This came through the Old Tools mailing list and can be found at
http://writersalmanac.publicradio.or....html#saturday

I thought it was poignant.


Ode to Hardware Stores

Where have all the hardware stores gone - dusty, sixty-watt
warrens with the wood floors, cracked linoleum,
poured concrete painted blood red? Where are Eppes, Terry Rossa
Yon's, Flint - low buildings on South Monroe,
Eight Avenue, Gaines Street with their scent of paint thinner,
pesticides, plastic hoses coiled like serpents
in a garden paradisal with screws in buckets or bins
against a brick wall with hand-lettered signs
in ball-point pen - Carriage screws, two dozen for fifty cents -
long vicious dry-wall screws, thick wood screws
like peasants digging potatoes in fields, thin elegant trim
screws- New York dames at a backwoods hick
Sunday School picnic. O universal clevis pins, seven holes
in the shank, like the seven deadly sins.
Where are the men - Mr. Franks, Mr. Piggot, Tyrone, Hank,
Ralph - sunburnt with stomachs and no asses,
men who knew the mythology of nails, Zeuses enthroned
on an Olympus of weak coffee, bad haircuts,
and tin cans of galvanized casting nails, sinker nails, brads,
20-penny common nails, duplex head nails, flooring nails
like railroad spikes, finish nails, fence staples, cotter pins,
roofing nails - flat-headed as Floyd Crawford,
who lived next door to you for years but would never say hi
or make eye contact. What a career in hardware
he could have had, his blue-black hair slicked back with brilliantine,
rolling a toothpick between his teeth while sorting
screw eyes and carpet tacks. Where are the hardware stores,
open Monday through Friday, Saturday till two?
No night hours here, like physicists their universe mathematical
and pure in its way: dinner at six, Rawhide at eight,
lights out at ten, kiss in the dark, up at five for the subatomic
world
of toggle bolts, cap screws, hinch-pin clips, split-lock
washers. And the tools - saws, rakes, wrenches, rachets, drills,
chisels, and hose heads, hose couplings, sandpaper
(garnet, production, wet or dry), hinges, wire nails, caulk, nuts,
lag screws, pulleys, vise grips, hexbolts, fender washers
all in a primordial stew of laconic talk about football, baseball,
who'll start for the Dodgers, St. Louis, the Phillies,
the Cubs? Walk around the block today and see their ghosts:
abandoned lots, graffitti'd windows, and tacked
to backroom walls, pin-up calendars almost decorous
in our porn-riddled galaxy of Walmarts, Seven-Elevens,
stripmalls like strip mines or a carrion bird's curved beak
gobbling farms, meadows, wildflowers, drowsy afternoons
of nothing to do but watch dust motes dance through a streak
of sunlight in a darkened room. If there's a second coming,
I want angels called Lem, Nelson, Rodney, and Cletis gathered
around a bin of nails, their silence like hosannahs,
hallelujahs, amens swelling from cinderblock cathedrals
drowning our cries of Bigger, faster, more, more, more.

On Feb 28, 1:14 pm, wrote:
This came through the Old Tools mailing list and can be found athttp://writersalmanac.publicradio.org/programs/2007/02/19/index.html#...

I thought it was poignant.

Ode to Hardware Stores
(snip)

The author teaches at Florida State University here in Tallahassee and
I recognize many of the references. Eppes Hardware hasn't been gone
all that long.

I don't share her nostalgia for hardware stores though. Give me an
orange or blue Borg any day. I want to be able to buy what I want
when I want it at a reasonable price without some wholesaler adding an
unnecessary layer of cost to the item.

Dick Durbin
Tallahassee

Olebiker wrote:

I don't share her nostalgia for hardware stores though. Give me an
orange or blue Borg any day. I want to be able to buy what I want
when I want it at a reasonable price without some wholesaler adding an
unnecessary layer of cost to the item.

FWIW, we have a noticable resurgence in good hardware stores in my area.

I would imagine this is directly related to the quality of the local
BORG service.

On Feb 28, 2:24 pm, B A R R Y wrote:
I would imagine this is directly related to the quality of the local
BORG service.

I don't go to the BORGs for service. I know what I want and where it
is in the store. I usually use the self-checkout lane.

"Olebiker" wrote in
ups.com:

On Feb 28, 1:14 pm, wrote:
This came through the Old Tools mailing list and can be found

athttp://writersalmanac.publicradio.org/programs/2007/02/19/index.html
#...

I thought it was poignant.

Ode to Hardware Stores
(snip)

The author teaches at Florida State University here in Tallahassee and
I recognize many of the references. Eppes Hardware hasn't been gone
all that long.

I don't share her nostalgia for hardware stores though. Give me an
orange or blue Borg any day. I want to be able to buy what I want
when I want it at a reasonable price without some wholesaler adding an
unnecessary layer of cost to the item.

Dick Durbin
Tallahassee



I enjoyed the article, and remember Fred Kelleway's old hardware store
on North Main with great fondness. I'll often come across something in
the bins that still has a sticker on it, from back in the 60's or 70's,
and remember Fred's. A great old building, with great old characters
that ran it. There's a pool parlor there now, and has been for at least
15 years.

