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Comment by modeless | Hacker News Reader

Dang, I would have loved to visit this place if I had known about it. I can't believe even Fry's is gone now and Central Computers is the best we have. At least Micro Center is coming supposedly this year.

This is not exclusive to electronics. I was looking for some weird plumbing stuff and had a hard time finding local retail plumbing supply places too. Seems like if it's not at Home Depot then you have to go online and roll the dice with mislabeled products from no-name sellers, probably just dropshipping from China.

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Yep. Also RIP Radio Shack, JDR Microdevices, Weird Stuff, NCA Peripherals, Fry's Electronics (and Fry's drugstore / groceries), and Egghead Software. Even the retail hypermart CompUSA died, leaving only their nemesis, Best Buy.

Micro Center and Central Computer (CCS) endure. The latter stocked those phonebook-thick computer advertisement magazines and Linux on CDs.

I'm reduced to crapshooting Aliexpress and eBay with occasional purchases from Mouser and Digikey via findchips and octopart.

The electronics supply chain just doesn't exist as made in America anymore in volume. Meanwhile, the best place for hardware is usually Shenzhen. Offshoring engineering and manufacturing, declines in EE and skilled workers are the limiting factors. Perhaps there ought to be a 300% tariff placed on goods designed or made not in the US with <75% domestic labor or <75% domestic parts.

I've used supplyhouse.com for years for plumbing projects around the house. I'm in New England, so get most items next day if I order by 3 PM (later in metro NY area) and I think I've gotten only one item wrong across hundreds of items and dozens of orders. On a lot of items, they're cheaper than Home Depot as well.

McMaster-Carr not meeting your needs?

Nope. Even their selection of fasteners isn't comprehensive. And not Grainger, TSC, or Ace Hardware either. I could't find ultra low-profile M3 screws while I could dropship zillions from China (with a delay of 3 weeks).

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