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Metalworking (rec.crafts.metalworking) Discuss various aspects of working with metal, such as machining, welding, metal joining, screwing, casting, hardening/tempering, blacksmithing/forging, spinning and hammer work, sheet metal work. |
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#1
Posted to rec.crafts.metalworking
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Thanks, McMaster-Carr
I needed some aluminum tubing for a project, and after checking a few online sources, McMaster-Carr had the type and size I needed for a reasonable price so I put my order through with my credit card at noon yesterday. I was concerned that no shipping charges were added to the order so I sent a friendly note via the "Contact Us" link asking about that.
A half hour later came the reply from Naima: " Thank you for the feedback. Shipping charges are determined when an order is weighed and shipped. I estimate shipping for the aluminum tubes you ordered to cost $5 to La Farge, WI. Whenever you need a shipping estimate before you place an order, please let us know the items and the destination, and we will quote shipping charges at that time." OK, so sounds good. So I figured when they are ready to ship, I'll get the invoice, which I get this morning. Shipping charge is $9.36 for two 6" lengths of aluminum tubing, 1 1/2" OD & 1 1/4" OD. I assumed the order hadn't been sent yet so I sent a note asking to cancel the order because I felt the shipping was too high. Almost double Naima's estimation. I was ready to call the bank and see if I could stop the charge when Naima's reply arrived: "I apologize that the shipping estimate was not correct. We'll credit your credit card $4.36 to match our estimate." Wow. That's cool. I decided to accept Naima's kind offer, sent a note of thanks and gave the order a go-ahead. OK, I'm a pushover, I know. I just didn't have time to sit and mess around with the hassle of trying to cancel the charge and make a new order with a different source. I had stuff to do, people to see, etc. So I get back home this afternoon to see the package from McMaster-Carr on the doorstep. I was flabbergasted. Sent from Chicago by UPS Ground to my place, in SW Wisconsin, in about 27 hours from the order! I had no idea UPS could do that. Sure, only a 5 hour drive but no red tape? No sitting in a distribution center in some ridiculously far and out-of-the-way city like St.. Louis, MO or Denver, CO? Just wanted to give a public tip o'the hat to the company for it's great customer service. And thanks also to UPS. |
#2
Posted to rec.crafts.metalworking
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Thanks, McMaster-Carr
On Wed, 15 Oct 2014 20:32:40 -0700 (PDT), Ken Grunke
wrote: I needed some aluminum tubing for a project, and after checking a few online sources, McMaster-Carr had the type and size I needed for a reasonable price so I put my order through with my credit card at noon yesterday. I was concerned that no shipping charges were added to the order so I sent a friendly note via the "Contact Us" link asking about that. A half hour later came the reply from Naima: " Thank you for the feedback. Shipping charges are determined when an order is weighed and shipped. I estimate shipping for the aluminum tubes you ordered to cost $5 to La Farge, WI. Whenever you need a shipping estimate before you place an order, please let us know the items and the destination, and we will quote shipping charges at that time." OK, so sounds good. So I figured when they are ready to ship, I'll get the invoice, which I get this morning. Shipping charge is $9.36 for two 6" lengths of aluminum tubing, 1 1/2" OD & 1 1/4" OD. I assumed the order hadn't been sent yet so I sent a note asking to cancel the order because I felt the shipping was too high. Almost double Naima's estimation. I was ready to call the bank and see if I could stop the charge when Naima's reply arrived: "I apologize that the shipping estimate was not correct. We'll credit your credit card $4.36 to match our estimate." Wow. That's cool. I decided to accept Naima's kind offer, sent a note of thanks and gave the order a go-ahead. OK, I'm a pushover, I know. I just didn't have time to sit and mess around with the hassle of trying to cancel the charge and make a new order with a different source. I had stuff to do, people to see, etc. So I get back home this afternoon to see the package from McMaster-Carr on the doorstep. I was flabbergasted. Sent from Chicago by UPS Ground to my place, in SW Wisconsin, in about 27 hours from the order! I had no idea UPS could do that. Sure, only a 5 hour drive but no red tape? No sitting in a distribution center in some ridiculously far and out-of-the-way city like St. Louis, MO or Denver, CO? Just wanted to give a public tip o'the hat to the company for it's great customer service. And thanks also to UPS. WOW, you don't order much stuff do you. McMaster's shipping charges are the most reasonable around. Try some of the online metal places, I've gotten a nice low price on the material, then a 15 dollar cutting charge and a $20.00 S&H charge. Remove 333 to reply. Randy --- This email is free from viruses and malware because avast! Antivirus protection is active. http://www.avast.com |
