Why does it take so long to get my kit?

We do things differently than a lot of our competitors, and though the company was born in Seattle, we are definitely not Amazon. We are a small company and while our sonic quality is generally higher and our prices are generally lower you may have to wait a while to get your order. When we receive your payment your order goes into the processing queue. There will almost always be some orders in the queue ahead of yours.

And so it can take a few weeks to see your kit. We have a shipping status page to keep our customers informed of the shipping status of our products – potential backorders, when we have kits ready to ship, and everything in between. We try to update this page weekly.

The main parts for your kit like chassis plates, Bottlehead transformers and wood bases are made in small quantities by US manufacturers we have inherited close relationships with. They have a reputation for being the best at what they do, and because of that there are times when demand for their services creates a delay in getting parts to us. We try to keep plenty of stock of major parts on hand, but sometimes there are backorders and you just have to be patient if you want the best quality you can get for the best price you can get.

By charging orders the day they come in we have the cash flow to operate on a cash basis with these manufacturers. This means we send a check with every purchase order rather than asking them to carry us for 30 to 90 days or more like a lot of manufacturers do. And in that way we keep our costs down.

And sometimes we must order in relatively small quantities and it takes some time for all the individual parts in your kit to come to us to be packed together.

We have a very small staff. In order for us to operate efficiently we must process the orders in batches. There are so many products in our lineup that on average orders for each product get processed about every two to four weeks, give or take. Hence the average wait time for your custom packed to order kit to ship is four weeks, give or take a week or two.

If you are buying a product to be assembled by our factory authorized tech, understand that we have to put your order in line with other kits. There may be other orders ahead of yours and it may take a while to get your kit ready for the technician who will build it.

If you are getting fidgety about getting your kit may we suggest participating on the Bottlehead forum after you order. There is all sorts of great info about each kit, assembly tips, mods, finishing ideas, tool suggestions, etc. that make for great study material in preparation for the arrival of your kit.

Common Ordering Questions

“Can I use more than one card to pay?”

Our shopping cart cannot do this, but there are two easy work-arounds. If you are paying with PayPal, you can go into your PayPal account and transfer money into it from various sources, then use your PayPal balance to pay. Alternately, you can buy yourself a gift card with the first card, then use that gift certificate along with your second card to buy your kit.

“What about ordering more than one kit…?”

You are more than welcome to do this. If you buy two full kits (say, a Crack and a Moreplay) at the same time, you get a discount on both. You will be charged shipping on all items you order. Sometimes kits can ship in the same box, in which case you will be sent a refund for any overpaid postage when your order ships. The ability to ship items together is tied to the shipping queues of all items, and is not always feasible. Also, the heavier the box, the more abuse it will take in shipping, so it’s not always the best option. If you are ordering multiple kits (whether the same or different) and you have a strong preference either way about combined shipping, please make a note in the “Order Notes” box on checkout.