On Mon, 16 Jan 2006 17:44:05 -0500, nobody wrote:

I just think that West Marine is really a lousy
outfit.

Not fair in my opinion. It's true that their prices are rarely
competetive, but for small stuff the convenience of having one 5
minutes away is nice. I also find that their service and return
policies are excellent. Several times they have helped me get
warranty service on items I no longer had the receipts for.

Several of the local employees have told me that they also offer
excellent benefits, even to the part timers, so they are not exactly a
Wal Mart in that respect.

For big ticket items it pays to shop around and order from out of
state. I've had good luck with both Defender in CT and Pyacht in MD.

http://www.defender.com/

http://www.pyacht.com