# McMaster Carr shipping cost



## Fortis64

Hi guys, I have an old Fortis (clausing 100 clone) 12x24 lathe that I'm needing a new cross slide feedscrew and nut 1/2" 10 acme single start 12" long . Because it's an imperial machine from the 40's I'm have trouble sourcing one here in the UK . I've found what I'm needing at McMaster ,good price too . The shipping cost seems to be a bit vague . I've had silly prices in the past ,like $175 off another site . Can anyone give me a kind of ballpark price for McMaster to ship to Scotland in the UK . I've emailed McMaster about this to no reply . 

Appreciate any help
Sean


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## Cooter Brown

Yeah McMaster Carr tells you how much shipping costs after they ship your order and charge your card.


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## Z2V

Yeah, it’s annoying not knowing what you are looking at, but I have not been disappointed with the shipping charges on purchases I have made in the past. Actually the shipping is quit reasonably priced in my opinion.


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## darkzero

Mcmaster's shipping prices have always been fair & is pretty much the only place that I don't worry about not being able to see the shipping costs during checkout.

However, unless I'm mistaken & things have changed, Mcmaster does not ship international (except for Canada).


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## 2volts

There are overseas forwarders such as shipito.com where you sign up and get a “virtual” address like Bill Blogs, Unit 45673, 456 Smith Street, Sometown, California, USA that the vendor ships the good to, then the forwarder sends it on to you.

There are numerous other forwarders, shipito is the one I used to ship goods to Australia a few years back.

pete


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## chip maker

I have never bought anything from them but wouldn't not showing a shipping cost be illegal? At that rate you are at their mercy and they could charge what ever they feel like at the time. I have never seen any sites I buy from not show shipping charges. Some times you have to get all the way to check out but it is listed so you can still bail out of the  purchase if you wish. If that were the case many would be doing it just for charging what ever they want. Its bad enough that some times shipping is more than the cost of the item and this has happened to me because of wanting the item.


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## jwmelvin

I’ll bet that McMaster will tell you the cost if you call. They are super helpful on the phone.


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## Boswell

While I use McMaster without knowing shipping cost ahead of time, I am in the US. NO WAY I would trust them to have a reasonable international shipping cost without knowing it ahead of time. (or anyone else).


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## Cobra

They are a great supplier but their shipping is not cheap even just across the border to Canada.


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## Dave Paine

Cobra said:


> They are a great supplier but their shipping is not cheap even just across the border to Canada.



If they use USPS, the international postage rates are steep and the same for most countries.   I have sent packages to UK and Australia.   The rates were the same.   Likely Canada same as other countries.


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## Cobra

Dave Paine said:


> If they use USPS, the international postage rates are steep and the same for most countries.   I have sent packages to UK and Australia.   The rates were the same.   Likely Canada same as other countries.



Dave, they don't use postal service.  One of the great things about them is the speed of service.  Order by 9 or 10 and it's there the next morning.  In Canada the seem exclusive to Purolator air service.  The unfortunate thing is now that I am retired, I wouldn't mind a little slower service through the post for a reduction in the cost.


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## benmychree

chip maker said:


> I have never bought anything from them but wouldn't not showing a shipping cost be illegal? At that rate you are at their mercy and they could charge what ever they feel like at the time. I have never seen any sites I buy from not show shipping charges. Some times you have to get all the way to check out but it is listed so you can still bail out of the  purchase if you wish. If that were the case many would be doing it just for charging what ever they want. Its bad enough that some times shipping is more than the cost of the item and this has happened to me because of wanting the item.


If McMaster were as avaricious as you suggest, they would not be in business for long; I have used them for the better part of 40 years, and have always been impressed with their service and fast deliveries; you may pay for that service and fast availability of the products that they sell, but THEY HAVE IT and ship it out immediately.


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## Eddyde

chip maker said:


> I have never bought anything from them but wouldn't not showing a shipping cost be illegal? At that rate you are at their mercy and they could charge what ever they feel like at the time. I have never seen any sites I buy from not show shipping charges. Some times you have to get all the way to check out but it is listed so you can still bail out of the  purchase if you wish. If that were the case many would be doing it just for charging what ever they want. Its bad enough that some times shipping is more than the cost of the item and this has happened to me because of wanting the item.


McMaster is an industrial supplier, thus the purchasing interface is not like a typical consumer oriented vendor. I have been buying from them for over 30 years and they never gouged me on shipping, the rates have always been very reasonable, if not cheap. If I order before 7 pm I will usually get it the next day by regular UPS! No other industrial supplier I know of does that.


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## petertha

One of the reasons you may have not received a McMaster reply is they might not sell to you at all! They stopped selling to common mortals in Canada about a decade ago unless you had a corporate or educational account. Their justification was too much customs paperwork. That may well extend to other international countries, I've heard that from various buddies. The only way around it is to use an intermediary person/company that orders in-country & re-ships to you. Which is a PITA & costs more. They don't really 'make anything' you cant get elsewhere. It was just great 1-stop shopping.


