GoodBuyGuys Blog

It may be the last day of April, but I just fell for a great April Fools Joke. It started when I googled “extension cord” to see how we were doing with that search engine. Much to my surprise, one of the page one search results took me to ThinkGeek for an ariticle about “wireless extension cords.” That’s right. WIRELESS EXTENSION CORDS!

When much of your business is based on cables and the tape that is used to temporarily affix them to the floor, then a concept like this is pretty scary.

I immediately sent a link to this article to one of our resident gadget geeks and asked him if he thought that this was possible. His analysis was “possible, yes” “safe, no.” He even referenced some work by Nikola Tesla from the late 19th century to support his opinion.

While it does appear that common household current could be turned into microwaves and transmitted wirelessly, it would create all sorts of electrical havoc, as well as more than a little risk for anyone who got in the signal’s path.

I couldn’t resist doing a little more research and found that lots of gadget oriented web sites like digg.com and the daily giz whiz had picked up on this article as well. Everyone had an opinion.

When I realized that the price for this potentially revolutionary consumer device was only $34.99, I couldn’t resist so I clicked on “Add To Cart”. Instead of a confirmation of my order, here’s what I got:

GoodBuyGuys.com is your online source for Shurtape gaffers tape, Duracell Procell batteries, MagLite flashlights, Nashua duct tape, Bay State wire ties, Electratrac and Coast Wire extension cords, OnStage Stand mic stands .

If you check by here periodically, you may remember that I wrote about a change in Permacel 665 back in February. The focus of my post was about how pricing on Permacel 665 gaffers tape was out of sync with the rest of the industry and how I anticipated that further changes were in the wind.

Were they ever!

Without any warning, a pallet of gaffers tape that hit our loading dock last week was in Shurtape boxes, even though we had ordered Permacel 665. The boxes were the familiar red and white and the product info said 665, but the name Permacel did not appear anywhere on the carton. The name that has been synonymous with gaffers tape since it was first brought to market had simply disappeared.

The next day brought a couple more surprises. When we received shipments of Permacel Professional Grade Gaffers Tape and Permacel 724 Paper Label Tape they were also in red & white Shurtape boxes with Shurtape cores. The “724″ and “Professional Grade” product designations survived, but, again, no sign of the name Permacel anywhere.

Since we got no advance warning about this branding change, we were not able to build up any significant inventory of these products with the Permacel brand. Anything you get from us from now on will be Shurtape, not Permacel.

We are beginning the task of chaning the info in hundreds of web pages to show this change. We appreciate your patience and apologize for any confusion you might encounter.

If you would like to know a little more about this branding change, here is a link.

GoodBuyGuys.com is your online source for Shurtape gaffers tape, Duracell Procell batteries, MagLite flashlights, Nashua duct tape, Bay State wire ties, Electratrac and Coast Wire extension cords, OnStage Stand mic stands, and lots of other useful tape products.

You can file this device under “wish I’d thought of it first“. Monster Cable, the company known for its high end (and high priced) audio cable has released their “Outlets To Go Power Strip“, a stripped down, light weight version of the “found under every desk” AC power outlet strip. This device is designed for travelers who run out of outlets in their hotel room or airport boarding lounge, but don’t want to lug around a full sized outlet strip.

I came across this device while listening to one of my favorite podcasts, The Daily Giz Whiz from TWIT.TV. They review an interesting new tech gadget almost every day.

Monster has managed to use half the plastic and half the cable and sell the device for twice the price of the original. They tout their FlatProfile Plug and FlatWrap Cord (both trademarked names) as making this device the perfect tote-along for power hungry road warriors. That there is a need for this device is unquestioned. The $29.95 price (about 4 times what you’d pay for a standard 6 outlet strip at Wal Mart), is another matter entirely.

Monster has done an amazing job of using their branding strategy to convince people that a wire isn’t just a wire. There has been an ongoing debate for years in the audiophile community about whether Monster Cables, particulary their speaker cables, improves sound quality. Regardless of how you might feel about that argument, the Outlets To Go strategy has nothing to do with wire quality or audio signal flow improvement. It does, however, give them the power to charge almost $30.00 for their better mousetrap.

