If you are considering buying tools from this site, use caution. For those
that want to skip the story, here is a quick summary of my experience:

They did not respond to multiple cancellation emails sent within 12 hours of
an order.
They did not respond to phone requests to confirm the cancellation made
within 24 hours.
They billed my credit card two weeks before they shipped it (in spite of the
attempted cancel).
They would not help me stop shipment.
They did not respond to the AmEx inquiry after I asked for a hold on the
payment.

Here are the details:

I ordered a TS on 3/23, but found it for about 150.00 less on Amazon later
that day. According to Hechinger's site, orders can be cancelled without a
fee before shipping. I cancelled the order less than 12 hours after it was
placed, then called them the next morning to confirm the cancellation before
ordering the other TS. The rep told me she could not confirm, but she would
give the information to the cancellation department who would get back to me
within a week. This sounded a little fishy to me, but with the way Amazon
prices bounce around I went ahead and ordered the other saw.

The Amazon order went through fine and I had the saw within a week. then,
on 4/5/06 I got a shipping notice from Hechinger! I emailed them, called
them and called the shipping company to stop the shipment. Everyone said
they could not stop it en route and the Hechinger rep could not explain why
the order was not cancelled after 2 emails and 2 phone calls to be sure on
3/24. By the way, I never did get the cancellation confirmation email or
any email response at all for that matter.

I asked AmEx to stop payment and they said they had already charged my card
on 3/24! AmEx investigated the claim to get Hechinger's side of the story.
Hechinger never responded to them so AmEx refunded my money. I was able to
send to saw back when the delivery guy called me to schedule the drop off.
A close call, but I came out of it ok.

Not only is their shipping slow by modern standards, but they seem to either
be very disorganized or dishonest. I have never had an online shopping
experience like this and suggest others steer clear to avoid a similar
problem.

-Steve

That is why I never shop "PRICE" . . . If it cost more than I am willing to
write off . . . it will begin it's life in the back of my truck after a face
to face meeting with the dealer . . . I have driven to Houston, New Orleans
& Mobile for tools . . . I live in the Baton Rouge area . . .

I know to some this is stupid . . . but I always know what I'm getting &
always get good service . . or no $$$ change hands . . .

Steve





"Steve W" wrote in message
. com...
If you are considering buying tools from this site, use caution. For
those
that want to skip the story, here is a quick summary of my experience:

They did not respond to multiple cancellation emails sent within 12 hours
of
an order.
They did not respond to phone requests to confirm the cancellation made
within 24 hours.
They billed my credit card two weeks before they shipped it (in spite of
the
attempted cancel).
They would not help me stop shipment.
They did not respond to the AmEx inquiry after I asked for a hold on the
payment.

Here are the details:

I ordered a TS on 3/23, but found it for about 150.00 less on Amazon later
that day. According to Hechinger's site, orders can be cancelled without
a
fee before shipping. I cancelled the order less than 12 hours after it
was
placed, then called them the next morning to confirm the cancellation
before
ordering the other TS. The rep told me she could not confirm, but she
would
give the information to the cancellation department who would get back to
me
within a week. This sounded a little fishy to me, but with the way Amazon
prices bounce around I went ahead and ordered the other saw.

The Amazon order went through fine and I had the saw within a week. then,
on 4/5/06 I got a shipping notice from Hechinger! I emailed them, called
them and called the shipping company to stop the shipment. Everyone said
they could not stop it en route and the Hechinger rep could not explain
why
the order was not cancelled after 2 emails and 2 phone calls to be sure on
3/24. By the way, I never did get the cancellation confirmation email or
any email response at all for that matter.

I asked AmEx to stop payment and they said they had already charged my
card
on 3/24! AmEx investigated the claim to get Hechinger's side of the
story.
Hechinger never responded to them so AmEx refunded my money. I was able
to
send to saw back when the delivery guy called me to schedule the drop off.
A close call, but I came out of it ok.

Not only is their shipping slow by modern standards, but they seem to
either
be very disorganized or dishonest. I have never had an online shopping
experience like this and suggest others steer clear to avoid a similar
problem.

-Steve

If the folks who run this outfit are related to the company of the same
name that used to run home improvement stores in Maryland and other east
coast cities, this report is no surprise. The was, without
qualification, the worst retail experience I've ever had in terms of
service and merchandise. They finally closed their retail stores about
six or eight years ago. I wouldn't buy anything from these folks if
they were the last shop on the web.

Cap'n

Steve W wrote:
If you are considering buying tools from this site, use caution. For those
that want to skip the story, here is a quick summary of my experience:

They did not respond to multiple cancellation emails sent within 12 hours of
an order.
They did not respond to phone requests to confirm the cancellation made
within 24 hours.
They billed my credit card two weeks before they shipped it (in spite of the
attempted cancel).
They would not help me stop shipment.
They did not respond to the AmEx inquiry after I asked for a hold on the
payment.

