Japanese MF eBay purchases

LMNOP · Feb 21, 2015

Anyone have good things to say about buying Fuji or Mamiya from Japanese eBay sellers? It's impossible to beat those prices, but in addition to his shipping rates, I have seen mention of import taxes, and heard of customs seizing items upon shipping, any truth to this? As much as I love eBay, I've never shopped internationally.

any stories?

Fuji GW90iii on eBay is about half price in Japan compares to KEH, that's a tough one.

Sirius Glass · Feb 21, 2015

This is another thread on this topic started this week. You are better off going to www.keh.com who has a great return policy and you do not have to sweat customs or tariff duties.

LMNOP · Feb 22, 2015

Sirius Glass said:
This is another thread on this topic started this week. You are better off going to Dead Link Removed who has a great return policy and you do not have to sweat customs or tariff duties.

Well said. I love your signature!

480sparky · Feb 22, 2015

Some of the deals seem too good to be true. So I pass on 'em.

But there IS a ton of darned, nice-looking gear for sale. I wonder if someone bought out a camera store in 1978 and has been sitting on it since.

trythis · Feb 22, 2015

Having been to Japan once, I saw many little camera shops with stacks of dusty gear. I would guess that ebay is just opening doors for people to unload the backlog of these things.

ozphoto · Feb 22, 2015

They have a truckload of gear that's almost always in fantastic condition; used to regularly head to Japan for photoshoots and the team *always* looked forward to an elusive day off, to traipse around the camera stores to try an garner a great buy.

I've picked up a few bargains, and one of my crew picked up an incredible deal on a d*****l body - boxed, complete, with all accessories still sealed in their plastic bags. No idea why the previous owner unloaded it, except that maybe they purchased a few weeks before the new model was released. Another picked up the (at the time) brand new F5 for $2k less than AU - he snapped it up, but it only got used maybe a dozen times before he fully moved to the Darkside - when clients want digital, we have to oblige .

I miss not heading back there as often now, but the gear I did pick up - still going strong. Even with the poor exchange rate at the time, saved about $3k over purchasing in AU, *plus* the gear was in NM condition compared to the Fair condition that was available in AU.

zanxion72 · Feb 22, 2015

For things made in Japan, one can get great deals from them. The only drawback would be expensive p&p costs plus customs with a bill over the total cost (declared value plus p&p).
Not bad, but they might land you a total not really worthy the fuss. But as always one can get a real deal no matter what.

macfred · Feb 22, 2015

I bought two FUJI's (GA645 and GA645Wi) and a Bronica ETRSi in Japan.
The gear was in better condition as described - exc.++ = near mint.
In Germany there were only a few, very pricey offers for theFUJI's
I could save money, although I had to pay the high German import turnover taxes.
I'm very pleased with those offers from Japan.

Rhodes · Feb 22, 2015

My mamiya 6 was bought in japonese ebay, camera and 2 lens, that came out quite cheap for me. The only trouble was the customs here and the price I payed.

guangong · Feb 22, 2015

Never a problem

I have bought Hassy backs and a Fuji mf camera from Japan and was very happy. There are no problems with shipmrnts to the USA. Aparently the sellers warnings are for those countries that do like to gouge whatever money they can from their subjects should they buy anything from abroad. After all，In general，Japanese tend not to abuse thei equipment.

Moopheus · Feb 22, 2015

I bought my RB67 from a Japanese dealer on ebay, and another lens for it from a different dealer. It was a 127mm K/L NIB--when I checked the dealer, it did appear to be a Mamiya shop in Tokyo unloading surplus on ebay. But the prices were decent, even with shipping, and everything was exactly as described.

You could also check with Japanescamerahunter.com--the guy's prices aren't the cheapest, but he tries to find exactly what you're looking for.

skysh4rk · Feb 22, 2015

Chris Livsey said:
From the UK the EU is the only area to buy from out of country where the world and his wife don't take a big chunk on top of your gear cost.

Maybe it's just me, but I cannot figure out what you're trying to say in that sentence.

Prest_400 · Feb 22, 2015

I got my GW690III last june from a seller in Japan.
In Europe these cameras are rare and pricey. The Fuji MF RFs are great value.

It took just 3 days to get to Spain but Customs got their hand and it took the tax and a couple of weeks till it arrived home. In the other thread there was discussion about the lack of customs problems in US.
The camera itself I got for a very good price, 350$ or so, and it is in good user condition. With shipping and customs it ended being around market price.

You guys want me to have a trip to Tokyo!
There is a lot of great stuff from Japan.

<Beamed through Tapatalk relay>

skysh4rk · Feb 22, 2015

Chris Livsey said:
When importing photographic goods from outside the EU the UK law requires VAT @20% to be added, on top of that the companies handling the import add extra fees to cover their costs in collecting and administrating that tax. That can amount to another 15% or more. That practice is lawful in the UK but I attempted to say, obviously without success, that this was similar to the bribes which are required in some countries to facilitate a smooth transfer of goods. (Their fees appear to be out of proportion to the work involved, I may of course be in error there).
This adds at least one third to the cost of the goods which may or of course may not make the prices offered unattractive.
There is no VAT added on goods imported from other members of the EU, (regardless of Euro membership) therefore no opportunity to add punitive "fees" either.