#3
Posted to rec.crafts.metalworking
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Thanks, McMaster-Carr
Randy333 fired this volley in
: So I get back home this afternoon to see the package from McMaster-Carr on the doorstep. I was flabbergasted. Sent from Chicago by UPS Ground to my place, in SW Wisconsin, in about 27 hours from the order! I had no idea UPS could do that. Sure, only a 5 hour drive but no red tape? No sitting in a distribution center in some ridiculously far and out-of-the-way city like St. Louis, MO or Denver, CO? Just wanted to give a public tip o'the hat to the company for it's great customer service. And thanks also to UPS. Yeah, 'The Mick' is real good. They deliver overnight for ground rates to me in Florida from Atlanta, and if I nudge them only a tiny bit, they'll throw in overnight shipping for free from their northern warehouse when stock isn't available in Atlanta. You must understand, they didn't just wrap those tubes up in tape and throw them on the truck... you also got a 7' long, $6.00 hardened shipping tube in the deal! LLoyd |
#4
Posted to rec.crafts.metalworking
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Thanks, McMaster-Carr
On Wed, 15 Oct 2014 20:32:40 -0700 (PDT), Ken Grunke
wrote: Just wanted to give a public tip o'the hat to the company for it's great customer service. And thanks also to UPS. Not in Canada. -- Boris --- This email is free from viruses and malware because avast! Antivirus protection is active. http://www.avast.com |
#5
Posted to rec.crafts.metalworking
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Thanks, McMaster-Carr
So I get back home this afternoon to see the package from McMaster-Carr on the doorstep. I was flabbergasted. Sent from Chicago by UPS Ground to my place, in SW Wisconsin, in about 27 hours from the order! I had no idea UPS could do that. Sure, only a 5 hour drive but no red tape? No sitting in a distribution center in some ridiculously far and out-of-the-way city like St. Louis, MO or Denver, CO? Just wanted to give a public tip o'the hat to the company for it's great customer service. And thanks also to UPS. McMaster has me plumb spoilt.I order by 6:00 PM get it 10:00 AM next morning. Always top quality stuff. For the upper midwest, they use Speedee - the low cost carrier - about 1/2 of UPS Karl |
#6
Posted to rec.crafts.metalworking
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Thanks, McMaster-Carr
On 10/16/2014 2:25 PM, Karl Townsend wrote:
So I get back home this afternoon to see the package from McMaster-Carr on the doorstep. I was flabbergasted. Sent from Chicago by UPS Ground to my place, in SW Wisconsin, in about 27 hours from the order! I had no idea UPS could do that. Sure, only a 5 hour drive but no red tape? No sitting in a distribution center in some ridiculously far and out-of-the-way city like St. Louis, MO or Denver, CO? Just wanted to give a public tip o'the hat to the company for it's great customer service. And thanks also to UPS. McMaster has me plumb spoilt.I order by 6:00 PM get it 10:00 AM next morning. Always top quality stuff. For the upper midwest, they use Speedee - the low cost carrier - about 1/2 of UPS Karl Just adding my thumbs up for McMaster-Carr. They have always had quality, price and shipping and an unbelievable catalog. Mine is old but valued. Mikek |
#7
Posted to rec.crafts.metalworking
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Thanks, McMaster-Carr
amdx fired this volley in news:m1pcr4$h5p$1@dont-
email.me: Just adding my thumbs up for McMaster-Carr. They have always had quality, price and shipping and an unbelievable catalog. Mine is old but valued. Y'know, catalogs are one thing: Both McMaster and MSC have dynamite catalogs. But go on-line, and boy, does the difference show! It's nigh-on impossible to find any one specific item on-line with MSC, unless you already know its exact description (not a keyword) and/or its MSC part number. Go on the McMaster site, and you can find nearly anything they have in a few mouse clicks. Even if it's something exotic and you don't have a good description, you can usually narrow it down in less than ten levels of search. When they can't find it at one level, they give you hints for the next search. All that's flat _impossible_ on the MSC site, and I shop with them often. But when I do, I have to drag out the BIG BOOK... Lloyd |
#8
Posted to rec.crafts.metalworking
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Thanks, McMaster-Carr
....