I usually agree with the opinions voice at The Daily Giz Whiz, but I’m afraid they are willing to pay too much for not enough.

GoodBuyGuys.com is your online source for Permacel gaffers tape, Duracell Procell batteries, MagLite flashlights, Nashua duct tape, Bay State wire ties, Electratrac and Coast Wire extension cords, OnStage Stand mic stands, and lots of other power distribution products..

The online newsletter from Pro Sound News is a great source of news for the pro audio industry. It is avialble through a an online subscripton and there is always an item I find interesting.

Heil Sound, a company that made a name for itself in the 1970’s (they came up with the voice box sound heard on “Frampton Comes Alive“) is now a high end microphone manufacturer. Their special Pink Pearl Mirophone , a large diaphragm vocal mic, is being offered in a pearl pink finish in a fund raising effort for breast cancer awareness. This mic has a really flat response cure and an extremely linear cardiod pattern.

Working with the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, Heil will donate a portion of every sale of this mic to the Komen Foundation. They’ve pledged a least $6800.00 to the cause.

The Heil PR20 (pink and other colors available) has a special linux structure that handles very high sound pressure levels and is claimed to be immune from overload.

Here’s a link to the PSN story, and another link to the Heil announcement.

If you want to know more about the Heil Mic, click here.

GoodBuyGuys.com is your online source for Permacel gaffers tape, Duracell Procell batteries, MagLite flashlights, Nashua duct tape, Bay State wire ties, Electratrac and Coast Wire extension cords, OnStage Stand mic stands, and many other products sound pros need.

We’ve been selling a product called tie line for a long time. It is used by lots of theatrical and special events production companies for tasks like drapery hanging, bundling and cable management. It is also known by the name “trick line” becuase its matte black color means that you can’t see it on a darkened stage or against a black backdrop. Its handy for all sorts of special effects.

There’s not really a lot that can be done to improve this braided cotton cord. Or that’s what I thought until we received our first shipment from a new supplier for this product. For years, the tie line we sold had been wrapped on cardboard spools. I have used this product a lot myself over the years, and it seemed like before the tie line was gone that the spool had ripped, collapsed, or completely disintegrated through rough handling and packing into road cases and tool boxes.

This new tie line supplier had spooled their product on a heavy-duty plastic spool and it works much, much better. The spool can stand up to rough handling, sweaty palms and a little rain on an outdoor event site. The product is the same but it is now offered in a much better package.

This new vendor is also supplying us with new smaller 300 foot spools, so now you can buy a spool that will fit in your tool box or under the seat of your truck. No need to lug around a lifetime supply if you only need a small amount.

If you need tie line, but aren’t sure whether to buy the glazed or unglazed version, here’s a little info that might help. If you intend to tie and untie the knots over and over againg (say, for cable ties) use unglazed. It does not hold a knot as tightly. If your use is for something more permanent (e.g. tying a drape onto a truss or batten) use glazed. Knots tied with glazed time line remain tightly bound over a long period of time.

I never cease to be amazed at how a simple change in packaging can dramatically change the way I look at a product.

GoodBuyGuys.com is your online source for Permacel gaffers tape, Duracell Procell batteries, MagLite flashlights, Nashua duct tape, Bay State wire ties, Electratrac and Coast Wire extension cords, OnStage Stand mic stands, and lots of other useful supplies for cable management.

When you have a domain like buyextensioncord.com and it includes a toll free telephone number, you get a lot of questions. Taking the time to research customer queries has been a great way to grow our business.

Today, we got a call from someone who needed extension cords to use in large walk-in freezers. The cables he was using were freezing and could no longer be coiled. It was easy to understand his problem, but not quite so easy to find the solution.

If you have ever taken the time to look closely at an extension cord, you’ll see that there is a lot of difficult-to-decipher information printed on or embossed into the cable. This information tells you what environments the cable is designed to be used in and the amount of current that it is safely rated to carry.

Putting this info directly on the cable is required if Underwriters Laboratory is going to give the item its blessing as something safe for consumers to use. Here’s a useful link to safety info from UL about extension cords and how they are rated.

