Old news, Ray. As mentioned, Cabelas is not the only one who does this and the scale does favor larger orders. Furthermore, Cabelas' shipping costs become flat at $200, so indeed it is cheaper to place one big order than many little ones. Cabelas shipping costs are clearly stated on their web site, in the catalogs (on order form), and one could always ask when placing the order. The implication that they are hiding these costs is silly.

Of course, you should be sending your students to local fly shops where the prices are often going to beat Cabelas when you add in S/H. However there are going to be times when local shops don't have what you want and you are going to have to look elsewhere. While I do not often buy fly tying materials from Cabelas, mainly because there are any number of other better stocked vendors on the web (including FAOL sponsors), I often buy fly fishing gear from Cabelas I cannot find easily in my area and I have always been satisfied with their pricing and their exceptional customer service.