Rip-offs

[charlibalv]

In HexusOdys posted "I lost an arm and a leg to a table saw" he bemoans the rip-off on pricing in the UK.

We all know this goes on, I wondered what experiences other forum members have with tool purchases.

One of my first experiences of tool rip-off came some years ago; I wanted to get some diamond stones, a very well-known brand was charging £99 per double sided stone in the UK. I bought mine via mail order from The Japan Woodworker in Almeda, USA. The same stones cost me £44 inc. shipping and duty, and that’s after JW took a retail profit. Some suppliers just take the p*** out of us and expect us to smile.

 

[pcb1962]

Just look at some of the Festool prices in the USA.
Rotex 90 can be had for $430, thats £280, compared to £350 - 380 here.

 

[Ed Bray]

Fastcap Glu Bots: 16oz on US Amazon $7.66 inc del, Amazon UK £19.69 plus £7 delivery.

Toolovation used to sell them for £6.30 plus £3.50 p&p but they haven't had any in stock for ages.

 

[woodpig]

Many years ago when a pair of Levi's jeans were £18 a pair there was a break down in one of the newspapers of where the money went.
I can't remember the details but the cost of making them was 17 pence. :shock:

An average power tool could well cost only a few quid to make before it comes out of the factory. It would be no good buying direct from the factory though because that would put so many people out of work you'd have to pay at least 200% tax on it to pay folks benefits! :lol:

 

[custard]

In another thread an American member posted that he was paying the equivalent of $120 a cubic foot for walnut, that's exactly the same as the £80 a cubic foot that's normally charged here. Not tools I know, but more relevant as I spend far, far more on wood than I do on tools!

 

[Tetsuaiga]

Most of the hardwood timber on ebay =P.

I don't buy that but theres this one guy on there who just resaws stuff and sells it on for 4x the price.

 

[GLFaria]

That's exactly the reason I don't order tools from the UK, unless it is something I need badly and can't get anywhere else (not usual). And if you factor in the devaluation of the euro...

Handtools I usually buy from Dieter Schmid in Germany . A very good service, fast, and reasonable prices. Of course, there is the shipping, but that would happen anyway.

 

[custard]

Most of the hardwood timber on ebay =P.

I don't buy that but theres this one guy on there who just resaws stuff and sells it on for 4x the price.

He's clearly meeting a demand. I don't understand why but there are plenty of people (including many on this forum) who are just too lazy or too lacking in confidence to actually visit a timber yard and select their own wood. So they pay the price, poor quality wood that everyone else has rejected, high prices, no chance of getting sequential boards, can't pick different cuts for different jobs. You wonder why they even bother picking up a plane when they've loaded the dice so comprehensively against themselves.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Aye. Things bought of people's free will are hardly a rip off. A rip off is my £800 + p.a. water bill that I have no choice but to pay. I can't use any less water or buy it somewhere else. Most people on Ebay or wherever are only fulfilling a need - if I can get (e.g.) ten screws for £2.50 inc. p&p, the fact that I can buy 200 for a fiver is of no concern to me if I only need ten. Not forgetting the petrol and the wear and tear on the car, of course.

 

[RogerP]

.........I don't understand why but there are plenty of people (including many on this forum) who are just too lazy or too lacking in confidence to actually visit a timber yard and select their own wood. .........

You're assuming everyone has suitable transport and if they have that there is a good timber yard within economical travelling distance.

 

[custard]

.........I don't understand why but there are plenty of people (including many on this forum) who are just too lazy or too lacking in confidence to actually visit a timber yard and select their own wood. .........

You're assuming everyone has suitable transport and if they have that there is a good timber yard within economical travelling distance.