Here are the details:

I ordered a TS on 3/23, but found it for about 150.00 less on Amazon later
that day. According to Hechinger's site, orders can be cancelled without a
fee before shipping. I cancelled the order less than 12 hours after it was
placed, then called them the next morning to confirm the cancellation before
ordering the other TS. The rep told me she could not confirm, but she would
give the information to the cancellation department who would get back to me
within a week. This sounded a little fishy to me, but with the way Amazon
prices bounce around I went ahead and ordered the other saw.

The Amazon order went through fine and I had the saw within a week. then,
on 4/5/06 I got a shipping notice from Hechinger! I emailed them, called
them and called the shipping company to stop the shipment. Everyone said
they could not stop it en route and the Hechinger rep could not explain why
the order was not cancelled after 2 emails and 2 phone calls to be sure on
3/24. By the way, I never did get the cancellation confirmation email or
any email response at all for that matter.

I asked AmEx to stop payment and they said they had already charged my card
on 3/24! AmEx investigated the claim to get Hechinger's side of the story.
Hechinger never responded to them so AmEx refunded my money. I was able to
send to saw back when the delivery guy called me to schedule the drop off.
A close call, but I came out of it ok.

Not only is their shipping slow by modern standards, but they seem to either
be very disorganized or dishonest. I have never had an online shopping
experience like this and suggest others steer clear to avoid a similar
problem.

-Steve

"Cap'n 321" wrote in message
. net...

If the folks who run this outfit are related to the company of the same
name that used to run home improvement stores in Maryland and other east
coast cities, this report is no surprise. The was, without
qualification, the worst retail experience I've ever had in terms of
service and merchandise. They finally closed their retail stores about
six or eight years ago. I wouldn't buy anything from these folks if
they were the last shop on the web.


A quick look at the web site and sure enough - it's the same guys. I did
some private consulting to Hechinger back in the early 90's and it was a
horribly screwed up company. They had some great technology and clearly
somebody knew what they were doing and had set the company up for some
solid, state of the art operations. Much like what the OP has discovered
with his recent experience, the left hand and the right hand never seemed to
talk to each other though. What should have been a pretty sharp operation
was a flaming disaster.

--

-Mike-

I'm with you, usually. I don't want to see good retail stores dry up.

However, in this case the online option was about 15% less. On top of that
the nearest retailer is about 45 miles away, did not stock it, and would
have charged me another 50.00 to ship it. We all have our limits.

-Steve


That is why I never shop "PRICE" . . . If it cost more than I am willing
to
write off . . . it will begin it's life in the back of my truck after a
face
to face meeting with the dealer . . . I have driven to Houston, New
Orleans
& Mobile for tools . . . I live in the Baton Rouge area . . .

I know to some this is stupid . . . but I always know what I'm getting &
always get good service . . or no $$$ change hands . . .

Steve





"Steve W" wrote in message
. com...
If you are considering buying tools from this site, use caution. For
those
that want to skip the story, here is a quick summary of my experience:

They did not respond to multiple cancellation emails sent within 12 hours
of
an order.
They did not respond to phone requests to confirm the cancellation made
within 24 hours.
They billed my credit card two weeks before they shipped it (in spite of
the
attempted cancel).
They would not help me stop shipment.
They did not respond to the AmEx inquiry after I asked for a hold on the
payment.

Here are the details:

I ordered a TS on 3/23, but found it for about 150.00 less on Amazon
later
that day. According to Hechinger's site, orders can be cancelled without
a
fee before shipping. I cancelled the order less than 12 hours after it
was
placed, then called them the next morning to confirm the cancellation
before
ordering the other TS. The rep told me she could not confirm, but she
would
give the information to the cancellation department who would get back to
me
within a week. This sounded a little fishy to me, but with the way
Amazon
prices bounce around I went ahead and ordered the other saw.

The Amazon order went through fine and I had the saw within a week.
then,
on 4/5/06 I got a shipping notice from Hechinger! I emailed them, called
them and called the shipping company to stop the shipment. Everyone said
they could not stop it en route and the Hechinger rep could not explain
why
the order was not cancelled after 2 emails and 2 phone calls to be sure
on
3/24. By the way, I never did get the cancellation confirmation email or
any email response at all for that matter.

I asked AmEx to stop payment and they said they had already charged my
card
on 3/24! AmEx investigated the claim to get Hechinger's side of the
story.
Hechinger never responded to them so AmEx refunded my money. I was able
to
send to saw back when the delivery guy called me to schedule the drop
off.
A close call, but I came out of it ok.

Not only is their shipping slow by modern standards, but they seem to
either
be very disorganized or dishonest. I have never had an online shopping
experience like this and suggest others steer clear to avoid a similar
problem.

