Who are your favorite LR vendors?

[BackInA88]

The internet is a wonderful thing.
I don't know if this is the best place to discuss other vendors but I'll bite.

I have bought parts from just about every LR supplier out there. Shopping around using the internet to find the best part for the best price is half the fun.
That said I think I have bought about 50% of my stuff from RN. I really like their improved on-line catalog and I understand the order tracking is being fixed!!

Only had problems with 2 places....
BP, sent me the wrong mix of frame and spring bushings even though I questioned what they said I needed a couple times. I was right, they took the stuff back and paid for the return shipping costs but I still lost a week or more waiting for the right parts. I have also found their on-line price list does not include all the products in their catalog?

Wise Owl, called and tried to order some parts, they needed to get prices together and were going to call me back. They never did so I bought elsewhere.

I have found huge differences in prices for the same part as well as someplaces charging big time for shipping.
It's all about shopping around for me.

Steve

[alaskajosh]

TeriAnn: This is an Allmakes "Kit- Swivel Pin" and even includes such things as the felt washer that goes on the end of the axle stub.

I'm not nearly as worried about the buggered gaskets as I am the bad service that will result in delays and additional shipping expense.

Steve:

The internet is a wonderful thing.
I don't know if this is the best place to discuss other vendors but I'll bite.

I must respectfully disagree. I don't think the internet is the best place for rumors or ad hominem attacks, but I do think it is very appropiately used for discussing, matter-of-factly, which services are getting it right and which have opportunities for improvement.

The internet has raised the tide for nearly all businesses. This is the one way it can help consumers. Pre-internet, bad practices could simply crawl back under their rock and wait for the next unsuspecting victim. Now word gets out World Wide. It rewards the good and corrects the bad... just as it should be.

If RN has nothing to hide (and it would seem they are a class act and don't have anything to hide) then they should be thrilled to have their bandwidth used in this way.

[BackInA88]

I meant Rovers North's forum is not the best place to talk about other vendors, no the internet in general.
After all they do provide this forum to us free of charge.

[Jim-ME]

TeriAnn,
I respectfully have to disagree with you about paper catalogs. First of all trees are a renewable resource that with proper management will still be here after many,many more generations are dead and gone. Trees will in the very near future provide not only paper, lumber and composite wood products for society but more electricity, ethanol, and quite possibly a substitute for home heating fuel while at the same time continue to provide a wide variety of non-consumptive uses such as wildlife habitat for a great variety of species, cleaner air and water and equally important a place to enjoy and relax. We actually use more energy to recycle paper than to use virgin fiber principally due to the energy requirements to remove ink from previously used paper products. I have been involved with natural resource management in Maine for the last 30 years and we currently have more trees in the state than we did 100 years ago. Do we always do everything right? NO, but we improve every day. Other than the fact that I wear out catalogs by reading them so much and then recycle them I really need them to be sure I'm ordering the correct parts or items. If I get unrequested catalogs I simply call the company and ask to be removed from the mailing list. For me, pictures are great! I understand your views on prices and overhead and appreciate them but to me that is where the ability to purchase real time off the net at a price of the day helps us all.

[alaskajosh]

You're my hero Jim
I was going to point out how pulp wood is hardly a "dwindling resource" but I'm glad I didn't... you did such a better job than I could have.

[badvibes]

Favorite? I don't know if that's the word I'd use. I need a part I want good quality, good price, convenience. The last part I ordered, clutch slave cylinder, I needed to get my truck running again. It isn't a "wish list" thing like better seats or a cool widget. I tried RN first, they don't take my credit card, I truly was surprised. Ordered the Lucas part from BP, it was instock and even with overnight shipping was less expensive. Don't take this as anything more than what it is. A one time, specific purchase of one item. When I need something I can't find/buy locally or have made for a reasonable cost I will get online and shop and compare. Wherever I find the item that is reasonably priced, instock and easy to purchase I'll buy it. Everyone gets a chance for my business and more than once. The information below is right off the companies websites.

Jeff

CLUTCH SLAVE CYLINDER - SERIES IIASKU:RNB599Price:$125.48



Compared with:

Slave cylinder (Ser. II & IIA) 266694, 266694P

Search by Part Number
Search Please use the part number exactly as shown in the BP catalogsPart #:266694 Product:SLAVE CYLINDER IIA Price:$64.50

[TeriAnn]

TeriAnn,
I respectfully have to disagree with you about paper catalogs. First of all trees are a renewable resource that with proper management will still be here after many,many more generations are dead and gone.

With me it is a lifestyle and philosophy choice going back to my days on a small back to nature commune in the late 1960's. I've tried to tread lightly through all my adult life. Pulp trees are a common easily renwable resource. I agree. I personally choose to limit my use of disposable products. Now that web stores are more mature, I choose to not request paper cataloges when a good web based alternative is available.

It is my own personal lifestyle choice and no reflection on the number of pulp trees out there.

[greenmeanie]

For me it all comes down to :
1st. Price
2nd. Timeliness
3rd. Convenience
4th. Attitude.