Go on the McMaster site, and you can find nearly anything they have in a few mouse clicks. Even if it's something exotic and you don't have a good description, you can usually narrow it down in less than ten levels of search. When they can't find it at one level, they give you hints for the next search. All that's flat _impossible_ on the MSC site, and I shop with them often. But when I do, I have to drag out the BIG BOOK... Lloyd Yep, i pretty much just order online Mcmaster now. The other company like MSC is Grainger. I can get stuff cheap from them but their online catalog SUX so bad, I don't bother. |
#9
Posted to rec.crafts.metalworking
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Thanks, McMaster-Carr
"Ken Grunke" wrote in message
... I needed some aluminum tubing for a project, and after checking a few online sources, McMaster-Carr had the type and size I needed for a reasonable price so I put my order through with my credit card at noon yesterday. I was concerned that no shipping charges were added to the order so I sent a friendly note via the "Contact Us" link asking about that. A half hour later came the reply from Naima: " Thank you for the feedback. Shipping charges are determined when an order is weighed and shipped. I estimate shipping for the aluminum tubes you ordered to cost $5 to La Farge, WI. Whenever you need a shipping estimate before you place an order, please let us know the items and the destination, and we will quote shipping charges at that time." OK, so sounds good. So I figured when they are ready to ship, I'll get the invoice, which I get this morning. Shipping charge is $9.36 for two 6" lengths of aluminum tubing, 1 1/2" OD & 1 1/4" OD. I assumed the order hadn't been sent yet so I sent a note asking to cancel the order because I felt the shipping was too high. Almost double Naima's estimation. I was ready to call the bank and see if I could stop the charge when Naima's reply arrived: "I apologize that the shipping estimate was not correct. We'll credit your credit card $4.36 to match our estimate." Wow. That's cool. I decided to accept Naima's kind offer, sent a note of thanks and gave the order a go-ahead. OK, I'm a pushover, I know. I just didn't have time to sit and mess around with the hassle of trying to cancel the charge and make a new order with a different source. I had stuff to do, people to see, etc. So I get back home this afternoon to see the package from McMaster-Carr on the doorstep. I was flabbergasted. Sent from Chicago by UPS Ground to my place, in SW Wisconsin, in about 27 hours from the order! I had no idea UPS could do that. Sure, only a 5 hour drive but no red tape? No sitting in a distribution center in some ridiculously far and out-of-the-way city like St. Louis, MO or Denver, CO? Just wanted to give a public tip o'the hat to the company for it's great customer service. And thanks also to UPS. You know, I have had good service from McMaster for the most part, but I don't read reports like this as an overwhelming positive. Paraphrasing: "They screwed up and tried to %^#&% me, but when I called them out over it they made it right." I would rather they don't screw up in the first place. |
#10
Posted to rec.crafts.metalworking
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Thanks, McMaster-Carr
"Bob La Londe" fired this volley in
: Paraphrasing: "They screwed up and tried to %^#&% me, but when I called them out over it they made it right." I would rather they don't screw up in the first place. Yeah, but Bob, no cogent experienced customer service person would have quoted $5.00 shipping on something that required 1) a shipping tube, and 2) UPS... period. This was a newbie. Had to be. And it's not _much_ of a screwup. Ask yourself, "How much would it cost ME to ship those two pieces to McMaster's address?" And just to consider, how much would that lock-end shipping tube cost, if I had to provide it? McMaster provides the best service at the best shipping rates and fastest shipping of any general-lines supplier I've ever found. They have screwed up occasionally for me, too. But they _always_ make it right, at no cost to me. I needed a 24"x24" sheet of 0.035" aluminum for a Friday. Ordered on Thursday, it arrived on time. The dolt who packed it put a 24x24 in a 24x24 box, and it arrived crushed on all four corners (of course). I called them up, whining about having to have it TODAY, and now it would be Monday before I could have it -- and what do you know? They shipped it overnight, Saturday delivery, no charge. And I didn't even have to return the bad one! (and yes, they properly packed the replacement). PEOPLE happen to good business models. You cannot prevent it, only 'cure' it. Lloyd |
#11
Posted to rec.crafts.metalworking
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Thanks, McMaster-Carr
On Thursday, October 16, 2014 8:31:42 AM UTC-5, Lloyd E. Sponenburgh wrote:
Yeah, 'The Mick' is real good. They deliver overnight for ground rates to me in Florida from Atlanta, and if I nudge them only a tiny bit, they'll throw in overnight shipping for free from their northern warehouse when stock isn't available in Atlanta. You must understand, they didn't just wrap those tubes up in tape and throw them on the truck... you also got a 7' long, $6.00 hardened shipping tube in the deal! Harumph. My tubes came in a little cardboard box. Now I'm really gonna raise a stink! Ken |
