I wouldn't mind knowing the exact reason myself, as I tend to do most shopping an Amazon. It would be good to know if I am cheating myself somewhere. Although overall i have found competitive prices and a good selection there. No vintage parts, of course.

However, on that note, I can say that the down side to ordering bike parts from amazon, is that amazon itself does not stock the parts. So you are actually ordering through a third party, so ship times could be different and you might not get the same service. I had a bad experience ordering center pull brake cable, It got lost in the mail, and the seller was not that great about fixing the problem. I had to tell them to send another one and they were more worried about me sending the the original if i ever received it.

What i do like is that they still have a wide range of products, even if it is through different sellers, many of them still adhere to the prime membership. So, as I was shopping around for parts for my rebuild, it was just easier to order all the the little things I needed through them and consolidate my shipping costs. I needed pretty much everything, parts and tools...

I like that this thread has turned into a discussion on LBS Vs Online shopping for parts, ha!

As for the LBS, i guess i just need to visiting more of them till i fond the good ones. I will also check out niagara, I am always open to a good source for parts. Im open to Chicago LBS suggestions too.