Equipment build out & purchase

I own no beekeeping equipment, so I need to buy everything. The two issues I agonized over for the past few days were 1) What's my hive build/style? and 2) Where do I buy all this stuff?

I decided to start with two hives, both comprised entirely of 8 frame supers. My reasoning? I find comfort in modularity and simplicity. I could probably lift full 10 frame supers, but why? If there's an 8 frame option, and it works well for others, I see no reason to exert myself.

Some of my local beekeeping contacts sell equipment that they've ordered in bulk from one website or another. I admire their plight and really would like to help them out by buying from them, but my schedule is usually tight enough that I could do without the hour drive to their houses to pick up the equipment. That said, there are a multitude of beekeeping equipment merchants on the Internet. Looking at their websites, you'd think a computer professional never took up beekeeping. The website interfaces are mediocre at best, usually displaying their paper catalog digitally in some way.

The prices on all these merchant sites coincide with slight differences. Therefore, shipping and quantity discounts can be deal breakers. The winner, and apparently a popular choice, was Mann Lake LTD. Their interface is ok-- it's relatively easy to find everything you need. They offer free shipping for orders over $100, which is an easy goal to make for a first purchase. Also, their quantity discounts are non-negligible-- 20% in some cases.

For the interested, here's the list of everything I bought from them:
* (5) 7 5/8" (19.37 cm) Unassembled Hive Body Budget 8 Frame - Bulk
* (5) 7 5/8" (19.37 cm) Unassembled Hive Body Commercial 8 Frame - Bulk
* (1) 7 1/4" Unassembled Select Frames - Groove Top & Groove Bottom - Case of 100
* (1) 7D Nails - Approx 200/lb
* (1) 1 1/4" (3.18 cm) Nails - Approx 1150/lb
* (1) 3/4" (1.91 cm) Nails - Approx 2600/lb
* (1) 6 1/2" (16.51 cm) Waxed Rite-Cell® Foundation - Natural - Case if 100
* (1) Square Folding Veil w/string
* (1) 9" (22.86 cm) Hive Tool 1 - 11
* (1) 10 1/2" Frame Lifter and Scraper
* (2) 8 Frame Telescoping Cover With Inner Cover 1 - 4
* (1) 4" x 10" smoker (10.16 cm x 25.4 cm) With Guard
* (2) 8 Frame Top Feeder w/ Super
* (1) Economy Hooded Jacket Small
* (2) 8 Frame Bottom Board 1-4
* (2) 8 Frame Entrance Reducer
* (2) 8 Frame Varroa Screen Board 1 - 4

They didn't have 8 frame mouse guards...

All this cost me a whopping $558.65, with free shipping.