topper Posted June 1, 2006 Report Share Posted June 1, 2006 I cant belive how quick my delivery was with stewmac's, i wanted to post this up, guy's from the UK or europe might find this interesting. I put my order in with stewmac's, monday night. Its now 11am thursday and it's here. It was sent out tuesday, it so quick ! Funny i ordered several parts from - all parts UK, and from Guitar Parts & Spares UK two weeks ago and still they are not here. Go stewmacs ! As the pound is strong you get a good deal too. May 30, 2006 14:40 Zanesville, OH - USA Shipment picked up May 30, 2006 16:21 Zanesville, OH - USA Departing origin May 31, 2006 00:39 Wilmington - Clinton Field, OH - USA Departing origin May 31, 2006 07:23 Wilmington - Clinton Field, OH - USA Departed from DHL facility in Wilmington - Clinton Field - USA May 31, 2006 21:33 East Midlands - UK Arrived at DHL facility in East Midlands - UK May 31, 2006 23:17 East Midlands - UK Processed for clearance at East Midlands - UK June 01, 2006 03:47 East Midlands - UK Clearance processing complete at East Midlands - UK June 01, 2006 08:32 Southampton - UK With delivery courier Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Setch Posted June 1, 2006 Report Share Posted June 1, 2006 Pretty much par for the course. Stew Mac cops a lot of grief for it's prices on certain items, but it's customer service is superlative. I just wish there was a way round the DHL duty charges, but you can't have everything.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted June 1, 2006 Report Share Posted June 1, 2006 It was my understanding that Stewmac is willing to ship via USPS Air Parcel Post --it's a slightly longer delivery schedule (up to 10 days) but there's less chance of customs becoming involved ... I haven't tried it yet, since I usually have things sent to my address in the States--but given my current shipping problem....a whole box of tools and parts on its way here by boat...I'm going to give Stewmac a try directly. Over here, I've never had to pay customs on any package brought in via USPS Air Parcel --the only times I've had duties came from shippers like Fedex, UPS, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topper Posted June 1, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 1, 2006 I was expecting to pay custom charges, but have not. I was charged £25 ($40) to get it here, to be honest i thought it was worth it. I guess its ok if your ordering a fair few bits, my parcel was about 3kg. Anyway DHL is worth the extra. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erikbojerik Posted June 1, 2006 Report Share Posted June 1, 2006 For stuff that I've had shipped to the US from abroad, I've found it works two ways. One way, you get charged a lot for shipping, but the supplier takes care of the duty. The other way, you get a bill in the mail from Customs a few days after your shipment arrives. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattia Posted June 1, 2006 Report Share Posted June 1, 2006 (edited) DHL bills after the fact, not at the door, mostly. As for packages 'slipping through', regular USPS Air stuff of any value/sizes gets busted for taxes 99% of the time, gets lost too frequently. USPS Ground packages tend to arrive reeeaaallly sllooowwwllly but it reliably so, and often in better condition, and slip through once in a while. Edited June 1, 2006 by Mattia Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Setch Posted June 1, 2006 Report Share Posted June 1, 2006 Good to know. I've always plumped for DHL from Stewmac, since it only costs an extra $5 compared to USPS. My first couple of orders escaped customs charges, and since then I've been nailed 100% of the time. I was considering trying USPS to see if that was better, but given their flair for losing packages, I think I'll stick with DHL. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted June 1, 2006 Report Share Posted June 1, 2006 That's funny...I've been overseas for more than 15 years now (first in Amsterdam, now in France) and in all that time I can't recall ever losing a package sent via USPS --the only time there was a problem turned out to be because the sender addressed it improperly, but the package was returned to them. And like I said, the only time I've been hit up for customs is when the package is sent via Fedex, etc, or if it's sent via First Class Apparently, First Class is routed differently from Air Parcel --first class goes through Germany, while Air Parcel will go directly to France. The Germans are stricter when it comes to customs, apparently. And when I've had to pay customs, I've been charged on the spot --can't have the package until I pay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattia Posted June 1, 2006 Report Share Posted June 1, 2006 I've lost several with USPS Air. None with USPS ground. And none with DHL. DHL does things differently from the post office and most other couriers, biling you after the fact. Which I like, because I don't always have cash on hand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WezV Posted June 1, 2006 Report Share Posted June 1, 2006 I escaped customs on the first few parcels i had sent via USPS, they now get me everytime. The first time i used DHL they added a £10 admin fee because they pretended they thought i was a business, it should be £1.25 for us non-business people. I like DHL because of the order tracking and the fact i have had parcels turn up within less than 48 hours from me ordering them, on some orders i have had from stew-mac its actually been cheaper to have DHL. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.