....
Yes, stop patronizing West Marine. They've turned into a rip-off
operation ...

They've certainly taken a turn for the worse. I am thinking of going
to the dark side and adding a wind generator or two to the boat and
find the Air-X listed in West's 2007 catalog at $1050 but msrp is $850
and discounts below that are easy to come by. I wish this was an
anomaly, but West seems to have decided that they are a premium store
and their catalog prices look to reflect that. Oddly enough, I used
to feel that I got superior service at West, but over the last five
years the service has gotten much worse, the selection of serious
cruising gear has gotten thinner and the prices have gone from
discount to retail plus 20%. For me they have gone from fist choice
to last resort and have lost thousands of dollars of my business.

-- Tom.