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About a year ago, I overheard a conversation in my local GW where one guy talked about how it was not a good idea to order FW products directly where you live, as they often get there quite late or not at all, and that one should always have it sent to a local store instead. The way he said it, this seemed to be common knowledge. Is this true or not?

I'm in the UK and never heard of this issue; overseas might be different, however it might just be that local guy picked up a rumour and thought it was fact; or had one or two orders go astray.

As FW posts things direct from the UK I'd imagine that they don't use GW's internal postage system for items sent to US stores (because that's likely to be slower ship based shipping rather than airmail). So its going to likely go by the very same delivery service, the only difference to store delivery is that the item goes to your store instead of your house.

There's also no bonus for the shop keeper either as FW products don't count toward store purchases. So the store owner gets nothing as a benefit for you using shipping to them. So unless you need/want too you should be fine ordering and having it sent to your own address. That is if regular mail has no issues getting to you. If you know in advance that some delivery services have issues with your address then a store delivery might just make it easier.

I would think that was less something to do with Forgeworld specifically and more to do with where you live. In some places, having packages delivered to your door just winds up with someone walking off with them on the off-chance they're something good. Or the delivery guy just pretends everyone isn't home to save time, and leaves a card so you have to go pick it up from a depot.

Our local postal service fluctuates between different sorts of terrible (they either card us without checking if we're home, or leave 'signature required' parcels sitting on the mail box on a busy street - I had a 3D printer left sitting by my front gate, and another delivery just tossed over the fence into the bushes in the front garden) so these days I get as much as possible delivered to my Post Office box instead.

I'm in California and have had them deliver to me on four separate occasions (or maybe 3). No issue, really. That said, perhaps a direct pickup at the GW store makes them more careful in getting it delivered safely? Beats me

I've had orders of differing sizes and costs come directly to my house without any issues. Not sure why this person is trying to make it out to be such a big deal.

I have always ordered fw to my home. My orders have always showed up on time and intact. I live in rural Kentucky, in the mountain area, for what that's worth. The gw distribution center is located in neighboring Tennessee which may help in my case.

Gw ships FedEx, are they reliable in your area? If you are ok ordering regular gw products you should be ok with fw as they come from the same distribution center in America, which judging by the flag next to your name is where you're from.

 ArcaneHorror wrote:
About a year ago, I overheard a conversation in my local GW where one guy talked about how it was not a good idea to order FW products directly where you live, as they often get there quite late or not at all, and that one should always have it sent to a local store instead. The way he said it, this seemed to be common knowledge. Is this true or not?

Absolutely never heard of that. Everything I've ordered from FW over the course of many editions has arrived safely and on time or early to my doorstep.

In the UK this is not an issue. I order often and they arrive no problem to my door.

 ArcaneHorror wrote:
About a year ago, I overheard a conversation in my local GW where one guy talked about how it was not a good idea to order FW products directly where you live, as they often get there quite late or not at all, and that one should always have it sent to a local store instead. The way he said it, this seemed to be common knowledge. Is this true or not?

He's full of gak.

I've only had a couple FW orders come to my house. One was so late they gave me a second Blood Slaughterer for free for the hassle. This was due to a large amount of manual orders they did at Gencon a few years ago. Since then they bring tons of stock and I just pick it up in person. The other orders I've done via the website came with zero issues.

Never heard of this. You guys must live somewhere people steal packages off of porches a lot or something. Only explanation I can think of. I live out in the sticks of Western KY, so for someone to steal off my porch they've gotta be willing to drive a bit, and be fully aware that most people out here are packing heat, so that probably makes them less likely too

I've had $700 of FW stuff sitting in a huge box on my back porch before with the biggest worry being that maybe some rain would get blown under the carport and make it soggy. I've also had FW sent to a local post office back when I stayed in an RV park for college. Just treat it like anything else valuable that you would have mail ordered. If you live in a place where people steal mail be careful and send it someplace safe. Depending on the size of the box it could look pretty valuable to the average scumbag.

Always have it delivered to my home, never had an issue. I once had an issue with a FedEx delivery (not FW). Package was overdue and the online tracking didn't show its location. When I called FedEx they said they sent it back to sender because there was nobody to sign. I said I had been home all day on the expected delivery day and asked when they had tried to deliver it. The answer was 3am. They said they would get the package back to me ASAP.

For me in the UK I’ve never had an issue.
In most cases they deliver faster than GW for me.

Only time I’ve had it delivered to a store was because I swapped my work hours and I wouldn’t be in during the day.
Our local postmen like to leave things in the open, on display.

 ArcaneHorror wrote:
About a year ago, I overheard a conversation in my local GW where one guy talked about how it was not a good idea to order FW products directly where you live, as they often get there quite late or not at all, and that one should always have it sent to a local store instead. The way he said it, this seemed to be common knowledge. Is this true or not?

No more than anything else you order online.

Forge World have nothing to do with how the product gets to you. Once they ship it it's out of their hand. The idea that Forge World products would somehow have a worse track record of arriving than literally anything else doesn't make any logical sense.

Forge World's only issue is getting the product out the door. I once made the mistake of paying for express post on a pair of Macharius. From shipping to arrival in Oz took 2 days... plus the 4 or so months it took FW to actually send them. So I got express shipping... technically.

Always order to home. Never issue. Albeit they don't come directly to home but either pickup automatic box or courier's office but that's better this way anyway as I would be unlikely to be at the home at the exact time they come anyway.

Delivery time is pretty much what is to be expected for international delivery.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 H.B.M.C. wrote:

 ArcaneHorror wrote:
About a year ago, I overheard a conversation in my local GW where one guy talked about how it was not a good idea to order FW products directly where you live, as they often get there quite late or not at all, and that one should always have it sent to a local store instead. The way he said it, this seemed to be common knowledge. Is this true or not?

No more than anything else you order online.

Forge World have nothing to do with how the product gets to you. Once they ship it it's out of their hand. The idea that Forge World products would somehow have a worse track record of arriving than literally anything else doesn't make any logical sense.

Forge World's only issue is getting the product out the door. I once made the mistake of paying for express post on a pair of Macharius. From shipping to arrival in Oz took 2 days... plus the 4 or so months it took FW to actually send them. So I got express shipping... technically.

Likely case of them having to cast them. They don't have big stocks in place and manual work involved for casting so that takes time.