HLSupply Price Gouging

[furb]

Anybody get the email for $46 on sale for not even $10 worth of N95 masks? The Cheaper than dirt of the saw world.

 

[stihl livin]

I see n-95 masks price andan empty shelf. Lots of products have gone up in price with the demand. They are probably selling them from a little more then they paid is my guess

 

[Mattyo]

I'm a dentist. Not having masks is a real world issue and even if we are allowed to go back to work...who knows if we will have ppe or not....at any price.



Hlsupply selling masks at the price point they are selling them at seems legit to me....especially since that hd shelf was empty. Amazing that they actually have some.

Just before I got laid off ....boxes of 50 masks which previously had been under 10 bux had gone up north of $100 on amazon. Odds are the big suppliers sold out the little guys by putting all their eggs in one basket. If you wanna be upset with someone, at least lay the blame at the feet of the big suppliers.

 

[furb]

I put up the hd pic to show the normal price. A lot of the trades people that gave their masks away to the health care workers are going to have to pay a premium for masks so they can go back to work. The part I thought was great was they act like they marked them down already. Maybe I looking at it the wrong way but I figured a company that sells knock off Chinese parts are probably selling some Chinese mask for a premium

 

[Mattyo]

Even if they are, at this point so is everyone else. Again, blame needs to be laid at the feet of the real perps here... we are gonna find out the big suppliers probably had back room deals to offload the masks in places other than healthcare. HL is small time, and if they have masks, at any price, thank God for that.

 

[RipRap]

I have been helping a carpenter friend who has been paying about $50. for a box of 10 from Amazon back before the pandemic problem. I don't think that they are price gouging.

 

[Mattyo]

Don't get me wrong, $5 per mask, percentage wise and compared to where it was, is insanely high. But there isn't much choice at this point, and since it has become the norm, at this point thank God they even still exist.

I think prior to the crisis, masks I was using were somewhere between 10-25 cents per. just for reference

 

[Wolverine]

https://opeforum.com/threads/random-thought-of-the-day.6756/page-123#post-1049205

 

[Al Smith]

The last of the N-95's I bought was only around 10 bucks for a stack of 20 but that was a long time ago .I only found 2 from that stack but found a pattern from a medical group showing one almost as good which I substituted a HEPA filter media between two layers of cotton .In theory filters down to .3 microns .Three layers of the media which is cut from huge filters made for Kirby vacuum cleaners ,industrial size .With the elastic,the Velcro etc. I probably have less than a buck a pop in them .The first one I made it took me around 3 hours,the last of 4 or 5 about 45 minutes .These are not pleated but form fitting and seal real tight .

 

[furb]

I have been helping a carpenter friend who has been paying about $50. for a box of 10 from Amazon back before the pandemic problem. I don't think that they are price gouging.

That’s crazy. The 3M ones with the cool valve were less than that at the local ace that’s always pretty high priced.

 

[Al Smith]

Actually the N-95's were used for dust control situations such as cutting concrete ,metal etc .sawdust,insulation .They sold them in lumber yards ,building supply companys etc .We had them at work by the thousands .
Th cast iron dust in a cast iron automotive engine plant was as fine as face powder .It would get in the pores of your skin and cause rust rings around the collar of a white shirt .Hard to say how much damage it did to the lungs .29 years , I hope I never find out either .

 

[Bknga1]

I'm a dentist. Not having masks is a real world issue and even if we are allowed to go back to work...who knows if we will have ppe or not....at any price.



Hlsupply selling masks at the price point they are selling them at seems legit to me....especially since that hd shelf was empty. Amazing that they actually have some.

Just before I got laid off ....boxes of 50 masks which previously had been under 10 bux had gone up north of $100 on amazon. Odds are the big suppliers sold out the little guys by putting all their eggs in one basket. If you wanna be upset with someone, at least lay the blame at the feet of the big suppliers.

I paid the same amount (49.00@10pk) on Jan 31st on eBay. And again today w HL Supply...eBay and Amazon are double last check.
The picture is likely from 6-12 mo. Old at least.
So the disparaging accusation by most accounts appears to be unfounded at least since all this started. At least they're available and still reasonable. (over 3 mo. Period)