I understand how commerce in the UK and European Union works; I just couldn't figure out how what you were trying to say about the way it works. The apparent non-sequitur regarding bribery in your previous comment also didn't help, but you have now cleared all that up.

While I too am not a fan of the handling fees imposed by companies like Parcelforce and I agree that they're far too high for what they do, I can't see how you could relate that to bribery. An argument could be made for extortion, however.

Personally, I'd say that those of us in the UK (and the rest of the EU, for that matter) have it pretty good; we can order goods from nearly 30 countries without incurring any additional fees.

Trail Images · Feb 22, 2015

I have bought from eBay members located in Japan several times WITHOUT one issue at all with them, the product, or customs. In fact, I was glad they had what I needed when I could not find like same here in USA at the time.

480sparky · Feb 22, 2015

My biggest issue is not customs, tariffs or return policies..... it's the poor language used. Sometimes it's ambiguous at best, and sometimes it's totally contradictory.

Optics;There is no scratches,fungus,haze,dust in fainder . clear!
shutter speed;bottom to slow to hgih ALL speed OK
There is tiny many dust.There is a little influence.
It works properly. This lens works fine with no problems. There is moisture/fog on inside of the lens. （At the time of use by the backlight, I may influence it.）

Another issue is the seller describing something about the item, but they're not selling that item. For instance, they're selling a body, and include descriptions about a lens (dust, haze, balsam separation, etc.)

AgX · Feb 22, 2015

As this is the 3rd thread on this topic within a few days, here are some answers refering to the US import situation:

(there was a url link here which no longer exists)

Sirius Glass · Feb 22, 2015

skysh4rk · Feb 22, 2015

Chris Livsey said:
Extortion versus bribery, expand, NB only write on ONE side of the paper!!

A charge of extortion, for instance, need not involve public officials to be made, whereas bribery as a criminal offense involves those employed by the Government, mostly, along with certain clear provisions for cases of bribery in business.
http://criminal.laws.com/bribery/bribery-versus-extortion

What are you talking about? You might have a weak argument for extortion, but there's nothing about this that is related to bribery in any way.

In order for it to be bribery, the recipient of a parcel would have to be attempting to persuade a public official into acting dishonestly or illegally in some way. Where do you see that happening?

As it stands, the recipient is simply paying a handling fee charged by the parcel company (e.g., Parcelforce).

Chris Livsey said:
30 is fine but what about the other 163 United Nations member states?

Thirty is fine? Thirty is amazing.

Name a single country that has customs or duty free trading with all UN member states.

Name one that has a customs union with even half of those, for that matter. You can't.

Chris Livsey · Feb 22, 2015

skysh4rk said:
What are you talking about? You might have a weak argument for extortion, but there's nothing about this that is related to bribery in any way.
.

Look, it was intended as a light hearted comment on the, in my personal opinion, exorbitant charges made on imported used photographic equipment purchased outside the UK.
I'm not playing a silly game of "you can't" and will delete those posts forthwith. Hoping you continue to enjoy your day.

Sirius Glass · Feb 22, 2015

Chris Livsey said:
Look, it was intended as a light hearted comment on the, in my personal opinion, exorbitant charges, made on imported used photographic equipment purchased outside the UK.
I'm, not playing a silly game of "you can't" and will delete those posts foerthwith. Hoping you continue to enjoy your day.

Use [sarcasm] and [/sarcasm] tags.

John Koehrer · Feb 22, 2015

The OP is in the US, Vermont.
Any answers re:the EU, Greece, UK, The great wilderness of never, never land don't really have any bearing do they?

I've bought 35mm & LF from Japan and have never been charged customs or handling.
For customs, I've been told there's a maximum dollar amount that can get here without customs. Handling fees are dependent on the shipper. Most of the Japanese seem to use something like DHL or their mail service.

skysh4rk · Feb 22, 2015

Chris Livsey said:
Look, it was intended as a light hearted comment on the, in my personal opinion, exorbitant charges, made on imported used photographic equipment purchased outside the UK.
I'm, not playing a silly game of "you can't" and will delete those posts foerthwith. Hoping you continue to enjoy your day.

Sorry, I didn't intend to rag on you and perhaps I misinterpreted the tone of your posts, but I genuinely could not understand what you were trying to say, especially once you started talking about bribery.

I think charging VAT on goods entering the UK is fair, but if we're talking about the handling fees levied by Parcelforce and the like, then I agree with you that those are ridiculous.

film_man · Feb 22, 2015

I have bought lots of Mamiya RB67 stuff from Japan. They always arrived promptly and just as described. Prices were low enough that even with import duty it was still cheaper than buying in the UK. I don't know what the situation is with US customs but regardless, never received something that wasn't as described.

xya · Feb 22, 2015

since I buy a lot from japan, I have to say that it was always better than described. they seem to be very cautious with descriptions. for france you can avoid customs and handling fees by using SAL (ordinary japan post) instead of EMS (which is much faster). both have tracking. prices are much better, even with customs to pay. and you can find rare japanese beauties from the 40's and 50's, unavailable elswhere.

Japanese MF eBay purchases

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