Bricklink Seller Review - Plastic Bricks Direct

I have a little bit of a problem.  Not a big one, mind you.  But it's a spending habit.  Not just any spending either.  Hi, my name is Brian and I'm a LEGO-holic.  I used to spend my hard earned cash on plastic bricks.  It started off small, just a little here and there.  But then I discovered how to buy AND sell to make a profit.  Then my spending got rampant and soon I did nothing but peruse stores on Bricklink hour after hour.  I'd make some money and then just spend it as soon as I could.  Soon my wife got worried about the amount of time I spent on the computer.  At least I tried to keep the kids on my side.  I'm trying to seek help but y'know what?  I really don't care.

I figure the best thing I can do with my habit is to help you with yours.  If you're going to spend money you want to be sure that you're getting good product and good service, right?  I purchase many of my loose bricks from Bricklink sellers.  The rest I get from parting out sets before I sell the unusable (to me) bits.  Bricklink's feedback system is great but it only gives you a limited amount of characters to describe all the parts of the transaction.  What you want is a more detailed synopsis.

Profile
Seller: Plastic Bricks Direct
Store: http://www.bricklink.com/store.asp?p=PBD
Feedback (at time of writing): 20177 (!)
Feedback Ratio: 99.96%
Location: USA, Washington
Prices: On par with 6 month average

My Order
Order Size: 27 lots, 398 pieces
Condition: 100% New
Shipping Charge: Actual cost
Extra Fees: Flat, $1
Final Cost per Part: $0.09

Timeline
Order Date: Feb 2
Invoice Date: Feb 3
Payment Date: Feb 3
Shipping Date: Feb 5
Delivery Date: Feb 8
Issue Communication?: Feb 9
Issue Resolved?: Feb 11

Order Details
Why this store: Had enough quantity of one specific part and a good selection of other wanted list items.
Packaging: Bubble mailer, all parts bagged by lot and then collected in one large Ziploc.
Part condition: Excellent
Communication: Excellent
Feedback left: Positive
Odd telltale signs: none
Issues: One lot missing, one lot shorted, one lot included variants
Issue Resolution:  Missing parts were sent immediately

Recommendation
Definitely shop here.  Staff are friendly, communication is great, service is top notch and prices are reasonable.

The issue including variants deserves a little more description.  According to their terms:

Disclaimer: We try our best to differentiate between the "new" style and "old" style plates and bricks, and other variations of LEGO product but sometimes get them mixed together. The variations DO NOT affect the performance of the element! If you specifically need one or the other, please let us know and we'll try our best to accommodate you! Some examples include: 3x2 Inverted Slopes (with/without stud supports), 1x1 Headlight Bricks (with/without slots), 2x2 Round Plates ("x" or "+" axle hole), 1x2 Technic Bricks with Axle Hole ("X" or "+" hole), and Minifig Seats (with/without sprue marks).

I had ordered 20 1x2 jumper plates without groove.  Since both grooved and non-grooved variants are listed it seemed reasonable that this particular part was not included in the above disclaimer.  What I received were mostly grooved ones.  When I mentioned this I was told to let them know in the future to make sure I received the ones I wanted.  I pointed out that both variants are listed which led me to believe that they were distinguished by this store.  This is being looked into.

Normally I wouldn't care whether they were grooved, non-grooved, or groovalicious.  Since these were going to be exposed on the face of the build I needed a smooth surface.  Otherwise it would have been a non-issue.  Lesson learned is be sure to ask every time if it matters.  Just because I distinguish every last variant in my store to satisfy my OCD doesn't mean everyone has to.

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