I am a simple man

Don't know the last 2 either.

If you get out to some other towns, a Running's is pretty good too. C & S in Mankato is kinda fun.

--->Paul

Another is L & M Fleet Supply in north central MN. I don't know where all their stores are, but I know there's one in Little Falls, and I know I saw one in one of the towns I drove through on Highway 55 recently, but I can't remember if it was in Paynesville, Belgrade, or Brooten. Getting old...

Let's hear it from the West coast shoppers?

Let's hear from the land of Yaaahs, wade in!

Bought a set of truck tires from Blains. Best price for miles.

Have my chain saw chain sharpen at Big R five dollars while you wait and the saw was given to me. Now I have ten dollars in a free saw. Go figure. I was once told to never look a gift horse under the tail!

Fleet Farm is the king. They have what I need when I need it, unless it's a dealer part. For wear parts, they're the place to go. Was only in the farm & fleet once, had the 1 thing I needed, so I was happy & on my way.

TSC, on the other hand, is severely disapointing, and never has what we need. Trouble is, they're closest. Just last weekend I needed 4 things- right hand sickle end sections, 11 gallons of 80W-90, 7014 welding rod, and a 2-flat wire harness for some wireing I was gonna do on the chopper.

They didn't have any 80-90 on the floor(no spot for it even), no end sections for LH or RH end of sickel bar(again, no spot for them either), and no 2-flat harness either(you guessed it). I was so pisssed I walked out before looking for the welding rod. Luckily, i was just going to browse because I was on my way home from Fleet farm and was gonna get just 1 more thing I really didn't need, but woulda been nice. Another 7/8" draw pin. These actually had a hook in back where they have their 1 row of ag stuff, but they were all gone and priced $4 more than Fleet Farm, who was also sold out at that time, in both styles of that size that they carry.

I'm a simple man too, don't like confrontation, but when a store like that can't have 1 useful thing to me on the shelf, they quickly get me frustrated and ready to rip them a new one.

Donovan from Wisconsin

I don't follow your reasoning on not naming the name of a store that disappoints you. What part of not helping you earned them your loyalty?

We consumers seem so abused and neglected and powerless nowadays, it seems like passing on the names of retailers who won't bother to provide decent service is one of the only things we can do---and it's a drop in the ocean, at that.

All the best, Stan

Our dealers do a fine job of catering to the small guys as well as the bigger guys. Never realy had a problem with them, except the local dealer who basically USED to be a Case IH dealer/Fox/Gehl. They still sell Case and IH stuff, but now they're ino tall the compacts and their lot is full of the same old decrepid rusted out machines for the last 10 years. Some of it they cleaned up and scrapped out finally, but more should go along for the ride. We don't have any IH or Case stuff, the Massey dealer bought another dealership farther south that handles Gehl (although now it's just parts and used gehl ag equip.- they quit manufacture of their ag line last year) so they can get anything we need (only have a Gehl 970 forage wagon though) and for the Fox 3000, we just go straight through Hiniker. We avoid that dealer at all costs.

Donovan from Wisconsin