Four blocks from where I live now, in a strip mall, next to an overstock
& remainders department store, there's a hardware store. Peter's in his
forties, but has been in the business since he was a kid, working with
his grandfather. His place is classic old school, but clean and neat.
His brothers have a store on the other side of the hills, over by the
Bay in Berkeley, and his sister runs grandpa's old place in North
Oakland. These folks make decent money, but work hard, and price their
products competitively. Certainly no more than the BORG, often less,
and I can park right in front, get called by name, and helped
personally. His wife and daughters work there, too, except when they're
out swimming or playing soccer. They are a real asset to the community.

Peter doesn't sponsor the 30 different DIY shows on the tube, though.
What they do is much closer to home, with Adult Ed, and the various
community activites. Suits me fine.

Takes all kinds. We need to remember that.

Patriarch

Necedah Wisconsin True Value.
wrote in message
oups.com...
This came through the Old Tools mailing list and can be found at
http://writersalmanac.publicradio.or....html#saturday

I thought it was poignant.


Ode to Hardware Stores

Where have all the hardware stores gone - dusty, sixty-watt
warrens with the wood floors, cracked linoleum,
poured concrete painted blood red? Where are Eppes, Terry Rossa
Yon's, Flint - low buildings on South Monroe,
Eight Avenue, Gaines Street with their scent of paint thinner,
pesticides, plastic hoses coiled like serpents
in a garden paradisal with screws in buckets or bins
against a brick wall with hand-lettered signs
in ball-point pen - Carriage screws, two dozen for fifty cents -
long vicious dry-wall screws, thick wood screws
like peasants digging potatoes in fields, thin elegant trim
screws- New York dames at a backwoods hick
Sunday School picnic. O universal clevis pins, seven holes
in the shank, like the seven deadly sins.
Where are the men - Mr. Franks, Mr. Piggot, Tyrone, Hank,
Ralph - sunburnt with stomachs and no asses,
men who knew the mythology of nails, Zeuses enthroned
on an Olympus of weak coffee, bad haircuts,
and tin cans of galvanized casting nails, sinker nails, brads,
20-penny common nails, duplex head nails, flooring nails
like railroad spikes, finish nails, fence staples, cotter pins,
roofing nails - flat-headed as Floyd Crawford,
who lived next door to you for years but would never say hi
or make eye contact. What a career in hardware
he could have had, his blue-black hair slicked back with brilliantine,
rolling a toothpick between his teeth while sorting
screw eyes and carpet tacks. Where are the hardware stores,
open Monday through Friday, Saturday till two?
No night hours here, like physicists their universe mathematical
and pure in its way: dinner at six, Rawhide at eight,
lights out at ten, kiss in the dark, up at five for the subatomic
world
of toggle bolts, cap screws, hinch-pin clips, split-lock
washers. And the tools - saws, rakes, wrenches, rachets, drills,
chisels, and hose heads, hose couplings, sandpaper
(garnet, production, wet or dry), hinges, wire nails, caulk, nuts,
lag screws, pulleys, vise grips, hexbolts, fender washers
all in a primordial stew of laconic talk about football, baseball,
who'll start for the Dodgers, St. Louis, the Phillies,
the Cubs? Walk around the block today and see their ghosts:
abandoned lots, graffitti'd windows, and tacked
to backroom walls, pin-up calendars almost decorous
in our porn-riddled galaxy of Walmarts, Seven-Elevens,
stripmalls like strip mines or a carrion bird's curved beak
gobbling farms, meadows, wildflowers, drowsy afternoons
of nothing to do but watch dust motes dance through a streak
of sunlight in a darkened room. If there's a second coming,
I want angels called Lem, Nelson, Rodney, and Cletis gathered
around a bin of nails, their silence like hosannahs,
hallelujahs, amens swelling from cinderblock cathedrals
drowning our cries of Bigger, faster, more, more, more.

On 28 Feb 2007 11:35:07 -0800, "Olebiker" wrote:

On Feb 28, 2:24 pm, B A R R Y wrote:
I would imagine this is directly related to the quality of the local
BORG service.

I don't go to the BORGs for service. I know what I want and where it
is in the store. I usually use the self-checkout lane.

Then the $%^&*()_+s go and rearrange the store on you.

"Olebiker" wrote in message
ups.com...


I don't share her nostalgia for hardware stores though. Give me an
orange or blue Borg any day. I want to be able to buy what I want
when I want it at a reasonable price without some wholesaler adding an
unnecessary layer of cost to the item.

The Borg is cheaper than your hardware store?????

I have a local hardware store that beats the pants off the local Borg's
pricing, on most everything I buy there.

On Feb 28, 6:26 pm, "Leon" wrote:
The Borg is cheaper than your hardware store?????

I have a local hardware store that beats the pants off the local Borg's
pricing, on most everything I buy there.

On the exact same item? That would truly amaze me. The only hardware
stores I know of around here are Ace Hardware stores and all they seem
to have is Ace house brand stuff at about twice the price of the
BORGs.

On Feb 28, 3:56 pm, J. Clarke wrote:
On 28 Feb 2007 11:35:07 -0800, "Olebiker" wrote:

I don't go to the BORGs for service. I know what I want and where it
is in the store. I usually use the self-checkout lane.

Then the $%^&*()_+s go and rearrange the store on you.

A proven technique from the supermaket industry. You make the customer
walk around the store some more looking for what he needs, and he's
more likely to impulse-buy that other item he wouldn't have walked
past otherwise.

Jerry

"Olebiker" wrote in message
ups.com...
On Feb 28, 6:26 pm, "Leon" wrote:
The Borg is cheaper than your hardware store?????

I have a local hardware store that beats the pants off the local Borg's
pricing, on most everything I buy there.