-Steve

On Wed, 10 May 2006 04:45:02 -0400, "Mike Marlow"
wrote:


"Cap'n 321" wrote in message
.net...

If the folks who run this outfit are related to the company of the same
name that used to run home improvement stores in Maryland and other east
coast cities, this report is no surprise. The was, without
qualification, the worst retail experience I've ever had in terms of
service and merchandise. They finally closed their retail stores about
six or eight years ago. I wouldn't buy anything from these folks if
they were the last shop on the web.


A quick look at the web site and sure enough - it's the same guys. I did
some private consulting to Hechinger back in the early 90's and it was a
horribly screwed up company. They had some great technology and clearly
somebody knew what they were doing and had set the company up for some
solid, state of the art operations. Much like what the OP has discovered
with his recent experience, the left hand and the right hand never seemed to
talk to each other though. What should have been a pretty sharp operation
was a flaming disaster.

And, on the other hand, I placed an order with them when they had some
Jet woodworking clamps for half the normal price. Ordered 4 in the
form of two dual-paks of clamps and received two (one dual-pak)
instead of four. Called and complained and the missing two were
delivered to me. A few days later, the website showed a price exactly
twice what I had paid. My suspicion is that they put the single unit
price on the dual-pak, but at least they honored it and didn't just
cancel the order. Been kicking myself ever since for not ordering a
lot more at the time! YMMV.

It’s not the same family business that started almost a 100 years ago in
brick and building material recycling. Problems managing a multi-
generational business and competing with the BORG did them in the late
‘90s. They were a beloved business in the Metro DC area for many years,
but in their last few years their service was awful and spoiled their
reputation. Incredibly, someone forked over $100,000 for the brand and
motto “The World's Most Unusual Lumber Yards" reborn as "The World's
Most Unusual Hardware Site."

I truly wish crap like this was unusual!

More info on current name owner at:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...032701623.html


Mike Marlow wrote:
"Cap'n 321" wrote in message
. net...


If the folks who run this outfit are related to the company of the same
name that used to run home improvement stores in Maryland and other east
coast cities, this report is no surprise. The was, without
qualification, the worst retail experience I've ever had in terms of
service and merchandise. They finally closed their retail stores about
six or eight years ago. I wouldn't buy anything from these folks if
they were the last shop on the web.



A quick look at the web site and sure enough - it's the same guys. I did
some private consulting to Hechinger back in the early 90's and it was a
horribly screwed up company. They had some great technology and clearly
somebody knew what they were doing and had set the company up for some
solid, state of the art operations. Much like what the OP has discovered
with his recent experience, the left hand and the right hand never seemed to
talk to each other though. What should have been a pretty sharp operation
was a flaming disaster.

Hechinger's was also noted as being opposed to individual rights, i.e. the
right of individuals (you & me for example) to purchase and own personal
firearms. It seems that the idea of what an individual with a gun MIGHT DO
was the primary consideration. Kinda make you think about how Hechinger's
views printing presses, huh?



"Steve W" wrote in message
. com...
If you are considering buying tools from this site, use caution. For
those that want to skip the story, here is a quick summary of my
experience:

They did not respond to multiple cancellation emails sent within 12 hours
of an order.
They did not respond to phone requests to confirm the cancellation made
within 24 hours.
They billed my credit card two weeks before they shipped it (in spite of
the attempted cancel).
They would not help me stop shipment.
They did not respond to the AmEx inquiry after I asked for a hold on the
payment.

Here are the details:

I ordered a TS on 3/23, but found it for about 150.00 less on Amazon later
that day. According to Hechinger's site, orders can be cancelled without
a fee before shipping. I cancelled the order less than 12 hours after it
was placed, then called them the next morning to confirm the cancellation
before ordering the other TS. The rep told me she could not confirm, but
she would give the information to the cancellation department who would
get back to me within a week. This sounded a little fishy to me, but with
the way Amazon prices bounce around I went ahead and ordered the other
saw.

The Amazon order went through fine and I had the saw within a week. then,
on 4/5/06 I got a shipping notice from Hechinger! I emailed them, called
them and called the shipping company to stop the shipment. Everyone said
they could not stop it en route and the Hechinger rep could not explain
why the order was not cancelled after 2 emails and 2 phone calls to be
sure on 3/24. By the way, I never did get the cancellation confirmation
email or any email response at all for that matter.

I asked AmEx to stop payment and they said they had already charged my
card on 3/24! AmEx investigated the claim to get Hechinger's side of the
story. Hechinger never responded to them so AmEx refunded my money. I was
able to send to saw back when the delivery guy called me to schedule the
drop off. A close call, but I came out of it ok.

Not only is their shipping slow by modern standards, but they seem to
either be very disorganized or dishonest. I have never had an online
shopping experience like this and suggest others steer clear to avoid a
similar problem.

-Steve