[loginatnine]

I'm part of the cult, LV has some unique and quality items that are only available there, especially for woodworking and kitchen. Durable items that will last a lifetime, clear concise description, no BS website.

I had to call once for some backordered item and was pleasantly surprised that someone just picked up the phone, no automated system, no wait time.

[imposterr]

>clear concise description

Except they sometimes leave the brand of the item out of the product title or description which is super annoying. There have been times where I've looked for sellers of certain products in Canada, and having failed, ordered from the states or Amazon. But then I later realize that the product I want is sold at Lee Valley under some generic name.

One example is the Water Right garden hose [1]. They don't ship to Canada but you can get in on Amazon. You can also get it at Lee Valley but nothing on the site indicates it's the Water Right hose [2]. I only realized by examine the images. I would have loved to have supported Lee Valley, but by the time I noticed I'd always bought from Amazon.

[1] https://www.waterrightinc.com/

[2] https://www.leevalley.com/en-ca/shop/garden/water-and-irriga...

[bloggie]

I also don't appreciate this, but I understand it is because they cannot compete on price, and if they are selling identical products this is one way to try and differentiate their offering. Example: https://www.leevalley.com/en-ca/shop/garden/water-and-irriga... vs. https://www.canac.ca/en/spray-gun-77003365 maybe a poor example because they do indicate the brand.

[JKCalhoun]

For woodworking tools, WoodRiver has been getting my business more and more because the quality seems to also be there but the cost is significantly less than LV.

[exDM69]

WoodRiver is a US brand for tools manufactured by Quangsheng tools in China. They are sold all over the world under different brand names. In the past few years, a similar factory has emerged in India with lots of different brands selling them.

They make decent tools. I'm sure the US and Canadian premium tools (LN and LV) are better but at least in Europe the price difference (after taxes and customs) is steep and difficult to justify.

[PennRobotics]

Preach. I got a Lie Nielsen shipped to Germany. I'll only get another if I can buy it in-person during vacation, beat it up a little to look used, and bring it back in checked luggage without the original packaging.

Illegal? yes. Immoral? I'm not so sure.

Customs is ridiculous. DHL tacks on a 6 Euro fee if VAT isn't prepaid. Sellers often list the RRP instead of the paid price. (Newsflash: if I payed less than RRP, that was the market price when I bought it, so that should be the price listed on the CN 23!)

I paid more than twice what I should have on the last package I got from the U.S. It was on sale for 30% off, but the seller listed the RRP, which, plus delivery costs, put it over the threshold for adding customs fees. Adding on the post office's fee, it was 56 or 58 euros rather than 24 or 25 had they simply prepaid EU VAT on the charged amount. All this I know, because I also bought their competitor's product for essentially the same price, but the competitor (admitted, a much larger business) had a global delivery partner to handle the shipping and taxes.

I'd get a metal Ulmia or a KUNZ-plus if they didn't require work getting them true and sharp. I'd get a knockoff if the knockoff brands start to innovate and introduce new designs. With Veritas, Lie Nielsen, and Clifton, I know I'm supporting innovative small businesses and owning functional art that maintains its resale value after decades of heavy use.

[unmole]

> In the past few years, a similar factory has emerged in India with lots of different brands selling them.

Do you happen to know the name of the factory or any of the brands?

[tsss]

Perhaps Anant? I can say from experience that Anant is not remotely equal in quality to QuangSheng.

[dfc]

Woodriver is certainly cheaper than LV. Are you comparing woodriver tools to any of the brands in the LV catalog? Or strictly comparing them to the Veritas tools? I think a lot of the no name tools in the LV catalog are over priced and of questionable quality. But I do not think woodriver is on par with anything that says Veritas.

[WillAdams]

Yeah, if one peddles in knock-offs w/o doing any of one's own engineering work, cost is a lot lower:

https://www.finewoodworking.com/2009/05/21/who-begot-who-com...