Beware of user error

Last night I wrote a cranky post about trying to obtain two (of three) 13mm × 10mm cam lock fasteners from Wayfair in a timely fashion. Twenty-four larger fasteners were all there.

This morning Elaine asked if I might have used two small fasteners in place of larger ones. I looked carefully. Yes, I had. The larger fasteners are 15mm × 12mm (I think). Whatever their size, they’re virtually indistinguishable from the smaller ones. I called Wayfair today to explain what happened, to apologize for wasting so much of their time, and to cancel the complete hardware set they were planning to send from a warehouse.

My cranky post (now removed) was titled “Beware of Wayfair.” I still think that the Wayfair business model, one of selling stuff from “the warehouse,” with no ready access to a supply of extra hardware for the furniture sold, is a lousy business model. No one can pick out a fastener or screw or knob or bolt and send it out. “The warehouse” does not send parts, much less send them in a timely way. Thus the complete hardware set that was due to arrive a week from today.

As I mentioned in my now-removed post, I ended up ordering 13mm × 10mm cam lock fasteners from Amazon. Not sold in any store! At least not in our town’s incredible Ace, an unabridged dictionary of hardware, nor in a nearby Home Depot. The fasteners have already shipped, and they’re scheduled to arrive tomorrow. Anyone need some cam lock fasteners?