#12
Posted to rec.crafts.metalworking
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Thanks, McMaster-Carr
On Thursday, October 16, 2014 7:18:42 PM UTC-5, Lloyd E. Sponenburgh wrote:
And it's not _much_ of a screwup. Ask yourself, "How much would it cost ME to ship those two pieces to McMaster's address?" And just to consider, how much would that lock-end shipping tube cost, if I had to provide it? The little box weighed 14 oz, just over the USPS First Class limit but the tubes weighed 8 oz so easily could have went FC in a padded envelope for around $3. Of course it wouldn't be overnight shipping but I've gotten and sent First Class parcels in two days in the same region. Ken |
#13
Posted to rec.crafts.metalworking
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Thanks, McMaster-Carr
Ken Grunke fired this volley in
: The little box weighed 14 oz, just over the USPS First Class limit but the tubes weighed 8 oz so easily could have went FC in a padded envelope for around $3. Of course it wouldn't be overnight shipping but I've gotten and sent First Class parcels in two days in the same region. Ken Didn't you write 6-foot tubes in your first post of complaint/thanks? If not, I stand corrected, but I think I remember your writing "6'". You do, of course, always have the option of specifying the shipping method when placing your order with McMaster. If you had asked for Priority Mail, they'd have complied. They presume "business urgency" for their customers' shipments. Lloyd |
#14
Posted to rec.crafts.metalworking
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Thanks, McMaster-Carr
On Thu, 16 Oct 2014 16:32:09 -0700, "Bob La Londe"
wrote: "Ken Grunke" wrote in message ... I needed some aluminum tubing for a project, and after checking a few online sources, McMaster-Carr had the type and size I needed for a reasonable price so I put my order through with my credit card at noon yesterday. I was concerned that no shipping charges were added to the order so I sent a friendly note via the "Contact Us" link asking about that. A half hour later came the reply from Naima: " Thank you for the feedback. Shipping charges are determined when an order is weighed and shipped. I estimate shipping for the aluminum tubes you ordered to cost $5 to La Farge, WI. Whenever you need a shipping estimate before you place an order, please let us know the items and the destination, and we will quote shipping charges at that time." OK, so sounds good. So I figured when they are ready to ship, I'll get the invoice, which I get this morning. Shipping charge is $9.36 for two 6" lengths of aluminum tubing, 1 1/2" OD & 1 1/4" OD. I assumed the order hadn't been sent yet so I sent a note asking to cancel the order because I felt the shipping was too high. Almost double Naima's estimation. I was ready to call the bank and see if I could stop the charge when Naima's reply arrived: "I apologize that the shipping estimate was not correct. We'll credit your credit card $4.36 to match our estimate." Wow. That's cool. I decided to accept Naima's kind offer, sent a note of thanks and gave the order a go-ahead. OK, I'm a pushover, I know. I just didn't have time to sit and mess around with the hassle of trying to cancel the charge and make a new order with a different source. I had stuff to do, people to see, etc. So I get back home this afternoon to see the package from McMaster-Carr on the doorstep. I was flabbergasted. Sent from Chicago by UPS Ground to my place, in SW Wisconsin, in about 27 hours from the order! I had no idea UPS could do that. Sure, only a 5 hour drive but no red tape? No sitting in a distribution center in some ridiculously far and out-of-the-way city like St. Louis, MO or Denver, CO? Just wanted to give a public tip o'the hat to the company for it's great customer service. And thanks also to UPS. You know, I have had good service from McMaster for the most part, but I don't read reports like this as an overwhelming positive. Paraphrasing: "They screwed up and tried to %^#&% me, but when I called them out over it they made it right." I would rather they don't screw up in the first place. I like 'em too, but I recently had to send back a couple regulators and go to the manufacturer for a better solution. These were Airtrol miniature precision regulators. Turns out they leak 350 cc/min by design. No data to that effect on McM, but if I had known more about regulator design, wouldn't have been a problem. Airtrol was able to provide one that leaks 5 cc/min, which works. The lady I talked to at McM wasn't interested in doing a special, even once I had the part #, so I had to chase down a vendor in Houston. This regulator controls the pressure to the cylinder driving the idler wheel on the belt grinder (almost finished, finally) I'm building for my son. The frame is the air tank, and the lower leak rate means he can grind several days in a row before refilling. He will have to cycle the 3-way valve controlling the cylinder to lower the output pressure. Pete Keillor |
#15
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Thanks, McMaster-Carr
Hmmm... no, I note that you DID write six-inch. I mis-read that.
1-1/2" o.d. pipe is a little large to ship in a regular padded envelope, but I guess it would usually make it there OK. Lloyd |
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