The reason Harbor Freight can sell tools for so cheap. :-)

[-MIKE-]

Fed-ex dropped off something I'd long since forgotten about.

Months ago, I bought a parts bin floor rack from HF when it was on sale for cheaper than I could buy the bins, alone.

I just wanted the metal rails the bins hang on, so I could screw them to the wall.

The box didn't have any nuts-n-bolts in it, so I called HF's toll free number and they said they'd send them to me.

So that's what Fed-ex dropped off, today. Inside were the hardware and an invoice.

Let's just say, I'm glad I didn't have to pay for these. :-)

Take a look...

[Puckdropper]

-MIKE- wrote in news:hd21qf$df4$ [e-mail]- september.org:

*snip*

Puckdropper

[DT]

But there is no dollar sign on the invoice. Maybe it's Chinese currency, Yuans. That comes to only 16 bucks.

[-MIKE-]

I'm guessing the higher the price for the stuff they give away, the higher the tax write-off. :-)

[-MIKE-]

Funny +2 points. :-)

[Nonny]

I wonder if these are packaged items of, say 6 or 10 bolts, nuts or washers. Perhaps the quantity is for the package of several and not per single bolt.

[-MIKE-]

They put everything in one bag, so it must be per item.

[Nova]

Most likely they didn't have an extra hardware package and couldn't pull one out of a different unit as that one couldn't be sold. I suspect they purchased the missing hardware seperately and priced out the pieces to cover the parts plus labor costs.

If Harbor Freight is managed like the company I work for the actual invoice would read something like:

Missing parts replacement costs - $1.00

Labor costs for time filling out the upper management required paperwork to justify the $1.00 expense above - $108.70

Total - $109.70

[charlie b]

Kaiser Electronics did parts for military fighter avionics. A friend working there received an order for 100 special screws (everything is "special sizes and specs" when the military is involved). He looked up the unit price and for 100 to 200 it was something like a buck each - plus $10 S&H.

So 100 x $1 + $10 = $110.

His boss saw that and corrected him

100 x ($1 + $10) = $1,100 !

And folks complain about "welfare cheating".

[Mark & Juanita]

If that story is true, and if the $10 handling was not for piece part inspection, then that business was likely going to get severely hammered. All military contracts are subject to auditing and strict oversight by DCAA (Defense Contract Auditing Agency). Those folks catch crap like this and don't take kindly to such abuse. It might be that if the order was small enough, they may have flown in under the radar, but that's a big chance to take.