Big box stores: Inferior tools?

[Pops15]

Its funny you mention the plumbing. Mom and dad are having a house built, and one of the plumbers told him the EXACT SAME THING. I call BS. Its cheaper because of VOLUME. Wen you order 1,000,000,000 of something, it is going to be cheaper per unit than a "mom and pop" plumbing house that buys 100.

We just had to replace a faucet at work. Got a moen from lowes. NO plastic parts. ALL the plumbing inside was copper and brass. Go figure. Plumbers claim them to be inferior to justify the high costs they pay.

Same for tools, appliances, you name it. When I did my polebarn, I priced several places. Menards, lowes, a local amish guy, and a place that deals and sells ONLY metal. THAT guy was the highest. His excuse....he is the only one selling 1st grade, everyone else sells seconds:laughing:

There are SOME cases where you cannot get the same quality at a box store though. But the Box-store models certainly arent the same part number. If you are shopping for model x1234 and both a box-store and specialized dealer carry the SAME model x1234....it is going to be the SAME.

When the manufacture makes tools, or fixtures, or whatever, and boxes them up and puts a model # on them, and stacks them on a pallet, you really think they know which ones are destined to be in a box store and which ones arent? And if you really think that...:mur:

I agree that if they have the same part number there is no difference.

There are instances where the box stores do not sell 1st quality products! Ceramic tile is a good example. Not sure about the model numbers VS what the flooring stores have but I know for sure they don't have the same quality in at least one brand.
Kohler and Moen make lesser quality products for the box stores. Not inferior, but not top shelf either.

 

[JDgreen227]

Getting off topic here bringing plumbing fixtures into the thread, but...back in '82 I purchased a budget line Moen single handle kitchen faucet from a big box store, $30 and tax. When I sold the house 20 years later the chrome was still good and the faucet had never needed so much as a washer, and this was in a house with hard water. My step mom paid $250 for a single handle Kohler kitchen faucet in 2004, I have already had to install new seals in the faucet body and the chrome on the outside is beginning to peel...and she has softened water. Plumbing fixtures today are mainly c*** and valves are s***. We had to replace most of the shut off valves in our addition when they were 5 years old because they began leaking around the seats, and even with the seat washer replaced the body at the top of the valve was weeping....I tore them all out and installed ball valves...so far those have held up. It is next to impossible to get quality plumbing valves today anywhere. The original house water inlet had a gate valve that was the original...INSTALLED IN 1952 and it was still working well with only seat replacements required in all that time.

 

[Turbys_1700]

My wife worked at a plant that produced house robes when we got married 28 years ago...
They labeled the same garmets for different retailers...
Exact same product went to different retailers...
Some of the higher end retailers would request a specific feature that would distinguish their prioduct line but the robe materials, manufacturing processes, ect...was exactly the same...
When I was in furniture maufacturing we did the same thing...
We had an exclusive line for Pennys that we produced for everybody else...LOL

 

[Mace Canute]

I remember several years back we were working at a local plant that made a product for a paper mill, one of the by-products was made into the chlorine tablets people use to treat their swimming pools. The building they packaged it in had a shelf ran up high around the inside with all the different companies' container, about 50 different ones in all. The workers there said the product that they put in each different brand container was all exactly the same...the cheapest stuff was identical to the most expensive stuff.

 

[s219]

So - don't leave us in suspense...did you pop for the more expensive fixtures or buy the ones at Lowes..? I bought the ones at Lowes...Price Phister....and they work great for 8 yrs. now...they were less than half the price the plumbing supply wanted for the same fixtures...It was a lot of difference...we had 5 faucet fixtures ...1 for the kitchen and the rest for bathrooms...just all the sinks...not counting toilets, showers or tubs..and it was a of about $800.00 as I recall...even more if we count the toilets, tubs and showers...all of which are great after 8 yrs.

We ended getting everything from the plumbing supplier. They took 15-30% off retail on most items, and the prices were ballpark or better than Lowes. If we had paid full retail price, Lowes definitely would have been cheaper, but again, some of the items were not directly comparable, so it's hard to say in the end.

I did see the same toilet at Home Depot for more than we paid at the plumbing supplier, but could never get an even comparison at Lowes. Their toilets were spec'd a bit differently.

 

[Tollster]

I seriously doubt it as it would hurt the company's reputation for quality. Particularly since amajority of american's shop at those places. It would be a good myth to spread if you overcharge for you one of a kind higher quality than the big box store items though.....

I wouldn't buy it (the myth that is)

 

[Pete Judd]

Back to the tool thread, Stanley has bought up Porter Cable, Delta, B&D, ect, who knows where and at what quality point the product is made. I used to be a only Craftsman hand tool fan. Used them for years, but now the Harbor Freight made in India tools seem to rival Snap On for fit and finish. In the late 70's and early 80's Craftsman power tools were "crap" and I still will not let them into my shop. I now see after the Stanley buyout, the Delta brand being moved into the portable market with B&D feel and quality sold at the Big Box Stores. It is all marketing, and buyer beware.
My cab shop is all Delta, Porter Cable, and Jet, but I don't think that I will have to buy anymore power tools in my lifetime because of the quality of the ones I have now, and I feel sorry for those trying to buy new tools these days.

 

[smilingreen]

Talking about the HD or Lowes JD mowers, there is a major difference. Most every JD mower at the big box store comes with a Briggs and Stratton engine. If you buy a JD mower from a dealer, chances are the mower will have a commercial Kawasaki engine in it. I support my local dealer anytime I can. Why drive past my dealership to go to a big box store to buy the same type of product for the same price as what my dealer will sell it to me for? When my product needs warranty service, I can take it to my local dealership for service. Try taking your big box store mower to your local dealership for warranty service. They probably won't touch it and they will tell you to take it back to where you bought it from for service. Ever asked anyone at a Lowes or Home Depot a technical question about a warranty issue for a mower? I mean, lets face it, Lowes has a "fashion plumbing" section.

As far as power tools, yes, Home Depot and Lowes may sell a cosmetically identical product, but open the power tool up and see what the guts of it are made of. The big box store will most likely have plastic or nylon gears and plastic bushings. Buy a cosmetically identical power tool from a reputable tool dealer and open it up. You will find steel gears and beefed up bearings and bushings. You get what you pay for.

 

[troutsqueezer]

I am a little different in my approach to tools. I buy the cheapest ones I can find. If they don't do the job, I will spend a little more. 90 times out of 100 the cheap ones work just fine. I have a shed full of cheap tools and more money to spend on other things, like beer and HBO.

 

[Carl Bert]

Whether it's myth or reality (or some combination of both) I've heard numerous folks claim that even though the big box stores such as Home Depot, Lowe's, etc. sell some of the top name brand tools, they are not of the same quality for the same model # you would find elsewhere. The theory being that given their buying clout they can make deals with manufacurers to sacrifice certain quality standards in order to lower their cost and thereby maximize their profit.

Myth or reality?

It is absolutely 100% true. Not just tools, this stands true for just about EVERYTHING in the store. I'm surprised your just hearing about this, it's been common knowledge for quite some time now.

I forget the company, it may have been snapper, but about 8 or so years ago maybe longer, there was a write up in the paper about how the guy in charge of sales for Snapper, refused to make a cheaper model for Walmart. Not only do they want it made cheaper, but it must be an identical copy of the quality one, with just a couple of extra numbers or letters in the model #, but how many people really look at he model #.

Companies like HD, Lowes and Walmart have tremendous buying power. They can dictate how they want certain products built and how much they are willing to pay.

That's why you have to be careful as to what your shipping for. Some things made a little cheaper, aren't going to make a world of difference, but some things really do.