buying boards stateside?

[old balls]

Just wondering if anyone out there has bought any boards fgrom the states, does it save you some cash, how does it work with shipping and duties?
always bought my boards here in uk but wondered what the sketch was? :?:

[tooextremeforyou]

my first board was from the sates, shipping was expensive and the item was the wrpng board so was gonna cost loads to send back! Just bought my new skate from buywake.com was good service, cheap 24-48hrs shipping and came undamaged. the exchange is very good like 2$ for every £, do your research on the compnay and check their delivery prices and returns policy first. i would usually recomend buying from your local shop as most shops will let u try boards and so on.... but the skate i bought i couldnt get from my local sponsor so it had to be ordered.

[Tower_boy]

Basically, as with everything, you can do what you want.

if you buy a board from the states the low down is that it needs to be right as it won't be worth sending back if not. so make sure you find which board/size/fin setup etc you will need. also, always remember to add on Duty (about 5%) and VAT (17.5%) to your order, plus between £30-40 for delivery.

so for e.g a board costing $300 = £157 @ex. Rate of 1.9

+ Duty = £165
+ VAT = £195
+Delivery = (£35) £230

All those figures ares rounded and rough, but you get the idea, you may save a little but not very much as most double up, LF and obrien boards are that kind of price anyway.. and also come with dealer backup/warranty - which you can forget if you bought it abroad.

So really its a trade off, you may save a little cash but you lose some value too.

I feel the argument of "support your local boardshop" is a waste of time, they aren't charity shops, I shop for most of my stuff in this country because i feel that for the extra few quid its worth it for the backup and buying experience.

Just my 2 cents

Mike

[old balls]

thanks for the advice, i will wait till i get chance to try one here, and buy uk i think, would like to hold, touch and feel my new riding partner b4 i commit!!

[El Bastardos]

The other thing to consider is will they ever get it in the UK.

I bought some LF Sphynx bindings this year, couldn't get em over here. But a warranty is worth having for the general easy to get stuff. I guess it depends if you can afford to lose that money if it falls apart.

And no, board shops aren't charity shops they need to make a living to survive (before anyone gets on my case about buying from abroad).

[UK_MILITIA]

tut tut tut,, fancy admitting on here that you buy from abroad, you are gonna get some bum loving on here for that,, :evil: