I'd exploit this one. I too believe that the big box stores get inferior quality items. Stores with big buying power often pressure suppliers to lower costs which may mean cheapening some of the internals or sacrificing quality. Ever seen the quality of Home Depot cedar wood? Yeesh.
Call them again and say that you DID purchase from there, and see what they say.
With the quantities HD and Lowes must move all across north america, its possible that they want you to return to point of purchase.
[This message has been edited by Sandro (edited 09-29-2006).]
