McMaster-Carr does not sell to Canada any more

Until a few weeks a go I worked for a Canadian company where I purchased MRO supplies. McMaster was one of my regular suppliers. The Canadian government does not want to make it easy for companies like mcmaster to be able to ship to Canada. Every few weeks after ordering i would get a call from McMaster saying the Canadian government had placed a very large duty (as high as 364% in one case) on some particular product. It might be

6-32 screws one week and something different next week. McMaster looked after the GST on ordinary orders but if there was added duty then the order had to go through a customs broker. A $5.00 item could easily cost $30.00 with a broker involved. I would always thank McMaster for calling and cancel the offending item.

What would be the nearest equivalent in Canada for McMaster-Carr ? I need some silicone tubing and SS screws.

Regards,

Boris Mohar

Got Knock? - see: Viatrack Printed Circuit Designs (among other things)

void _-void-_ in the obvious place

That's awful. Is this standard operating procedure for Canada now or are things getting so bad economically so they're driven to do this to maintain their balance of trade?

dennis in nca

Yopu might try SPAENAUR in Kitchener, Ontario. They have a catalogue

8.5" x 11" x 2.25" thick! Phone # 1-800-265-8772. FAX: 1-519-744-0818.

Although primarily a fastener supply house they do have tubing and gasketing extrusions. Try

Wolfgang

Hey Boris and Dennis,

First, Boris, there is no "direct replacement" for McMaster-Carr in Canada, just as there is not in the USA. Undoubtedly, all the items they sell are available, just not through a single source as in their case. Stainless screws are available lots of places, but one good source is Spaenaur in Kitchener, Ontario.

And Dennis, if you note in the OP, it says McMaster-Carr is having a problem with the US side, not Canada. Reading between the lines, they have to do so much freaking paperwork, it's costing them instead of providing a reasonable profit. ( Probably something to do with either Homeland Security, or who/what/where any product can be shipped outside the USA, just in case it falls into the hands of those deemed by the State Department to be undesirables/enemies.) That is not to say that there is no problem in Canada with receiving shipments from the USA. I'm sure you've read the postings here in the past about what happens to the "landed price" if you get something shipped via UPS, and they get you over the proverbial barrel.

And about the Canadian economy..... it would appear that at this juncture, it is "better" than the US. Note the value of the Canadian dollar has risen a whole lot against the US dollar in the past few years, especially recently. I think today there is less than a six % difference. Wish that had been true ten years ago when our son did his Masters degree in the US, and the rate was almost 30% !!

Take care.

Brian Lawson, Bothwell, Ontario.

ps...what I do is have stuff sent to an accommodating friend in Detroit, and I bring it across the border myself. Lots of times, after I declare the item and the value, our Canadian Customs waves you through without even a "lemme see the bill". One minor problem you have to check on or get straight first though....some US companies/sellers won't accept a credit card purchase with a "ship to" address that is not the purchasers Canadian street address, and that includes Pay Pal. I understand why, but it is a piss-off.

WTF? This has nothing to do with Canada's "standard operating procedure".

It is, as plainly written, "due to the ever increasing complexity of United States export regulations".

Now that is really, really a pity - there have been many, many time when they were the *only* source. Nichrome wire, square punches, Odd sized Greenlee stuff, chemicals heck - even specialty stock. That stuff is getting harder and harder to come by here in Toronto. I also had a similar issue with Digikey - a GREAT electronics supplier; could not ship an item because of US laws - the item was made in Norway! :-P About the only thing you can get here nowadays are knock-off clothing (and even the real stuff is a knock off) donuts ('mercan spelling) and HomeDepot screws. If you want something "different" you either have to be a large quantity with minimum orders or be willing to spend big bucks on the item - you really have to want it. I've never thought of Princess Auto as an industrial supplier, but that is really sad news - wonder if MSC still (or ever has) shipped to Canada

Tom

On Wed, 06 Jun 2007 12:38:30 -0400, with neither quill nor qualm, Brian Lawson quickly quoth:

And I wish values would return to where they were half a decade ago. Lee Valley Tools aren't at all economically feasible to purchase these days. (eg: one $4 book is now $12)

-- Pain (any pain--emotional, physical, mental) has a message. The information it has about our life can be remarkably specific, but it usually falls into one of two categories: "We would be more alive if we did more of this," and, "Life would be more lovely if we did less of that." Once we get the pain's message, and follow its advice, the pain goes away. -- Peter McWilliams, Life 101

Not in any way a full replacement, but good for lots of stuff: kbctools.com. They have several Canadian warehouses, so Canadian orders ship domestically.

Adam Smith, Midland, Ontario, Canada

You may not have realized it, because you didn't really ask, but I was primarily reacting to the comments "Sparky" posted, my bad. But I'll post them here to atone for my sins.

Better? And would you have an answer now, or not?

It seems the issue concerns more than Homeland Security.

