yard wants 60.00. I have a wholesale acct. with a plywood co. selling directly to cabinet shops and they can't beat HD prices either. There's a place for the big stores, but you've got to be careful that's all, they also sell oak boards for $7 a board ft. which is real high, especially in Ohio
*>Home Depot works for some tools, but Tool Crib of the North, either through their catalog or through Amazon.Com has the best prices and service. I've been using them for years and have never had a bad experience.
*HD does take back pretty easy but stop to think how is it that they can undersell a wholesaler. They pressure the manufactureres to provide product at low cost due to volumn they handle. Manufacturer says sure thing, can do, you betcha man! Now we've got a way to unload our seconds and crap merchandise. Or some other concession that makes it workable in the marketplace. Therefore at the big boxes you can find a higher percentage of crap and a lower selection of options. My pet peeve with HD is that they advertise that they have "experts" in the aisles. I've never seen one yet! Why would an expert that can be making $30/hr be working there at what? $10 or 12? I have customeer who spend a day there and come back with so many hairbrained ideas about how to do it that I'm ready the blow the place up(figuratively speaking) They should stick to selling and leave advice to professionals.
*And there they are on page 7 of the new FHB. Joe H
*That's OK, Joe. I am a HD shareholder now- I go there instead of Lowe's when I want cheap crap.
*Lonecat, I wish it were that way here but the Lowes we've got is a joke. they never have anyhting in stock and the place is a major dump. HD is like heaven in comparison. OTOH I've been to Lowe's in other towns and it was just the opposite. I guess it has a lot to do with where you are and the lead content in the drinking water.
*Steve, I've got to agree with you about Lowe's. They just this year bought up the Eagle Hardware chain. Eagle WAS my favorite place to go. Had just about everything! Been to the Lowe's version 3 times now and I will NEVER go back! Moved in a bunch of junk, people who didn't know sh*t, stuff just piled in the aisles. Kind of a building supply K-Mart. It really p*isses off to lose someplace like Eagle and to be forced to go to HD. Used to be a place in Sacramento, CA called Newbert's Hardware. If you needed an axle nut for your buggy, one of the old guys would scratch his chin for a moment, reach into a wooden bin on the wall and there it was. Same for a Torx screw or a coal scuttle. Damn but I miss places like that! That's why I support the mom & pop shops over HD. Once they're gone, they're gone.
*It's funny, because the Lowe's around here are usually a lot cleaner and easier to find stuff in tha HD.Certainly a lot easier to find some help. It's an extra 30 minutes at HD just to find some loser to misdirect you. As far as the big boxes beating the price at a distributor,it's real simple, they sell more stuff. It's not seconds or crap, it's just a lot more than a distributor can move.
*well Don that's what the mom & pop shops are in my area...gone. I've been offered jobs right on the spot a few times now in both HD and lowes because I knew where the stuff was or how to do/use it better than their "experts" and ended up explaining to their customers while their "experts" just stood there with a dumb look on their faces. aint that a kick in the ass!
*Joel, Only true to a certain degree. I've talked to manufacturers and manufacturer reps. Given a chance to speak "off the record" they'll admitt it. Some manufactureres refuse to sell to HD.I knew a top flight accountant at Sears several years ago before their reorganization. He had horror stoies about how they manipulated and beat up their suppliers. Management goes to same schools.Integrity still rules with professionals. Long live the mom 'n' pops
*Piffin, I was in the wholesale business for a long time. Buyers only beat you up as much as you will let them, and if you are any good they walk off thinking they didn't leave any money on the table.But they always do!
*Have you also noticed the repackaging in Lowe's? 100 count screws in cardboard box: $1.29, same 100 count screws but in a plastic pack: $3.89
*Unusual tactic - the big gag around here is Canadian Tire where the 100 count in the box is the same $1.29; but you can get 6 in a plastic bag for only $0.69. 'Course, you can always go to Home Depot and buy the screws for only $0.08 each.
*saw the same thing at HD, electrical staples 50 for I think around 3 bucks in a plastic box, turn the corner and they had somewhat hidden 500 in a cardboard box for the same price.
