December 2015 by Dennis McNeely
Warning! Your local hardware store is a better alternative!According to their website, Fastenal is the largest fastener distributor in NorthAmerica. Unfortunately, they can't act the part.I arrived at the Taylor, MI store to pick up an order I'd placed a week or two earlier - only to be told that my metric flat washers didn't ship, but that they would get the next best thing by giving me the equivalent imperial flat stainless washers.In addition, they couldn't give me the correct material. They furnished 18-8 stainless 1/2" flat washers, rather than the 8 M14 A4 (316) stainless washers I'd ordered. They also provided A2 stainless lock washers rather than the A4 that I'd ordered.Staff at the Taylor store also said that they were selling me 10 of each, because the freight and unit cost would be higher if I bought only 8. They included 25 of the 1/2" 18-8 stainless washers in the order, rather than the 8 I'd ordered, presumably for the same reason.The total cost? $43.33 - for 8 bolts, lockwashers, and lockwashers. It would have been nearly 20% cheaper to order them online and have them delivered to my door!Are orders placed at Fastenal taken seriously, or are they considered suggestions? Is this the standard for customer care at Fastenal stores?Consider finding another supplier!