In doing a little research for this customer I came across a very nice diagram of how extension cords are made and the characteristics that give each type of cable its unique rating. Here’s a link.

It turns out that the info our customer needed is included in a 3-5 digit code found on all extension cords. The code is assigned by the National Electrical Code and the data in question usually starts with the letter “S”.

If you want to know a little more, click here.

Anyway, it turns out our customer is going to need a cable with a jacket specification of SJEOW. The “O” in this code means that the cable has a thermoplastic jacket (flexible at low temperatures) and the “W” means that it is rated for outdoor use. Extension cords with this rating will remain flexible down to -45 degrees F.

GoodBuyGuys.com is your online source for Permacel gaffers tape, Duracell Procell batteries, MagLite flashlights, Nashua duct tape, Bay State wire ties, Electratrac and Coast Wire extension cords, OnStage Stand mic stands, and lots of other useful supplies for temporary power distribution.

There’s an interesting feature on NPR these days, about once a week, called “This I Believe”. It’s a modern take on a broadcast feature from the 1950’s started by Edward R. Murrow. This weeks essay features Craig Newmark, the founder of Craig’s List. A couple of things really resonated with me regarding Mr. Newmark’s essay.

Craig Newmark has consistently refused to sell his website, even though it is estimated that it would fetch tens of millions of dollars. He enjoys the community he has built and he doesnt’ want to turn it over to someone else whose motives might be very different from his own. Instead of being the CEO directing a staff who manages a huge domain in cyberspace, he spends his days in customer service. It’s what he really enjoys.

As our business grows, I find that I am constantly being drawn away from what I enjoy most-talking to customers about solving their problems. I like to think that thirty-some years in the special events business has given me some unique insights into subjects like taping down cables and choosing the correct microphone stand. Answering the phone and responding to customers’ email inquiries is the only way to know if the knowledge that I have accumulated over the years is of any real value to anyone else. Using what we learn from our customers can then be incorporated into our websites and the information is available whenever anyone needs it.

The other observation in Craig Newmark’s “This I Believe” is his continuing affirmation that most people are honest and have good intentions. I have to make decisions every day regarding whether or not it is a good idea to extend credit to a new customer. Our experience with customers defaulting on their obligations is amazing. Everyone pays their bills. The default rate is less the 1/10 of 1% and this number has been consistent for years. Having our decisions about credit constantly reaffirmed makes us feel really good about the customers who want to work with us.

I doubt if I’ll ever get around to recording a “This I Believe” essay of my own, but it is good to know I share some beliefs with a cyberhero like Craig Newmark.

GoodBuyGuys.com is your online source for Permacel gaffers tape, Duracell Procell batteries, MagLite flashlights, Nashua duct tape, Bay State wire ties, Electratrac and Coast Wire extension cords, OnStage Stand mic stands, and lots of other useful supplies for entertainment production.

I always enjoy seeing synergy between our customers, even when they might not know that they all have a common relationship with us. When you sell an item everybody uses over and over (we call it “being at the bottom of the food chain”) then you can become a common link among lots of different customers.

One example of this synergy is coming together later this month in Greensboro. The Carolina Theatre (a long time customer of ours) is hosting the debut of Spiritual Cake, a film made as a collaboration between UNC Greensboro and Piedmont Community College. Both of these NC schools have film making curriculums and provide technicians for the North Carolina film and television industries.

Both film programs buy expendables from us and we are pleased to see their collaboration. It is a good sign that the money that the people of North Carolina have invested in education is going to the right place. The idea that there will be jobs in our state for these student film makers may be the only real reason to support the tax breaks that this industry has been given by the NC Legislature.

The debut of Spiritual Cake takes place at the Carolina Theatre in Greensboro on April 20 at 7:30 pm and is open to the public. Your ticket is good for the film screening as well as a reception featuring blues and gospel music by Roy Roberts. The cost is only $10.00.

Here’s a great opportunity to support the NC arts community. See you there!

GoodBuyGuys.com is your online source for Permacel gaffers tape, Duracell Procell batteries, MagLite flashlights, Nashua duct tape, Bay State wire ties, Electratrac and Coast Wire extension cords, OnStage Stand mic stands, and lots of other useful products for audio production.