[XCSSA] Any of you guys order eceltronics from "futurelec.com"?

[X-otic Computer Systems of San Antonio]

X-otic Computer Systems of San Antonio wrote:
> A DIY/home-brew fireworks geek friend of mine turned me on to these guys:
> 	http://www.futurlec.com/index.shtml
>
> One caveat... they're our of Asia and sell for various web-shops.. and only 
> ship once they build up a big (freighter) shipment.. so you can sometimes 
> wait a while to get your stuff.
>
> I think Tim says that he uses these guys a lot:
> 	http://www.sparkfun.com/
>
> Anyone else have a favorite place for electronics?
>
> Tweeks
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>   
Tweeks,

I made one medium sized order from these guys and it was a very 
frustrating and lengthy experience. The order included an interface for 
Charles (and I thought you had something in that order also ?). I 
brought everything to Chris Madrid's and you checked it out at my truck 
in the parking lot.

Lot's of delays, and hassles getting the American Express billed 
correctly which delayed order processing for 2-3 weeks. When finally 
received, all was as advertised and of good quality; zero complaints on 
the products. Some weeks later received some B.S. 'import fee' charges 
from FedEx for another $28 (10% of the order cost). Pushed back on FedEx 
and they said  that  who pays the import fees is  agreed upon by the 
buyer & seller before the transaction and since I didn't have written 
proof that they agreed to pay the import fees it was up to me. "What if 
I don't pay?" was met with "you'll be blacklisted by FedEx. Of course I 
paid.

No phone access to Futerlec, period. All correspondence is via email to 
their Australia or Hong Kong offices. Each message was met with a 12-24 
hour delay for a response.

I REALLY liked the quality of the  PIC programmers, additional 
interfaces, etc I purchased, but based on the hidden import fees, long 
delivery cycle (10 weeks) and near impossible customer service 
communications I will not buy from them again. It's a shame, cause 
they've got some good stuff!

Frederik listed some good sites. I'm currently awaiting delivery of some 
RC (model aircraft) receivers, battery eliminator circuits (BEC), and an 
ELM OBDII interface from dealextreme.com , another Hong Kong based outfit.

They've got tons of novelty junk, and some good stuff also. Not an 
electronics components source, they still have lots of inexpensive stuff 
(GPS modules, cell phones, GPS/cell phone tracking devices, cell phone 
jammers, RX receivers, LEDs, strips, controllers, etc., etc.

The volume of stuff is overwhelming and some is clearly junk. ALL orders 
have free shipping from Hong Kong (with expected delivery in 10-14 
business days). Priority shipping is available for a fee.

Matt G.