One reason I'm interested is, up until 2 years ago I shipped many machine parts to Canada and really had no such difficulty. However the entry of our technicians into Canada became more restrictive, even in light of the trade agree- ments between our countries.

dennis in nca

Like the ones that say I cannot order a barrel blank from the US, without an export permit from the US State Dept.

To get an export permit, I have to have an import permit.

An import permit is not required by the Canadian government, just by the US State Dept., before they will issue an export permit.

So some six weeks (sometimes as little as!)after filling out the applications for an import permit (free, but a PITA to get), one gets the import permit (that was not required at the importing end) then one sends that to the exporter, who must send it to the US State Dept. for approval and the proccessing for an export permit ($35US or so) if one is not a suspected terrorist sympathiser. A few weeks then pass, then the exporter gets the permit (or not).

Only once the permit is in hand, can the barrel blank leave US soil.

Same for scopes and laser rangefinders.

A seller cannot legally send a scope sight or a laser rangefinder out of the US without an export permit. We all know that THOSE are not available at WalMart here in Canada, now, don't we. Yeesh!

'Cause, after all, the world is a safer place for the children if the potential terrorists have to buy their target rifles already built, at the local gunshop. :-/

Homeland Security my arse! Frankly, I am a little surprised that there has not been much outcry from the commercial sector. It's gotta be cutting into the bottom line for a few companies.

Mostly just another excuse for some more people to get their fingers into the pie, at the expense of the citizenry.

Just wondering how long it will take to convince the sheeple that a camera on every streetcorner is a good idea.

And on a separate, but similar note....Free trade, my arse!

The Canadian peso is doing well enough that I can afford to shop Stateside, but I am basically, not allowed to buy anything that might turn out to be a bargain. :-(

Cheers Trevor Jones

KBC has a decent selection, and don't rape you too dry on the prices. Spaenaur has a good cat of fasteners. Acklands has a more industrial supply kind of cat.

No-one in Canada carries as good and broad a selection as McMaster, though. One-stop shopping has it's plusses! Add that to the reports I have heard about fast deliveries, both from MSC and McM., and it's little wonder that they have done so well.

I use a couple old McMaster catalogs as reference material. Half the time the biggest barrier to getting what you need, is being able to call it what it should be called. Having a picture makes it a lot easier to deal with a braindead counter slug, too.

Cheers Trevor Jones

[ ... ]

But, in another branch of this thread, it was stated:

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which suggests that Canada is part of the problem, too.

Enjoy, DoN.

Indeed. On one of my previous orders while they were still taking orders from us they cancelled or suggested a cancellation for some simple machine screws because excessive duties.

-- Boris

According to Boris Mohar :

[ ... ]

[ ... ]

So what happened to the NAFTA? These should not exist.

Enjoy, DoN.

On 7 Jun 2007 02:36:51 GMT, with neither quill nor qualm, snipped-for-privacy@d-and-d.com (DoN. Nichols) quickly quoth:

Don't worry, Don. Once Shrub, Fox, and Martin have formed the North American Union, with a single border around the group, we'll all be safe and trade will be entirely free. "Trust me!"

?title=North_American_Union The more I read about the NAU, the worse it feels. This is much scarier than the threat of terrorist attack, don't you think?

- Metaphors Be With You -

They shouldn't exist, but exert protectionism, state subsidies and export controls and the fallout is far and wide. The US does it directly with steel and agriculture subsidies, and indirectly via military contracts to prop up the likes of Boeing. The US hammers Canadian lumber imports just because it gives them a warm feeling in their pants and the US corn subsidy drives Mexican farmers out of business and into abject poverty.

The casualties are not just within NAFTA but right across the globe. One fact is very clear, the *only* county that gains *every* time is the US because there is and never will be a level playing field when there are three unequal sized "partners"

The Canadian duties might at first glance seem petty, and McMaster might appear to loose the sales of a few machine screws and other items but I doubt they really give a rats ass. Export documentation is usually little more than a database entry/programming exercise nowadays. Even in trusted export markets where duty is low, stable and existent for many years McMaster refuse to sell. The upshot is that for many former customers their website is now little more than a source of reference material.

NAFTA only covers items made in North America. If the parts were imported by Mcmaster then the Canadian customs could put whatever duty they want on the item.

Since early 2001 the US has put dumping duties on steel from a bunch of countries, up to around 30-40% duty. Korea and so on, among other things. Essentially declaring (economic) war on a number of US trading partners in a whole bunch of areas.

When the US does that, usually Canada reluctantly follows along because otherwise shipments could be diverted to Canada and screw up the market. So, if the screws are 'made in Korea', it's quite possible a large duty is required. The US also has a lot of things like quotas to protect domestic industry. I don't know what happens when something comes along with the quota document. Either it's refused or some huge duty is assessed, I would think.

Best regards, Spehro Pefhany