March 2, 2014, 03:56 PM | #1 |
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Ordering from Brownell's
This post may be in the wrong section, but I want to make sure that my fellow reloaders take note.
Last week I ordered a batch of bullets from Brownell's online. They had customer service available via chat, and that guy gave me what turned out to be great advice, so I was pretty happy with them and thought I would be a return customer. However, I have since discovered that I was really had. I ordered 500 230gr 45 cal RN bullets made by SNS. With shipping it was $83.44 I since discovered that ordering the same thing direct from SNS would only cost $54.45, shipping included. <<Please note that I have moved this thread to Retail Deals and Feedback. The "stickied" rules for the RD&F subforum apply to posts made after the move. JohnKSa >> Last edited by JohnKSa; March 3, 2014 at 11:40 AM. Reason: Added Note. |
March 2, 2014, 04:06 PM | #2 |
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Thats some bad shipping... like $20? A lot of gun related sites seem to have high shipping. Thats why I stick to midway when I can
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March 2, 2014, 04:22 PM | #3 |
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It wasn't just the S&H. The bullets were considerably more from Brownell's.
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March 2, 2014, 04:32 PM | #4 |
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How do figure that "you were really had"? Did they mis-represent
the product? Not tell you the price? Tell you one price and charge you another? Add charges without telling you? Ignorance on your part---not knowing what a current price on a product is--is not Brownell's problem. I buy a lot of stuff from Brownell's. Some stuff they are pretty much the only source. Some stuff they have great prices on. Some stuff I can get a better deal elsewhere---that stuff I do not buy from Brownell's. |
March 2, 2014, 04:53 PM | #5 |
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No, they did not mis-represent the product.
No, they did not mis-quote the price. What they did do was charge way over market. The other thing they did was lose what would have been a repeat customer over a few bucks. So, yeah... caveat emptor. It cuts both directions. |
March 2, 2014, 04:59 PM | #6 | |
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March 2, 2014, 05:27 PM | #7 |
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Always do your homework !!!
Yah,
I rarely buy anything without knowing the price up front and whenever possible, go shopping and get some price comparisons. Last week, I went shopping for an item and Brownell's was cheaper, including shipping, than Cabelas by just a few bucks. Decided on Cabelas cause I had some points I could use. I think in your case, I'd cut Brownell's some slack. ... ... Sorry and; Be Safe !!!
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March 2, 2014, 06:25 PM | #8 | |
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March 2, 2014, 06:58 PM | #9 |
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Gunbot is how I ended up there.
I am learning that gunbot and ammoseek only represent a handful of sellers, and they seem to have a bubble going on there. Anyway, lesson learned on that one. That was my first ever order of bullets. |
March 2, 2014, 07:19 PM | #10 |
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March 2, 2014, 07:52 PM | #11 | |
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That being said - I gladly buy (and sometimes pay more) from Brownells because I like that they have pleasant and knowledgeable staff members on hand to answer my questions. Good quality employees are hard to find and I dont have a problem paying for the extra service. |
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March 2, 2014, 07:57 PM | #12 |
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I saw that exact box of bullets for $49.99 before tax at a local retailer. I passed on the deal because I like the Missouri Bullet Company cast bullets.
I generally wait until I need enough to make the shipping cost pay. Missouri Bullets will ship 2000 (4 boxes of 500) under 240 grain bullets for $14. They will ship 3000 or 6 boxes of under 150 grain bullets, same price. http://www.missouribullet.com/index.php |
March 3, 2014, 12:38 AM | #13 |
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I like brownells for what they are, but excessive shipping bugs me. If I can ship 70lb of lead in a usps flat rate box for $13, there is no reason a high volume mail order company shouldnt be able to ship a 5-10# box of bullets for apreciably less. Not to pick on brownells, countless online retailers make up for their low prices with excessive shipping
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March 3, 2014, 10:46 AM | #14 |
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They do less shipping for smaller items and the fact that they do a flat rate no matter how large the order is good in my opinion. Buyer beware.
Not Brownell's fault that you didn't shop around and you never did state what the shipping charges were. I would assume it was their standard flat rate shipping charge. I have a FFL on file with Midway. If my order is under $40 I pay an extra $4.00. If a non FFL holders order is under $40 they pay $3.00 I don't do a lot of business with Midway for that reason being they have stated that FFL holders do not get any special pricing anymore BECAUSE their prices are so low to begin with.
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March 3, 2014, 11:14 AM | #15 |
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Brownells often doesn't have the best prices.
But it is still often cheaper for me to buy all the parts I am ordering there than to order all the cheapest parts from the cheapest vendors when I consider one shipping charge verses multiple shipping charges. Jimro
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March 3, 2014, 11:21 AM | #16 | |
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March 3, 2014, 11:40 AM | #17 |
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<<Moving to Retail Deals and Feedback. The "stickied" rules for the RD&F subforum apply to posts made after this point. JohnKSa >>
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March 4, 2014, 06:18 PM | #18 |
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So you screwed up a bit on your first ever bullet order. Stuff
happens. You learned a little lesson, and the tuition was only around 30 bucks. I've had a few of those "life's lessons" where the tuition was W-A-Y more than $30 |
March 5, 2014, 09:20 AM | #19 | |
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Quote:
[edit] to clarify a bit: my intent here wasn't to whine about it, it was simply to give a heads up to other people shopping to pay attention when ordering from these guys. |
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