Forums > Sailing General

Classic Boat Supplies

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Created by Ramona > 9 months ago, 29 Jan 2021
Ramona
NSW, 7732 posts
29 Jan 2021 8:49AM
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Has anyone had successful dealings with this company? I have waited a month for delivery of a couple of items and nothing yet. Just get an answering machine when I phone.

Bundeenabuoy
NSW, 1239 posts
29 Jan 2021 9:01AM
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Ramona said..
Has anyone had successful dealings with this company? I have waited a month for delivery of a couple of items and nothing yet. Just get an answering machine when I phone.



It seems the new way.
Arnolds Boat Supplies have only an answering machine also.
Is this the new normal?
Hard to believe.

woko
NSW, 1759 posts
29 Jan 2021 9:13AM
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I got some tufnol blocks from them a while ago, made in Holland and shipped from Chicago. Was fast enough delivery pre COVID of course

jbarnes85
VIC, 296 posts
29 Jan 2021 11:47AM
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They are beside the boat warehouse and I thought they were the same company. I have bought lots of stuff from the boat warehouse. They even overnighted a pair of Zikk boots last minute for me so I could do the cabbage tree race. The classic boat supplies has always had its doors open and I've looked inside at stuff.

Bananabender
QLD, 1610 posts
29 Jan 2021 10:54AM
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. I ordered a 40mm brass sheave on 4th Jan. .It arrived on 6th by express post ,
Belrose to Brisbane,
Unfortunately
received 50mm so I rang him ,phone answered straight away , he apologised
and correct one received on 7th by express post .He also offered to pay for incorrect one to be returned . His service was so good I declined the offer and returned at my expense.He did say that he was absolutely swamped with orders over christmas.
as an aside don't hold your breath if purchasing from Europe ,especially Germany.
deutsche post took 9 weeks to deliver a pen in November.

boty
QLD, 685 posts
29 Jan 2021 10:54AM
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mixed results but they are very expensive i try to never use them

MEGAMAX
WA, 83 posts
29 Jan 2021 9:22PM
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Last week bought two tufnol blocks and two wooden blocks from Classic Boat Supplies. Easy on line, took about a week to WA. I buy specialised stuff from them for my old gaff rig boat. Copper nails and roves, their POSH rope by the 10s of meters. Always prompt. Small lots of silicon bronze screws, copper nails etc always bagged, sealed and labeled. Not a lot of stainless on my old boat.

The only other source of this stuff for me is Toplicht in Germany. Toplicht is good and has all the stuff I need but postage kills you on time and exchange rate doesn't help.

I sound like an apologist for them but I have never had a drama and the costs are OK for what I buy. If you want General chandlery then maybe others are the go.

tarquin1
954 posts
30 Jan 2021 4:27AM
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I am in France and have been using Toplicht for years. Fantastic German service. I still use them for certain things.
I hate to say it but the quality of the bronze fastners is not what it used to be.
I have questioned them on it and they say difficult to get in the quantity they need.
I know a shipwright that was snapping heads of screws putting them in.
Like so many things its getting harder to find good quality products.
Anglier stainless in the UK has top quality bronze fastners.
I bought some round and hex bronze bar to make keel bolts and nuts from them. I gave it to the best guy I know here. He said no worries. He gave it back. No can do.
A few of us kept saying we should buy a container of bronze fastners years ago!

Datawiz
VIC, 605 posts
30 Jan 2021 7:39AM
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Bundeenabuoy said..

Ramona said..
Has anyone had successful dealings with this company? I have waited a month for delivery of a couple of items and nothing yet. Just get an answering machine when I phone.




It seems the new way.
Arnolds Boat Supplies have only an answering machine also.
Is this the new normal?
Hard to believe.


Some businesses are run by a single person from their spare bedroom.
They keep little or no stock, consolidate customer orders to minimise freight costs and place these orders with a wholesaler every few weeks.
If a customer complains about delays, they blame the supplier, even though they may not have even placed the order yet.
I say stick with the legitimate, established suppliers.
regards to all
Allan

Ramona
NSW, 7732 posts
30 Jan 2021 8:41AM
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Datawiz said..