On the exact same item?

Yeah, the exact same brand/item. I was shocked to learn this also but about
3 years ago the owners pointed this out to me and I have been checking them
regularly. They price shop the Borg's regularly. Normally the savings are
double digit percentages so if I am starting out from home I go to the
hardware store.
They have been in business for 40+ years in the same location and expand the
store every 3 or 4 years. Their service is terrific and they carry out the
bigger items and load them in your car for you.


That would truly amaze me. The only hardware
stores I know of around here are Ace Hardware stores and all they seem
to have is Ace house brand stuff at about twice the price of the
BORGs.

This hardware store is family owned but is a member of True Value IIRC. I
see mostly name brand products in their store much the same as you would see
in the Borg.

" wrote:

On Feb 28, 3:56 pm, J. Clarke wrote:
On 28 Feb 2007 11:35:07 -0800, "Olebiker" wrote:

I don't go to the BORGs for service. I know what I want and where
it is in the store. I usually use the self-checkout lane.

Then the $%^&*()_+s go and rearrange the store on you.

A proven technique from the supermaket industry. You make the customer
walk around the store some more looking for what he needs, and he's
more likely to impulse-buy that other item he wouldn't have walked
past otherwise.

Jerry



Local store put in a wine section that partially blocked access to two
aisles - you have to go around it. They don't seem to be doing all that
well on wine sales though. Perhaps because they don't carry anything in a
gallon screw top. Nor do they carry Mogen David or Night Train. I did
look.

On 28 Feb 2007 11:00:49 -0800, "Olebiker" wrote:

I don't share her nostalgia for hardware stores though. Give me an
orange or blue Borg any day. I want to be able to buy what I want
when I want it at a reasonable price without some wholesaler adding an
unnecessary layer of cost to the item.

Yes and no. There was a local hardware store that only recently went
out of business because Lowes went in 2 blocks to the west and Home
Depot about 2 blocks to the north. They were really nothing special,
their prices were higher, but occasionally, they had things that
neither Lowes nor HD carried and when you need something now, they
usually had it in stock. Sure, you paid through the nose for it, but
I repaired a lot of plumbing there because I couldn't get the parts at
HD or Lowes.

Now, they're a thrift store. They couldn't compete. I don't think I
really miss them but the next time my ancient plumbing has a problem,
I just might.

wrote in message
oups.com...
This came through the Old Tools mailing list and can be found at
http://writersalmanac.publicradio.or....html#saturday

I thought it was poignant.


Ode to Hardware Stores

(snip)
Robnett's Hardware, Corvallis, Oregon

On Feb 28, 7:24 pm, "Olebiker" wrote:
On Feb 28, 6:26 pm, "Leon" wrote:

The Borg is cheaper than your hardware store?????

I have a local hardware store that beats the pants off the local Borg's
pricing, on most everything I buy there.

On the exact same item? That would truly amaze me. The only hardware
stores I know of around here are Ace Hardware stores and all they seem
to have is Ace house brand stuff at about twice the price of the
BORGs.

My local hardware store is a True Value. Some things are more. Some
things are less. But whenever I walk in, everybody knows me by name
and they leave me alone unless I ask them for something.

The things I really like about the store a

1. It is about five minutes away, less if you hit the green light.
2. They have everything I need down there. Everything.
3. The BORG has lower prices on the items they buy that they have
100,217 of but if I need something out of the ordinary or, *gasp!*,
something I need to fix something that may be older, the BORG will
never, ever have it. The store down the street will have 2 or 3 of
everything but 100,000 of nothing.

BORGs may be big and have a lot of things but their selection sucks,
as far as I am concerned. And, frankly, many of the people in those
big stores don't know much and don't care. The people who work in my
local store are extremely friendly, helpful, and actually know
something. I don't need help very often but for those people that do,
it has to be a breath of fresh air.

In article .com,
wrote:
This came through the Old Tools mailing list and can be found at
http://writersalmanac.publicradio.or....html#saturday

I thought it was poignant.


Ode to Hardware Stores

Where have all the hardware stores gone - dusty, sixty-watt
...attempted 'poetry?' snipped...

The author better keep his day job a while longer.


--
Contentment makes poor men rich. Discontent makes rich men poor.
--Benjamin Franklin

Larry Wasserman - Baltimore Maryland - lwasserm(a)sdf.lonestar.org

On Feb 28, 9:33 pm, (Larry W) wrote:
The author better keep his day job a while longer.

She is a writer-in-residence in the Creative Writing Program at
Florida State University.

While visiting my folks in Dothan, Alabama, I took my
son, who was 8 at the time, to Porter Hardware.
He commented on the two worn granite steps up
into the wooden floored, 40 foot wide block long
store. He explored the contents of a long glass
topped and fronted case - asking what the various
items were and what they did. He looked at the
shelves that went up 14 feet to the embossed
tin ceiling and asked the obvious question. "How
do you get things on those top shelves?" and was
delighted when the old clerk grinned, walked half
way down the store and came back riding on a
"library ladder" which rode on wheels at the top,
along a rail you wouldn't notice otherwise and
another on the floor behind the counter - out of
sight.

"I need some "L" screws" I said and drew a picture
for him. The old guy hopped on the ladder and
took off towards the back of the store. In a flash
he was back with a box which he opened and removed
one of its content for me to examine.

"I need one about 3/4" longer." said I.

