I've been very satisfied with my 4-Stage Citation HVLP; however, a
rude surprise awaited when I ordered the $13.75 filter kit.

Upon seeing the Shipping and Handling costs for the first time on
their site -- it was a whopping $11.75 -- I closed my browser,
considered the order cancelled. No confirmation screen, no warning
message to indicate the order was placed, nothing.

Imagine my surprise when an email confirmation arrived in my inbox!

To their credit, Jan of Axis called today and apologized, is sending a
$2.50 refund against my protests, the difference between the UPS rate
Axis had selected and the USPS lowest cost.

Of course, those of us familiar with the eBay tactic of writing profit
into S&H are wary of high costs.

In this case, Axis wasn't gouging; instead, they are over the UPS/
FedEx/USPS proverbial barrel, when it comes to small orders.

The solution: the outer filter can be bought in bulk at WalMart for
pennies, the less-often-replaced inner filter (much like the cheaper
AC filters for your home), is a Glassfloss G7-1 and can be bought
online cheaply. Or, it can be refilled with a clean element for next
to nothing.

Meanwhile, I'm stuck with a $23 scrap of foam and a tiny paper
element.

Jan promises that a re-vamp of Axis' website is ongoing, that future
purchases might not be similarly trapped.