Some businesses are run by a single person from their spare bedroom.
They keep little or no stock, consolidate customer orders to minimise freight costs and place these orders with a wholesaler every few weeks.
If a customer complains about delays, they blame the supplier, even though they may not have even placed the order yet.
I say stick with the legitimate, established suppliers.
regards to all
Allan


They have a shopfront it seems. I just don't understand why they won't answer the phone or emails. I shall have to drop in for a visit next time I'm in North Sydney.

Kinora
VIC, 187 posts
30 Jan 2021 10:12AM
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@Ramona - I'm still in Pittwater and have been to The Boat Warehouse a couple of times, Classic Boat Supplies is next door as others have pointed out. Let me know if you would like me to drop in to Classic Boat Supplies and check for you, I'm out and about on the 'bike every few days.

Kinora

MEGAMAX
WA, 83 posts
30 Jan 2021 7:47AM
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@tarquin1 if I lived in France I would use Toplicht too. I have bought a fair bit of stuff from them, particularly their tar mastic goop for underwater caulking, tar for rigging and some wooden blocks...and a wonderful junior trawler lamp for the cabin. Their Little Brown Book catalogue is a dreamers paradise! I get it free each year. Some things are gone forever. Can't buy my dometc metho stove anymore for instance.

I try and use Classic Boat Supplies if I can, as it is good to support Australian if they have what I need. The things I want are not at the Whitworths or Boat supplies of this world. If I want that routine sort of stuff then the chandlers at Mandurah are in fact the cheapest I can find and about 200 m from my boat. So is the boat lift so I am spoiled in that way!

woko
NSW, 1759 posts
30 Jan 2021 12:38PM
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Mega is the posh rope as good as advertised? I need to replace my peak and throat halyards, was planing to use solid colour braid the posh sounds nice to handle. And as an aside when unraveled does the posh hold it's lay ? You know cork screw like, it's easier to make rope grommets if it does

MEGAMAX
WA, 83 posts
30 Jan 2021 11:03AM
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woko said..
Mega is the posh rope as good as advertised? I need to replace my peak and throat halyards, was planing to use solid colour braid the posh sounds nice to handle. And as an aside when unraveled does the posh hold it's lay ? You know cork screw like, it's easier to make rope grommets if it does


Hi Woko,

as luck would have it my mast is at home getting deks ole. It held up for three years in WA sun but now I need to start from scratch. The parts I could reach got a coat each year and are perfect.

So to POSH. I have included some photos of rope grommets and halyard splices that have up there for three years. I find with POSH you can do anything with it that you could do with manila. I like it but it does slip around my little winches. They are very old bronze and only about 2' in diameter so that may be the problem. For jib sheets I use some sort of rope I got from Germany and that is murder on the hands but holds on the winch. I use belaying pins for haliards so no issues with POSH there. POSH is easy on the hands and looks the part in my opinion. Stretch is no problem but my rig is petty low tech. The grommet is a bit rough but has held my signal halyard for three years so who am I to complain?

I hope this helps.











woko
NSW, 1759 posts
30 Jan 2021 2:45PM
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Thanks mega I will probably give the posh a go it certainly looks the part. I bare wooded my mast a couple of years back and put 7 coats of the #2 deks over the #1 soak, re did #2 at the 12 month mark and have cleaned them ready for a touch up. I don't find it a bad job from the bosuns chair. ps I found it beneficial to add a little Teribin driers to the #2, but it was old stock from the flood company

tarquin1
954 posts
30 Jan 2021 1:41PM
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Top tip when using D1 is to wrap the mast or whatever you are doing in rags then soak them in D1. Job done overnight rather than spending days putting coats on. It wastes a bit but you will be amazed how much soaks in.
Keep a small jar of D1 and a rag in a zip lock to do touch ups or go up the rig with.

