International transactions

[michael_glenn]

Hi all,
I am looking at potentially buying a used instrument from Australia (I live in the US) and I was wondering if anyone had any wisdom on international transactions, shipping, etc. I already spoke to my teacher and he said he did not have any experience with international transactions, so I sent a couple emails to some people that might be knowledgeable, and I will happily take any suggestions or tips that I can get!
Thanks in advance!

-Michael Ebie

[bisontuba]

Talk to your local bank and see if they do Int'l wire/bank transfers AND fees involved. Does the seller have a wire address at their bank in Australia? See what the Australian dollar is trading for now and see what your bank is paying for it ( hopefully, something close to the Federal Reserve price) BUT find out about ALL FEES involved.
Do your homework.
Good luck.
Mark

[pecktime]

I have bought and sold (personal) instruments internationally from Europe and the Americas (I live in New Zealand).

Wire transfers are expensive, time consuming and unnecessary in my experience. Paypal works better.

Shipping is the problem with big instruments. Get the aussie guy to use a freight forwarder. they deliver airport to airport.

Talk the seller on the phone if you're nervous!

[bort]

There is a service called TransferWise, which was recommended to me. It has very low fees and good exchange rates. I didn't end up using it, although it seemed perfectly fine, I didn't want to have to enter my SSN as part of the registration.

In my 2 recent transactions, I used PayPal for one (and paid a 4.9% fee) and used a bank transfer for the other (and paid like a $20 or $30 fee). Neither is ideal, but I can't really complain given the convenience. The only real concern when there are fees -- make sure it is a high enough value purchase to be worth it.

Actually, that would be my advice for any sort of all the way across the world purchase, especially for a used instrument -- it had better be worth it. Not only a good price, but has to be something unique that you can't otherwise get here. Even if buyer and seller are both perfect and do every single thing correctly, there are about a million other places for everything to go totally wrong.

That said, you could always use Greyhound cruise lines. It's pretty lousy boat with cramped and sorta dirty cabins, but if there's room, they can put your tuba in the hold. It might sit in a port somewhere for a few weeks, but it'll get there eventually.

[opus37]

The money transfer is not the problem. It's the shipping. You have only Fed X and UPS as options. The freight handlers will not touch a private person. They only work with companies. They are afraid that you are stuffing the horn with drugs and they are going to get black balled by the countries involved. I tried to ship a sousaphone to Australia. The cost estimate from UPS and Fed X was significantly above $1000.

[bort]

Maybe Cameron Gates can either chime in or someone can email him? I believe he posted here a while ago about shipping a tuba to Australia in some gigantic wooden crate. I remember a photo of his pickup truck with the tuba in it.

Brian, I'm sure that what you say is mostly true... but I'm pretty sure that I've heard stories here about things being shipped from here to there before. Probably about $1,000 to pull it off... but not impossible.

Again... if you're going to go this route, make sure it's worth it.

[imperialbari]

Is the instrument to be imported impossible to obtain in your own country/continent?

I have imported instruments from Japan, Canada, and the US to Denmark. I wouldn’t have accepted the extra costs and the red tape, if these instruments had been available from the EU.

I have had delays in delivery, where I had to take steps to ensure that I kept my right to block card payments beyond the normal deadlines. Bank transfers, and VISA payments, leave you with no security against funny sellers. PayPal may be an option, if the seller doesn’t take cards.

Laws differ between countries, so I am not giving any specific advise. Your card provider should be able to help you.

Klaus

[cambrook]

I've used XE.com with good results when sending money overseas.

The OP is talking about buying an instrument in Australia and having it shipped to the USA. There's a big difference between shipping US to Australia and Australia to the USA. IF I lived in the US I would not hesitate to buy an instrument in Australia and have it shipped.

I've had good results with https://www.jettaexcessbaggage.com.au, but they deliver to the airport only. As long as you can deal with that they are great.

[sousaphone68]

I imported a sousaphone from the US to Ireland I paid the seller by paypal and arranged shipping myself via a freight company based in Ireland the cost of the sousaphone was $1400 the cost of shipping with insurance was $800 including import taxes etc. I had to pick it up from the airport

The other risk associated with freight is damage my sousaphone arrived with a crushed second valve slide so the rare or special instrument you buy may not arrive safely.

It can be done but as Bort mentioned it would have to be a tuba that was not available in your home market. For me I spent 2 years trying to find an Eb sousaphone in Europe and eventually took the plunge and extra expense of a transatlantic purchase this was back in 2008.

[Ken Herrick]

Really not that hard. email sent.