sshorepunk Posted October 20, 2007 Share Posted October 20, 2007 Hi I'm sure poeple have been taking advantage of the weak $$ and importing basses from the US, been a while since I've done it, but have done it several times in the past, but what sort of shipping charges are you seeing? BTW, so not to go over old ground, I am well aware of import duty, VAT etc, been stung many times! Tony Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john_the_bass Posted October 20, 2007 Share Posted October 20, 2007 I would say about $80-$100 for USPS, maybe a bit more if the seller uses something like FedEx or UPS. I've seen some crazy quotes of $200+ and just not bothered. Both basses I've bought from the US came in with about $95 electronic stamps on 'em. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warwickhunt Posted October 20, 2007 Share Posted October 20, 2007 [quote name='sshorepunk' post='77063' date='Oct 20 2007, 06:18 PM']Hi I'm sure poeple have been taking advantage of the weak $$ and importing basses from the US, been a while since I've done it, but have done it several times in the past, but what sort of shipping charges are you seeing? BTW, so not to go over old ground, I am well aware of import duty, VAT etc, been stung many times! Tony[/quote] I've not actually bought anything from the States in a long time but I did inquire about a few basses in the last month and I've had quotes of $90 - $350. All quotes were for basses valued at $1000 - £2000 (funnily the $350 quote was for the lowest priced bass). Didn't go into great detail about who the couriers were as I didn't go ahead with any deal. I wouldn't pin any high hopes on getting a general price as it just appears to depend on the individual seller. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stingrayfan Posted October 20, 2007 Share Posted October 20, 2007 Last bass cost $80 via USPS. Think it was Global Priority Mail and took about a week to arrive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rumple Posted October 20, 2007 Share Posted October 20, 2007 I had a quote of $35 postage for a strap for Bass Central in Florida! R. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sshorepunk Posted October 20, 2007 Author Share Posted October 20, 2007 (edited) I'm talking $1500 to $2000 basses, one guy got quoted $370 of Fed Ex and $400 off of UPS, USPS owouldn't carry it, just over size in the gig bag, at least thats what they told him! Just wanted to know what services poeple are using from these companies T Edited October 20, 2007 by sshorepunk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SMART Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 (edited) [quote name='sshorepunk' post='77122' date='Oct 20 2007, 07:47 PM']I'm talking $1500 to $2000 basses, one guy got quoted $370 of Fed Ex and $400 off of UPS, USPS owouldn't carry it, just over size in the gig bag, at least thats what they told him! Just wanted to know what services poeple are using from these companies T[/quote] If I may give some advice borne of over 20 years in the export/import biz: You get what you pay for with delivery services from a small items like a pickup or stomp pedal all the way up to an expensive bass guitar. When we ship our product from Highlander (acoustic and dobro pickups) we elect to use US airmail. Whilts this can take a week and a bit to arrive for this size and value item its the most cost effective as a hefty carriage charge would wipe out any profit margin. Shipping via air is not just dependent on the weight of the product to be shipped but also its volume and if it goes over a certain volume then a higher weight than the actual weight is levied. So a bass in a hard case maybe only 11-12 kgs but its volumetric weight maybe work out to be 17-18 kgs which you will be charged for. If you've spent your hard earnt money on a dream bass and get it shipped on the cheap beware! You really need to use a service that will get your bass over in the quickest period of time so it remains in the carrier system the least time possible thus reducing (in theory I might add!) the exposure to risk that it is dropped or falls off a conveyor or... We use FedEX International Priority because it's the fastest and most economical way of shipping our instruments from Modulus and the Turner workshop balancing all the important factors such as risk, value and service. Generally (depending on the flights used and time of week shipped) we receive our basses from Modulus in 2-3 working days from date of despatch. For the UK we will only use a 24 hour service and always advise against shipping on Fridays to avoid expensive instruments hanging around a courier hub all weekend. So it's advisable to consider this also when buying from a supplier here too. But this will cost more so you have to balance the risk factor versus your financial and emotional outlay. I've had many a customer who have got a deal in the US only to cheap skate on carriage and omit insurance to their chagrin! Insurance - always, always make sure that a valuable purchase carries this and get written proof from the supplier in the US otherwise when the damaged item reaches these shores who do you think will have to foot the bill? We carry an annual policy that covers all our shipments by both air and sea and final UK deliveries. Don't chance your arm in this respect. USPS as with the Royal Mail has a limit on the size of boxes it will handle so then the only other alternative is a courier service such as UPS, FedEx or DHL. So a guitar or bass won't be handled by them. The price you mention of $370 (£185) to $400 (£200) from UPS is the right sort of price to be looking at caused by the volumetric weight factor for shipping via air. We absorb this cost into our final selling prices including the import duty (3-4%) and the dreaded VAT at 17.5%. I advise strongly against people working the 'less than it really cost me invoice scam'. It's really not worth the risk and serious problems you'll have to deal with if you are rumbled!! US and UK Customs can check more than you think! The general rule in the end is look further than your nose when a 'great' deal is being offered and make sure you select the best and most secure way of receiving your new instrument or accessory. If it's cheap then it will follow that the level of quality of service will match. On top of the 'deal' from the USA the extra costs of importing a high quality instrument can be 25-30% extra and the dealer in the US rarely will know (or be interested) or inform you about that especially when UPS phone you to ask for a cheque or payment card details to cover import duty and VAT. Ship cheap at your peril!! And...do your homework and in most cases you''l be smiling! Ciao Ian Edited October 21, 2007 by SMART Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sshorepunk Posted October 21, 2007 Author Share Posted October 21, 2007 Thanks for the info Ian Thats pretty much what I'm seeing, higher prices than the actual weight would suggest as it is based on the volumetric weight! I just wanted to check, before going ahead Thx Tony Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SMART Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 [quote name='sshorepunk' post='77224' date='Oct 21 2007, 10:28 AM']Thanks for the info Ian Thats pretty much what I'm seeing, higher prices than the actual weight would suggest as it is based on the volumetric weight! I just wanted to check, before going ahead Thx Tony[/quote] Hi Tony Thanks for that. Just contact me if you need any further advice. Ciao Ian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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