retrorod Posted October 23, 2008 Share Posted October 23, 2008 What are the pitfalls of shipping an Ebay auction guitar overseas?(from the U.S.) I have heard of some countries that are risky to ship to. Does anyone have any guidelines or eperiences to relate? With the European buying power so strong now, I hate to rule out 'potential buyers' from the pool. Thanks, RRod Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluemoon Posted October 23, 2008 Share Posted October 23, 2008 I recently sold a Tacoma guitar on ebay. I won't allow overseas bidders. It was based on the feedback I received from sellers on the ebay forum (which you might want to check out). My understanding is that there is a lot of scams relating to international buyers on big-ticket items like guitars. The advice I got from veteran sellers was "don't be greedy, it isn't worth it." FYI--i ended up selling my to a British guy. However, he was visiting the US and gave me a US address to ship to. I spoke to the residents of that address as well as his boss in England to confirm his identity. He even e-mailed me a copy of his passport. I did some other due-diligence on the guy before finalizing the sale. And I was still nervous! Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeRom Posted October 23, 2008 Share Posted October 23, 2008 Be prepared for a lot of hasle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flight959 Posted October 23, 2008 Share Posted October 23, 2008 Be prepared for a lot of hasle. From who? I have always wanted to buy from the States as we get a great deal with the exchange rate, however there are a few things in the buyers way. Uk custom are ready to hump us at any given opportunity. If you send a $2000 guitar and declare its worth £200 then from what I understand that is a Federal Offence which has big penalties. As a buyer from the UK I have noticed that alot of US sellers will only take a bank wire transfer. Thats a big no no here! as the buyer is not protected. Other issues are things like insurance and the postman who couldn't give a fu*k what happens to your precious new axe. Flight959 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chengin Posted October 23, 2008 Share Posted October 23, 2008 With the European buying power so strong now' date=' I hate to rule out 'potential buyers' from the pool. Thanks, RRod[/quote'] Don't worry about it, looking at the current exchange rates in the last couple of days thats pretty much going out the window now! I guess when you elect a new president the dollar will strenghten a bit more...depending on who gets in of course.. I'm with Flight959 on this regarding the customs..I would buy so many guitars in the morning but the reputable guys I want to deal with won't put a false value declaration on the box so then I get hit with 21.5% tax on the purchase, which wipes out any saving when buying a $3000+ guitar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rybass Posted October 23, 2008 Share Posted October 23, 2008 The US post Office is a huge hassle. The shipping box can only be so large for air parcel, which is what you need to get insurance. I think it's 108" l+w+girth which is hard to sqeeze a hard case into especially an acoustic or bass. They will turn you away if it's 1" over and tell you to repack. Delivery confirmation is impossible for overseas also. Then there is UPS and FedEx. they charge 2-3 times more for shipping that the USPS. I have a bunch of stuff on the bay right now and I put US only and I've already had 4 emails from overseas trying to convince me. I don't have a problem for small stuff like pedals or pups but the big stuff is such a pain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retrorod Posted October 23, 2008 Author Share Posted October 23, 2008 Man, this forum moves fast! Thanks for all the responses! I have made my decision. Will NOT ship overseas. They may not get such a great deal after all, if getting charged 21% import tariff + the high cost of shipping?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveinspain Posted October 23, 2008 Share Posted October 23, 2008 Man' date=' this forum moves fast! Thanks for all the responses! I have made my decision. Will NOT ship overseas. They may not get such a great deal after all, if getting charged 21% import tariff + the high cost of shipping??[/quote'] I live in Spain and have bought a few guitars from the states and had them shipped... I never had a problem. Just use a good shipping service. Your chances of getting more for what you are selling is much better with the whole market open. I have received guitars shipped by USPS, DHL and UPS.... Never had a problem. Just communicate with the buyer. Make sure he knows the cost and time involved. Use tracking, its not a problem! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuitarJunkie Posted October 23, 2008 Share Posted October 23, 2008 I'm currently trying to sell a Les Paul and I'm hoping that someone overseas buys it. With the prices of Gibsons in Europe and Australia, I figure it's probably a better deal there than over here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveinspain Posted October 23, 2008 Share Posted October 23, 2008 I'm currently trying to sell a Les Paul and I'm hoping that someone overseas buys it. With the prices of Gibsons in Europe and Australia' date=' I figure it's probably a better deal there than over here.[/quote'] Your right Junkie... Plus the euro is strong against the dollar now and people are looking to get more for their money... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuitarJunkie Posted October 23, 2008 Share Posted October 23, 2008 Your right Junkie... Plus the euro is strong against the dollar now and people are looking to get more for their money... Out of curiosity, what does a Les Paul Standard faded go for in your part of the world? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveinspain Posted October 23, 2008 Share Posted October 23, 2008 It cost about the same or maybe a little more but in Euros... So lets say a Standard costs 2500 Dollars, it would cost around 2500 euros here but 2500 euros is around 3500 dollars... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuitarJunkie Posted October 23, 2008 Share Posted October 23, 2008 It cost about the same or maybe a little more but in Euros... So lets say a Standard costs 2500 Dollars' date=' it would cost around 2500 euros here but 2500 euros is around 3500 dollars...[/quote'] For a FADED Standard ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveinspain Posted October 23, 2008 Share Posted October 23, 2008 I´m not sure what a faded Standard goes for... I´ll find out for you. I was just giving you an example... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuitarJunkie Posted October 23, 2008 Share Posted October 23, 2008 I´m not sure what a faded Standard goes for... I´ll find out for you. I was just giving you an example... In any case' date=' I'm sure 1100 euros for a mint, unplayed honeyburst is better than your likely to do in a shop over there. [img']http://i374.photobucket.com/albums/oo183/gear4sale_photos/Gibson/lpfs_06.jpg[/img] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveinspain Posted October 23, 2008 Share Posted October 23, 2008 I think the Dollar is about 1.37 to 1 euro now... $2500 = 1825 euros... So you get more for your money if you buy from the states paying with euros... When I bought my JP EDS 1275 the dollar was at 1.57 to 1 euro... So I got an amazing deal... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveinspain Posted October 23, 2008 Share Posted October 23, 2008 In any case' date=' I'm sure 1100 euros for a mint, unplayed honeyburst is better than your likely to do in a shop over there. [img']http://i374.photobucket.com/albums/oo183/gear4sale_photos/Gibson/lpfs_06.jpg[/img] Much much better.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveinspain Posted October 23, 2008 Share Posted October 23, 2008 Thats a gorgeous Les Paul, why are you selling it...? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spook Posted October 23, 2008 Share Posted October 23, 2008 I too was worried about that issue. I never did any kind of international buying or selling. The first thing i ever tired to sell on ebay was a set of EMG 81's and I put in big bold letters NO INTERNATIONAL BIDDERS U.S. ONLY. Would you believe I had four people from other countrys bid on them anyway. I contacted ebay and they told me not to accept the payment. Why can't ebay fix it where only the countrys the seller wants to sell to are even allowed to bid. It would make it much more simple. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuitarJunkie Posted October 23, 2008 Share Posted October 23, 2008 Thats a gorgeous Les Paul' date=' why are you selling it...? [/quote'] I already have a faded Tobaccoburst and haven't played the Honeyburst since the day I bought it. I just picked up a Slash Goldtop and could probably use the cash towards that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveinspain Posted October 24, 2008 Share Posted October 24, 2008 They do... There have been times when I have tried to bid on something and a message popped up saying the seller specified the sale was only for the USA.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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