Woodcraft sale

[Mark Vernon]

Woodcraft is advertising a one day sale this weekend, offering 10% off nearly everything, and free shipping. I am looking to outfit a startup home hobby shop and wonder if any of you experienced folks would venture an opinion on Woodcrafts comparative pricing structure and perceptions on quality? I'm not looking for big ticket items this weekend, but lots of basics. I appreciate any comments you might have time for.:)

Thanks,
Mark

[Greg Heppeard]

you can get an early bird special too...7am-9am here an extra 5% except on power tools.

[bob cohen]

They are overpriced. That said they have a good selection of stationary and other power tools, accessories, books, and way overpriced sheet goods and hardwoods. They also have a selection of knobs, pulls, hinges and other hardware items. I go to my local store once a month or so and always enjoy it. You will not find bargains, but will find most of the things you need. The guys at my store (in KC) are all very nice, and a few are fairly knowledgeable, way more so than anyone you would find at a hardware store. With the 15% off (go early) you will do about as well as, or maybe a little better, than you would shopping online. The advantage is that you will be able to see what you are buying. They carry, dewalt, delta, jet, powermatic, sawstop, rikon, general international, lie neilsen planes, leigh jigs, and many other quality products. You will not find shop fox, oliver, or high-end euro machines.

[Don Bullock]

Mark,
It all depends on what you're buying. On some items WoodCraft is "reasonably priced" while on others they are on the high side. Part of what you pay for at a WoodCraft store in the connivence of being able to buy everything locally from someone who stands behind what they sell. You are also, at times, getting expert assistance.

[Randy Garrett]

Mark, I'm going to look at the Kreg pocket hole system. If I can save 15%, that should be a pretty good deal. My next project is some cabinets for our walk-in closet. I'm in Richmond, Virginia. What part are you located in?

[Bryan Berguson]

Not trying to start an argument here but... I think Woodcraft is competively priced across their range of products. They may be higher priced in some areas but lower priced in others. The franchise owners have to make a living, if they can't, no more Woodcraft.

I've bought from Rockler, Woodworkers Supply, Grizzly, McFeeleys, Woodcraft. If you think Woodcraft is overpriced then they all are.

For the record, I have absolutely zero finacial interest in Woodcraft. I have purchased quite a bit from them lately taking advantage of their free shipping offer before Christmas on a number of occasions. They shipped everything same day and I received it in 2 days via Fedex.

Their nearest store is over 2.5 hours from me in Harrisburg PA which I got a chance to visit for the first time today. Wow! A great store with a great selection of quality products. It's probably a good thing they aren't closer! :) After we left there, we walked across the parking lot to Harbor Freight. Ugh! The dollar store of shop equipment. One name brand item (Gorilla Tape) was $1 more than at the Woodcraft store. Same size roll, same stuff, more expensive. Our 10 minute stay was about 8 minutes too long.

Back to Woodcraft... I needed some drawer slides for a project I'm building. I told one of the employees that I lived 2.5 hours away and asked if they would honor the March 1st sale. He asked the owner and he said they would do it. Well, they only had 4 of the 6 sets of slides I needed and if I bought those, I couldn't get to the $75 I'd need for free shipping so the 2 sets of slides I'd have to buy online would cost me more money. We decided it'd be best if I just bought all of them online on March 1st. Very nice folks to deal with. I love the Grizzly store and love my Grizzly tools but you won't get that kind of service there. That's no slame to Grizzly, they just don't have the "small town" service I seen at Woodcraft today.

So Mark, if you shopped hard, you'd find deals at all the woodworking businesses but then you'd have to pay shipping at each one. I think Woodcrafts 10% sale with free shipping over $75 is going to be tough to beat. I'm putting together an order for Saturday!:D

Happy Shopping!

Bryan

[Paul Johnstone]

I think Woodcraft is a good store. Great customer service.

Sometimes it will be cheaper to buy something online, but if you go into their store, you get people that actually know woodworking.

I think they are very competitive on stationary power tools.
Again, you might save a little online, but you won't have to waste a day of vacation waiting for the frieght truck (which sometimes doesn't show up).. Also, if something goes wrong, you don't have to deal with mailing the thing back.

I make it a point to buy what I can from them, because I'd really hate to see a nice local store like that go out of business. Many of the things are the same price as online. A few things might be 5-10% more. I can't think of anything there which is outrageously priced, although there might be something.

[Michael Lutz]

There pricing and selection of portable power tools is often higher than you could buy online. The stationary power tools are competitively priced.

Mike

[Chuck Hayes]

Mark;

I try to buy everything I can from my local Woodcraft. I may be able to find a slightly better price on line, but I figure that that extra money goes towards the convenience of being able to walk in and take home what I need (After paying for it of course). But the main reason is that the people at woodcraft (Employees and customers alike) are great people to talk to, not only about woodworking and tools, and thier customer service is top notch.

