ABR Imagery

**Gold Fire Glass** · 01-26-2014, 10:41 PM

I've done alot of business over the years with ABR. Being in Canada I have to say it's pretty tough to find good suppliers out here.
I don't hesitate to use ABR at all. Even the odd time when things haven't gone right ( far and few between ) Dave has gone out of his way to make it right.
Sometimes even at the company's expense I might add.

I will continue to show my support for ABR in 2014.

**gomilobster** · 01-27-2014, 12:12 AM

Originally Posted by Gold Fire Glass

I don't hesitate to use ABR at all. Even the odd time when things haven't gone right ( far and few between ) Dave has gone out of his way to make it right.
Sometimes even at the company's expense I might add.

I will continue to show my support for ABR in 2014.

^^ This ^^ I have ordered tube, rod, tools, and other various supplies, everything has always come as it should have. I even recently ordered a kiln controller that didn't turn out to be what I needed, and they totally went out of their way to make sure I got what I was really after and saved me loot in my mess up. Been super nice and helpful any time I have ever dealt with them. I am still on the fence about ordering lots and lots of tubing and rod when I have options in town, but they have nice prices and sales, and so far it has been worth it every time.

**Wilbur** · 01-27-2014, 02:42 AM

I've been very pleased with abr.

Being in Eugene with lots of local arterial available I can't say they are my main material supply, but do appreciate them stocking items slot if places don't seem to have. Prompt shipping, calls on back ordered items, and good prices on most things.

When we going to see a Eugene retail outfit guys? You'd crush it here, a lot of places here are *consistently* out of lots of stuff, and often times much more expensive.

Also, thd giant metal staples in the boxes recently seems over kill and makes for recycling a biatch.

But you guys rock. And I like the new website.

**lsw** · 01-27-2014, 08:37 AM

I ordered 19/19 dstems from abr & explained to them how I have only been able to find low quality Chinese ones, they assured me theirs were quality when I received them they were the same low quality 1s I had received from other suppliers w/wobbly joints & sloppy driptip weld. I sent them back & lost over $80 in shipping. I will never order from them again. They also did the same thing to my brother w/a scroll chuck he ordered that didn't hold work straight when they said it was on point.

**Nomad** · 01-29-2014, 01:03 PM

They messed up my last order. I am happy that I got a bunch of colored asian tube on sale but they forgot to put my milli in the box and I was charged for it.
I complained to them about this and they got back to me. They said they did not really have any milli's left anymore but I could have the rest of the milli they had. Which is like 2.5 grams and I ordered 9 grams of this particular milli. But they shipped it to me. I am still waiting for a refund for the difference in price but I believe they will give it to me it was only like $20.
So I guess I am giving them a good review for there customer service....... but the change in inventory really sucks because I have orders for milli spoons and I have to find the milli someplace else now. They sold my most popular milli also, the peace sign.

**blueburnsorange** · 01-30-2014, 07:19 AM

The only thing I'd change about ABR's shipping lately is the packing peanuts... mixing compostable and syrofoam peanuts together means I have to spend time separating them or they all get thrown in a trash bag and sent to the dump, which sort of negates the point for using 50% compostable peanuts in the first place.

**Nomad** · 01-30-2014, 07:24 AM

I tried to get a shipping quote for a F-420 kiln and no one got back to me. It is a nice kiln that only ABR sells too. My guess is $300 to ship maybe... Would have been nice to find out the exact amount it would cost including shipping. Since I am shopping for a new kiln.

**Jimi The Don** · 01-30-2014, 07:32 AM

I've had mixed experiences. some shipping problems and being sent the wrong product on more than one occasion. most of my problems with abr happened a few years back and recently they have been really good. customer service used to give you an attitude but in recent years they're great. i still prefer mga or wale for most things, but abr has a lot of products and Dave is active in the community and listens to his customers. at one thyme i refused to by from abr but that was years ago, now i offer a thumbs up.

**daveabr** · 01-30-2014, 09:18 AM

The only thing I'd change about ABR's shipping lately is the packing peanuts... mixing compostable and syrofoam peanuts together means I have to spend time separating them or they all get thrown in a trash bag and sent to the dump, which sort of negates the point for using 50% compostable peanuts in the first place.

We reuse the tons of peanuts that come in our orders from our vendors as well. If we don't, we'd be tossing so many. So occasionally they probably do get mixed. Sorry about that, just trying to eliminate waste

I tried to get a shipping quote for a F-420 kiln and no one got back to me. It is a nice kiln that only ABR sells too. My guess is $300 to ship maybe... Would have been nice to find out the exact amount it would cost including shipping. Since I am shopping for a new kiln.

If you ever have an issue with something like that, don't hesitate to PM. We've been out for shows a lot this year already, and I'm leaving again all next week. But, I check in here when I'm on the road more than I do email even. So, maybe the guys back home were stretched a bit then. If you still need help, I'm in the office today and tomorrow, or call and ask for Noah. He is great, and does all our freight shipping anyway. So, he could accurately quote you quickly.

Thanks everyone. All feedback is good feedback. We strive to do our best, and make up for the times it doesn't work out that way. Appreciate all your support!

**MrSmeeth** · 01-30-2014, 09:36 AM

I just orderd a Chanpion from ABR. It was in stock and shipped same day. Thanks Dave

**blueburnsorange** · 02-10-2014, 11:46 AM

OK, I've got to gripe about this because it's probably third time it's happened in less than 3 months.

