Archie's Hardware

I am a new resident, trying to save money to fix a leaky faucet. (Plus I recently found out how slow yet pricey professional house calls are in the KRV.) So while i watched numerous YouTubes and got some condescending "help" from chain hardware employees in the area, my bathtub dribble grew into a stream. Not just wasteful but getting scary $$. I was desperate! So i tried Archie's to try to find the right kind of washer and tools. The guys on the floor sent me to Jill. She not only coached me and let me borrow tools, she CAME TO MY HOUSE and returned TWICE to swap out tools and the washers and fixed it herself. She knows her stuff and cheerfully gives it away! A 21st century miracle!!!!Please know that this is NOT a service you can demand at Archie's; Jill offers her skills at HER discretion - she told me that she likes to help out other women because she understands how tough it can be for gals in the DIY/home repair field. Nevertheless I am now on Team Jill and a loyal fan forever. And Archie's is pretty high on my list, too! Very community based, broad inventory and staffed at least one amazing woman who knows her stuff and is generous and compassionate to desperate dummies! Thank you!!

This place has just about everything and anything that you would need. Forgot to bring something and you hate yourself for forgetting? Chances are, this place has it. My husband and I were looking for some AstroTurf to lay out in front of our trailer. We found exactly what we wanted and for a pretty good price. A bonus, we saw Peter Stormare from the Prisonbreak series in there getting some keys made. Totally a random place to see him too. Will definitely come back here should we need to.

Jill is such a doll and the staff there are so incredibly helpful. I always feel right at home in Archie's.

Their slogan, prominently displayed on their storefront is "Little Store Lotta Stuff" And you know what? That's a pretty accurate description! This place is small, but jam packed full of just about everything you'd need for a last minute fix-it project. They also have a section up front for cutesy artsy crafty stuff and cards.And then there is the cat. There is a beautiful charcoal gray cat whose job appears to be greeting all the customers and welcoming them to the store. He (she? - I thought it impolite to check) is very good at his job. Seriously. He followed me around the store, rubbing up against me and making it clear that I was there for his enjoyment. Don't worry, I was good at my job, too. It is worth a visit just to pet the cat..

Great place for odds and ends in Kernville area.

I love the personal service I get when I go to Archie's. The owner of the store is a super lady who knows her stuff when it comes to hardware and home projects. When I don't know exactly what to buy she always has a suggestion for me. They stock a very good selection of things from dog leashes to gardening soil and fencing, from hand tools to drywall supplies, post cement mortar, PVC pipe and fittings and they even sell bike tires and tubes and repair kits and don't forget, they also sell Dunn Edwards paint. The prices are very reasonable for a mom and pop type of store. I'd rather drive to Kernville than to Lake Isabella simply for the personal service I get at Archie's.

First let me say, the reviews before mine are almost completely true, in regards to Archies being a great hardware store, having lots of neat stuff, an asset to Kernville, etc. to my experiences. I've been shopping here for decades, and have never had such a negative experience as I had today. I don't know the lady's name, or if she is the owner or an employee, but she was incredibly rude, arrogant and condescending from the moment I walked in. There was another customer in there when she was insulting me, and all he could muster was a weak smile in my direction. Some of the unsolicited comments are as follows: when asked where the gas/propane fittings would be, she points to the right side of the store and says they're down that aisle, on the end. On the way there, I notice some water fittings I will be needing for another project, and examine them. After about a minute, the woman then comes over, acting put out for "having" to, and tells me, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have left you alone. I didn't know, you didn't know what you're doing."! I honestly thought she was joking. WTF?! She wasn't. She doesn't ask me what I need, she just tells me the OLD FITTINGS I brought in, (for reference of sizes, etc.), are not how you're supposed to do things. I calmly tell her I'm looking for the proper fittings to do it correctly. The fittings I brought in haven't been changed since the sixties, so I'm not sure what she assumed. I told her calmly again what I needed and she tells me, "well I'm not going to help you duplicate that setup, it's not right." The best I could say, without being as rude as she was, is, if you'll just show me where the fittings are, I'll put together what I need. Don't know what bee she had in her bonnett, but WOW. I would have given only one star, but I went back an hour later, she wasn't there, and I had a normal pleasant experience. So, half a perfect score. I hope this was an isolated event, and will GLADLY, update my review if that proves to be true. Archies is, and can continue to be, a gem in Kernville as long as that experience was a fluke. Fingers crossed