I have purchased from Lee Valley (Woodcraft does not carry most of the veritas stuff), Highland woodworking and Hartville tool. Those three also have excelent customer service and good pricing, but I usually will buy from the woodcraft if it is something they carry and they have it in stock. I have never purchased from woodcraft online so I cannot speak to the service from that side of the business.

Chuck

[Mark Vernon]

Thanks to all for your time. I appreciate it. You've convinced me to check Woodcraft out this weekend. I'm gonna think "fieldtrip" and maybe I'll get lucky with a good buy or 7.
Mark

[Joe D'Attilio]

The 10% off Marhc Madness is being applied to web purchases currenly

No free shipping but 10% is being applied as we speak.

[Michael Gibbons]

Mark, did you happen to get the extra 5% coupon? I beleive that you can get one if you get there early, at least that's what they are doing at my local Woodcraft. Lie-Nielsen, here I come.

[Mark Grotenhuis]

I just bought the 24" porter cable Omni-jig for $509.00 at my local woodcraft store. I talked them into giving me the early bird sale plus 10% off like advertised a day early. I didn't have to twist their arm either. I just pointed out the fact that tomorrow morning is going to be crazy with people there and I'd rather just buy it now... they agreed. Great deal without tons of people there.

[Rob Music]

My coupon clearly states that you do NOT get the additional 'early bird 5%" off on power tools. Are there two different versions of the coupon floating around????

[Jeff Booth]

I concur with the majority of hte other posters. I patronize a local Woodcraft so that they can stay in business so that I can continue to go there and study things prior to purchase. The one thing I do not buy there is wood (way overpriced and really not much selection ). The people that work at my local store in Woburn, MA (supposedly the original store that moved from Boston) are very knowledgeable and easy going.

I really really really really like it over visiting Rockler which I think is full of useless gizmos and lacks quality hand tools. My woodcraft carries lots of real quality stuff (Lie Nielsen, Starrett, Lee Valley, Cliffton, Hock etc....). They also have a lot of finishing stuff and solid advice on finishing. They also carry Festool, I'm not sure that is such a good thing :eek: .... it cost me a Domino last year and I think I will be getting the 1010 router this year (and maybe a uhhhh ...... Kapex).

[Mark Grotenhuis]

Well technically the omni-jig isn't a power tool. Its a power tool accessory.

[James Hart]

Funny. I was waiting for this sale to buy the Kreg bandsaw fence. The combination of the 10% off and the disappearance of the free shipping cancel each other out. Looks like I'll buy locally next time I'm motivated to make the 60 mile trip to Woodcraft.

Jim

[James Hart]

The perils of having a one-day only sale. The Woodcraft website is very halt and lurch. Can't imagine trying to place a large order.

Jim

[Bruce Pearce]

The Woodcraft site just died for me in the middle of an order. :(

[Bryan Berguson]

The 10% off Marhc Madness is being applied to web purchases currenly

No free shipping but 10% is being applied as we speak.


They had a "Free shipping for $75 or more" up until this sale started. :( It will be cheaper for me to buy the slides I need after the sale and get the free shipping. I still like Woodcraft but this little change ruined the "sale" for me. Oh well...

Bryan

[Anthony Anderson]

The combination of the 10% off and the disappearance of the free shipping cancel each other out.
Jim


I agree, it sounds like a switcharoo. I was waiting for the 10% w/free shipping to get some things that I have been needing, and here they have taken away the free shipping. Either have a sale, or don't, but please don't pull petty tactics such as this. This is a sales tactic that you might expect from the auto dealer. But WoodCraft? For me, the "Sale" is not really a sale without the free shipping. For someone who buys something larger, or which costs more, it may work out.

[Dave Avery]

The perils of having a one-day only sale. The Woodcraft website is very halt and lurch. Can't imagine trying to place a large order.

Jim

Not as "halt and lurch" as visiting the local store. Stopped by to pick up some hardware and gave up after 15 minutes where my wait started and ended with me being 5th in line......

[Samuel Brooks]

I think allot depends on your local store. Mine decided to extend the 15% sale all day. Which was nice since I could not get out in the morning. I when to buy the standard Kreg K-3 package for $79 less the 15% and they recommended that I upgrade to the K-3 Master System because they just started a $20.00 rebate so I got the K-3 Master for $119 after the 15% off, plus a mail-in rebate for the $20.00 so I will net out at about $100.00 for the Kreg master system.

Like most people have mentioned they can be pricey on some items, but convince has a price and I for one am willing to pay the price quite often. Because remember if you never pay for the convinance, don't be surprised when it becomes unavailable because they cannot make enough money to keep the doors open.

I am lucky in that I have most of my major items and I am just picking up additional items so I can wait and catch stuff on-sale. Also it is nice to feel and touch equipment which you get when you walk into a store that you do not get from a catalog.

