Hooked but broke

Why is it that everytime i find some new interesting toys (which I don't really need), I have to order them from the US ? And if I find them here in Denmark they'll cost twice the price :-(
Just bought a Pelican M6 and had to bleed something like 115 $ !! If I order things from overseas I'll have alot of trouble if I have warranty issues, I'll have to pay extra for the shipping and 95% of all packages from the US is caught in customs and i'm charged 25% tax on top of the price.
This forum will be the end of me.
Damn I feel sorry for my self

I know the feeling! As an underpaid wage slave /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/mecry.gif with a lot of hobbies, I tend to spend much more time contemplating new purchases then actualy purchasing new stuff. At least, when I do eventually do buy something, it's a well-considered purchase... And now that whe have the Euro, it's much easier to compare American prices with our own and it's sometimes hard not to get a little envious./ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon23.gif
If a shop sells some models of a certain brand, but not the one you want, they will often order it for you along with their regular shipment without charging you any shipping. It may take a few weeks though.
And there's a nice line of lights and knives at www.toolshop.de, they deliver in the entire EU and don't charge extra for shipping, if you pay by credit card.
All this doesn't help you if you want something exotic (or just a few lithium batteries!) unfortunately.
Maybe we should start an "European Corner" where we can discuss supliers and prices, and maybe even arange national group buys?

I know toolshop.de but what i wan't is a Mcmodule and, and, and. You know the drill.

A european corner for exchanging supplyer-links sounds like a really good idea !!

I second that. Prices in the UK for a duracell 123 are outrageous; £7.99 EACH in my local grocery store :/

I know typical rip off Britain.
Kakster
Try 7dayshop.com for cheap 123 cells by the way
£6.99 for SIX Panasonic.

I am struggling with a FedEx delivery at the moment.
Two days to get from US to UK then two sodding weeks at their dept while they process customs and send me the charges by mail. I pay the charges by credit card over the phone and 4 days later I STILL havent got my shiney new ARC flashlight. B*****ds.

Mark

Thnx Cones, i know about 7dayshop, they are very good indeed, with cheap shipping and keen prices. However, i found that in my E2e, the light turns yellow far quicker than it did with the original SF batts, or Duracell. Oddly enough, total runtime seemed to be about the same.
Bad luck about Fedex/customs. All the stuff ive ordered from the states have come straight to me so far.

I think you need an L4 to make best use of these cheap batteries. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Mark

I would have an L4 if i hadnt spent all my money on McLuxes.

Guten Tag!! Wie Geht's?

I understand where you guys are coming from... Well, at least you guys have shops that carry the good stuff in your own country!! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon23.gif I've been running around everywhere in KL and have yet to find 1 shop that carries SFs. Well, I guess I could order online too but conversion rates just kills me, esp with shipping!!

Good thing for me some other fellow CPFers in S'pore have info on a couple of shops there that carry the good stuff, and I'll be making a trip there probably end of this month... but even that, there's still the question of conversion rates... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/help.gif Guess I'll be living on bread and water for the next month or two!! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/help.gif

Guys, I feel sorry for you and really think that it sucks and is unfair. Was it alwasy that way or a result of 9/11? Is the opposite true? Meaning if your country of origin has a not common but superior product, US citizens have to pay a high premium for it? Thank God British Gin is cheap here in the states.

[ QUOTE ]
geepondy said:
Guys, I feel sorry for you and really think that it sucks and is unfair. Was it alwasy that way or a result of 9/11? Is the opposite true? Meaning if your country of origin has a not common but superior product, US citizens have to pay a high premium for it? Thank God British Gin is cheap here in the states.

[/ QUOTE ]

Nahh... it's always been that way here.. esp with flashlights, I guess ppl here don't see (or not yet anyway) the value of paying good $$ for a great light, thus where there's no demand, there's no supply... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon23.gif I mean, there's no restrictions on most of the things (keyword is 'most') you can buy online and get shipped here, its just whether or not you're willing to pay the extra charges for the shipping or not!! Heck, I even dream about opening up my own flashlight shop one day when I save up enough $$ so that I can 'educate' ppl about the virtues of a good, reliable flashlight and lead them to the 'light'... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

As for the opposite, I don't think that's true, we tend to lose out cos of the currency exchange... I mean we get a fair deal, but it's still considered cheap when converted to some of the foreign currencies thus, I don't think the products will be sold as very expensive over in other countries like US or UK... maybe just equivalent if not less, just to compete with other products...

I mean, picture it this way... what's a can of Coke cost in the US, say around $1? Well, in M'sia it costs RM$1, but with USD$1 you'll get 4 cans of coke here... dunno if thats a clear enough analogy, but its somewhere along those lines...

Paying 25% in import duty sounds better than paying 300% extra to buy the light locally. How likely is an M6 to need warranty service? I'd say just ask the dealer to open the box and check the light carefully before shipping.