Rhoads shipping weight?

[DrDoug]

Glad to hear that it is on its way! The guy I got my RR3 from did an excellent job of boxing it up right. It shipped in its case, and the box it was in had air bags on the sides and paper on the top, bottom and sides. I think $52.00 would be a fair price (I paid $50.00) for shipping, and I don't begrudge the seller a few bucks for packing it up and dropping it off at the post office. After all, I bought the guitar and shipping was not in the final price.

I hate seeing the rip off sellers on eBay that sell a featherweight item and charge outrageous shipping, and I never buy from a crook like that. I do research the shipping price, and if they are charging within a few dollars, I am willing to cough that up for the handling part of the shipping.

Heck, one time a guy underestimated the shipping by almost half, and as the item went for cheap, he nearly lost money on the deal. When I got it, I saw the cost and I sent him the difference via PayPal. He did not ask for it, and when he saw I sent the difference he was very happy. He said that he did not want to sound like a crook and ask for more shipping, and I told him that I saw that and that was why I sent the difference. I have since purchased other items from him, and he is an excellent seller who I can trust. Too bad there are not more people like him on eBay.

[outsider666]

Shipping into Canada is a pain in the ass, most US sellers won't even consider it.......I just got a quote from Guitar Asylum (which is in New York, I'm right across the river in Ontario Canada) and for an RR1 w/case they wanted $85 US on top of the cost of the guitar.....

[37fiat]

I have also sent sellers extra $ after the sale to cover higher than expected shipping costs (very rare). I only did this because the sellers were very good to deal with, and I like to be fair.
To pay an additional $5 or $10 isn't going to break me, at least not yet!

I get everything shipped to me USPS, and it's quite easy to figure out how much shipping from the States to Canada will be if you have a good idea of the weight of the item. Tracking the cost down through usps.com takes less than 2 minutes.
Never, ever use UPS to Canada unless you love throwing money away.
Fedex is no better.

I really don't understand why sellers in the U.S. think it's a hassle to ship to Canada.
It's one additional piece of paper (the customs slip), and takes 30 seconds to fill out. Doesn't cost the seller 1 penny.
As far as I know, Paypal protection exists for both the buyer and seller for cross border transactions, so what's the big deal?


There have been many, many items that I wasn't able to bid on or buy because the seller flat out refused to ship to Canada. That of course is their right, and I move on, but I'd sure like to know what the big deal is.
It's not like we're some third world country.

As to the featherweight item + big shipping charge, I just bought my wife a 4gb Nano for a very reasonable $105 + not quite as reasonable $18 for shipping. It arrived today and it's perfect! It only cost the guy $7.50 to ship it, but I know that this is how it works on some items before I bid. They make a good portion of their money on the high shipping charges.

I feel that if I add up all the costs, and it's still a great deal, then I'm ahead.

[Rich#6]

I really don't understand why sellers in the U.S. think it's a hassle to ship to Canada.

My wife is an ebay seller and she sells sterile silver jewelry. Last time she shipped to Canada the woman never got the package. My wife refunded her. 3 months later we get the package back smashed to hell, but the address still was OK. It sat in canada's customs office where they destroyed it . They never tried to deliver it. If your read what canada's customs regulations are you wouldn't ship there either.

[37fiat]

So from one bad experience, you've decided that shipping to Canada is a bad thing.

How do you know it was Canada Customs that smashed the package?
Could the damage have been there from the US carrier before it got to Canada Customs?
I would guess that your wife has had more than one negative experience dealing with buyers or shippers in the U.S., but I would imagine she still does business with U.S. customers.
I have bought and sold cars, automotive parts, guitars, cameras, coins and a whole lot more from and to the U.S., so I have read a LOT of the Canadian and some of the U.S. Customs regulations, and yes, I will still ship to the U.S. even though it takes me an additional 30 seconds to fill out a Customs form.

Some things can get complicated when shipping to Canada, but for the most part, it's no more difficult or time consuming than sending something between two cities in the U.S.

There are good and bad buyers and sellers in both countries.
Assholes can be found on both sides of the border.
I'm pretty sure it's a worldwide phenomenon.