Bottom line, you will be "stuck" with the tool for allot of years so don't sell yourself short by buying everything but getting lower quality. Spend the extra dollars and get fewer tools then add to your collection as time goes by. For me it's about once per year that I look to acquire one major tool or upgrade. Each time I upgrade I think back at the time and money that was wasted by not buying the correct tool for the job. I am not saying to go out and spend $3000 on a Laguna bandsaw but instead if you are looking at 14" $500.00 bandsaw then don't exclude the 14" $800 bandsaws because you will find they have many of the features that you will end up adding aftermarket like quick release tension and better guides etc. The one area I would caution is to compare the 14" $500 to say a 16" $800 model. They you are moving to a whole different class of equipment and you might be back in the bottom rung of capabilities.

The bandsaw was just an example but it applies to all tools.

Good luck with what ever you decide.

[Jim O'Dell]

The Ft Worth store was very busy when I went in about 9:30 this morning. I didn't get much, a can of Bloxigen and some CMT blade cleaner. Would have bought another one of the 5.00 router bits, but they didn't have any of the flush trim bits. Biggest thing I saw go out was one of the Festool vacs. Not sure which one.
They must have had everyone and their wives there helping today. It did take a while to check out, but no more than 10 minutes. If they would do the full percentage off on power tools also, they might sell a few more of the big tools. Jim.

[Jay Yoder]

I too braved the crowds and ended up ordering the New Jet deluxe table saw. i picked up some odds and ends too. it was a good experience and not quite as psychotic as Hartville Hdw was last weekend! I love our local store, the owner is awesome. he spend about 15-20 mins with me and never once made me feel that he was in a hurry. that is why i go back, the service and knowlege is excellent. it beats going to HD and Lowe's where you are lucky to find someone more knowlegable about their products than you...

[Michael Gibbons]

I grabbed the owner of the store and told him to get the keys to the showcases and went around and pick a few things out. Got my 15% off so I ended saving about $105.

[Michael Gibbons]

The Ft Worth store was very busy when I went in about 9:30 this morning. I didn't get much, a can of Bloxigen and some CMT blade cleaner. Would have bought another one of the 5.00 router bits, but they didn't have any of the flush trim bits. Biggest thing I saw go out was one of the Festool vacs. Not sure which one.
They must have had everyone and their wives there helping today. It did take a while to check out, but no more than 10 minutes. If they would do the full percentage off on power tools also, they might sell a few more of the big tools. Jim. I think they must have price fixing on certain items,namely the ones mentioned on the flyer that are excluded like Leigh jigs, Festool, Steel City, Sawstop.

[Pat Germain]

I arrived at my local Woodcraft about 7:30 AM yesterday. I expected pandamonium, but there were only a few people there. In fact, us customers were outnumbered by the sales staff.

I wanted to take advantage of the 15% for some "non-power tools". I needed a set of chisels and picked up a Chinese set, Wood River I think. They have wooden handles, which I prefer and they looked OK. I gotta admit, I don't know much about them, but I do know I'm not ready to pony up for a first class set of Japanese dovetail chisels. The Wood River set listed for around $75, so I saved few bucks there.

I also got a Woodcraft shop apron. I bought a cheap apron awhile back and it's falling apart. The better apron lists for $49, which I think it way too high. Yet, with 15% off, I was willing to suck it up. I used it all day yesterday and I really like it.

I needed a pull saw for trimming and such. I picked up one of the mid-grade saws that seemed OK. Eventually, I know I'm going to have to break down and buy some better examples.

My Woodcraft did have flush trim bits in stock, which surprised me because they're moving next week and kinda low on existing stock. I got the biggest example they had.

There was no wait at the register when I was ready to check out. I did some browsing after that. You know, that Delta Unisaw is starting to grow on me. I'm going to have to start cruising craigslist in a wider area. Maybe I'll do a David Marks setup with a Unisaw and router cabinet combo... Yeah... My checking accout is already screaming. :)

[James Hendrix]

I went to the Kansac City area store. Got there about 10am and it was packed. Had to park in the street as their parking lot was full. There were two lines at the register with about 9-10 people each.

I went their to get a router table for my new Triton. I did not want to build another one. Ended up buying the Bench Dog contractor model. It was marked down to $199 and I could not use my 15% discount as it was marked down. That was OK because the regular price was $259 and the 15% was not even close to the $50 markdown.

[mike wacker]

I have the best of both worlds. Rockler, 5 minutes from "the Office" and Woodcraft, 10 from home. These are two completely different stores serving similar clientel (sp). I use them both for their advice and take full advantage of their sales. I scored big time at Woodcraft during a "cleanout the back room" sale. Got the 6 inch riser block for my 14" Delta band saw and the Phenolic table for my PM66, both 50% off. Got a new tube for my PM 66 fence (89 vintage bessy) for $30.

I try to patronize them as much as I can justify. With out them we'll have the inventory specialist at the Borg to ask questions of!!!

[Todd Hyman]

I went to the Roswell (Atlanta) GA store. Got there about 9:15am and it was packed. The parking lot was full as well as Freud had one of their demo trucks showing off their blades, nits and routers. The salesman was very nice and a great teacher. There were three lines at the register with about 9-10 people each and the wait wasn't bad when I left. Saw some friends from some of their classes and had a great time!