Buying Equipment from KEH

Crono · Feb 16, 2009

oh...
so i probably have to wait for a month...

they offer me FedEx, which is not track-able
i asked them for USPS priority, but they said they dont process USPS as often as FedEx and concluded it won't be much faster, but a more expensive than what they suggested

is the import duty depends on the shipping method?
i heard whatever from KEH will be caught for import tax...

Ian Grant · Feb 16, 2009

The duty is on the item and the shipping, doesn't make a difference how it ships.

Ian

Martin Aislabie · Feb 16, 2009

When FedEx or who ever say 3 to 4 weeks they are giving themselves plenty of time.

Very few people complain about stuff being delivered ahead of schedule but most people complain fairly quickly about stuff being overdue.

It is highly unlikely you will have to wait 4 weeks – but it is possible.

It is far more likely that it takes 7 to 10 days.

FedEx don’t want your stuff, they want to be rid of it ASAP as it clogs up their system and they are liable for it while in their custody.

The greatest unknown with all international shipping is how soon it clears Customs.

Customs do not work weekends, so if stuff gets to the destination and is sorted, then it can easily be tripped up by the weekend period of inactivity.

Waiting for stuff to arrive, both nationally and internationally, is like waiting for the kettle to boil, the more desperate you are, the longer it seems to take.

Resign yourself to the 4 weeks of waiting but hopefully you should be pleasantly surprised.

Have fun with the new Camera

Martin

Strokebloke · Feb 16, 2009

I bought my FM2n from the States - not KEH though; and it took just over two weeks from supplier to my door & that included some transport downtime because of the recent snowy conditions. I paid £44 import-VAT-ParcelLine charges on top of the price I paid for the camera.

Ian Grant · Feb 16, 2009

Strokebloke said:
I bought my FM2n from the States - not KEH though; and it took just over two weeks from supplier to my door & that included some transport downtime because of the recent snowy conditions. I paid £44 import-VAT-ParcelLine charges on top of the price I paid for the camera.

What percentage did that ad ?

Ian

Strokebloke · Feb 16, 2009

Hi Ian.
I wish you hadn't asked me that. I'd never thought about checking the %. It amounted to 25%, on top of the price [incl P&P], which made it a fairly costly item, but the camera was fully serviced. What annoyed me most was not the cost, or the time taken, but the fact that when the camera arrived it was packed in polystyrene particles [you know, the highly static ones :-(] with no body cap, or even any attempt to prevent particles or dust getting onto the mirror or the viewfinder. (a bit of cling-film with an elastic band would have done the trick, if the seller didn't want to part with an old body cap) Consequently I spent the first hour cleaning the internals of the camera, before I could even put a lens onto it, to check that it was OK.
Fortunately, everything was fine & I'm now very pleased with the camera.

Jack

Strokebloke · Feb 16, 2009

Ian,
I've just checked. In round figures the Import Duty was £8; The VAT was 28; & the ParcelLine charge, for paying the customs duties, was £8. The camera cost [incl. P&P] was £174 Total almost £220.

Jack

Crono · Feb 16, 2009

i really hope i will come earlier than 4 weeks

i also ordered a 50/1.4 AI'd from pacificrim and it left SAN FRANCISCO on 12 Feb from the USPS tracking system
will post whenever they arrived
hope the lens doesn't get caught though... i am nearly broke now
due to my GAS

Strokebloke · Feb 17, 2009

The waiting for the goods to arrive is the worst bit of the whole on-line transaction business. [that & not knowing whether you are going to also get caught out on import duty] I've made a decision that I won't, unless absolutely imperative, buy Stateside again - the P&P charges are often exorbitant when compared with HK & there is the dreaded C&E duty on top of that too. I'll take my chances with this countries goods from now on whenever possible.

J

Vilk · Feb 17, 2009

KEH is not the place to shop if you like your goodies quick. i gave up on them after a few 4-to-6 week deliveries (same side of the pond, too )

i am told they "ship on tuesdays"--i guess you may add a week to the estimate, if you placed the order on a tuesday night

Crono · Feb 25, 2009

just got the letter from parcelforce
the lens from pacificrim was 124.75USD included shipping,
have to pay 12.71 + 8.00 sterling...

the F2s was shipped on 12 Feb... don't really know where it is at the moment...

Bob F. · Feb 25, 2009

If Parcelforce has it then it is waiting for you to collect...

Strokebloke · Feb 25, 2009

Bob F. said:
If Parcelforce has it then it is waiting for you to collect...

Not necessarily Bob. The bill can be paid, by the recipient, with a credit card, electronically, & they will deliver to the door, subject to a date/time nominated by the recipient.

PS: The UPS Tracking System is about as much use as a handbrake on a canoe !!

Ian Grant · Feb 25, 2009

Strokebloke said:
PS: The UPS Tracking System is about as much use as a handbrake on a canoe !!

So's USPS's to, as I know from experience

Ian

Bob F. · Feb 25, 2009

FedEx was good when I bought my Shen Hao from Badger. Tracked it from Badger to the local FedEx office, to the airport and in to UK customs, two delivery offices in the UK and on to the delivery van. 10 minutes after I signed for it, it was online as "Delivered". That was about four years ago. Interestingly, FedEx didn't require payment up-front for Duty, VAT and handling charge: they sent me an invoice a week later.

