Help me with a potential Mark IV purchase

[weemies]

I'm fairly new to this board, so greetings everybody.

I currently own a Single Rectifier, and I like it but I'm not entirely satisfied with it. I've started seriously GASsing over MkIV, and I've decided to get one asap.

Problem is, I live in Europe and the prices are robbery over here, so I'm definitely buying used. It seems like the best deal would be to have one shipped from the US, but unfortunately most US sellers in ebay won't ship overseas.

I did however find this one just recently:
http://cgi.ebay.com/MESA-BOOGIE-MARK-IV-BEST-ON-EBAY-STORE-FRESH_W0QQitemZ200157171577QQihZ010QQcategoryZ43374QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

I'm seriously concidering bidding. I'd like to hear your opinions on this auction. Does it seem like a scam to you? I asked the seller how much the shipping would be to Finland, but he said he couldn't get a quote from ebay... Am I a sucker if I'm going to bid for this?

Can someone from the US tell me how much it roughly costs to ship a 45 lbs head from the US to Europe? I don't feel like bidding only to find out I'm going to pay some ridiculous amount just for shipping. I don't think it should be too much, as I recently bought heavy-*** monitor stands from the US, and paid about $250 for shipping. That's a lot of money, but the stands I bought weigh about twice what the MkIV medium head weighs, so I figure the shipping couldn't be over $200, that's kind of my psychological threshold right now...

Let me know what you think,
thanks.

 

[disassembled]

Shipping with insurance will be $200 +. You can get a quote from usps.com. You have to remember the head weighs 45 lbs but you have to factor in the footswitch, cover, paperwork, packing material, and box which will probably bring it to 55 lbs or more depending upon how well it is packed.

I have shipped internationally before (guitars, dual rectifier heads, etc) and you also have to factor in taxes/duties you will pay when the amp arrives.


A rack preamp would cost less to ship (triaxis, studio, quad, etc) if you're worried about paying a lot to ship something.

If you are patient you will see Mark IV's for $900-$1200 with BIN on ebay so that can offset the cost of shipping compared to buying one that is much more expensive (like the amp you linked to).



Greg

 

[dodger916]

I'm seriously concidering bidding. I'd like to hear your opinions on this auction. Does it seem like a scam to you? I asked the seller how much the shipping would be to Finland, but he said he couldn't get a quote from ebay... Am I a sucker if I'm going to bid for this?

The auction and the seller seem legitimate to me. The seller has 188 feedbacks; 100% positive except for one sale of tubes. (you can see the feedback by clicking on the "188" next to the blue star next to his name). He's sells a lot of amplifier/musical equipment, so he seems reputable in that area. He also accepts Pay Pal which provides the buyer added protection.

The price is a bit high, but the amp is like-new and should be still under warranty given the May 2006 sale date.

Frank

 

[pmb]

I don't know if you guys in Finland use Euro's or something else, but it's a very good moment for us here in Belgium to buy american stuff.
1000$ is about €700. A couple of years ago if we wanted to buy something in the USA, that's cheaper there, it sometimes wasn't worth it, because the shipping and taxes are very expensive.
But now the difference between dollar and euro will probably equal those shipping and taxes costs.
Good for us but not very good for US people that want to buy second hand european amps, that are a lot less expensive in Europe.

Time for the war in Iraq to stop, that would change the dollar value a lot.
At least that's what they say here, I'm not too good at economics actually.
But anyway, I prefer no war.

 

[weemies]

Yeah, we use Euros in Finland. I figured the same as you, it's a great time to buy something from the US. Even when adding the shipping costs and the taxes + customs, it can still be a LOT cheaper to have a head shipped from the US.

Thanks everyone for the replies.

 

[Pinweaver]

Even when adding the shipping costs and the taxes + customs, it can still be a LOT cheaper to have a head shipped from the US.

Are you sure about that? If an amp doesn't get through customs here it's +21% in import taxes and + 6% in customs fees you're looking at.

On top of that you better pray it gets here in one piece and hope nothing serious will go wrong with it, ever. I know from a friend who bought a US rectifier that the Benelux importer of Mesa will not repair stuff he hasn't sold, so if there isn't a very knowledgeable amp specialist nearby, you are screwed.

 

[weemies]

Even when adding the shipping costs and the taxes + customs, it can still be a LOT cheaper to have a head shipped from the US.

Are you sure about that? If an amp doesn't get through customs here it's +21% in import taxes and + 6% in customs fees you're looking at.

On top of that you better pray it gets here in one piece and hope nothing serious will go wrong with it, ever. I know from a friend who bought a US rectifier that the Benelux importer of Mesa will not repair stuff he hasn't sold, so if there isn't a very knowledgeable amp specialist nearby, you are screwed.

I'm pretty sure that it will end up a lot cheaper, yes.