*Buying in bulk = discount.I'd be surprised to see the 500 count box at the SAME price as a 25 count blister pack. But, I am used to seeing it at about 1.66 times the price. Definitely cheaper to buy the box, if looked at a per staple cost. But, the last time I bought milk in a convenience store, a pint was something like $.75 where a gallon was about $2.00 - same concept.Never seen the same product offered in two different packages with such a large disparity in price, ala Ralph's screws in box vs. plastic at Lowe's. Usually, when that's the case, it's different brands, or different coatings, even different "suggested uses", or something? If so, I would kinda expect there to be such a price difference - usually with a comparabile quality diffference.
*My HD stock jumped up today.
*Most stocks did - the street has forgotten the election.
*I was at HD the other day buying some chain. Had to have the clerk cut it. A co-worker shouts to him, "Hey does stainless steel rust?" He replies, "yeah!" Me and about three other customers look at him and shake our heads, NO, stainless doesn't rust. He shouts back to the other clerk that it doesn't rust. He then turns to me and says, "I was thinking about aluminum." Omigod!
*Actually, Martin, Stainless steel can rust if it's a cheap enough grade (which HD probably carries)
*Shhh Steve,Please don't make me look just as bad as the clerk. For this moment lets just agree that stainless just doesn't rust...;-)
*Sure stainless rusts - the Chinese stuff. This is not a bias against the Chinese, per se, many of them are fine people. However, every tool made of Chinese stainless has rusted. The other part that worried me was when he said "I was thinking of aluminum" - sure it corrodes, but aluminum doesn't rust!
*Hey Armchair, er uh PITA, let's say oxidize for the sake of argument. ;) (Sorry Sean I just couldn't resist)
*Hey, I'm not armchair on this one, I used to work at HD a couple of years ago (he says with increasing shame...)
*I recently started working at Lowe's in Pennsylvania. I work in their Tool World department. I find that a lot of contractors like the tools and service they get (at least at this store). They even have professionals and specialists unlike HD that I've talked too. I've also worked for Sears there is where the JUNK is. I've seen so much "Bob Villa" gadget come back. Guys don't waste your money on the next new inovated thing bob promotes it's mostly just junk.
*Where in Pennsyltucky Brandon? It can't be Reading 'cause that store is about useless.
*If'n I had to guess, he's up by Williamsport. His email is from PCT.edu, and that's up there.Brandon, guess what, HD is/was the same way as you go on about Lowe's, guess what, you've been brainwashed, man. I am personally familiar with 15 of the 17 closest Home Depot stores to me (Philadelphia), as well as 3 of the 4 closest Lowes (they only have 4 in SE PA/north DE). I've not been to a store in NJ, either flavor. Of those, I'd say that 11 of the HDs are good, and 2 of the 3 Lowes are good - in other words, for every bad store you've got 2 good ones, regardless of the chain. I define good as: knowledgable, friendly staff; well-stocked (meaning no holes on the shelves, organized, clean - can you find it where it's supposed to be?); and hassle-free (don't make me find someone to unlock a cage so I can buy a $10 tool). Pricing and selection are negligible, as both chains are on an equal level in these areas. In fact, as I've said above, they're on par overall, but still with a disappointing 66% success rate (100% now that I know what stores to avoid).
*Yeah Pita, The Lowe's in York, PA is real nice and the one in Binghamton, NY (where my folks live) is pretty good as well. it's just this local one that's run by people who chew on lead paint chips
*See, two outta three! Of course, that's the one store I hadn't been to, so now I know to avoid it. That also drops Lowe's down to 1:1 (good:bad) ratio instead of 2:1, so I'll stick to HD. :)
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I thought I would give this place a try after hearing all the gushing emotions and rave reviews. 1st I tried a cheapy table saw for building bird houses with my boys, I get the thing home and open it up and it looked like somebody ran a fork (as in fork lift) thru the side of it so I take it back. Yesterday I bought a makita 71/4 powersaw and get it home and the table has a eighth inch crown, so know I gotta haul that back. I think I'm about to learn a lesson here, do all you guys take tools out of boxes and inspect them in the store?