[OP]
Contributor
Rob Lee is coming clean again about the supply nightmares he's still facing (email today). We all owe it to him to keep him with a steady stream of orders, even though we probably won't receive them for months. We don't want his business to wither away! Weigh in if you agree.
Contributor
My latest order arrived a couple days ago.
It wasn't a big order but it filled a hole in my selection of forestner bits and brad point bits. Plus a lifetime supply (hopefully) of the inexpensive brushes that are great on the bench for cleaning shavings from planes and applying finish. They are often considered throw away brushes but mine often get cleaned.
Brushes.jpg
https://www.leevalley.com/en-ca/shop...s?item=56Z9930
At less than 80¢ each these are not only less expensive than the ones often seen in the big box stores the handles have a better feel than the roughness of the others.
Oops! I was looking at the Canadian site. The brushes work out to 60¢ each, that is about half the price for the small ones (1/2") that Lowes & HD used to charge but no longer carry.
Fill the holes in your drill bit selections and toss a bag of brushes on top of your order.
jtk
Last edited by Jim Koepke; 10-14-2021 at 7:34 PM. Reason: Oops!
"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
- Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)
Member
Sorry Jim. You can dislike me for my reply, but animal bristle brushes from China are sourced cruelly. I'd rather use a vegan or a foam brush. Also, shame on you, Rob Lee.Originally Posted by Jim Koepke
https://www.peta.org/living/humane-h...fur-free/?v2=1
Contributor
These brushes are not from China.animal bristle brushes from China are sourced cruelly
Though they may be sourced the same way. Thanks for bringing this to my attention.
At one time my diet was vegetarian. My, currently visiting, grandson is vegetarian and enjoys my meatless cooking and has been learning some of my recipes and cooking techniques.
Just this morning an early Christmas gift was purchased for my grandson, a Veritas 14ppi Dovetail Saw. Hopefully there is no animal issues with the saw other than the cruel way animals became extinct a million years ago to create the deposits now used to make plastics.
jtk
"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
- Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)
Member
Thanks for your reply, Jim. I recently got a plastic-spined gents saw from Lee Valley. My wife introduced a vegetarian diet ~30 years ago because of her love for animals. Though I quickly joined her, it took me a while to emotionally accept a meatless diet. It's easier now with the range of frozen and non frozen dishes at stores. As a byproduct of my choice and an inability to tolerate oral iron supplements, I became iron-deficient and need occasional outpatient iron infusions. Fortunately, my doctor doesn't berate me for causing my own medical problem.
Contributor
Better make sure it isn't made from real dovetails!
while I think that bringing up animal cruelty issues in industry is a valid and important issue, I don't see how berating anyone is. That's a never ending rabbit hole...
Member
As someone who has (very) strong opinions on various things I understand the urge to post things like this. But I would strongly suggest leaving this sort of activism out of these forums. Folks come here to enjoy and learn about our shared woodworking interest.
And the problem with posting things like this is that some people will dislike you for it. There is enough of this on social media, let's leave it off of The Creek.
Trashing Lee Valley for carrying animal products is not cool in my not so humble opinion.
Contributor
Bruce -
The brushes well sell use pig bristle - not boar bristle - there is a big difference. Our brushes are made in Indonesia (not China) - and the bristles may actually be sourced from India, though I am not certain - as the manufacturer may source from more than one supplier. I have been told that the bristles are a byproduct of hog processing for meat - and would otherwise be animal waste. I certainly find this credible - as the prices of the brushes would certainly not support being produced from any other source.
Just want to make sure you are making fact based decisions.
Rob
(not ashamed)
Member
Thank you, Rob. I'm brittle about animal cruelty. I apologize for my uninformed attack.
Contributor
Hi Bruce -
No worries. I'm one of those guys that stops to usher snakes and turtles off the road....
Cheers -
Rob
Last edited by Rob Lee; 10-21-2021 at 5:35 PM.
Contributor
Thanks for the heads up - that email went to my spam folder for some reason and I missed it.
I think it's accurate to say that buying things that are in stock now will help a company I value stay afloat. Bear in mind that placing orders that we wont receive for months isnt going to help LV's cash flow though - they are a reputable company and dont charge my card until they ship.
I will go see what's in stock and try to help a little.
Fred
Last edited by Frederick Skelly; 10-14-2021 at 9:04 PM.
"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."
“If you want to know what a man's like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals.”
Contributor
I agree! I am going to avoid Amazon for a while. I will place an order with Lee Valley. They are a fine business and deserve our support!
Contributor
Reached the same conclusion a couple of weeks ago and ordered a few measuring instruments and small Japanese tools that are far better than the ones I have now at less than half the price. They will all be very hard to get for some time and then more expensive. Look at any gaps in your tool chest now.
You can do a lot with very little! You can do a little more with a lot!
Member
I am finally trying the Lie-Nielsen scissors. I am a closet scissor fiend, I bet they are pretty good. Placed an everything in stock order at Lee Valley too, finally trying the wee little 1.5 inch speed square among other things.
One product I highly highly reccomend from Lee Valley is the tweezers, the "Sliver Gripper Tweezers." They are $9.50 each, in stock, and they absolutely kick butt. I ordered 8-10 pair a few years ago for stocking stuffers, I keep one pair in my shop, one pair in my truck and one pair in my field pack.
Contributor
I will say one thing about Lee Valley, I don't consider there customer support to be that great because what they do goes so far beyond good customer support that I can't even compare it.
They absolutely value their customers (not just their customers dollars).
It isn't a cheap store by any means, and shipping to Israel is so expensive I can't possible consider switching from Amazon for generic products. But between the customer service and the quality of the tools I am completely sold on the company. I hope to be able to let them wreak havoc on my bank account for many years.
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