I guess a small number are in that position, and they have my sympathy. But the great majority of the population live within reasonable distance of a timber yard, and many yards have the facility where you can pick your timber and they'll deliver. Here are three examples that covers most of the population of the South East, plus all three will cross cut the timber down free of charge so you can load it in your vehicle,

http://www.englishwoodlandstimber.co.uk
http://www.surreytimbers.co.uk
http://www.exotichardwoods.co.uk/index.asp

Anyone who's serious about working wood should realise that buying sight unseen is a very poor second best, and the person who has the gumption to get themselves down to a timber yard will be in a far more favourable position to produce quality work.

 

[Tetsuaiga]

Yes it can be tricky learning how to deal with timber yards. Some places only like to deal with big orders, ive only visited three myself and theyve all been very welcoming.

I dont do my work as a hobby so can order larger quantities but its still small. I just feel bad that people might be getting taken advantage of. I thought about selling some wood the same way myself and while yes id be meeting a demand id feel uneasy/guilty about it.

You can get some fine priced wood on ebay but you just need to have a basic ides of whats reasonable to pay.

 

[Jacob]

......I don't understand why but there are plenty of people (including many on this forum) who are just too lazy or too lacking in confidence to actually visit a timber yard and select their own wood. So they pay the price, poor quality wood that everyone else has rejected, .....

Not necessarily true. A good yard should know what it's got in stock and be able to give you what you want, as near as possible.
I buy strictly by phone and grade from a yard which doesn't allow you to select. You get what you order (delivered) and don't have to spend half a day sorting through a pile of stuff from which all the best bits have already gone. If it isn't up to grade I can complain and get a discount or return it, but this rarely happens.
Nothing to do with laziness or lack of confidence and I get consistently good quality. When I started out I thought it was good idea to go to a yard and sort through stuff but it can be a big mistake, not to mention very time consuming.

 

[charlibalv]

That's exactly the reason I don't order tools from the UK, unless it is something I need badly and can't get anywhere else (not usual). And if you factor in the devaluation of the euro...

Handtools I usually buy from Dieter Schmid in Germany . A very good service, fast, and reasonable prices. Of course, there is the shipping, but that would happen anyway.

Yes I have bought from Dieter Schmid for the usually cheaper than in the UK and very good customer service.

 

[JakeS]

You're assuming everyone has suitable transport and if they have that there is a good timber yard within economical travelling distance.

Indeed.

I've bought ash and ply and formica from my local timber yard in Grantham. They carry ash and sapele and oak and a couple of other common species, but they didn't have any cherry that wasn't veneered onto a bit of plywood and I didn't know of any other yard nearby at the time*, so that came from eBay. It wasn't seriously overpriced, so far as I could tell, and for the small quantity I wanted it was cheaper buying it from British Hardwoods and getting it delivered!

After making the mistake of taking my partner along with me to the timber yard one time (because she wanted to look at veneered plywood to decide what she wanted for a desktop - I presume this marked me out as a hobbyist/DIYer and thus fair game) I can say eBay wins in the "not having to deal with condescending staff" stakes as well. Every time I'd been in on my own previously they'd been perfectly friendly, but she's not going back and was upset enough that she almost asked to leave without actually buying what we came for that time.

I thought about selling some wood the same way myself and while yes id be meeting a demand id feel uneasy/guilty about it.

Counterpoint: while I've not sold any myself, knowing that if I don't find a use for it I can sell half a board or whatever on eBay relatively easily also makes me much more willing to buy more than I need from the timber yard! I kind of feel the same about 'rustic' craft products on Etsy, but I'm not going to stop my partner having a go at making coathooks or key organisers with the funny-shaped ends of waney boards, 'cause if someone likes it then it's a better use of the wood than burning it!


* (I learned since of Associated Timber at Colsterworth, and since then they've sadly gone out of business. Although I heard another business just across the A1 from them is picking up the mantle.)

 

[dexter]

Professional quality power tools over here in France cost at the very least one third more than UK prices for exactly the same piece of kit.
Probably the worst I have seen though was a gun for expanding foam, price in Screwfix, less than twenty quid, price for the same over here seventy euros!