I placed a 12 line order on Friday and find out today that four items are out of stock and the other couple of times that it happened it was about the same - ABR was unable to fulfill about 20-30% of my order when I needed it. Heck, it's not even stuff on sale sometimes!

My gripe is not that you run out of stock, that's normal - but it's that the website is not able to accurately reflect what is or is not available that really screws with people! I don't have a lot of money for glass so I try to piece together my orders carefully to make it worth the shipping charges - when a bunch of stuff isn't available I either need to add stuff I don't really need to justify the shipping and still have to order the rest of what I need from another company at additional expense and lost time - or just cancel the whole thing and re-order somewhere else to try to save shipping costs.

I know I can call, I have called but it's 2014... I don't really feel like I should have to call on the phone every time I want to order something.

Is the process of updating inventory on the site a completely manual one?

**istandalone24/7** · 02-10-2014, 11:58 AM

^^that sucks too...abr just updated with a new website, you'd think that this would happen less often now.

and i HATE it when people just say to call in your order and this won't happen. fuck no, calling in my order defeats the purpose of ordering on the web.

**itssteve** · 02-10-2014, 12:10 PM

The lack of real time stock is annoying, but for real just call.

I know I hate talking on the phone, and I avoided calling for a while. But I finally tried it, and it was quicker and easier than ordering online. Plus being on a more personal level betters your chances for sweet deals.

Just my 2c

**Mr.P0rn** · 02-10-2014, 12:30 PM

Ive had luck calling them to place an order. Once i wanted something rare that only they still had in stock, and I had it ordered in 5 min on the phone. The majority of my orders with them (actually...all of them except this one mentioned) have been problematic. They never failed to make it right...but in one case i ordered an item that was out of stock, got charged, then 6 weeks later called to find out what ever happened to it. They had been out of stock, and refunded me....but they never emailed me, and I was charged when they didn't have it in stock. That being said, Dave is about as good as customer service or help goes. It's my personal opinion that Mountain Glass should hire that guy :P If I had a reason to need to hit up ABR....I suppose I would. ive never had anything happen that was so bad that i absolutely would not use them again...but they are the closest shop to me, and they are generally my last choice.

**blueburnsorange** · 02-11-2014, 07:23 AM

I have to agree with istandalone, people work weird schedules across different timezones - calling isn't always convenient - hence the invention of the webstore (when it works).

I can order oxy and propane online at 1am when the tank kicks and I'm thinking about it, I don't have to interrupt my day job to do it. I can trust Mountain's availability and heck, as long as I order before 2pm I know it's gonna ship same-day. Webstores are awesome when they work.

Sometimes it takes ABR a day or two to email me to let me know something is out of stock. They say "If I don't hear back by tomorrow I will ship everything else" and because I don't want to lose a bunch of money on shipping I email back right away with some questions about alternative items based off what their website says they have, then no one gets back to me for a day.... then another round of stuff not being available.

**Dan Kooper** · 02-11-2014, 07:53 AM

All you people that call, do you go online and put a list together with the website or just pick up the phone and order? No list necessary?

**Chad S** · 02-11-2014, 09:15 AM

Call & ask for Dave, he'll hook ya up without a list, he has for me in the past at least. I tell him what I need by name & not code. Time is $$ so I tend to skip the list unless i need more than I can remember.

**itssteve** · 02-11-2014, 10:11 AM

Yeah my big orders I make a list just to make sure I don't forget to tell him anything. But otherwise I just spout off what I want.

I love shopping online and I never thought calling would be easier or faster, but it is.

**artisticdave** · 02-11-2014, 10:42 AM

I prefer to call that way if there's a question of something in stock I can get an answer mountain will check while on the phone. I go on their website and write a list of colors I'm getting and whatever else so I don't forget anything.

**Dan Kooper** · 02-11-2014, 01:53 PM

I guess I'm picky when I order. I don't do the same piece over and over again. I always do different stuff. I'm a visual person also. I like to see what colors I'm picking and know how much it is before I decide the quantity. And like to be able to see what's in my cart and if i can afford more. Or what I need to get less of when I need something else. I pick what I want off of what I want for the future. Not off what I've made in the past.
Calling for me would annoy the person I'm sure. Constantly saying. How much, can you take some of this off, add this, how much is this much of this, etc. I take a day to figure out what I want. I have NO production line really. My distributor buys whatever I feel like making. And it's usually stuff from every direction. I rarely make the same piece twice. So online ordering is for me. I do still call a lot. But it's with a list because I usually get a better deal talking to someone. Having a reliable/up to date website should be top priority for an online business.
To be honest they lost me the same way they are soon losing blueburnsorange. I didn't get what I needed. Missed the email and upset a customer when their special color didn't come in. I havnt ordered from them since. They had my phone number but only emailed me to tell me a lot was out of stock. So I totally see where you are comin from.
Not to mention my cracked F420 kiln I got from abr. They were good at getting me to paragon to get a patch kit though.

I've had bad experiences with glasscraft too though. Mistakes happen. Glasscraft wrote "poop" and "butthole" on the packing they wrapped my joints in an I happen to open it in front if the customer in my retail location. I stapled the "I'm sorry" note glasscraft sent me after that happened to my wall in my shop. It's hillarious. It's an apology letter from the person @ GC for writing poop on my stuff. Priceless. I have not ordered from Gc since.

If the just had a better way of updating the site I don't think they would have any complaints. Their customer service is great.

I generally make only large orders. Boxes of joints, lbs of color, etc. lampwork supply tells you exactly what's left on the website. They also offer everything for wholesale. Screw paying retail hobby prices for materials.