Hi-
For those who are interested, a summation of my feelings so far regarding the
dealers I have purchased form in England, so far.
As a requisite of Herald ownership, I am required to purchase the vast
majority of parts from overseas, as there are no real dealers here. Most of
the dealers here are TR or Spitfire oriented.
I have made the majority of my purchases at this point, and am planning only a
few more items to be bought, as I am now prepared to reassemble my Herald from
my stockpiled purchases. Of these purchases, I am happy to report the
following feelings about the various sellers:
Rimmer Bros.- Purchasing from Rimmer was the easiest of the three with whom
I've dealt. This is because of the very well designed website, with links for
each part, usually keyed on an original line drawing of the section, the link
brings up the part number, or redirects if superseded, the price(or NLA if not
available) and allows you to specify how many you would like to order, then
places it in your "shopping cart" I have used their shopping cart initially to
arrange my purchasing, and also to create my shopping list- which I then
printed, and drew from when placing orders. The parts I have received so far
have been of fine quality- I have no quarrel with them there. I found a couple
of their kits to be particularly useful- especially their trunnion rebuild
kits- included everything to replace all the bearings, seals, etc. And the
trunnion pivot kit included everything for both sides.
Rimmer's prices have been a little higher on some items than the other
dealers. Their customer service, whom I contacted by phone, were helpful, and
seemed to know a bit about my car. My only main problem dealing with Rimmers
is their refusal to explore alternative delivery methods- everything had to be
sent UPS Express. I was told I could arrange other parcel pick up if desired,
and they would package my purchases, but they would not ship any other way.
Due to this, they have lost the majority of my business, as I found the costs
exceedingly straining.
Rimmers gets two stars out of four.
Canley Classics/John Kipping has been very helpful in assisting my parts
needs. They were the second company I decided to do business with. They are
easy to access through the net, but you can't easily order there, and while
they have a nice website, their links are a bit simple, in that they take you
to a picture and a list of part numbers. From there you must access the "Price
List", and find the number you wish in order of appearance- sometimes this
took a little while, as the list is fairly long. Once you have found the part
desired and price, you may order via e-mail, however I always chose to call
directly and assure no problems. Their staff is knowledgeable, and also very
nice to deal with. I have generally spoken with Jodi, and she has never been
anything but wonderful.
The quality of the pieces I have received is also very good. (Actually, I have
found all three dealers to have levels of quality about the same) I was happy
to see prices a bit lower than Rimmers. Also, their posted prices are
including VAT(The European Sales tax) so I could expect a 17.5% discount(VAT
only applies to purchases for EU countries, apparently. Not an economist, but
US doesn't pay VAT)
Canley/Kipping has been very helpful, and attentive to my needs. They were
willing to ship my orders(when possible) through the Royal Mail. This saved me
a good deal, I believe. (RM charges by weight- UPS charges by volume. RM is
approx. 8GBP per Kilo) There has only been one item which will require UPS
shipping- my interior kit, which they matched to Rimmers, and came in with a
lower price.(although it did increase slightly between the time I inquired,
and when I ordered, but I imagine Rimmers increased as well.)
All in all, I have had a good experience with Canley/Kipping.
I give them three and a half stars out of four.
T.D. Fitchett is the third, and hardest to order from dealer. However, they
are also my favorite. I found their ad in Practical Classics, and have to
call when I order.(It took a little while before I understood "Good Morning,
Fitchetts".. when they answered) They have had almost every part I was
looking for when requested(no quarter light pivot bolts, sadly. But they do
have the spacers!) They are very knowledgeable, and when I would request
something, out came the parts books on each side of the Atlantic, and we
compared numbers, to be sure they were on the same sheet of music. They have
no web page, and all my receipts are hand written. But if I call, they take
the invoice number, and have my information quickly at hand.
Parts quality, again, is great. They had the quarter light seals,new, 38GBP
the pair! Front and rear overriders are inexpensive, and on the way. Badly
needed type 12 caliper rebuild kits(including pistons) ran 19.5GBP. I have
been very happy with their prices, and customer service.
Shipping is very easy through them- They will ship Royal Mail at request. I
ordered the rear valance a week or so ago, and they were afraid it would
require UPS at a cost of 80GBP. I asked them to let me know before shipping,
and I received a call the next morning that they had fit a box to the part
which made it small enough for shipping through the Post at only 40GBP! They
were very willing to help out in any way they could.
I am very happy to recommend Fitchetts to anyone, unreservedly. I give them
four out of four stars.
In summation, all the dealers I dealt with were good. Some had practices I
preferred, but I will deal with all of them again, without question. SO far,
my Herald is coming in under budget. The biggest surprise was the UPS shipping
costs. A nice surprise was the British Motor Heritage scheme, allowing me to
not worry too much about the quality of the items received.
I hope I have been helpful by passing along my feelings, and experiences. If
anyone wishes to contact these companies, contact me off list, and I'll send
along the information for each.
Scott
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