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## Cooter Brown

I love shipping from McMaster Carr it's usually $5-15 depending on weight or size but its always blindingly fast.
If I order something on Monday before 4 pm it will get be delivered the next day by noon almost every time.
Does anyone else have issues trying to get a catalog from them? It took me nearly 2 years of complaining before I finally got them to send me one.


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## darkzero

Cooter Brown said:


> Does anyone else have issues trying to get a catalog from them? It took me nearly 2 years of complaining before I finally got them to send me one.



McMaster catalogs are hard to get unless you are a "big" client. I never tried requesting one but I have heard many stories. I managed to get a copy from my old work. I don't find the catalog to be useful personally, just something to have. Their website is great & is easy to find whatever I'm looking for.


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## Eddyde

They used to send me the catalogs every few years, till about 10 years ago, then none...  the website and app are the replacements.


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## jwmelvin

Eddyde said:


> They used to send me the catalogs every few years, till about 10 years ago, then none... the website and app are the replacements.



Oh but their website and app are amazing. If only other shopping sites were so organized.


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## petertha

I agree. Its one of the best on-line catalog / websites out there IMO. The search & progressive filters allow you to zoom in on exactly what is available. Also you can download CAD models. Of all the things typically copied by offshore companies, I wish they would attempt to clone that! LOL.


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## Tim9

McMaster is by far the best supply house I have ever seen or dealth with. They have an incredibly comprehensive selection of top quality hardware. And like others have said...their shipping costs have always been more than fair IMO. 
  That said...I live in the USA. For your situation....I'd call their 1-800 number and discuss shipping options. They have great customer service.


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## Boswell

+1 on McMaster having one of the best online catalogs.


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## petertha

Well the OP lives in Great Britain which was the initial inquiry. So all this positive 'inside USA" karma may not apply. I'll wager him 1 USD that he is S.O.L. But on the slim chance McMaster has reverted to general shipping to non commercial/institution accounts (ie. common hobbyist mortals), it will be the happiest dollar bet I ever lost because then I'll be ordering from them. You guys are fortunate to have a resource like this.


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## Fortis64

SOL ? 

Sean


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## petertha

Rhymes with Bit Out (of) Luck but starts with 'SH'


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## solo

What about Fastenal ? I know they have acme screws and nuts, not sure about the International shipping though.


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## francist

Fastenal adopted a similar strategy, at least in my city. They're a great resource and I used to buy from them quite happily until one day a sign on the door saying basically ...we're an industrial supplier, if you're not commercial don't bother coming in... . 

Hmm, okay, so I opened an on-line account. Two boxes of set screws was going to cost me over a hundred dollars with shipping. Ok, I get the idea. See ya.

-frank


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## Groundhog

Fastenal has a store here but usually doesn't ever have what I need. They order it, get it in at their store in 4 or 5 days, charge full retail (if not more) and charge you freight to boot. And usually only sell in large quantitys. I can't see any advantage of driving the mile or so to their store.

I used to get a new McMaster catalogue (unsolicited) every year at the ski area but never used it. The on-line site is so good there wasn't much need for a paper copy.


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## Cooter Brown

They do have a very nicely organized website but if you spend to much time searching through it they will temporary ban you from viewing it. I messaged them saying they are causing me to lose a big contract and that I was taking my business to Granger. The next day a catalog showed up in the mail and I received response saying I will never be temporary banned again. If you want a McMasterCarr catalog you have to use the Granger threat.


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## solo

I ran across this place awhile ago. www.roton.com Probably have to find about shipping. But they have a good selection of screws


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## Groundhog

I didn't know about the temp ban from McMaster. I can understand it though. I could spend hours and hours just looking around. That would probably be hard on their bandwidth if too many hardware junkies were on at the same time!


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## FanMan

Back in the day I discovered the way to get a McMaster paper catalog is to tell them you have 20+ employees.  But nowadays who needs one, when their website is arguably the best in the world?  They're not the cheapest but the service is worth it.  Regarding shipping, it's extremely rare I don't get what I ordered the next day (NJ warehouse to Connecticut).  On one occasion, I placed an online order in the morning and had it later _the same day_.


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## Boswell

Bandwidth to serve up pages in their catalog can't really be much of an issue. First, I find it very anti-consumer of them to ban someone because they are browsing the primary sales platform. That would be like disconnecting the phone to a sales person, short sighted. I wonder if they thought you were with a competitor and were trying to copy their work?  We may never know.


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## Cooter Brown

Boswell said:


> I wonder if they thought you were with a competitor and were trying to copy their work?  We may never know.



This is pretty much what they told me.....


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## Cadillac

+1 for McMaster. I get catalogs through my work and I can't tell you how resourceful they are. One of the best bathroom books printed. Their shipping is some of the best in my opinion. I've ordered stuff first thing 6:00 am and received before my day's end at work 2:30 from a speedy van. I also have the convienence of a 1/2 ride to their store. I see people selling the old catalogs for 20-30 bucks. I'll give one up for postage if wanted.


