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I used to work in McKinnels in Kirkcudbright.
I bought a few old drawer storage units for my workshop from graham when he shut up shop, the shop had the usual musty hardware store smell and I’ve still got my telescopic fishing rod I bought as a kid back in the 80’s from him, caught my first ever salmon with it up at the lynn pool nr the power station
Carroll’s in Amersham. Quirky, apparently disorganised, but they’ve got just about anything.
There used to be a few in central London one in Soho was a favorite of mine when I was a working on nightclubs.
Romany’s near Piccadilly Circus?
Lye hardware in lye near Stourbridge was good for most bits and pieces and had about 20 brooms in a box outside with a sign saying "plenty more brooms inside" which always made me smile.
Sadly closed earlier this year.
As mentioned above, I also lived in Fleet for 30+ years and frequented Baker’s regularly, but the family weren’t prepared to take it on so sold the building.
That's a least 3 of us on here with an Fleet connection then. I tried to buy a washer for a washing machine hose from Bakers years ago and was on the receiving end of some weird in jokes between the staff, so sacked them off for B&Q thereafter sadly.
Bit jealous that it's going to be an actual bakers. I miss proper bread.
Lost Dorking's hardware store, Cummins, at the end of 2021…..now just yet another estate agent
Thorns in Norwich, possibly my favourite shop.
Long gone now but Fraser & McColl in Inverness, even worked there when I was at school. Happy days, measuring out nails by the pound.
No-one mentioned Webb’s of Crickhowell? Picked up some Danish oil and a nice fireproof gauntlet there a few months back. Was quite tempted by a very snazzy log splitter device, but unfortunately I never actually have cause to split any logs.
Was just about to! I went to school with the owner's son and spent many, many hours in there hunting down bits for projects etc. Nowhere near as good as it used to be for that kind of thing but they have gone quite a bit upmarket on the furniture and white goods side in the 20+ years since then. Still very rarely leave without something to do the job though. Last trip there I walked out with a bag of imperial nuts and bolts and some strimmer cord while the lady beside me was ordering roughly £2.5k worth of bespoke furniture to be delivered to her posh house in London!
now defunct Goldings in Bedford was brilliant as it was also a model shop. Creaky worn wooden floor boards and a wonderful smell.
Nails by the pound, yes, used to do that. I remember the cottage hospital brought a guy down to the shop to weigh him as our big scales went up to a huge number. If I remember right he was over 3 hunnerweight.
We’re still selling nails by the pound (OK, kilo) and to spend so time sorting them out as in the depths of time someone had put some 2” nails in with the inch-and-a-half’s! I can also confirm that 5 handfuls of 3/4” clout nails is about half-a-kilo 😀.
We get some of the best laughs when questioning customers (regular locals usually) about their strange combinations of purchases - bottles of drink, cable-ties and gaffer tape are surprising frequent!
<p style="text-align: left;">Used to be one in Chesterfield on Chatsworth road. Unfortunately the owner passed away a few years ago and it’s now some clothes boutique</p>
@jeffl - was just asking my mum about this last week, she needs a grub screw for her garage lock. My dad used to take me down there as a kid and spend (what felt like) hours staring at stuff. I was bored. But how I wish it was still there now. My memory of the old boy was just like a Ronnie's sketch.
Worley's Hardware Store in Rhydypenau, Cardiff often comes up with the goods when other places don't. Focussed on home and light gardening stuff. And, against stereotype, run by a very helpful asian guy.
Latimers of Langholm
Jacks Ironmonger Lanark
Boa in Biggar
Lindsay in Golspie
or
https://www.bordertelegraph.com/news/selkirk/19505716.tribute-andy-scott-1931-2021/
T R Keddie still going in Selkirk, but in an old industrial unit now.
Norton's in Uppingham.
We had a great one in Newhaven when I lived there. Survived despite having a Do It All and a B&Q in the town. But I guess it couldn't also survive the advent of online shopping and now ironically it's the job centre
Brighton still has Dockerills, opened their first shop in 1915 mainly selling bicycles and spares, nice bit on their website about their history here
I must have walked past Dockerills loads of times while living in Brighton and didn't even know it was there, probably because I was usually on the way home from the pub. Does the Mash Tun still have the Dead Pool board behind the bar?
I used to work near Dockerills in the mid 90's, there were stories about a tunnel from their celler to the dome, apparently dateing back to the regency period when the royal stables were there. I never did find out whether there was any truth in this.
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Some of the places I deal with are a bit of both/open to the public, the ones I mentioned above are.
My local hardware suppliers are all irrigator’s cooperatives. 10 years back they were a strange place to go in a way as they weren’t really geared up for household things, but they’ve pivoted (irrigation joke 😬) and now I can go in and buy anything from a culvert pipe to a tube of superglue.
They’re ugly as sin though. I miss the places I used to go with my dad as a kid where you got a brown paper bag with the exact number of bits and bolts you wanted.
I remember Pollards in Bletchley, proper goldmine of a place.
Now my local hardware shop is the (locally) famous Towy Works.