Back on his ladder, but this time just to get to
a box on one of the upper shelves here near
the door. Back to the counter he came, after
sliding down the ladder just to show he was
still spry, opening a different colored box and
extracting exactly what I needed.

I had to ask "Why were the shorter L screws
way back there and these way up here?"

"Cause when those came in there was room
on a shelf back there. When these came in
there was room on this shelf over here." he
said, without adding "DUH!"

"How the hell do you find things in this place?"
I questioned.

"Cause I know where I put stuff." the old guy
said with confidence only a hardware guy
earns after 50 years.\

"But what happens if you leave or something
happens to you?"

"Job security son - it's called job security"

I later learned he owned the store. He got his
revenge on his kids when he slipped this mortal
coil.

But before he left, my son got to ride AND operate
a dumb waiter type elevator to the basement where
he was shown around - cast iron pot belly stove parts,
buggy springs and even a small barrel holding three,
for some reason unsold, buggy whips.

My son and I talk about our trip to Porter Hardware
periodically - and he just turned 30. He may be
part of the last generation to know how things were
BEFORE shrink wrapped packaging and Borgs.

charlie b

On Feb 28, 8:43 pm, wrote:
3. The BORG has lower prices on the items they buy that they have
100,217 of but if I need something out of the ordinary or, *gasp!*,
something I need to fix something that may be older, the BORG will
never, ever have it. The store down the street will have 2 or 3 of
everything but 100,000 of nothing.

BORGs may be big and have a lot of things but their selection sucks,
as far as I am concerned. And, frankly, many of the people in those
big stores don't know much and don't care. The people who work in my
local store are extremely friendly, helpful, and actually know
something. I don't need help very often but for those people that do,
it has to be a breath of fresh air.

Your experience with local hardware stores is exactly the opposite of
mine. I grew up in Louisville, Kentucky and the guys that ran the two
hardware stores where I used to have to go were hateful, mean-spirited
guys. The local hardware stores just don't seem to have a very broad
inventory. All they have is very basic merchandise.

Brian Henderson wrote in
:

On 28 Feb 2007 11:00:49 -0800, "Olebiker" wrote:

I don't share her nostalgia for hardware stores though. Give me an
orange or blue Borg any day. I want to be able to buy what I want
when I want it at a reasonable price without some wholesaler adding an
unnecessary layer of cost to the item.

Yes and no. There was a local hardware store that only recently went
out of business because Lowes went in 2 blocks to the west and Home
Depot about 2 blocks to the north. They were really nothing special,
their prices were higher, but occasionally, they had things that
neither Lowes nor HD carried and when you need something now, they
usually had it in stock. Sure, you paid through the nose for it, but
I repaired a lot of plumbing there because I couldn't get the parts at
HD or Lowes.

Now, they're a thrift store. They couldn't compete. I don't think I
really miss them but the next time my ancient plumbing has a problem,
I just might.

My closest hardware store to home isn't much to write home about, but
it's much cheaper all said and done to hop on my bike and ride the 8 or
so blocks down and back to get a $.89 flourescent starter or $.08/ft
length of wire (I only needed a foot, they were happy to sell me a foot.)

I'm going to need to go down there Friday to see if they have the screws
I broke for my lathe^H^H^H^H^Hsander.

Puckdropper
--
Wise is the man who attempts to answer his question before asking it.

To email me directly, send a message to puckdropper (at) fastmail.fm

Leon wrote:

I have a local hardware store that beats the pants off the local Borg's
pricing, on most everything I buy there.


Same here with the "new" guys. My local electrical, plumbing, and paint
suppliers do very well, too.

For tools, Coastal Tool and Tools Plus kill both of them on price. Our
BORG's are NOT cheaper.

The thing is, I think Dick lives in FL. When I visit my mom or dad down
there, I have a hard time finding local guys like I can here in CT.
There seems to be a very different attitude, where the local suppliers
won't deal at all with retail sales and the local residents don't seem
to care. My local Winnelson, Electrical Wholesalers, finish suppliers,
etc.. have no problem selling to a little guy like me, usually @
wholesale + a very reasonable retail markup.

For instance, I'm re-ducting my DC from 4" PVC to 6" 26 ga. steel. A
local HVAC supplier sold me materials for 25% less than Home Depot, had
it all in stock, and had it picked and ready to go when I arrived. The
HVAC guy even offered to drop it off! G

On Feb 28, 9:46 pm, "Olebiker" wrote:
On Feb 28, 9:33 pm, (Larry W) wrote:

The author better keep his day job a while longer.

She is a writer-in-residence in the Creative Writing Program at
Florida State University.

HA!

My first impulse was to ask if this was based in Tallahassee. I
decided not to, because, well... it's Tallahassee!

Small world.

-Nathan

Patriarch writes:

Oakland. These folks make decent money, but work hard, and price their
products competitively. Certainly no more than the BORG, often less,
and I can park right in front, get called by name, and helped

Where can I find a local hardware store that charges the same or less than
a BORG? There is one really, really good hardware store nearby, but
everything except power equipment is outrageously priced.

The store used to be in an old building with the worn wood floors and all
that like the old time hardware stores, but the fire marshall was going to
close them down since the building was a firetrap. They built a new store
next to the old one in the late 80s. Last year, they had to build another
new store 1/2 mile down the road as the city bought the building and land
for economic redevelopment. Sure was a shame to tear down a 20 year old
building in good condition.

