# Why you shouldn't bring things just because



## NickZ (Jun 26, 2009)

Not much of a cautionary tale but it's short 


I'm supposed to be painting my apartment and since I needed a few things I went shopping. Came home with paint,a new paint brush and the soon to be infamous paint roller. I have an extension handle that's literally crossed the ocean with me. Sturdy,well made and the definition of old reliable. First thing I did was grab the new roller and try to screw it on. Nope. At first I thought it was a size issue but when I examined the roller I realized it didn't have any threading inside 

Okay no problem. It's a cheaper roller. Back I go to the store and I search the shelves. All alike. All intended to fit this crappy plastic handle they sell. Nope that wasn't going to work. Next store. Same result. Next store. No change.

After spending way too much time and effort driving around town I surf over to Amazon. Should be easy. Right? Not really. The Italian website didn't describe the rollers this way. Oh they had one American roller for €50 that might have worked but that was all I could easily find. Over to Amazon.uk. A few more minutes wasted but I found what looks like it might work. Luckily it's also for sale on Amazon.it . Not much of a description but might/should work.

Now I just need to wait for the delivery.


If I hadn't brought the handle I would have bought a matching handle to begin with :tongue: and saved myself all this effort.


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## NickZ (Jun 26, 2009)

And the saga continues.

Roller came. You didn't know Amazon delivers on Sunday but they do. Fits perfectly. Seems nice. 

Of course it uses a standard sleeve which seems rarer than hens teeth in Italy. I've had to order a set which includes five sleeves and a NEW roller. Anything else would have cost quite a bit more.

At this rate it would have been easier and cheaper to fly to the UK and get exactly what I needed in person.


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## Troz (Jan 29, 2018)

I too have found it unexpectedly difficult to find what I thought would be standard hardware items in Italy.

A nearby "big box" hardware chain is called Brico Io (https://www.bricoio.it/) I have had moderate success finding things there, and they seem to have a national presence.

edit: and I have also had some success at one of the cheap places run by Chinese people. Because they buy low-cost stuff in from China it seems to be more likely to meet international (or at least US) standards. My local one is called "Rispaworld" but they don't seem to have their own website.


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## GeordieBorn (Jul 15, 2016)

Thing I found with Brico was there were more staff there than customers. Obviously there was a reason for this…. I suspect great Italian customer-service is one, but they are also quite expensive. I’ve found little that the local ferramenta does not sell if you ask. The latter is a must as they keep most of their stuff (especially the good stuff) in the Aladdin’s cave in the back.


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## NickZ (Jun 26, 2009)

I've been to Leroy Merlin who I think are French but around much of Europe. Pratiko which I think are Italian. There isn't a Brico near me . It's an hour drive. The Brico I used to go to wasn't bad price wise. It just wasn't good -) 

Of course it took almost that long on Amazon to find the item I wanted. It's there but impossible to find easily. Worse Amazon.it themselves don't stock everything. The item I would have been happy with was from a third party and had a €20 shipping charge. No thanks. I bought five for not much more than half that.

It seems all the pro painters using brushes and watery paint. Works for them but I can't imagine it working for me.


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## NickZ (Jun 26, 2009)

Actually the problem isn't so much the shops it's me. I expect certain things and don't even look closely. Get the item at home and it's like oops.


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