Buying parts abroad
Phinx
Posts: 297
Is buying parts abroad all that good? I see JensonsUSA metnioned a lot, but then some had the sorrow with having to pay the extra bills for the import. You can,of course, buy the parts from EU countries nd pay no tax on import at all, but i'm having trouble finding prices that are cheaper than in UK, mostly because GBP to EUR ratio is bellow frikin' 1. So is there anyone that managed to benefit fromn ordering abroad?
Giant Yukon FX3
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You may be able to find a shop that will mark down the value on an item they are shipping (say for example a $600 chainset marked on the customs forms as $100). This would of course be very shady though and I would never encourage such unscrupulous behaviour.
If you have friends in other countries, you could also send them the funds, let them buy what you need, then post it declaring it as a gift (that's what I do
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Cat With No Tail wrote:If you have friends in other countries, you could also send them the funds, let them buy what you need, then post it declaring it as a gift (that's what I do ).
+1, My mum lives in the US, so I get a lot of 'gifts' from her
Even better when she comes over to visit, she can bring it all over in her suitcase!0 -
Cat With No Tail wrote:you could also send them the funds, let them buy what you need, then post it declaring it as a gift (that's what I do ).
Depending on the value, it shouldn't make much difference, unless their economical with the value truth
Over £40 you'll owe import VAT on a gift, otherwise it kicks in at £18.0 -
Phinx wrote:you can,of course, buy the parts from EU countries and pay no tax on import at all
Import duties (at the same rate) would still have been paid at the point of entry into the EU, so that in itself can't generate any savings compared to UK prices. With weak sterling and higher delivery costs, I can't think of any products with significant savings at all. If anything, other EU countries buy massively through CRC and Wiggle, unsurprisingly.0 -
Xtreem wrote:Try this one.
http://www.bike-components.de/
Even without counting the cost of delivery, those guys are MORE expensive than reliable UK sources with free delivery, so not the best of advice.0 -
Well I don't know your exchange rates with the Euro but here the Pound is stronger than the Euro by 12-13%.[b]nickfrog[/b] wrote:those guys are MORE expensive than reliable UK sources with free delivery,
A Boxxer Race there is 540€ , plus you pay 10€ for delivery.
The cheapest I could find was JeJames for £560.
The 409 Argyle is 350€ + 10€ for delivery.
At CRC it's £400.
Set of Elixir 5 are 140€ +10€.
At Merlins are £135.
So you will find some lower prices on more expensive stuff,
but buying a stem or a set of pads it's not going to cost you cheap.0 -
GHill wrote:Cat With No Tail wrote:you could also send them the funds, let them buy what you need, then post it declaring it as a gift (that's what I do ).
Depending on the value, it shouldn't make much difference, unless their economical with the value truth
Over £40 you'll owe import VAT on a gift, otherwise it kicks in at £18.
Not economical with the truth as such, but if it's got no packaging with it, it's second hand and therfore worth what someone is willing to sell/buy it for :twisted:
How strict are they with this import duty thing on gifts though? I've never been charged anything (yet). Have I just been lucky?0 -
Cat With No Tail wrote:How strict are they with this import duty thing on gifts though? I've never been charged anything (yet). Have I just been lucky?
They seem to be really random, probably depends on who deals with the package and what mood they're in. I believe you're less likely to be charged if Royal Mail delivers, rather than Parcel Force/UPS etc.
I've also heard tell (so you might want to take it with a pinch of salt), that once an address gets "flagged" you'll always get stung.0 -
There might be some truth in that, I've imported tons of stuff over the years and never got any bother, then suddenly every shipment got stopped. Changed address, was fine again for a couple of years then again, every last one got taxed.
It's not the tax and duty I object to personally, it's the pisstaking admin charge.Uncompromising extremist0 -
Xtreem wrote:
Well I don't know your exchange rates with the Euro but here the Pound is stronger than the Euro by 12-13%.[b]nickfrog[/b] wrote:those guys are MORE expensive than reliable UK sources with free delivery,
A Boxxer Race there is 540€ , plus you pay 10€ for delivery.
The cheapest I could find was JeJames for £560.
A Boxxer Race is £432 delivered from Merlin atm, that's €488 (Sterling to Euro rate is the same everywhere), so 10% cheaper than the German source you came up with.0 -
nickfrog wrote:Xtreem wrote:
Well I don't know your exchange rates with the Euro but here the Pound is stronger than the Euro by 12-13%.[b]nickfrog[/b] wrote:those guys are MORE expensive than reliable UK sources with free delivery,
A Boxxer Race there is 540€ , plus you pay 10€ for delivery.
The cheapest I could find was JeJames for £560.
A Boxxer Race is £432 delivered from Merlin atm, that's €488 (Sterling to Euro rate is the same everywhere), so 10% cheaper than the German source you came up with.
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Originaly i was asking because currently i'm in Spain and i'm in a dire need of new cranks because the old Truvativ died on me after 3 months of riding. I got recommended Shim.Deore M590 crankset, so i just wondered if its worth using some of my time to browse around and use some bagadge space to bring back a treat for myself. Seems not, because the Pound to Euro ratio sucks...Giant Yukon FX30
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We all buy from CRC over here! If you spend more than €120 or thereabouts it's free shipping. It's WAY cheaper than buying in a shop...0
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Be aware that if the item breaks under warranty, you will have to send it back to where you bought it. Or, pay for it to be fixed in your own country. Either way will cost you money.
Also, consumer rights across borders are essentially non-existent. If you live in Spain and buy from the US, the shop in the US can refuse to offer any help knowing that there is little you can do to make them help. In the EU, there is now a version of the 'small-claims court' that allows you to sue sellers from other EU countries. Not sure how it works, but it is good for peace of mind.0 -
nope, i do live in uk, but thought that i could use my vacation to stock up on a few things if the prices are right. Checked a few shops today and didn't find any difference. Plus now i'm stuck here because of the volcano in Iceland,,,Giant Yukon FX30
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I recently got new hayes stroker trail brakes from jensonusa for just over £43 each end.
took just 3 days to working days to deliver and 2 weeks later recieved a bill for £17.95 from fedex for the import taxes.
So about £105 all in, Where in this country could you match that price, service and speed.
The strokers were white and plain packeged but with everything you need including hayes pad spacers and prebled.
5xcr
12hr days 5 days a week riding to work and back and still the energy to ride 2 other days0
