Generator model# confusion

953 Views 3 Replies 3 Participants Last post by Arnold Ziffel, Dec 20, 2012

Ultrarunner2017

Discussion Starter · Dec 10, 2012

Hi;
I am looking at the Briggs & Stratton portable generators.
On their website, they have a 5,000 Watt model # 030467-0. Sears online sells this model for $620.
So I go to Home Depot website, and find a B&S 5,000 Watt generator with a different model#; 30422, sold for $600.

I cannot find the 30422 listed anywhere on B&S website, so I am assuming this is a model manufactured exclusively for Home Depot.

Can anyone tell me what the difference between these models is, and whether or not I would be OK to purchase a unit at Home Depot, or should I go to an authorized B&S dealer and get the manufacturer's model?

Thanks for your help

FW

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TTW

· #2 · Dec 10, 2012

A retail thing...

Lowes, HD, Sears, etc may all sell the exact same doohickey, made in the same factory, by the same people, with the same parts.

What they will do though, is use different model numbers and bar codes.

2 reasons,
1- makes it near impossible to do price matching as they can claim it's not the same thing.

2- So you can't buy it at one store and return it to another.

Having said that though, one could be made with cheaper parts, so sometimes it's very hard to tell.

For a $20.00 difference, I would buy the one with the better warranty.

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Ultrarunner2017

Discussion Starter · #3 · Dec 10, 2012

TTW said:
A retail thing...

Lowes, HD, Sears, etc may all sell the exact same doohickey, made in the same factory, by the same people, with the same parts.

What they will do though, is use different model numbers and bar codes.

2 reasons,
1- makes it near impossible to do price matching as they can claim it's not the same thing.

2- So you can't buy it at one store and return it to another.

Having said that though, one could be made with cheaper parts, so sometimes it's very hard to tell.

For a $20.00 difference, I would buy the one with the better warranty.

Thanks;
I hadn't noticed the warranty difference, but I have read about other items sold at big-box stores often do not have the same warranty, and can be made from inferior parts as well.
so I guess my best bet is to go to a local authorized dealer.

FW

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Arnold Ziffel

· #4 · Dec 20, 2012 (Edited)

Back in a previous life, I was the national sales manager for a company selling to retail chains, including Ace, True Value and Wal-Mart.

We were making housewares items, not power equipment, but to hit a price point, we would periodically modify an item (by making it less expensively). The old joke was that Wal-Mart would make you cut off the teddy bear’s ears and make him skinnier so they could sell him for $3.99.

I’m not sure if this is the same case here, but those item numbers may be different because one retailer put the squeeze on, and had the manufacturer cheapen the item in some way. You periodically hear that a power tool’s bushings are plastic or some other substitution has been made in the big box store’s version, and that’s why the stock number is different.

A client of mine selling lawn and garden equipment to Home Depot, Wal-Mart and Lowe's told me that they reduce the cost of the item by using lower quality parts for their giant customers' custom versions.

The best approach is to call the company and ask if there is any difference at all between the different item numbers. Often you have to call more than once to get someone in tech support (not customer service) who knows the difference. Or stick with your smaller dealer.

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