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Thread: B&H No Longer Shipping Chemistry

  1. #11
    Drew Wiley
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    Sep 2008
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    18,338

    Re: B&H No Longer Shipping Chemistry

    Gosh. If fresh tulips from Holland get sold on the streets of SF, and Greek restaurants around here get ingredients shipped from another continent, what's the big
    deal about shipping something a little further within the US? If you have a gripe with B&H, take it up with them. Yeah, I'm a bit disappointed that I can't just drive five minutes down the street and buy a full range of darkroom chemicals from a specialty supplier anymore. I can drive five minutes the other direction and get a lot of common darkroom chemicals. But I have had specialty products shipped in not only from Formulary in Montana but various chem suppliers in NYC itself. If that is what they do, they'll do it. B&H has apparently spread its wings more and more into electronics. Chemical distribution has its own headaches. For example, you'd be amazed at what people are willing to smoke or inject, like chromium or vanadium salts. That means special paperwork. If you want to poison yourself, that's one thing; but the DEA wants to stop it, and might demand shipping documentation. B&H is still a good source for many traditional photo supplies like film,paper, and filters, even if film camera and enlargers themselves have dramatically thinned out due to overwhelming competition from the used market.

  2. #12

    Join Date
    Jul 2011
    Location
    Montreal, Canada
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    124

    Re: B&H No Longer Shipping Chemistry

    Not to mention that B&H is a convenient store for Canadian buyers. An important source of materials gone...Let us hope that they will revise this extreme policy.
    J. K.

  3. #13
    Moderator
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    Jan 2001
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    8,640

    Re: B&H No Longer Shipping Chemistry

    Quote Originally Posted by sepiareverb View Post
    Thought it was important to know...
    It is - it's a substantial change and it affects many of us. Thanks for reporting it here.

  4. #14
    Drew Wiley
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    Sep 2008
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    18,338

    Re: B&H No Longer Shipping Chemistry

    They CAN'T revise the policy. It's out of their hands. The parcel carriers are dictating this. Sure, you might be able to still buy fifteen bucks of powder, but with a
    forty buck ground-only surcharge on it, which means it would come slow anyway, and you'd complain about B&H even more. Not worth the fuss for them.

  5. #15

    Join Date
    Dec 1999
    Location
    Forest Grove, Ore.
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    4,675

    Re: B&H No Longer Shipping Chemistry

    Back to UPS, I've had my own, long-standing policy. I refuse to use UPS for any kind of shipping. I find them to be arrogant.

  6. #16
    Photographer
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    Feb 2001
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    Pine Junction, CO
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    992

    Re: B&H No Longer Shipping Chemistry

    Hmmm, just order Dektol and Kodak Fixer. Order went right through. Either not fully implemented or not comprehensive.

    Also, I like UPS. Friendly with the drivers who come here. Reliable service. On the other hand, FedEx is terrible. Why can't they find my front door for deliveries?
    Keith Pitman

  7. #17
    jp's Avatar
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    May 2009
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    Maine
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    5,628

    Re: B&H No Longer Shipping Chemistry

    I'm guessing it's not convenient to deal with the shipping requirements and potential financial risks such as in this article:
    https://www.engadget.com/2016/06/14/...icals-via-ups/

    It's a shame though as it sort of eliminates the popular east coast one-stop-shop for darkroom photo supplies.
    I've been making my own film developer, but still typically had ordered fixer and paper developer from B&H. (usually in conjunction with a valuable quantity of film or paper)

    I have ordered from formulary directly, but shipping is more expensive since it's further, and it's of course slower due to the distances.

  8. #18
    Corran's Avatar
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    Apr 2011
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    North GA Mountains
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    Re: B&H No Longer Shipping Chemistry

    Lame. This has already been an issue with some chemicals previously - B&H was/is the only supplier of ACU-1 and then they stopped allowing shipment of that chemical at all a few years ago. Now this.

    I haven't looked into it heavily but after ordering a bulk amount of an uncommon developer direct from Europe at a savings of over 70% from what Freestyle sells it for, I have been thinking about buying more general chemistry items direct from overseas. With Britain having voted to exit the EU I am also wondering if there will be changes in regulations furthering this possibility (not political, just stating facts here).

    Glad I stocked up on chemicals recently.

    Another option, which I've used heavily in the last couple of years, is Unique Photo. I have been very happy with their prices and service.
    Bryan | Blog | YouTube | Instagram | Portfolio
    All comments and thoughtful critique welcome

  9. #19
    sepiareverb's Avatar
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    Re: B&H No Longer Shipping Chemistry

    Quote Originally Posted by Drew Wiley View Post
    ...If you have a gripe with B&H, take it up with them...
    Quote Originally Posted by Drew Wiley View Post
    They CAN'T revise the policy. It's out of their hands...
    Which is it? Now I'm really confused.


    Quote Originally Posted by Drew Wiley View Post
    ...I can drive five minutes the other direction and get a lot of common darkroom chemicals...
    How do you stand it man? 5 minutes the wrong way down the road. Must be heartbreaking.


    Quote Originally Posted by Drew Wiley View Post
    ...But I have had specialty products shipped in not only from Formulary in Montana but various chem suppliers in NYC itself...
    Most of us are void your special connections to Amidol/Beers Variant 2 or home-brewed Ilfosol-3 better than the original flown in by carrier pigeon or canadaian goose driven ballon. We are forced to get the supplies we actually use from actual suppliers like B&H who have delivered chemistry reliably and in a consistent time frame for the last twenty plus years. A change in this is important to us. I understand your private stock isn't affected, but for us on the other side of the tracks this is an important change. Not to mention the potential downstream effects on small chemistry companies. If B&H now sells something like LPD in 10% the quantity that it did last year that may be the end of LPD. While you will likely already have someone formulating you a better private label version, most of the LPD users will be SOL.


    Quote Originally Posted by Drew Wiley View Post
    ... Just buy what you need elsewhere.
    Oh right.

  10. #20
    sepiareverb's Avatar
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    Re: B&H No Longer Shipping Chemistry

    Quote Originally Posted by Corran View Post
    ...I haven't looked into it heavily but after ordering a bulk amount of an uncommon developer direct from Europe at a savings of over 70% from what Freestyle sells it for, I have been thinking about buying more general chemistry items direct from overseas...
    I have done this as well. Got a great deal on the new version of Neutol NE in 5L jugs from FotoImpex. Even with the shipping a good bit less than Freestyle had it at the time. I decanted it into one-shot glass bottles and just finished the last of it about a year ago. Tho the pricing when I needed to re-stock made Freestyle a better deal on 1L bottles.

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