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Old 11th Jun 2020, 10:56 am   #21
poppydog
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Default Re: RS Website

How long has the non- business customer had to pay £4.95 for orders under £30.00 been going on for?? There is a banner in red at top of homepage.

I have just gone on the RS site and not seen this notification before, traders still post free.

https://uk.rs-online.com/web/?cm_mmc...E&gclsrc=aw.ds

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Old 11th Jun 2020, 11:17 am   #22
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Default Re: RS Website

I saw that, but it's a bit confusing. The "handling charge" where business customers are concerned only seems to apply to telephone, FAX and email orders under £30. Not sure about private individuals.
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Old 11th Jun 2020, 11:36 am   #23
poppydog
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I think that charge for when you phone your orders through has been going for a while, I rang an order through ages ago (or rather my misses did) and was charged for the privilege of doing so, I wasn't best pleased so i do everything online/via website now.

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Old 11th Jun 2020, 7:23 pm   #24
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Default Re: RS Website

It looks like the free postage and arriving-before-you've-realised-you-need-it is no more. I've just looked at my basket for a few capacitors and there's a £4.95 charge. Hardly unreasonable, but without even Maplins now it's going to be pretty expensive to order the one or two parts I need for each project. It was always pleasing that missing something on RS didn't mean another fiver for a couple of quid's worth of components!

Thanks for the good times...
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Old 11th Jun 2020, 7:27 pm   #25
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Default Re: RS Website

Plenty of good quality caps etc on Ebay.No min orders.
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Old 11th Jun 2020, 8:43 pm   #26
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Default Re: RS Website

I've not had a problem with this, but there-again I have a "Trading as" business name associated with my RS account.

Truth is, anyone can declare themselves a business and so 'trade as'. You don't need to be VAT-registered or nhave a formal Companies House registration.
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Old 11th Jun 2020, 8:53 pm   #27
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Default Re: RS Website

Quote:
Originally Posted by Diabolical Artificer View Post
"Many years ago I opened trade accounts with both RS and Farnell" Do you have to buy X amount of bits per year Craig? I've bought the odd few bits from RS but find the site hard to use, the search option is just plain weird. Also they often don't have the bits your after.

Andy.
No - no minimum annual order quantity at all. I often go months before ordering so much as a resistor.

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Old 11th Jun 2020, 10:23 pm   #28
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Interesting. Perhaps I'll try that! I did get scared off by the Farnell 'Cost Centre' box. I am always somewhat wary of eBay because of the prevalence of fake components and the difficulty of verifying component sellers. I usually use Partridge or Cricklewood, as many suppliers are set up for low power semiconductors so have very small low-power resistors and associated components. I prefer larger parts for valve equipment, and for (engineers beware) aesthetics!
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Old 12th Jun 2020, 8:57 am   #29
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I can't understand why some people only order capacitors in 1's or 2's for a 'project'. Order the standard types of parts in 10's or more and you'll have them immediately to hand when you start the project. It usually avoids most P&P charges and the price may often be cheaper per unit.
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Old 12th Jun 2020, 9:13 am   #30
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Indeed. I build up stocks of parts in that way. Or even buy in hundred off (certainly for vanilla resistors). And having been bitten hard by regularly used transistors going obsolete, I tend to buy hundred off quantities. Wish I'd done that for BC560/550, 2SA992, 2SB737 and umpteen others. On-Semi is the big offender in this regard after they acquired Fairchild. If it does not go in a high volume consumer product like mobile phones, cars and flat screen TV's they lose interest fast.
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Old 12th Jun 2020, 10:19 am   #31
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Well it's pretty new. I ordered a couple of things on 7th and got free postage. If I put the same items in my basket now, the £4.95 gets added.
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Old 12th Jun 2020, 12:05 pm   #32
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Originally Posted by vidjoman View Post
I can't understand why some people only order capacitors in 1's or 2's for a 'project'. Order the standard types of parts in 10's or more and you'll have them immediately to hand when you start the project. It usually avoids most P&P charges and the price may often be cheaper per unit.
Space and affordability. Example: I need two capacitors for a repair that are a value and/or rating I don't have. Each one costs £2. Buying in tens quickly turns a four pound job with a few penn'orth of resistors into £20+, which I can't afford regularly. Three Raaco units of 5 x 6 drawers is about all I have room for, so an E12 resistor collection along with smaller film capacitors maxes it out. These can be topped up in tens without breaking the bank, but I have to be quite miserly with the film caps unless I can score a generous member's clearout box.

The benefit of RS's mad postage policy was that it became possible for those of us in the sticks and pecuniously challenged to be in the mood for a repair or project, find a couple of missing or broken pieces and have it fixed the next day without a load of parts hanging about, or postage costs adding up from different suppliers.
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Old 13th Jun 2020, 12:16 am   #33
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Default Re: RS Website

I suspect the RS min value for casual customers is becuase they're maybe short staffed in the warehouse due to distancing requirements. Maybe it'll all go back eventually
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Old 13th Jun 2020, 7:25 am   #34
Craig Sawyers
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Historically RS always had a £20 minimum order to avoid shipping charges, if you do not have an account. If they abandoned that, I suspect that it was a temporary offer.
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Old 13th Jun 2020, 9:44 am   #35
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Both RS and Farnell have at various times varied / stopped / started minimum order charges from the time I first had accounts, 45 years ago.
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Old 15th Jun 2020, 8:03 pm   #36
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Default Re: RS Website

There was a time when you could only order from RadioSpares if you had a trade credit account.....
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Old 16th Jun 2020, 12:13 am   #37
Craig Sawyers
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Yes that is true. Not sure when that was discontinued, but the earliest RS catalogues were trade account only.

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Old 16th Jun 2020, 8:33 am   #38
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Craig Sawyers View Post
Yes that is true. Not sure when that was discontinued, but the earliest RS catalogues were trade account only.

Craig
Delivered by the sales rep once a month during his visit to workshops with his little grey box containing new parts that were wired onto a small piece of pegboard.
The early catalogue was Roneo or Gestetner printed and hand stapled.
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Old 16th Jun 2020, 8:41 am   #39
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Default Re: RS Website

At one time RS set up a subsidiary to cater for the hobbyist, but its name escapes me.
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Old 16th Jun 2020, 9:02 am   #40
barrymagrec
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I do remember that but the name escapes me too. They also tried sending me a cut down "popular" version of their multi part paper catalogue that missed out most of the parts I wanted. I told their sales person to send me the full catalogue or I would use Farnell as my preferred source. That worked.
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