Jump to content
Why become a member? ×

TorVic

Member
  • Posts

    271
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Posts posted by TorVic

  1. I completed another successful trade deal with Tony and it was a pleasant experience.

    Dealing with him is not just a smooth experience but also an educational one as he freely shares from his vast knowledge and expertise of everything bass. Learned some very useful tips - thank you! 

    Always a pleasure dealing with him. Looking forward to the next one. Cheers!   

    • Thanks 1
  2. There are a lot of pics on the FB sale listing - not sure if I can copy more photos over here. 

    It is listed in the European Bass Market page as '1969 Original Fender Jazz Bass Neck (with Tuners and String Tee)' for 1100eur. 

    I was tempted to buy it but even more than the inconclusive neck number, the damaged truss rod nut made me decide to ditch it. Will leave it at that. 

      

    • Like 1
  3. The sale ad mentions: "The neck has received a veil of transparent finish over it" 

    All the google image results for Fender 69 bass neck do have the date on the bottom of the heel below the truss rod (like in the reply above) - the absence of it makes this neck very odd

  4. I came across a 1969 jazz neck on sale on Facebook and then found this thread to verify the number. The neck number was "34090" on the back that does not seem to match the schema mentioned above (not to mention the truss rod screw seems heavily mangled although the seller claims "truss rod works well")

    any ideas? here's a screenshot of the back of the neck: 

    image.png.813ac1c8ca1c04418fc1a70d4d6b268c.png

  5. Some interesting info in this article:  https://www.bbc.com/news/business-55734277 

    "...

    Under the new rules, anyone in the UK receiving a gift from the EU worth more than £39 may now face a bill for import VAT - with many items charged at 20%.

    For goods costing more than £135, customs duties may also apply, which can range from 0% to 25% of the product you're buying if they have not been paid by the sender already.

    The extra charges are usually collected by the courier on behalf of the government, with customers asked to pay before they can pick up their package."

    ..."

    My purchase was under £135 so I escaped the additional customs duties; it was only VAT and handling charges. (Btw, the item that should have been delivered on 16th, after the payment, has been delayed and is planned to be delivered almost a week later on 22nd.) 

    • Like 1
  6. I see comments on sale threads about people committing to buy from EU and then backing out when finding out about the import fees. 

    Perhaps it might help to have a separate forum (like on Talkbass) 'For Sale: Europe & International' under BassChat marketplace. 

    That way UK buyers would be aware that import fees will be applicable when buying from the EU.

    EU buyers and sellers could continue to use their sales subscription and their long feedback history on this forum.  

    • Like 3
  7. Hi All,

    Following is an account of my experience buying and shipping an item from UK (Scotland) to EU (Netherlands) this week: 

    (1) I bought a headphone amp from a friendly seller here for a price of 91GBP (~102EUR)

    (2) I agreed with the seller to book the courier myelf to manage shipping complications. I have used UPS.com similarly for earlier purchases. I got the shipping box dimensions from the seller. The charges for insured, signed delivery in this case was 16GBP. 

    So the total sale cost was 91 + 16 = 108GB (~121EUR)

    (3) First change: while booking online, I had to fill in a digital customs invoice that was not required before. In this invoice, I had to fill the following details: 

    "Description of Item:                                       Used second-hand bass headphone amp
    Value:                                                                91 GBP
    Freight charges:                                              17 GBP 
    Country where it was made / assembled : China mainland* 

    Total:                                                                  108 GBP"

    (* The user manual mentioned China / The new retail price on the web was ~300EUR / 267GBP) 

    (4) The shipment was picked up the next day and ready for delivery the day after. However, things took a new turn at this point.

    (5) Second change: I received an email from UPS stating that import fees have to be paid for this shipment. The payment link showed the following details in EUR (BTW = VAT): 

    "IMPORT FEES:              
     NOTE: the total value used for calculation of all Duty-based fees is 0.00.

    Government Charges:    24.99
    Brokerage Charges:       13.00
    Freight Charges:               0.00
    BTW:                                   2.73

    Total:                                 40.72 EUR"  (~36GBP)

    The government charge was 25 EUR (~22GBP) which is approximately 20% of the value declared in the customs invoice above. 
     
    I assume the 13EUR (~11GBP) brokerage charges were for GBP to EUR currency conversion - this was a surprise to me. Not sure if all couriers charge similarly or worse. And it is not evident whether it is a fixed charge or depends on the amount - I assume it will be the latter. This together with the VAT adds a 10% charge to the sale cost.   

    (6) So in the end, I paid 36GBP (~40EUR) import fees for a purchase cost of 108GBP (~120EUR). That's a ~30% additional cost on the sale (item + shipping cost). 

    And that probably marks the end, for me, of any big purchases from UK on our beloved BassChat marketplace forum, for a while.

    So long and thanks for all the fish!  

    -Cheers, Vic. 
     

    • Like 1
    • Thanks 2
    • Sad 4
  8. I recorded some sound samples with different settings. The bass was connected directly to my audio interface. No effect or mastering was used. The track was exported with default normalization.

    The settings: 

    neck pickup - tone fully open - midway - fully closed

    both pickups - tone fully open - midway - fully closed

    bridge pickup - tone fully open - midway - fully closed

    MG-fretless-tones.mp3

×
×
  • Create New...