NPD or LMC.......?
Fleet Mechanic
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 1,508
Likes: 332
From: Arlington,Wa
Dont Forget...
Autokrafters. They have good stuff too. I've ordered from JBG and LMC. As it was posted earlier....both have good stuff, but one will have something the other don't. Prices seem to be about the same IMO. Just be for warned on the shipping from Autokrafters.....seems to take forever, but maybe that because its traveling all the way across the country.....
Post Fiend
Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 8,261
Likes: 15
From: Big Sky Country
I don't get all the LMC bashing, most of these parts are sourced from the very same overseas manufacturers irregardless of the vendor that's selling them, take the floor pans for instance, DC sells the very same thin gauged crap from Taiwan that LMC sells, you just pay 50% more at DC, if you want heavy gauged American made patch panels then go here.... Flashback F100's - USA Made Steel Made Repair Panels On This page will be only USA Made Repair Panels,, not like others that carry those Black Tawain cheap repair panels
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Freshman User
Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 38
Likes: 0
does anybody know of some not so common suppliers ? what i mean by that is , i didnt know about the above mentions bronco graveyard site until i just googled it. so im guessing there are more out there .
Freshman User
Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 40
Likes: 0
Southern Truck in Imlay city, MI. I think they ship if you don't live close by. If you can't find something on their website then if you email them they will sometimes have it and send you pics n prices. www.southern-truck.com
Tuned
Joined: May 2009
Posts: 435
Likes: 1
LMC is great to deal with; Dennis Carpenter is higher priced but carries alot of high quality products; Bronco Graveyard has been good to deal with but it seems like their shipping takes forever (and I only live one state over). Plus when I first started my build I got alot of stuff from them.......mainly because I read some LMC bashing posts, and when it came it was in an LMC bag!!!; and I've priced stuff from Green Sales and from my experience.............you better sit down because their stuff is CRAZY expensive! My advice would be to get catalogs from all of them because none of them carry everything. And like was stated previously, I get as much as I can from my local parts store. I like doing business with the small local guy and his prices are right in line with the other guys. Plus if he doesnt have it, he can get it within a day or two and I don't have to pay shipping. And those shipping costs will kill ya over the course of a build. My favorite has been LMC by far.
Certified Thread Hijacker
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 14,441
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I've ordered several different patch panels from LMC and over half have been MADE IN THE USA...
Same cannot be said for DC, Blue Oval or others.
I've ordered various parts (turn signal stalk etc.) that came in Original Ford Packaging from LMC as well.
Not that I am defending LMC, but I think their reputation is more hearsay than it is actual fact.
Josh
Same cannot be said for DC, Blue Oval or others.
I've ordered various parts (turn signal stalk etc.) that came in Original Ford Packaging from LMC as well.
Not that I am defending LMC, but I think their reputation is more hearsay than it is actual fact.
Josh
Cargo Master
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 2,674
Likes: 16
From: Ideeho
I'd have to agree that the majority of the suppliers all get their stuff from the same sources. Think about it.............just how big of a market for repro stuff is there really for '73-79 Ford truck parts??? I mean even in a global market anymore, Us guys who are into these trucks are not what you would call the majority of the aftermarket auto parts market. We are a very very small slice of it. So how big of a market is there really? To justify producing a part, there needs to be a market. If there is a market, you have to stay competetive, competition will eventually weed out those who cannot produce a quality product inexpensively................Therfore; there probably is only one or two companies who produce a "widget" specifically for a 78-79 F150 which is even a smaller slice of the aftermarket market; meaning that the myriad of aftermarket retailers will all be buying that "widget" from those one or two companies to re-sell to you and I. Thats just how big business works anymore........................
Posting Guru
Joined: Mar 2010
Posts: 1,196
Likes: 2
Some of you guys are making some seriously inaccurate statements about DC. I live about 20 mins from the DC campus and have had my share of tours and gotten to know several folks there, and have probably spent the better part of 50k there over the last decade or so. Heck, I was just involved in a Bronco get together on their campus this weekend. I'll agree, not all of their stuff is US made, and not all of their stuff is made with original Ford tooling. However, all of their parts are labeled and priced accordingly. On the main campus, the have several massive buildings filled with machinary, and a little further down the road, there is an entire DC industrial park filled with original tooling. There is also the possibility the tooling is sent out of this country to be produced elsewhere. And then they also have some product that is cheap china made crap...but more often than not, you get what you pay for and they do have the option between parts made by original tooling and parts made in sweat shops. So no...not all aftermarket suppliers are created equal.
