buying gear on the net

just us said:

Well I am a little disappointed to say the least. On the 10th (9 days ago) I
emailed a company asking them if they had a front and back pannier in stock
as well as a front rack. (they advertised them on the net) Yep! they said
and told me that if I was to deposit the required amount on the 10th they
would post me the goods and I would recieve them on the Monday at the very
latest which was the 17th. ( they told me at the very latest they would post
on the 12th) It is now the 19th and no sign of the goods. The thing that is
really really peeing me off is that when I originally emailed them to tell
them that I was wanting to buy only if they could deliver well before Easter
they emailed straight back. Several emails that were answered straight away
and I did the transaction. Today no email was answered. No sign of my goods!
Thanks to them our Easter trip is now in doubt as although I have the gear
my husband doesnt - if only people were more honest instead of just taking
your money. I still believe the goods will arrive, but I doubt if we are
going to get them on time. Sheesh I am peed off!
Kathy

They aren't all like that. Name them, so the rest aren't blemished.

Donga

"just us" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Well I am a little disappointed to say the least. On the 10th (9 days ago)
I emailed a company asking them if they had a front and back pannier in
stock as well as a front rack. (they advertised them on the net) Yep! they
said and told me that if I was to deposit the required amount on the 10th
they would post me the goods and I would recieve them on the Monday at the
very latest which was the 17th. ( they told me at the very latest they
would post on the 12th) It is now the 19th and no sign of the goods. The
thing that is really really peeing me off is that when I originally
emailed them to tell them that I was wanting to buy only if they could
deliver well before Easter they emailed straight back. Several emails that
were answered straight away and I did the transaction. Today no email was
answered. No sign of my goods! Thanks to them our Easter trip is now in
doubt as although I have the gear my husband doesnt - if only people were
more honest instead of just taking your money. I still believe the goods
will arrive, but I doubt if we are going to get them on time. Sheesh I am
peed off!
Kathy

I sympathise with you. Is this company in Australia? If so, I'm not
surprised by your problems as, with a few noble exceptions, I have found
Australian bicycle equipment retailers to be overpriced, inefficient and
lacking in range and depth.
Like many others in Australia I go to overseas online suppliers, mostly in
the USA. You can say what you like about American culture and foreign policy
but enterprising Americans do know how to devise business models dedicated
to speedy and efficient service.

My most recent transaction was buying front and rear Surly Nice Racks from
www.smartbikeparts.com in Chicago. They were half the price quoted by
Australian firms (who were out of stock, had no backorder date and did not
care), arrived in six days and smartbikeparts somehow manage to charge only
$25 to Fedex just about anything. Only thing wrong with them is that their
online catalogue is not particularly intuitive to use until you get used to
it.

I truly recommend them. If you have any questions email Eric at
smartbikeparts and while you're at it ask him how his Surly Steamroller is
going.

Hyper

Hypertension said:

I have found
Australian bicycle equipment retailers to be overpriced, inefficient and
lacking in range and depth.

Matches the customers well; cheap, whiney and rude.{:-).
Seriously, if your market is based on 300 million, then you can afford
to hold lots of stock. Does either Sydney or Melbourne have a real
touring shop now?

As far as rack go, you can not even get the materials to make them. I
suspect it is now the same with materials for panniers.

Quoted message said:

charge only $25 to Fedex just about anything. Only thing wrong with them
is that their online catalogue is not particularly intuitive to use
until you get used to it.

How much was your order(s)? and did they attract any customs?

I've had good results with o/s (UK mostly) online suppliers.. but have
had a similar experience with non-bike parts that took about 2 months
to finally get shipped.. with little communication in between. You
take your chances.

It sounds like you did all the right things, so I'd ring the CC
company and explain the situation; get them to reverse the charges and
tell the supplier what you've done.

They won't learn unless they feel some pain for your inconvenience.