Brian Elfert

Brian Elfert wrote in
:

Patriarch writes:

Oakland. These folks make decent money, but work hard, and price
their products competitively. Certainly no more than the BORG, often
less, and I can park right in front, get called by name, and helped

Where can I find a local hardware store that charges the same or less
than a BORG? There is one really, really good hardware store nearby,
but everything except power equipment is outrageously priced.

The store used to be in an old building with the worn wood floors and
all that like the old time hardware stores, but the fire marshall was
going to close them down since the building was a firetrap. They
built a new store next to the old one in the late 80s. Last year,
they had to build another new store 1/2 mile down the road as the city
bought the building and land for economic redevelopment. Sure was a
shame to tear down a 20 year old building in good condition.

Brian Elfert


I don't know, Brian. We have a bunch of them. Most of them are run by
folks that have been in the business for a long time. We went to a
community dinner the other evening, and I was reminded of another place
I used to go a lot, and still do, three or four times a year for certain
stuff. They've been around since the 50's. 4 stores, Ace Hardware
franchise. They were sponsoring the local swim team. Their buildings
aren't falling down, but then, this is California, and the prices are
really high for real estate, so no one really treats them like junk.

I spend half as much there on propane as I would almost anywhere else.
They have mostly mechanics' tools, when you need a really good
selection, without buying a mix of 1024 parts, 396 of which are sabersaw
blades. And the folks know what they sell. Mostly grey haired people,
and a bunch of youngsters learning the business. One of my Boy Scouts
worked for them for maybe 4 or 5 years, until he was through college.
He wears a suit now, has a couple of good looking kids, and a great
smile. Learned customer service there, and from his folks and
grandparents.

Glad we have hardware stores like those around still.

Patriarch

On Wed, 28 Feb 2007 18:50:42 -0800, charlieb
wrote:

While visiting my folks in Dothan, Alabama, I took my
son, who was 8 at the time, to Porter Hardware.
He commented on the two worn granite steps up
into the wooden floored, 40 foot wide block long
store. He explored the contents of a long glass
topped and fronted case - asking what the various
items were and what they did. He looked at the
shelves that went up 14 feet to the embossed
tin ceiling and asked the obvious question. "How
do you get things on those top shelves?" and was
delighted when the old clerk grinned, walked half
way down the store and came back riding on a
"library ladder" which rode on wheels at the top,
along a rail you wouldn't notice otherwise and
another on the floor behind the counter - out of
sight.

"I need some "L" screws" I said and drew a picture
for him. The old guy hopped on the ladder and
took off towards the back of the store. In a flash
he was back with a box which he opened and removed
one of its content for me to examine.

"I need one about 3/4" longer." said I.

Back on his ladder, but this time just to get to
a box on one of the upper shelves here near
the door. Back to the counter he came, after
sliding down the ladder just to show he was
still spry, opening a different colored box and
extracting exactly what I needed.

I had to ask "Why were the shorter L screws
way back there and these way up here?"

"Cause when those came in there was room
on a shelf back there. When these came in
there was room on this shelf over here." he
said, without adding "DUH!"

"How the hell do you find things in this place?"
I questioned.

"Cause I know where I put stuff." the old guy
said with confidence only a hardware guy
earns after 50 years.\

"But what happens if you leave or something
happens to you?"

"Job security son - it's called job security"

I later learned he owned the store. He got his
revenge on his kids when he slipped this mortal
coil.

But before he left, my son got to ride AND operate
a dumb waiter type elevator to the basement where
he was shown around - cast iron pot belly stove parts,
buggy springs and even a small barrel holding three,
for some reason unsold, buggy whips.

My son and I talk about our trip to Porter Hardware
periodically - and he just turned 30. He may be
part of the last generation to know how things were
BEFORE shrink wrapped packaging and Borgs.

charlie b


Good one, charlie b. Here's mine:

When Mr. Buck Moser decided to close up the hardware store everybody
around here felt like they were about to lose a family member. Six
generations of the Moser family had stood behind that counter and Mr.
Buck had done it for about the longest of them all, spending
seventy-some of his eighty-five years working at and then running the
store.

The "new building" had been built in the 1920's and was new only in
relation to the "old building" which was really little more than a
barn that had been erected about the same time that George Washington
had walked his troops on up the road to Valley Forge.


It was a funny sort of place if you weren't used to its ways. For
instance, Moser's didn't sell "nipples"; they sold "short lengths of
threaded pipe". There were no "sex bolts' to be had but you could buy
"binder bolts", which are pretty much the same thing. "Male" and
"Female" fittings were called "Inside" and "Outside" fittings.


Lest you think that the proprietors were without humor, there was a
sign in there claiming that "Left-Handed Smokeshifters Are Available
Upon Request" and another one that said, "Real Wood Stoves Available -
Made From Real Wood - No Warranty".


There were no checks or credit cards accepted at the Moser
establishment but it wasn't hard to get a thirty-day account there.
There were no forms to fill out. Mr. Buck would look at you and ask
your name. Then he'd say something like "Ain't your Uncle Steve
Watchamacallit from over to Longwood?" Mr. Buck either knew everybody
who was local or knew somebody else who knew them. That was it. The
accounts were kept on three by five index cards that his wife Bessie
would grab up at the end of the month and turn into bills that were
expected to be paid the next time you came in. They didn't hold with
the mail service, finding it to be both expensive and unreliable.


