On Fri, 20 May 2011 20:47:52 -0700, "Bob La Londe"
wrote:

Ok... any of you guys deal with them? There is a Motion Industries shop not
far from my house, and I have looked up a couple items on their website, but
I haven't done any business with them yet. I was curious how their over all
business attitude is, and how they might treat a small purchaser / hobbyist.
Yes I know that will vary dramatically from individual to individual, but
often its also a reflection of the top down management and customer service
attitude.

Oops, this following rant I just made was for Applied Industrial
Technologies, not MI.

If the Medford, OR store is any indication, I probably won't be back
to AIT unless I can't find it anywhere else. They appear to be a
strictly retail+ shop and everything they sell is pretty steep. I
recommend that you call and talk to them on the phone to get some
indication of the attitudes at the store near you. I had stopped by
the AIT store because I saw it next to the Costco I visit.

The guy who finally waited on me almost five minutes after I entered
the store and stood at the counter (3 other guys on computers who
looked up and quickly back to their screens, none of whom were typing,
were silent and ignoring) was friendly and knowlegeable, but the SKF
bearing was $21, more than I wanted to spend for an idler bearing. I
came back to Grants Pass empty handed and got the bearing + an inside
snap ring for $7.50 at Neely Bearing a couple days later. Yes, the
bearing I bought was an import, but triple the price? The guys looked
up and, when they apparently didn't see a multi-thousand dollar sale
standing there, ignored me. The guy in GP was busy pressing a bearing,
but immediately called out that he'd be right there, and he was
friendly and attentive when he got to me about 90 seconds later. He
threw in the snap ring gratis. I hadn't gone there the day I shopped
AIT because he was closed that Saturday.
The great thing about getting older is that
you don't lose all the other ages you've been.
-- Madeleine L'Engle