[Rich#6]

So from one bad experience, you've decided that shipping to Canada is a bad thing

NO not just one bad experience from canada. there has been a handful of times that she shipped to canada and almost all of them there has been issues (i.e., really slow delivery, redoing packaging because everything must be in CAPS??-what the hell is that about, and non delivery). Out of 2450 transactions most of which are sales, she has had only one issue with delivery in the US where the sorting machine tore off the delivery address. Its not just Canada there are so many international postal laws its is hard to keep track of what can be shipped where. The only way not to ship to some countries is to block everyone. Just because you say it in your auction people will still bid assuming you will make excepts just this once for them. I ship all the packages for my wife and everytime I shipped to canada our postal workers complain about your postal system A LOT. We don't THINK it is a hassle to sell to Canada we KNOW because we used too. We learned from experience.

[37fiat]

Slow delivery - Can happen in the U.S. as well as Canada when using the postal system.

Writing in CAPS - Never heard of it, and I can't remember a single package I've received from the U.S. that was that way.

Why would your postal workers complain about our postal system?
What if anything do they even know about it, and why complain to you?

The "hassles" you mention are minor or non-existant. If you choose to not sell to Canadians that's fine. There are many, many sellers out there that don't share your views and haven't had the "problems" you speak of and KNOW that it's not a big deal.

To date I've done at least 300 transactions from the U.S., and have NEVER had a problem with getting anything shipped to Canada, and I'm in the boonies beside Alaska.

I guess that all those times I was just lucky.

[xenophobe]

The box was 28lb 2oz, and cost him/me $45.50 using USPS airmail parcel post. I don't know where he got the $52 he was talking about from.

That difference sounds about right for Priority USPS over Parcel Post.

[Rich#6]

Slow delivery

In the US everything is priority 2 or 3 days. Canada it has taken weeks for airmail. When people start looking for their packages

Writing in CAPS

The postal workers showed me the sheet of new instructions for Canada.

Why would your postal workers complain about our postal system?
What if anything do they even know about it, and why complain to you?

Why complain to me? Because they are making me redo evelopes which costs money and they don't want me pissed at them.

The "hassles" you mention are minor or non-existant

I love it! Packages not getting there at all, taking 2 or 3 weeks for air mail, redoing envelopes is not minor. What my wife sells is on the restricted list so it is more complicated. It is a crap shoot wheather or not customs holds or opens the package (even the buyers from canada complained about your customs). We would love to have continued to sell to Canada more sales and higher sale prices. I believe it all depends on what you are selling.
I also found out the hard way my bank is not international when they woulded deposit a Canadian MO.

[37fiat]

I do agree that it depends on what you're selling, and the last time I looked, this forum was about guitars and related gear.

My discussion and query was in relation to shipping guitars, not whether there would be problems shipping live chickens, restricted weapons or as in your case jewelry.

Not everything in the US is priority and takes 2 -3 days. Only lettermail and envelopes qualify for that. Using Parcel Post, and shipping something like a guitar, it takes 8 days from LA to NY, but that of course could be upgraded, as could any service to Canada.

The Canadian market is certainly smaller than the one in the U.S., so I'm sure keeping the sales domestic isn't hurting your wifes sales of silver jewelry. I do wish her well, and as a seller it is absolutely your right to sell to whomever you choose.

There is no point in arguing about this issue, since there are valid points from both sides.

By the way, don't think for a moment that I'm defending Canada Customs. I think they are bottomfeeding scum, who are only there to make a lot of extra $$$$$$ for the Government.

I had a friend who bought a race car in the US, brought it across the border and Canada Customs screwed him horribly.
They said he wouldn't provide them with a bill of sale, even though he showed it to them. They nailed him with a $ 15,000 fine on top of the duties and taxes they levied on the car. They impounded his car and the truck and trailer he was using to transport it, until he paid in full. He was stuck at the border for 3 days, and had to get his wife to get a loan from the bank to cover it.
Poor bastard now has a $45,000 car that he paid $68,000 for.

Canada Customs blows, and I sure hope they leave my guitar alone!

[Rich#6]

With all the other crap you went through I wish you the best of luck. That does look like one sweeeet axe!

[37fiat]

Thanks man!

I do hope it is what was in the pictures. My biggest fear at this point is that I'll get it, and when I open the case, a $300 JS series Jackson will be staring at me. I'm such a pessimist!

Have patience and faith, so I'm told.

As soon as it's here, I'll post some better pictures.