When I was starting out as a carpenter I would go to Moser's to buy my
tools. When I bought my first number five plane Mr. Buck looked at me
and asked me a question, "Are you serious about this carpentry,
Tommy?" "Yes Sir, Mr. Buck, I believe I'm serious about it." Mr.
Buck studied me for a long moment and said, "Wait here for a bit and
I'll be back." Now, Moser's carried all the Stanley line and the
planes were sitting right there in front, so I didn't know why old Mr.
Buck was wanting to go in the back. While I waited I ran my hands
over the shiny planes that sat on the shelf.


When Mr. Buck came back he had a brand new number five plane in his
hand but the box he was carrying in his other hand looked older than
dirt. "Let me show you something about planes, Tommy."


Mr. Buck grabbed up one of the newish planes and sat it next to the
equally newish looking plane he had brought from the back. "See how
the mouth is all cut up on this new Stanley?" "See how rough the
castings is?" Mr. Buck then took the iron out of both planes, hanging
them both from the same looped string. "Listen to the sound when I
tap these irons, Tommy." "You hear that clear bell ring from this
one?" "Now listen to this other one."


Mr. Buck spent a lot of time showing me the differences between the
new Stanley and the one he'd got from the back. "How much does that
good plane cost, Mr. Buck?" "What does it say on that new plane's
box, Tommy?" "Twenty dollars." (There was no $19.95 in Moser's, they
wouldn't hold with it.)


"Well, this plane is also twenty dollars but it's not to be sold to
any but trades people."


Had me a sweetheart of a plane and didn't even really know what that
meant.


When it came time for me to buy some decent handsaws Mr. Buck would go
through the same thing. He'd look at me for a bit and then go in the
back for a while.


There were a bunch of new Disston saws out front but Mr. Buck would go
back and bring out a brand new looking saw with a box that was older
looking than dirt and explain the difference to me. I have two sway
back Disstons that I bought in the late 1960's that were actually made
around 1900. Only to be sold to tradesmen.


I bought a set of black handled Stanley chisels from Mr. Buck and paid
the same price as the yellow handled ones would have cost. Mr. Buck
explained the differences to me. I still use them. They are the best
chisels I have ever used.


I got plenty of tools from Mr. Buck over the years but the best thing
that I got there was free - an education.


When Servistar and True Value started taking over the hardware
business it hurt Moser's pretty bad. The only thing that kept new
people coming in was that the other folks couldn't help them with
anything. Mostly the sales people were not really hardware people and
Mr. Buck could figure out what you wanted by you telling him what you
wanted to do. The True Value and Servistar people just couldn't do
that.


Mr. Buck's children had no interest in the business and neither did
his grandchildren, although most of us believe that he held on for as
long as he did just to see if one of the grandkids would want to come
in on the business.


When the new Home Depot opened up Mr. Buck went walking through it.
Wasn't too long after that he decided to close up. The "new building"
needed a new roof. People were getting ****ed off that Mr. Buck
didn't hold with credit cards. The township wanted Mr. Buck to
install a real expensive sprinkler system. Mr. Buck figured that he'd
be better off just going fishing.


I'll miss Moser's Hardware Store.


I just wish that my children had been old enough to appreciate it
before it went away.

Good story....really good story.

Some of my fondest childhood memories are of the old hardware stores I
visited with my father.

If I go to heaven, it had better have a hardware store waiting for
me....

TMT




On Mar 1, 7:30 pm, tom watson wrote:
On Wed, 28 Feb 2007 18:50:42 -0800, charlieb
wrote:





While visiting my folks in Dothan, Alabama, I took my
son, who was 8 at the time, to Porter Hardware.
He commented on the two worn granite steps up
into the wooden floored, 40 foot wide block long
store. He explored the contents of a long glass
topped and fronted case - asking what the various
items were and what they did. He looked at the
shelves that went up 14 feet to the embossed
tin ceiling and asked the obvious question. "How
do you get things on those top shelves?" and was
delighted when the old clerk grinned, walked half
way down the store and came back riding on a
"library ladder" which rode on wheels at the top,
along a rail you wouldn't notice otherwise and
another on the floor behind the counter - out of
sight.

"I need some "L" screws" I said and drew a picture
for him. The old guy hopped on the ladder and
took off towards the back of the store. In a flash
he was back with a box which he opened and removed
one of its content for me to examine.

"I need one about 3/4" longer." said I.

Back on his ladder, but this time just to get to
a box on one of the upper shelves here near
the door. Back to the counter he came, after
sliding down the ladder just to show he was
still spry, opening a different colored box and
extracting exactly what I needed.

I had to ask "Why were the shorter L screws
way back there and these way up here?"

"Cause when those came in there was room
on a shelf back there. When these came in
there was room on this shelf over here." he
said, without adding "DUH!"

"How the hell do you find things in this place?"
I questioned.

"Cause I know where I put stuff." the old guy
said with confidence only a hardware guy
earns after 50 years.\

"But what happens if you leave or something
happens to you?"

"Job security son - it's called job security"

I later learned he owned the store. He got his
revenge on his kids when he slipped this mortal
coil.

But before he left, my son got to ride AND operate
a dumb waiter type elevator to the basement where
he was shown around - cast iron pot belly stove parts,
buggy springs and even a small barrel holding three,
for some reason unsold, buggy whips.

My son and I talk about our trip to Porter Hardware
periodically - and he just turned 30. He may be
part of the last generation to know how things were
BEFORE shrink wrapped packaging and Borgs.

charlie b

Good one, charlie b. Here's mine:

When Mr. Buck Moser decided to close up the hardware store everybody
around here felt like they were about to lose a family member. Six
generations of the Moser family had stood behind that counter and Mr.
Buck had done it for about the longest of them all, spending
seventy-some of his eighty-five years working at and then running the
store.