Like everyone else I don't like paying more than I have to and getting my parts on time is a big factor. Having said that I do realise that if I am relying on on-line parts suppliers there is a lead time so I try and by parts based on predictive maintenance so its on my shelf when needed. I also tend to buy stock items such as bearings and oil seals from the suppliers in town as I have access to engineering catalogues for cross reference.

I also run a 101 so find myself buying parts in the UK a lot. If I predict well I can usually get my IIA parts put in the same package and find they cost a lot less. Using the above example a slave cylinder costs about $20 plus a portion of the shipping. In that I have to order parts from the UK I do tend to find the US suppliers to be very expensive for the bigger parts but good for the smaller stuff. I saved about $400 for new glazed door tops buying from the UK. The UK suppliers also tend to carry a better stock of the ex MOD parts.

I will not use a company that has an on-line catalogue but then requires you to phone in an order. The BP and especially the RN sites are a big plus for there companies.

Some of the UK suppliers have good sites although it really pays to know the exact part number you require as they are ot always just so service orientated as our hosts. I am a Brit so I get on with the people I talk to over there and, if they get it wrong, I have a brother that lives close enough that I can sic him on them to sort it out. This can help a lot! As I live in a large south west city that is an air freight hub it takes about 5-7 days to get here which is about the same as from our hosts. Even BP takes about 3 days to get here and they are only 4 or 5 hundred miles away.

I have had one bad experience with a UK supplier where they screwed me on the shipping and delivered way too late thus causing me a lot of problems. They had a very bad attitude when challenged about this and obviously thought they could get away with blowing off someone on another continent. As a result I will never use Paddocks again.

I tend to believe every company will make some errors which can be inconvenient. It is how they deal with the issue that is the mark of a good supplier.

Other than that I think the US suppliers have been covered well.

Cheers
Gregor

[jp-]

Wow, lots of folks weighing in here.

I tend to agree with Green here, although my list would be:

1. Price
2. Quality of Product
3. Convenience
4. Attitude
5. How knowledgeable is the help

First, nothing bothers me more that knowing exactly what part I need, but you a.) don’t think I know what I’m talking about or b.) want to sell me something else. Please, I only want what I want. Don’t ask me 3 times if I need the accompanying oil seal (or whatnot). No! I bought a spare last time dummy!

1. Price rules eternal. In a cash economy, the low price leader always wins (often times at the expense of quality).

2. Quality must be compared along with price. If it’s going to last, expect to pay more. Only fools buy on price alone.

3. I have no local suppliers other than TLR which is all the way across TN. So this category is reserved for non Rover situations (i.e. closest home improvement store).

4. If you woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning, please don’t come in to work today because you can be damn sure that I woke up on the wrong side.

5. If I walk into your store and ask you where the ½” Lag bolts are, tell me (no stupid looks please). If you don’t know, volunteer to find out (see #4).


Now on to Rover suppliers.

At the risk of being banned, my story is as follows:

RN: 1st in the game. These guys were helping people like me when I knew nothing. The help was free and the parts were good (and the prices high). This was a good business model and has served RN well. My father, my Uncle, and myself were all loyal to RN for the better part of 13 years. Then other companies started sprouting up that were offering the same quality parts at substantially lower rates. Now all the people that had been educated by the RN staff knew what parts they needed and didn’t require the in-depth help that they once had. The splinter companies didn’t have to maintain a staff of highly trained, highly educated employees and could accordingly reduce their costs.

I like RN; I always have. However, price still rules. Companies that adapt and become leaner survive, those that don’t…don’t.
The following companies I have dealt with and they have provided excellent service:

TLR Rovers
Rovers Down South
Rocky Mountain
Paul’s Safari Components
Singing Camel
Britannica Restorations


Marginal Service, excellent price:

Paddocks

[greenmeanie]

Well said JP - I forgot the quality thing.

I also forgot to add the worst place ever to buy parts from is the local LR dealership. Overpriced and if you want anything other than the green oval keychain tat or an oil filter your in for some fun. Without a VIN number the parts counter bloke was lost. Finally, I was impressed that he was able to quote the price with a straight face. I suppose LR have gone the way of the rest of the plastic SUV dealers.

THere are a few small specialised suppliers that cater to the British car crowd that have got me out of a hole when the LR parts places have not come through. For wiring loom parts British Wiring Products are good although the company has just changed hands. Their site has a useful chart giving max current rating for each wire size and type which is useful if you are making your own harness.I ended up using them as they stock some of the more unusal wiring colours and connectors that are used on a 101. Fedhill USA are also useful for hydraulic fittings and brake line stuff that I could not get from our host's web site.

Once you get over the LR part numbers and start looking at stuff a lot of it is quite generic. I have also had some success with my local NAPA store with such things as a clutch master cyl overhaul kit and a fuel pump. I should add that in these two cases the LR overhaul kit has the wrong size of seals for a 101 and the LR fuel pump is NA or very expensive compared to $16 locally. In both cases it just required understanding the critical dimensions and requirements and having a friendly store clerk who is willing to let you spend some time with their x-ref catalogues. Time vs money I suppose.

As these trucks get older and more LR parts become NLA it opens a market for people like our hosts to step in with high quality (note the emphasis) replacements at a reasonable cost. This is one area that RN seems to be ahead of the game.

Cheers
Gregor