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## Cadillac

I've never been "banned" from site. Now I've only been on at one time maybe a hr. Going back and fourth getting numbers. Either way they are leaps and bounds from grainger. That website is slower than a turtle!


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## 7milesup

McMaster has the best website hands down.  Their search engine is absolutely amazing and the options for narrowing down what you need is pure awesomeness.  
I found out an interesting twist regarding their shipping.  I ordered something for myself and it took 3 days, came by UPS and as usual, the UPS screw job shipping prices.  The next order I had it shipped to my buddy's place which is and "engineering firm".  They shipped it via Spee Dee delivery (Midwest thing) and got it the next day for $6 in shipping charges.  Super awesome.


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## pstemari

I've always found McMaster's shipping to Washington state to be quick and fairly priced. For some reason I seem to recall that the checkout page did offer shopping estimates, but I could be wrong about that.

As far as temporary banning for bandwidth abuse, usually sites only do that when they are experiencing an actual problem.

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk


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## MSBriggs

The original question was about shipping to the UK by McMaster Carr.  One answer mentioned customs.   A bigger issue for M.C. is probably export control.  If they ship something they shouldn't to the wrong person/company/country, they could be subject to unpleasant visits by the Feds and possibly very large fines or worse.   Yeah, we don't want to help bad guys make nukes, etc. but determining what can be sent overseas is way too complicated.   I've taken classes on the subject and its very confusing.  Much easier for M.C. to not sell outside the US except to major corporations than to risk a mistake.


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## DHarris

Fortis64,  Have you found a solution for this issue yet?  If not, and, if McMaster will sell to you / me - you could always buy the part and have it shipped to my address and then I can forward it on to you - - we would first need to determine what shipping costs from Northern California to you would be and then we could get you your part!  Hate to see a machine languish for lack of a part.


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## Tim9

By the way... I'll add that McMaster Carr is a private company. No Wall Street stock issued here, so the damned Bean Counters are not welcomed. I can assure you that the day they go public ( God Forbid) .... We'd then be paying 35.00 shipping for a small order fitting in an envelope weighing 2 ounces. 
   Theres something to be said for a "Privately held",  WELL RUN company. Wall Street's capitalism run amuck with corporate raiders just isn't a good thing for America IMO.


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## RandyWilson

Fortis64 said:


> SOL ?
> 
> Sean





 Sons of Lucas.


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## Cadillac

Tim9 said:


> By the way... I'll add that McMaster Carr is a private company. No Wall Street stock issued here, so the damned Bean Counters are not welcomed. I can assure you that the day they go public ( God Forbid) .... We'd then be paying 35.00 shipping for a small order fitting in an envelope weighing 2 ounces.
> Theres something to be said for a "Privately held",  WELL RUN company. Wall Street's capitalism run amuck with corporate raiders just isn't a good thing for America IMO.


To my knowledge it's a family owned company. Goes public it would probably turn into a grainger


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## jdedmon91

Groundhog said:


> Fastenal has a store here but usually doesn't ever have what I need. They order it, get it in at their store in 4 or 5 days, charge full retail (if not more) and charge you freight to boot. And usually only sell in large quantitys. I can't see any advantage of driving the mile or so to their store.
> 
> I used to get a new McMaster catalogue (unsolicited) every year at the ski area but never used it. The on-line site is so good there wasn't much need for a paper copy.



I’ve used the local Fastneal but the customer service sucks. I was looking for fittings to fix a lube line on my mill. The counter guy said he wasn’t sure of the fitting size (metric) he would have the manager call me. That was 2 months ago still no call. I did find the fittings at a hyd shop in Charlotte. 

We have a local fastener house that I use now. Much more customer oriented 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Eddyde

Cooter Brown said:


> if you spend to much time searching through it they will temporary ban you from viewing it.


Maybe they do that if you don't have an account with them or aren't logged on? I've spent hours roaming their site without impediment.


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## Cooter Brown

Eddyde said:


> Maybe they do that if you don't have an account with them or aren't logged on? I've spent hours roaming their site without impediment.



I was logged into my account and I was making weekly purchases back then....


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## uncle harry

jwmelvin said:


> Oh but their website and app are amazing. If only other shopping sites were so organized.





They also feature many downloadable CAD files for fasteners and some other products which are often useful on layouts.


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## Eddyde

Also the short tutorials (About XYZ) on various subjects.


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## bhigdog

I read the M-C catalog like it was a good book. They have a lot of stuff I didn't even know existed. As for the lead screw, US postal service would be the way to go. Find out the weight and I'm guessing you could talk someone here into inquiring at the post office the shipping charges to you. Then all you have to do is send the helpful soul the appropriate amount to order and ship the screw to you. Enough extra for a pint or two might be in order................Bob


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