The "new building" had been built in the 1920's and was new only in
relation to the "old building" which was really little more than a
barn that had been erected about the same time that George Washington
had walked his troops on up the road to Valley Forge.

It was a funny sort of place if you weren't used to its ways. For
instance, Moser's didn't sell "nipples"; they sold "short lengths of
threaded pipe". There were no "sex bolts' to be had but you could buy
"binder bolts", which are pretty much the same thing. "Male" and
"Female" fittings were called "Inside" and "Outside" fittings.

Lest you think that the proprietors were without humor, there was a
sign in there claiming that "Left-Handed Smokeshifters Are Available
Upon Request" and another one that said, "Real Wood Stoves Available -
Made From Real Wood - No Warranty".

There were no checks or credit cards accepted at the Moser
establishment but it wasn't hard to get a thirty-day account there.
There were no forms to fill out. Mr. Buck would look at you and ask
your name. Then he'd say something like "Ain't your Uncle Steve
Watchamacallit from over to Longwood?" Mr. Buck either knew everybody
who was local or knew somebody else who knew them. That was it. The
accounts were kept on three by five index cards that his wife Bessie
would grab up at the end of the month and turn into bills that were
expected to be paid the next time you came in. They didn't hold with
the mail service, finding it to be both expensive and unreliable.

When I was starting out as a carpenter I would go to Moser's to buy my
tools. When I bought my first number five plane Mr. Buck looked at me
and asked me a question, "Are you serious about this carpentry,
Tommy?" "Yes Sir, Mr. Buck, I believe I'm serious about it." Mr.
Buck studied me for a long moment and said, "Wait here for a bit and
I'll be back." Now, Moser's carried all the Stanley line and the
planes were sitting right there in front, so I didn't know why old Mr.
Buck was wanting to go in the back. While I waited I ran my hands
over the shiny planes that sat on the shelf.

When Mr. Buck came back he had a brand new number five plane in his
hand but the box he was carrying in his other hand looked older than
dirt. "Let me show you something about planes, Tommy."

Mr. Buck grabbed up one of the newish planes and sat it next to the
equally newish looking plane he had brought from the back. "See how
the mouth is all cut up on this new Stanley?" "See how rough the
castings is?" Mr. Buck then took the iron out of both planes, hanging
them both from the same looped string. "Listen to the sound when I
tap these irons, Tommy." "You hear that clear bell ring from this
one?" "Now listen to this other one."

Mr. Buck spent a lot of time showing me the differences between the
new Stanley and the one he'd got from the back. "How much does that
good plane cost, Mr. Buck?" "What does it say on that new plane's
box, Tommy?" "Twenty dollars." (There was no $19.95 in Moser's, they
wouldn't hold with it.)

"Well, this plane is also twenty dollars but it's not to be sold to
any but trades people."

Had me a sweetheart of a plane and didn't even really know what that
meant.

When it came time for me to buy some decent handsaws Mr. Buck would go
through the same thing. He'd look at me for a bit and then go in the
back for a while.

There were a bunch of new Disston saws out front but Mr. Buck would go
back and bring out a brand new looking saw with a box that was older
looking than dirt and explain the difference to me. I have two sway
back Disstons that I bought in the late 1960's that were actually made
around 1900. Only to be sold to tradesmen.

I bought a set of black handled Stanley chisels from Mr. Buck and paid
the same price as the yellow handled ones would have cost. Mr. Buck
explained the differences to me. I still use them. They are the best
chisels I have ever used.

I got plenty of tools from Mr. Buck over the years but the best thing
that I got there was free - an education.

When Servistar and True Value started taking over the hardware
business it hurt Moser's pretty bad. The only thing that kept new
people coming in was that the other folks couldn't help them with
anything. Mostly the sales people were not really hardware people and
Mr. Buck could figure out what you wanted by you telling him what you
wanted to do. The True Value and Servistar people just couldn't do
that.

Mr. Buck's children had no interest in the business and neither did
his grandchildren, although most of us believe that he held on for as
long as he did just to see if one of the grandkids would want to come
in on the business.

When the new Home Depot opened up Mr. Buck went walking through it.
Wasn't too long after that he decided to close up. The "new building"
needed a new roof. People were getting ****ed off that Mr. Buck
didn't hold with credit cards. The township wanted Mr. Buck to
install a real expensive sprinkler system. Mr. Buck figured that he'd
be better off just going fishing.

I'll miss Moser's Hardware Store.

I just wish that my children had been old enough to appreciate it
before it went away.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Patriarch wrote:

I don't know, Brian. We have a bunch of them. Most of them are run by
folks that have been in the business for a long time. We went to a
community dinner the other evening, and I was reminded of another place
I used to go a lot, and still do, three or four times a year for certain
stuff. They've been around since the 50's. 4 stores, Ace Hardware
franchise. They were sponsoring the local swim team. Their buildings
aren't falling down, but then, this is California, and the prices are
really high for real estate, so no one really treats them like junk.

snip

Glad we have hardware stores like those around still.


