[john hall]

I do very little shopping locally. I only get 30 minutes for lunch and there is not enough time left at the end of the day to rush around town in rush-hour traffic. About the best deal I have found is my John Deere dealer. They have about 10-12 stores in their franchise. My local store and about 3 more run parts between them daily. They charge about $6 or so to move between stores, but you certainly can't drive there for that. Not to mention Deere is very reasonable and fast if the item has to be ordered from a hub.

Be careful with MSC, they will split ship in a heartbeat. I don't know what they charge the general public but at work I only pay the one shipping charge.

I imagine the reason McMaster split a shipment without telling you is its just standard practice in industry. $10 freight is nothing compared to machinery sitting still an extra day. Don't get me wrong, I'd not be happy either but its just one of those things you have to accept as to how it is. Individuals are such a small percentage of their business, well we just aren't going to be catered to in my opinion.

By the way, the worst I ever got burned on shipping was a part for my grain drill. Package weighed about 5 lbs and was only 2hrs away, cost me $25 in shipping charges. Had to look on the bright side, it was in stock and I got it the next day!