Ramona
NSW, 7732 posts
30 Jan 2021 5:41PM
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Kinora said..
@Ramona - I'm still in Pittwater and have been to The Boat Warehouse a couple of times, Classic Boat Supplies is next door as others have pointed out. Let me know if you would like me to drop in to Classic Boat Supplies and check for you, I'm out and about on the 'bike every few days.

Kinora


Thanks for that. I will give them another couple of days to respond. Not sure when we will get to sail up to Pittwater. New owner has gone to Melbourne for the week, tired of waiting for a weather window. The next few days are not looking good either. El Nino has peaked apparently but we are still suffering unseasonable weather.

Kinora
VIC, 187 posts
30 Jan 2021 6:52PM
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Select to expand quote
Ramona said..

Kinora said..
@Ramona - I'm still in Pittwater and have been to The Boat Warehouse a couple of times, Classic Boat Supplies is next door as others have pointed out. Let me know if you would like me to drop in to Classic Boat Supplies and check for you, I'm out and about on the 'bike every few days.

Kinora



Thanks for that. I will give them another couple of days to respond. Not sure when we will get to sail up to Pittwater. New owner has gone to Melbourne for the week, tired of waiting for a weather window. The next few days are not looking good either. El Nino has peaked apparently but we are still suffering unseasonable weather.


OK, just sing out if you need them physically prodded with a sharp stick. I'm here until 1st week of March now ...

Sydney weather has been strange, just had 3 days of south-easterlies and rain which meant 3 hours today removing rain water from various parts of the boat. At the risk of thread stealing, how did you deal with water coming down the mast in Ramona? On Kinora, the sump forward of the mast doesn't seem to drain anywhere until the water level reaches the floor. Then it drains over the floor ...

Should that sump have a limber hole to drain water to the bilge?

Cheers,
Kinora

Ramona
NSW, 7732 posts
30 Jan 2021 7:00PM
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There is a limber hole there that's probably blocked. Should drain into the main sump between the fuel and water tanks.

woko
NSW, 1759 posts
31 Jan 2021 9:24AM
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tarquin1 said..
Top tip when using D1 is to wrap the mast or whatever you are doing in rags then soak them in D1. Job done overnight rather than spending days putting coats on. It wastes a bit but you will be amazed how much soaks in.
Keep a small jar of D1 and a rag in a zip lock to do touch ups or go up the rig with.


Top tip indeed ! Wrapping the job in soaked rags brilliant !

waikikin
NSW, 51 posts
31 Jan 2021 2:50PM
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I've always found them great, some lead time on some items but good communication & timely despatch if in stock. Some gear manufactured or shipped from Davey's so can take a while. Great on supply of cotton, oakum & fastenings.
Jeff.

Ramona
NSW, 7732 posts
3 Feb 2021 6:35PM
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Well I finally got someone to pick up the phone today. Waiting on a shipment from the UK. Well that's fine I don't mind waiting. 33 days with no communications though is not good enough these days. I've been buying heaps of stuff online, mostly off eBay and everything from now on will be off eBay.

woko
NSW, 1759 posts
3 Feb 2021 8:30PM
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Yes I think good ol customer service is all but extinct, and a major part of the problem is when buying online, you are obliged to pay upfront, so the sales been made, supply & delivery Phewy. Atleast with the old COD you didn't have to shell out the $ until it was at the post office. I'm very keen to keep business local but the local co/op won't cut rope anymore, to replace the riser on my mooring 5m of say 20mm I don't really need a full f&&!*%g roll, but on the bright side I don't have to buy a full box of swivels or a box of shackles, and the irony of that was completely ignored

tarquin1
954 posts
4 Feb 2021 2:10AM
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The UK are having some problems at the moment with some thing called Brexit. It seems to have effected their trading with Europe and everything is a nightmare.
Most of the companies I buy stuff from in the UK are actually saying we suggest not buying from us for the moment.
I would imagine this is having an effect on all exports.
But yes 33 days without hearing from them isn't great!
Hey we are terribly sorry having trouble getting stuff from the UK at the moment!



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"Classic Boat Supplies" started by Ramona