Folks Of Interest Anyone live near Howell sheet metal?

So it looks as if I’m the next in line having problems with these guys. Ordered parts damn near two months ago, my card was charged for damn near $1000.I was told parts would go out in about a week after I ordered because they had to make one of the parts.They will not answer phone calls and emails do not go thru. I don’t mind the wait but the lack of service and being charged is absolutely ridiculous.

 

Barrow someone else's cell phone and they will probably pickup. Guessing they put your number on the do not answer board.

 

Howell's is very slow. They are there. They don't always answer the phone for some reason and you have to catch them at the right time.
Don't bother emailing them. It's fruitless.
You'll get your stuff. I hate to say it but you just have to be patient.
They're annoying as hell!

 

I had to go Google it to see where they were, and I couldn't help be see all the horrible reviews and comments about them. There was a link for the better business bureau about them and it didn't take long to realize I wouldn't trade with them. But it did seem that a lot of people were thanking the BBB for helping them resolve their issue, might be an avenue to check out. Sounds to me like they make a lot of promises that they know they are lying about.

 

I’ve always gotten good parts from them in the past. Sort of between a rock and a hard place when it come to model T sheet metal.

 

That's usually how it works when they corner the market on something. They get too big for their britches lol.

 

They sell a lot on eBay and because of their reputation that’s the only way I will buy from them. They don’t answer questions there either but always ship in a timely manner so they don’t get banned by eBay

 

I'm thinking that their rep has always been good quality and slow. I'm also pretty sure that they are like a lot of other small low employee count operations in that Today we are making 1023 left front fenders, tomorrow we make the right fronts. Next Thursday we are going to do a batch of cowl patch panels.

 

I only buy their stuff from ebay or a stocking vendor who has the parts in stock. I recently bought patch panels and door skin from them on ebay. In less than two weeks the parts arrived.

 

Yup, never ever deal direct with them, it will make your hair grey. Only buy their products from ebay or a vendor.

 

I've been to their shop, I honestly expected a bit more in regards to "having the orig stamping plates" There was hardly any industrial stamping machines, most of the stuff like cowl patches were ran on a bead roller. Their shop is 1.5 hrs from me, they have a decent amount of stock on the shelves. Their office is pretty cool and old, there is alot of disarray everywhere. After the hurricane a year ago we tried to stop by 3 months after and they were still closed. So I am amazed they opened back up. On the phone they are not the best, in person they are better for sure. The shop and building is from the 40s... Its cool to see. Beaumont Texas is a drag, so don't expect to see anything else while there.. If you go and like scary bridges, go hit the Rainbow Bridge by Bridge city. Steep and narrow.

 

Built in '36...bet it is scary!

 

Howells come up now and then in regards to the same issue when ordering directly. Some get the parts from them in two weeks, some two years.
In one thread I read what I thought was a pretty good reason.
They make a run of an item. The sales slow from them directly, so it goes to eBay for more exposure to sell off excess inventory and bring in $$. Makes sense why no one complains about what is listed, doesn’t take long to arrive.
If you happen to call them and they have the item already made, it gets sent out pretty quickly.
If you call for what’s not available, they take the order, wait until they have enough orders to set up and do them all.
All my non-personal experience with them, I still haven’t read about more than less than a handful that were not pleased with what they received.
I’ve also never read that anyone got “taken”.
When I used to frequent the FordBarn, it was “order your stuff from them now, not when you need it”.

 

It’s been aggravating for sure. As far as eBay the parts I needed I did not find on eBay that is why I had to order direct.

 

Last time I tried to buy direct they said it was in stock and would ship tomorrow. About a month later, no part yet, I found out that piece was made by Tom Bay and supplied to Howells, so I bought one from him, and canceled from Howells. It seems they remember your phone # and after a while don't answer when you call

 

27 out of 58 reviews rate Howells with one star, I think I see a pattern. HRP

 

It's already been said but I've heard the same thing too, if they don't have it listed on eBay they don't have any in stock, and buying one from them directly is just putting yourself on a pre-paid waiting list.

I bought a sway bar for my '57 Chevy from Addco this spring and it took like 4 months to get it, of course their website doesn't mention the long wait until after you place your order. The only similar bar available was some Johnny Law/Hoffman group trash so I didn't have much choice.

 

So after several months of calling Howell sheet metal they finally answered there phone today. Preceded to tell him who I was what I ordered and when, then told him my card had been charged for the order two months ago and no parts in my possession. So after 10 minutes on the phone listening to papers get shuffled I came to the conclusion that he charged my card and somehow forgot to send the order out. So the end of the conversation the guy says he’s personally going to gather all the parts and get them sent. I guess I’ll believe it when there’s almost $1000 worth of sheetmetal on my front porch. I hope anyone else ordering from this company has better luck than I did.

 

Just ordered a panel from Howell's thru E bay. Delivery date is 12-13 thru 12-19.
We'll see how this works out. E bay is kind of weird. I looked for this panel for 30 minutes on their site and could find nothing and the while just looking on browse, there it was on E bay.
Says they sold 6 and had 6 in stock.

 

Word is that they pay more attention to their Ebay sales than they do to other methods.

I'm thinking that there are a number of car parts suppliers who rely mostly on Ebay to market their products. Davis Speed who sell brackets and widgets for six cylinders does that.

 

After reading horror stories on here I wouldn't order from them even though I live in Texas. However I bought Model A floor pans & body wood from them at the Pate swap meet in Texas. Parts were high quality & very good fit.He had a lot of stuff at Pate & was people were buying him out very quickly. I met the owner & he is a real nice guy. Don't know why he has issues shipping stuff. I still won't order from them but if I need something I will drive down there on wait until the Pate swap meet.

 

How hard could it be to make your own parts for a model T?

 

Ahh let’s see, I needed the deck lid inner structure and skin for a roadster. Pieces that have compound curves that I cannot make and look correct. There were other pieces ordered also but that’s not the point of why I started this thread.

 

Not everyone is a master metal man hand fabbing any panel they need.

 

I’ve got some of their T parts.
It was cheaper than me making them
But I’d prefer to make my own next time.
If I got to finish the fab work, I guess I’d prefer to do it all.
It’s the something is better than nothing I guess.
Service? It’s what I expected.
But I don’t expect a lot
Small businesses in a niche market do the best they can or however they want

 

Buy my Howell parts through Bert’s Model A Store…
… never a problem

 

If it's 32-34 Ford parts you need, call Tom Bay @ R&J Enterprises 620-441-0032. More than likely, he's the one that actually makes the parts you're trying to order anyway. He's old school and doesn't have a website, but he won't give you the runaround. Very nice guy and a pleasure to deal with. When you order from him you'll actually get your order. He doesn't take credit cards though.

 

Yeah don’t need 32-4 parts. I’m building a T roadster. I’ve been to Bays shop many years ago.

 

I’ve a theory

But before has anyone been inside the facility? Actually seen what pieces are racked and stored?

My theory is that they take orders, set up the manpower to fulfill the orders, then ship.
Maybe a small operation that does quality work?

But after time passes, some cancel the order, then those pieces go to eBay, etc.

 

Could be. I just want my parts and this will be the last T I build and I will not have to deal with this company again.