In article , lane
lane_nospam@copperaccents_dot_com wrote:

"Ivan Vegvary" wrote in message
...
What a waste of time. Fortunately, my wife is also my best buddy and the
three hour (one way) trip was delightful.

Almost everything (tooling) at Boeing could have been purchased for far
less
at ENCO brand new. I realize that some of the drill bits, milling cutters
etc. are a better brand, but, hey, they are used. There were a few
machine
tools. 24" metal bandsaw (really beat up, no welder) $ 1900. 24" disc
sanders, looked nice, BUT, $ 1600 used? These things are $ 4-600 at
auctions in the S.F. Bay area.

Used (beat up) Bridgeport milling vise for $ 250! Other (no brand,
slightly
bigger) running up to $450.

Crappy (old) Dell laptop computers (Intel 350 mz, 2 gig drives, 10"
screen)
selling for $650? Plus an additional $50 if you want the Dell 'restore
disk' and an operating system.

Video monitor cables for $ 15? My local mom-n-pop store sells them for $
8.

Oh well, it's like going to Mecca. In one's lifetime everybody has to go
once.

GOOD NEWS!! On our way out of Oregon, in the City of Gresham we noticed a
sign that said "Harbor Freight Coming Soon". It was on Hogan road next to
BiMart. This will save me 30 minutes of driving.

Ivan Vegvary
Sandy, Oregon




A couple of years ago it was a nice place to shop. Now the prices have gone
up and the selection down. I don't go there nearly as often as I used to,
and I'm only an hour away. I know Ernie knows some people who work there.
Maybe he will chime in with his observations.

Lane



Unfortunately it is the nature of modern production.
Boeing makes less so they have less to get rid of.
They are no longer a aircraft builder.
They are a aircraft assembler.

15 years ago there were 485 welding machines in use in Boeing's western
Washington operations.
Currently there are 72.

They do more just-in-time-shipping of parts and materiels, which means
less stockpiling and over-purchasing of parts and materiels.

The prices started climbing because when Condit took over he decided
that the Surplus operations had to be profitable, not a write-off.
So instead of being an expedient way to dispose of stuff they didn't
want or need, sometimes at a loss, it had to at least pay for it's own
operating costs.

There is still some good stuff to be had there, but you have to go all
the time.
I know what to look for, and I still find stuff on most trips, but it
is getting harder and harder.
I would say we have about 5 years left before it is no longer
worthwhile to run Boeing Surplus.

My goal is to get as much stuff as posible from them for my school
before that happens.