I hear you. To a lot of businesses, “In stock” means that it’s in stock somewhere in the world and they will have it drop shipped to you. That can be very different from having something in stock at THEIR location, knowing what the shipping time will be.
Agreed. There are certain places I count on when I absolutely need a part right away. Certain places like Summit Racing put effort into things like that, but for a lot of places being able to tell you exactly how fast they can get you something just isn't a priority.
Fair warning: while I also have used Hodges Marine numerous times over the years, I had a major customer service issue with them. I had ordered some Lowrance NMEA parts, and they sent me the wrong ones. Their customer service is non-existent. After numerous calls and emails to Hodges re: THEIR error, it became apparent that they are probably just resellers and don't have a real staff. Or they just don't give a rat's buttocks. Bottom line, they would not allow a return and just ghosted me. I had to buy a new set of NMEA components and so essentially paid twice. I sold these extra, incorrect parts on eBay at a loss. I got burned by Hodges because I was lured by the slightly lower prices, but if there ever is a problem with any of your Hodges purchases, you're screwed. I've since read a number of Hodges horror stories so now they're dead to me. So is Defender, whom I'd been shopping with since they were a creaky little store in New Rochelle, NY way back when. They use to have great prices and excellent customer service, but now neither of these is true anymore.