Let's say I buy a MkIV with a winning bid of $1300. Add a maximum of $250 for shipping on top of that. That would come down to about 1100 euros. Now on top of that a maximum of 27% taxes and customs. That would be a bit under 1400 euros. That would still be quite a bit less than you pay for even a used one in Finland. Also, it's rare to even see MkIV:s being sold used here. Right now there's one being sold, and the seller is asking for 2000 euros. :roll:

About being screwed if the amp is broken, that can always happen when buying used and shipping it, whether nationally or internationally. There's always an element of risk involved. Unless you can pick it up directly from the seller, and handle the transportation yourself.

 

[pmb]

A this moment I think you can't go very wrong with shipping US stuff here. Not that I have the balls to do international trade, but these wonderful dollar prices make me want to grow big balls

 

[metalblitz84]

Just keep checking ebay and maybe even any local auctions or sale opportunities locally.

 

[weemies]

Woo! I just won a MkIV head at ebay. Different one than the one I mentioned in the OP, though.

I have a question. The auction offered paypal as an option, which is why I bid in the first place. However, now that the auction is over, the seller says he will accept paypal if I pay the fee. Is this legit? Can he do that? Isn't paypal fees the seller's responsibility, unless clearly stated in the auction (which he didn't)?

Also, does someone know why paypal offers only $200 buyer protection in this item, while it was $2000 in the one I mentioned in the OP? I hope I'm not being scammed...

 

[dodger916]

The seller usually pays the PayPal fees unless otherwise specified in the auction.

Don't know about the buyer protection.

Congrats and Enjoy the Mk IV!

 

[disassembled]

Woo! I just won a MkIV head at ebay. Different one than the one I mentioned in the OP, though.

I have a question. The auction offered paypal as an option, which is why I bid in the first place. However, now that the auction is over, the seller says he will accept paypal if I pay the fee. Is this legit? Can he do that? Isn't paypal fees the seller's responsibility, unless clearly stated in the auction (which he didn't)?

Also, does someone know why paypal offers only $200 buyer protection in this item, while it was $2000 in the one I mentioned in the OP? I hope I'm not being scammed...

It is illegal for the seller to make the buyer pay for paypal fees according to ebay. Check the ebay rules or email ebay directly.


Greg

 

[weemies]

Well he agreed to sell for the original price + shipping, so everything's ok. Now I just have to hope I actually receive the amp... Thanks for the replies.

 

[disassembled]

Well he agreed to sell for the original price + shipping, so everything's ok. Now I just have to hope I actually receive the amp... Thanks for the replies.

It may take a month or two to arrive so be patient. Did he remove the tubes for shipping? If not you might have to buy some new tubes.


I hope you enjoy the amp!

Greg

 

[dodger916]

Well he agreed to sell for the original price + shipping, so everything's ok. Now I just have to hope I actually receive the amp... Thanks for the replies.

Make sure he provides a tracking number soon.

 

[weemies]

Well he agreed to sell for the original price + shipping, so everything's ok. Now I just have to hope I actually receive the amp... Thanks for the replies.

It may take a month or two to arrive so be patient. Did he remove the tubes for shipping? If not you might have to buy some new tubes.


I hope you enjoy the amp!

Greg

It shouldn't take more than 6-10 days, it will be shippied by USPS Priority Mail® International.

I asked him to send me a tracking number once he gets one, or rather, IF he gets one. According to USPS web site, they offer "Tracking to major destinations". Hard to say whether Helsinki is a major destination.

 

[metalblitz84]

Make sure he communicates with you and lets you know when he shipped it, how he shipped it, and keep the tracking number as stated before. Fraud is a common thing now a days and you have to be careful, but it sound legit! Good luck and enjoy the Mark IV!!!

 

[weemies]

The USPS service I chose will not include tracking of any kind, and that might have been a mistake from my part. I probably should have shelled out a bit more cash to be able to track the package, and to have the peace of mind on knowing the package has actually been sent.

Anyway, it has now been over 24 hours since I last heard anything from the seller. Should I be getting nervous? Because I am. He used to reply very quickly to pre- and post-auction queries, but this was before he got my money. He hasn't even acknowledged whether he has received the payment. Shouldn't the payment show in his paypal account immediately after the payment has been made?

Here's the item I won:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=250170066383&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=015

 

[dodger916]

It usually shows in Paypal immediately. However, international payments could take longer to post to his account, especially if the payment was made via bank check on a foreign account.

Keep trying to contact him and establish a strong "paper trail" just in case. I would advise him politely that as an international buyer you are becoming concerned over his silence, and if he doesn't respond by a certain time (for example, Monday at 12 noon his time) you will be filing a complaint with PayPal.

Also see if you can change the shipping method to include a tracking number, even if it costs more.

 

[weemies]

Ok, he replied. I guess he had been taken ill, so he couldn't reply earlier. He promised to ship the amp first thing monday morning. Very cool.