Martin Aislabie · Feb 26, 2009

I have always found UPS & FedEx to be the very good - as was their respective tracking systems

USPS & Parcel Force were rubbish - almost as if they were doing me a favour by delivering it

Last year I was able to track by Ebony from Badger to my door step every step of the way - but had to pay the duty & fees before they would hand over the stuff (no suprise)

There is a reason you have to pay more to get UPS & FedEx for your courier - for me its a value thing - have I paid a lot of money out already, then the extra cost is peanuts

Things can and do go wrong with every courier but if you pay for a premium service you tend to get a better standard of customer interface

Martin

Strokebloke · Mar 6, 2009

Hi Crono.
Have you got your camera from KEH yet?
If so, are you pleased with it?
The last post on this thread was Martin's on the 27th Feb.
I've been watching to see your post to say that it's arrived.

Crono · Mar 8, 2009

Hi guys,

have not forget to report it here
i got it on Friday (so it is just more than 3 weeks), but have only opened the box this morning
and it took me sometime to check it.

the import duty was 26 pounds

so the camera costed me 17x pounds
i think i can still make some money if i want to sell it
i am not going to do it of cos

BUT!!!
there is a problem...
i tried to mount a lens on, which is the 50 1.4 AI'd
set the maximum aparture and check the window at the front
that's all right, it shows 1.4
but when i look into the viewfinder, it is 2.8!!!
and all of the aparture readings shows in the viewfinder is 2 stops smaller than i set on the lens!!!

what can i do?!
is there a simple way to fix it?
i dont want to ship it back... sigh...

Strokebloke · Mar 8, 2009

Crono,
surely what you see in the viewfinder is what is visible to the ADR. The camera can't determine what aperture setting you're using without the ADR, if it's a manual or even aperture priority body. On the lens, does the ADR ring readout coincide with the aperture setting? I've got one lens [admittedly a Vivitar] which has a whole selection of ADR readings, which is quite independent of the aperture ring. And this ADR ring has to be set to coincide with the aperture ring you're using at the time, because the ADR ring is on an adaptor.
I might be misunderstanding what you're saying; or completely wrong, but as I understand it , the ADR viewer is merely a small port in the body above the lens mount which enables the figures on the lens to be seen as the light is allowed into the lens.

Pleased your camera arrived, by the way. and that you won't be out of pocket with it.

Crono · Mar 8, 2009

no...
it doesn't seem to be the problem of the ADR if i am not misunderstanding what you mean

the lens has 2 rings with aparture readings on it and both have no. from f1.4 to 16
but the smallest aparture reading from the viewfinder is f32 when aparture is set on f16 on the lens

Strokebloke · Mar 9, 2009

It sounds like a mis-alignment in the camera body, doesn't it?
Me? I'd take the lens & the body into my local friendly photography shop and explain the problem.
They my come up with a simple remedy; it's a new camera for you, so you may not 'know' it as well as they may.
Or, they may be able to recommend a 'fix', which could be a lot cheaper than returning the body to KEH.
Don't give up on it yet Crono. At least, not until you know what the inconvenience and cost implications are.

All the best mate.
Keep in touch

Jack

Crono · Mar 9, 2009

ok...

i contacted Sover Wong to see if there is a way for me to fix it
he told me to take the nikon name plate off and see if there is anything wrong

i did it, there is nothing i can tell
so i went a step further to take the whole coupling mechanism off
and found a gear INSIDE the dp2 finder which couple with the aparture indicator in the viewfinder

i adjusted the reading to a middle position f5.6 rather than the f11 when i received,
putting everything back and checked the camera again...

then the meter is giving me a reading which is 2 stops brighter than what it should be!!!

i am quite disppointed with my 1st KEH experience now...

Strokebloke · Mar 10, 2009

I would mail Sover Wong [presumably the seller-from KEH] & inform him of the result.
I would then contact eBay & advise them of the situation and the possibility of a dispute with KEH. [goods not being/performing as described]
(I presume the seller did not advise you that the aperture reading was mis-aligned - I presume he sold the camera with at least the implication, if not the statement, that all aspects of it worked well and accurately)
At the same time seeking advise from eBay about sending the camera to a recognised repairer to have the aperture indicature problem corrected

I would then advise KEH of the outcome of those discussions and your intended course of action to rectify the problem, and advise them that the costs to repair the camera will be forwarded to them.

I suggest the more you do to the camera, the more you invalidate your claim for a professional repair, with a justifiable claim for the costs to be reimbursed to you, by the seller.

Others may have alternative advice, based on previous practical experience.
I would wait to see if anyone else contributes, but in the meantime, contact eBay for advice too.

Regards,
Jack

Crono · Mar 10, 2009

oh...
the camera is from KEH, a camera store from USA, not their ebay store
i sent an email to them in regards of the problem, for whatever reason... i am not going to ship it back to the US...

Sover is a F2 specialist in UK
he gave me a quote for the service already and it sounds reasonable
so i am going to send it to him...

Strokebloke · Mar 10, 2009

This is a transaction you're unlikely to forget, isn't it?
Hope Sover sorts it for you, without too much additional expenditure.
Let us know how you get on.

I bought my FM2n from the States & have vowed that I'll never buy anything [of significance] Stateside again.
The camera's great, but it cost me a packet.

Regards,
Jack

Buying Equipment from KEH

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