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Senior User
Joined: Sep 2010
Posts: 363
Likes: 0
I had a poor experience with NPD, so I don't shop with them anymore. LMC has been good to me, but I always shop other sources, since they have the highest prices. If I can't get it anywhere else, I go LMC.
My bad experience with NPD was, NPD essentially changed prices on their current catalog after I made an order, jacking up prices. Since at that point, the money I sent them wouldn't cover everything I ordered, they cut out a couple things from my order, and kept the rest of the money that I sent. Never had this done from any catalog I've ordered from EVER. This was back in 2006 though, so maybe things are different now. Although catalogs have the right to change prices, every other company I've ordered through has honored their printed prices on their current catalog, except NPD.
My bad experience with NPD was, NPD essentially changed prices on their current catalog after I made an order, jacking up prices. Since at that point, the money I sent them wouldn't cover everything I ordered, they cut out a couple things from my order, and kept the rest of the money that I sent. Never had this done from any catalog I've ordered from EVER. This was back in 2006 though, so maybe things are different now. Although catalogs have the right to change prices, every other company I've ordered through has honored their printed prices on their current catalog, except NPD.
Senior User
Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 263
Likes: 0
From: spotsy va
I've ordered a lot of stuff from lmc but I have also found that certain thing are cheaper piced at ur local auto parts store but never had a problem w anything I've ordered from them I also use jbg I like them too
Senior User
Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 120
Likes: 0
From: Up nort WI
I have ordered just about every patch panel available for previous projects from LMC as well as boxsides for my current project. I have also ordered window seals, small parts, etc. At the risk of sounding like an LMC cheerleader, the stuff they sent me was as good as anything the other places had and their customer service is nothing short of amazing. When some gorilla at the shipping company decided to remodel my new panel with a forklift, the LMC customer service department was very proactive and prompt with getting a new undamaged panel on the way. In this day and age of normally lackluster customer service, there is a lot to be said for a consciencious person on the other end of the line trying to make things right when things sometimes go wrong.
5th Wheeling
Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 27
Likes: 0
From: Prescott, AZ
Part Suppliers
I've bought from LMC, Dennis Carpenter, NPD, Mac's & Obsolete. So far I haven't had any problems with any of the parts. There is also a Ford Dealer in Kansas, Bob Allen Ford, that I have gotten chassis parts from, they still stock a lot of NOS parts for the PU's. DC supposedly has a lot of the original dies and stamping parts for the trucks, but I haven't had to buy any body parts yet, as mine is a rust-free Arizona truck. Good Luck!
Senior User
Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 107
Likes: 0
I've ordered patch panels from LMC and NPD they were exactly the same parts from Taiwan. Prices were within a dollar. LMC was more in shipping but was packaged better. LMC prints new catalogs several times a year while NPD probably prints once a year or less but if you go to their website and enter in the part # you will get an accurate price (and sometime they are lower than in the catalog).
As far as the not so common suppliers, I have found that if you search for a particular part you can find some good deals and some not so good. Example: roll pan from Grant Kustoms made to order and cheapest I could find, Sir Michaels on the other hand wanted double the price.
Things that are 'aftermarket' like what appear to be DJM dream beams in the LMC catalog or 4x4 parts like Warn hubs can be found cheaper elsewhere. Same with engine parts, bearings, bushings, etc. Basically the catalogs try to hook you with the parts that you can only get through them and then they figure you need all the other stuff and charge you more for that thinking that you'll go for the convenience of getting it all in one place.
As far as the not so common suppliers, I have found that if you search for a particular part you can find some good deals and some not so good. Example: roll pan from Grant Kustoms made to order and cheapest I could find, Sir Michaels on the other hand wanted double the price.
Things that are 'aftermarket' like what appear to be DJM dream beams in the LMC catalog or 4x4 parts like Warn hubs can be found cheaper elsewhere. Same with engine parts, bearings, bushings, etc. Basically the catalogs try to hook you with the parts that you can only get through them and then they figure you need all the other stuff and charge you more for that thinking that you'll go for the convenience of getting it all in one place.
Fleet Mechanic
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,501
Likes: 1
From: Axtell, TX
There's good and bad experiences from everyone it seems. I've had good service from NPD, good and bad from LMC and JBG. Rock Auto is another lesser known parts supplier I've used, some parts are cheap and some are $$.
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