Los Gatos Hardware / Ace being one of themby any chance?

charlie b

charlieb wrote in
:

Patriarch wrote:

I don't know, Brian. We have a bunch of them. Most of them are run
by folks that have been in the business for a long time. We went to
a community dinner the other evening, and I was reminded of another
place I used to go a lot, and still do, three or four times a year
for certain stuff. They've been around since the 50's. 4 stores,
Ace Hardware franchise. They were sponsoring the local swim team.
Their buildings aren't falling down, but then, this is California,
and the prices are really high for real estate, so no one really
treats them like junk.

snip

Glad we have hardware stores like those around still.


Los Gatos Hardware / Ace being one of themby any chance?

charlie b


Might be. That's 70 miles from home, and I haven't been in there in
maybe 20, 25 years.

This one is Bill's Ace, in Pleasant Hill, Concord and Martinez. The
first one I mentioned is Eames Hardware, on the border between Martinez
and Pleasant Hill.

They have to be everywhere. If you look, they still are. There's a
chain up in Lake County, called Hardester's, that is hardware at some
locations, groceries at others, and both at some. It's near my dad's
place, and I get there about every time we drive up. Same kind of
folks.

Petaluma has a couple. Sebastapol. Santa Rosa. There's more, I'm
certain.

Patriarch

On Mar 2, 12:16 am, Patriarch wrote:
charlieb wrote :





Patriarch wrote:

I don't know, Brian. We have a bunch of them. Most of them are run
by folks that have been in the business for a long time. We went to
a community dinner the other evening, and I was reminded of another
place I used to go a lot, and still do, three or four times a year
for certain stuff. They've been around since the 50's. 4 stores,
Ace Hardware franchise. They were sponsoring the local swim team.
Their buildings aren't falling down, but then, this is California,
and the prices are really high for real estate, so no one really
treats them like junk.

snip

Glad we have hardware stores like those around still.

Los Gatos Hardware / Ace being one of themby any chance?

charlie b

Might be. That's 70 miles from home, and I haven't been in there in
maybe 20, 25 years.

This one is Bill's Ace, in Pleasant Hill, Concord and Martinez. The
first one I mentioned is Eames Hardware, on the border between Martinez
and Pleasant Hill.

They have to be everywhere. If you look, they still are. There's a
chain up in Lake County, called Hardester's, that is hardware at some
locations, groceries at others, and both at some. It's near my dad's
place, and I get there about every time we drive up. Same kind of
folks.

Petaluma has a couple. Sebastapol. Santa Rosa. There's more, I'm
certain.

Patriarch- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

They are all around...and if they are worth having, then they are
worth spending your money at FIRST.

I always go to my local hardware store (Ace) FIRST and only get to
the big box stores if I have to.

As a consumer, you get what you pay for...and don't bitch if you
aren't paying for service and then don't get any.

TMT

We have a great ACE hardware in town, and a terrific lumber yard about five
miles from town. The folks are local and speak English. I can always get
help and I'm never embarassed to talk about my screwy ideas. It's a genuine
pleasure to go to these stores, and I go several times a week. By
patronizing these stores, I help the local economy and help employ
neighbors. The only big box store in town is Walmart (can't avoid them).
The nearest Lowes and Home Depot are about 20 miles away. I shop there
occasionally, when I need something quick and it's not in stock locally.

Considering how much money I blow in restaurants and bars, it doesn't make
sense to drive 20 miles to save a few bucks.

WJS


"Too_Many_Tools" wrote in message
ups.com...
On Mar 2, 12:16 am, Patriarch wrote:
charlieb wrote
:





Patriarch wrote:

I don't know, Brian. We have a bunch of them. Most of them are run
by folks that have been in the business for a long time. We went to
a community dinner the other evening, and I was reminded of another
place I used to go a lot, and still do, three or four times a year
for certain stuff. They've been around since the 50's. 4 stores,
Ace Hardware franchise. They were sponsoring the local swim team.
Their buildings aren't falling down, but then, this is California,
and the prices are really high for real estate, so no one really
treats them like junk.

snip

Glad we have hardware stores like those around still.

Los Gatos Hardware / Ace being one of themby any chance?

charlie b

Might be. That's 70 miles from home, and I haven't been in there in
maybe 20, 25 years.

This one is Bill's Ace, in Pleasant Hill, Concord and Martinez. The
first one I mentioned is Eames Hardware, on the border between Martinez
and Pleasant Hill.

They have to be everywhere. If you look, they still are. There's a
chain up in Lake County, called Hardester's, that is hardware at some
locations, groceries at others, and both at some. It's near my dad's
place, and I get there about every time we drive up. Same kind of
folks.

Petaluma has a couple. Sebastapol. Santa Rosa. There's more, I'm
certain.

Patriarch- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

They are all around...and if they are worth having, then they are
worth spending your money at FIRST.

I always go to my local hardware store (Ace) FIRST and only get to
the big box stores if I have to.

As a consumer, you get what you pay for...and don't bitch if you
aren't paying for service and then don't get any.

TMT

On Wed, 28 Feb 2007 23:26:51 GMT, "Leon"
wrote:



The Borg is cheaper than your hardware store?????

For many items my local hardware store IS cheaper. The Borgs opened
with a determination to put all their competition out of business.
They lowered prices drastically and when they drove out all
competitors they started raising their prices. You might find it
worthwhile to recheck the suppliers who have survived the Borg
onslaught. I often find much lower prices at the one decent hardware
store that survived and I now go to plumbing supply and electrical
supply stores where I almost always get better prices than at either
Home Depot or Lowes. Moreoever, these small operators seem happy to
have my business and do not treat their customers with the contempt of
the Borgs.