Hypertension said:

"just us" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Well I am a little disappointed to say the least. On the 10th (9 days
ago) I emailed a company asking them if they had a front and back
pannier in stock as well as a front rack. (they advertised them on the
net) Yep! they said and told me that if I was to deposit the required
amount on the 10th they would post me the goods and I would recieve
them on the Monday at the very latest which was the 17th. ( they told
me at the very latest they would post on the 12th) It is now the 19th
and no sign of the goods. The thing that is really really peeing me
off is that when I originally emailed them to tell them that I was
wanting to buy only if they could deliver well before Easter they
emailed straight back. Several emails that were answered straight away
and I did the transaction. Today no email was answered. No sign of my
goods! Thanks to them our Easter trip is now in doubt as although I
have the gear my husband doesnt - if only people were more honest
instead of just taking your money. I still believe the goods will
arrive, but I doubt if we are going to get them on time. Sheesh I am
peed off!
Kathy

I sympathise with you. Is this company in Australia? If so, I'm not
surprised by your problems as, with a few noble exceptions, I have found
Australian bicycle equipment retailers to be overpriced, inefficient and
lacking in range and depth.
Like many others in Australia I go to overseas online suppliers, mostly
in the USA. You can say what you like about American culture and foreign
policy but enterprising Americans do know how to devise business models
dedicated to speedy and efficient service.

My most recent transaction was buying front and rear Surly Nice Racks
from www.smartbikeparts.com in Chicago. They were half the price quoted
by Australian firms (who were out of stock, had no backorder date and
did not care), arrived in six days and smartbikeparts somehow manage to
charge only $25 to Fedex just about anything. Only thing wrong with them
is that their online catalogue is not particularly intuitive to use
until you get used to it.

I truly recommend them. If you have any questions email Eric at
smartbikeparts and while you're at it ask him how his Surly Steamroller
is going.

Hyper

I use Chainreaction in the UK, 4 day delivery, freight is free if you
order over a certain amount, but freight is covered by the amount you
save on VAT. http://www.chainreactioncycles.com

I bought some forks Marzocchi (which were about $350 from the UK - $800
locally) and have had wheels handbuilt to order (Mavic rims, Hope hubs)
it comes out at about half the Australian price. Very reliable and the
web site shows whats in stock and the delivery time if out of stock.
Excellent service.

Usually under $1000 does not attract customs duty. Plus the dollar has
better value now against the pound.

r

"Terryc" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Hypertension said:

I have found Australian bicycle equipment retailers to be overpriced,
inefficient and lacking in range and depth.

Matches the customers well; cheap, whiney and rude.{:-).
Seriously, if your market is based on 300 million, then you can afford to
hold lots of stock. Does either Sydney or Melbourne have a real touring
shop now?

I'm still puzzled why a Shimano derailleur made right in our region in
Malaysia can go all the way to the USA and then be landed back in Australia
for half the local price. Or why a Velocity rim made in *Brisbane* fer
heavens sake costs $60 in a US online store and $115 when ordered through
my LBS. I take more account of exchange rates when the US peso is strong but
not when the Australian shekel buys 95 US centavos.

Quoted message said:

As far as rack go, you can not even get the materials to make them. I
suspect it is now the same with materials for panniers.

Quoted message said:

charge only $25 to Fedex just about anything. Only thing wrong with them
is that their online catalogue is not particularly intuitive to use until
you get used to it.

How much was your order(s)? and did they attract any customs?

My Surly Nice Racks were $270 the pair. No bicycle parts I've ever ordered
from overseas have attracted any import duty and individual orders are
generally in the hundreds of dollars.

Hyper

Hypertension said:

I'm still puzzled why a Shimano derailleur made right in our region in
Malaysia can go all the way to the USA and then be landed back in
Australia for half the local price. Or why a Velocity rim made in
*Brisbane* fer heavens sake costs $60 in a US online store and $115 when
ordered through my LBS. I take more account of exchange rates when the
US peso is strong but not when the Australian shekel buys 95 US centavos.

I agree. At one stage it was explained that "Aus" could make upa big
enough order to buy off the manufacturer, so we had to buy further down
the chain. Doesn't seem to apply now.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

How much was your order(s)? and did they attract any customs?

My Surly Nice Racks were $270 the pair. No bicycle parts I've ever
ordered from overseas have attracted any import duty and individual
orders are generally in the hundreds of dollars.

Thanks.

Hypertension said:

Quoted message said:

I'm still puzzled why a Shimano derailleur made right in our region in
Malaysia can go all the way to the USA and then be landed back in
Australia for half the local price.

The answer to that is John Bazzano.