Workshop supplies

[8ob]

Sat there last night ordering gear to top up the workshop drawers, dawned on me that with the demise of my maninavan mobile shop I am now getting all my consumables online. All we have left around here are bearing,belts,gas and nuts/bolts. I reckon I am running at 75% online.

Bob

 

[The_Yellow_Ardvark]

Less than 10%.
The charity places have rules who we can buy from.
Most UK sites have a UK phone number and a shop somewhere. We can use them for a phone order.

If not we use some good old fashioned shops.

 

[DanZac]

What are you classing screwfix and toolstation as?

If I'm using them I normally order online and then go and pick it up from the shop next time I'm passing. Bit of a grey area, in the online / local debate?

 

[mtt.tr]

Online mostly, again about 75%.

No real option anymore this way.

 

[8ob]

What are you classing screwfix and toolstation as?

If I'm using them I normally order online and then go and pick it up from the shop next time I'm passing. Bit of a grey area, in the online / local debate?

I use them but more for hardware, you cant go in there for engineers chalk, welding hoses and the like. I also find their products more of a get you out of jail standard, also noticed that in recent years most of what you want has to be ordered in anyway, might as well go on line and get it delivered.

Bob

 

[AdventuresInMetal]

I've gone 100% online, has been that way for about 20 years. Pretty much the only thing I have to go and collect is welding gas. I'm 34 and still havn't bothered learning to drive yet so it works for me (though probably going to next year).

I like to be pretty self sufficient in supplies, doesn't matter if its hardware, chemicals, abrasives, whatever i want to buy it in bulk. Its very rare that I order exactly what I need for a project. For example say I need 8 60mm M8 bolts, i'll buy a pack of 100 instead, or if they are bigger more expensive items i'll try and buy in a qty of say 25... I generally shop around to find the best price per item. I would much prefer to pay more for a bigger qty and sit on the stock than pay way over the odds per item.

I've often had people take the mick out of me for this and calling me the local hardware store but they don't seem to realise just how much time and money they waste driving around to get 1 or 2 things at a time. During covid when we were having constant shortages on really simple every day supplies. I was able to coast through the shortages pretty easily just using my own stock and then restocking as available months if not a year later. If anything all these shortages did for me was make me want to stock up even more.

I think some pretty hard times are in our future somewhere along the line and I want to be prepaired for it as much as possible.

 

[Robotstar5]

I've gone 75% as I still use the local Toolstation/Screwfix as they are a few minutes away.

 

[ukracer]

I've gone 75% as I still use the local Toolstation/Screwfix as they are a few minutes away.

Same as me but a large % is on next day collection just lately. So I am classing them as online purchases..

 

[frank horton]

virtually all on line now.......no where local to buy anything other than nuts n bolts, St/st and BRASS...... but only metric.......
anything else has to come Athens or Germany.......can't/won't order from the UK anymore just to stressfull.....shame cos I have a big list.....

keep thinking about buying a motor home and filling it with stuff, then drive it here......

 

[winchman]

80% from the Autojumble rest online little bits from local motor factors. Most of our local suppliers have closed, tool Station and Screwfix are not always the best quality

 

[premmington]

Cunsumables about 90%

Small universal parts 100%

Specific high value parts for jobs about 5%

-----------

Still buying nuts/bolts/bearings and some oils locally.

Even my welding stuff comes from Rapid now overnight.

Closed Wurth account as well as they are too dear.

 

[redlig]

Is there a chance of adding to this survey a question about how satisfied we are with the online " experience" and would we do it if there were an alternative?

 

[AdventuresInMetal]

Closed Wurth account as well as they are too dear.

I opened an account with them last year as I kept seeing their products here and there in the background in various youtube videos, I have yet to order anything, Havn't come across a single thing yet that was well priced, pretty much everything i have price compared so far has been cheaper elsewhere, often with a considerable difference.

Decided it just isn't Wurth it.

 

[Blue Chips]

I'm fortunate to have a few good local supply sources for things like abrasives, fasteners, paints, solvents, metal, adhesives, welding gas, power tools, hand tools, etc., and I like supporting local businesses. If there's only a reasonable difference in price, I'll buy locally. If there's a huge difference in price, then I might order online. Most of my online ordering tends to be for specialized things, which probably represent about a third to half of my shop supply and tool needs.

My most-used online supplier is probably McMaster-Carr, as they offer a vast selection of items, excellent customer service, and they ship very promptly. As to ordering from Amazon Prime, I do my share of that, which can be hit and miss as far as the quality of goods is concerned, due to the huge array of sellers on Amazon, but at least they ship quickly and have an easy and reliable return policy, which I've taken advantage of numerous times. My projects tend to be rather eclectic in nature, so I've ordered supplies and tools from dozens of different online suppliers...too many to list here. Overall, I'd say that 'most' of them provide good customer service and actually answer their phones instead of pawning me off to a call center halfway around the world (when that happens, I try to find another source).

 

[8ob]

Locally we had a few decent small shops which were good for workshop consumables, they were really handy because you could pull up/park outside. Council decided to turn all the parking spaces outside these shops into raised flower bed/planters and paint the rest of the road with double yellows making them a ball ache to use. That was the end of any trade they did.

Bob

 

[Mick Annick]

Locally we had a few decent small shops which were good for workshop consumables, they were really handy because you could pull up/park outside. Council decided to turn all the parking spaces outside these shops into raised flower bed/planters and paint the rest of the road with double yellows making them a ball ache to use. That was the end of any trade they did.

Bob

I take it AHC on London Road in Camberley are long gone? We used to get all our nuts and bolts there.

 

[pint]

All online, it's just easier then faffing with local suppliers or wasting time picking it up. Or online and then collect from the store just so i don't get rogered on the price

Last supplier i went in was BSS, cracking service, good price, was on the shelf if only everywhere was like that.

 

[premmington]

Locally we had a few decent small shops which were good for workshop consumables, they were really handy because you could pull up/park outside. Council decided to turn all the parking spaces outside these shops into raised flower bed/planters and paint the rest of the road with double yellows making them a ball ache to use. That was the end of any trade they did.

Bob

I really would like to spend my money locally - but I am ordering late afternoon in the workshop and stuff is there the next morning.

I even started using RS again - there prices looking good on somethings now.

Local welding supplier is not dear - but he not got the full range in stock - so you gotta wait for stuff - he got as much A18 mig wire as you can eat. But if you want MMA 312 or 309L rods and decent gloves - he gotta order them in... So thus the move to Rapid.

I really think if you spend money locally it should in the end come back to your pocket if you in business...

Oh... How the world has changed! For the better...?

 

[premmington]

I opened an account with them last year as I kept seeing their products here and there in the background in various youtube videos, I have yet to order anything, Havn't come across a single thing yet that was well priced, pretty much everything i have price compared so far has been cheaper elsewhere, often with a considerable difference.

Decided it just isn't Wurth it.

I can't seem to get the pricing with Wurth - they just seem to priced themselves out of a sale...

I concur with your "not worth it joke"

 

[ukracer]

I can't seem to get the pricing with Wurth - they just seem to priced themselves out of a sale...

I concur with your "not worth it joke"

Always have done. They relied on availability and personal delivery in a stocked van when I dealt with them.