ANyone bought any Stuff over the Internet?

[Sunfish]

Currently waiting for the arrival of a David C headset from Aircraft Spruce in the U.S.

Shipment via UPS.

I'm starting to get alarmed. I've previously bought stuff from the U.S. and its appeared in 4 -5 days via the U.S. Airmail.


I paid extra for UPS "Expedited" delivery (like 135 compared to about 35 dollars) which I thought would deliver in about lightspeed. Turns out that their "guaranteed" delivery in Australia is 13 days!!!!

As far as the UPS tracking system knows, my goods are still stuck in California six days after being delivered to UPS!

Anyone got any suggestions?

Are Aircraft Spruce reputable? Has anyone used them? What about UPS?

I'm starting to smell a rodent here, or am I just dreaming? Constructive suggestions please.

Fish need ear protection too.

[djpil]

I've bought quite a lot from Spruce over the years - they are reputable but sometimes make mistakes. Ordering via the local agent avoids those mistakes but delivery time is usually longer.
Never had any trouble with UPS.

I'm just about to order an oil filter adaptor from them - not enough room for the Lycoming part and there's now a small company with PMA approval for a 90 deg adaptor. Finally going to throw the rock-stopper away and use a spin-on filter.

[dude65]

Sunfish
Am also after a DC headset. Aus. prices pretty steep. Would you mind posting the model details ,price etc. PM me if you like.

[Cyclic Hotline]

Aircraft Spruce are an excellent outfit.

You should check with UPS about discounting your delivery if it is not there on time - check with them locally for policy on this.

It may be worth e-mailing Aircraft Spruce and telling them your problem - they will have their UPS account manager and the means of chasing it from their end. Never be afraid to complain if you don't get what you pay for.

[Sunfish]

Ahhh the ups and downs of managing expectations! I was readyy to forgive UPS this morning when their tracking system appeared to show that the headset was received into store at Ascot Vale in Melbourne this morning.

However I made one precautionary call to UPS before scooting over to Ascot Vale to pick up my precious headset. You guessed it, although their tracking system says the are in Ascot Vale, the headset is still in a container in Sydney and won't be avaiable until Wednesday if I am lucky! I almost exploded at the poor girl. Anyway I've put a hold on it so I can pick it up myself and check if its damaged or not.

$135 U.S. dollars to receive a thirteen day (unguaranteed ) delivery and get nailed for GST and a "handling" fee to boot. I am a f*&^%$ing idiot! Spoke to a mate who imports high tech european motorcycle stuff by air and he doesn't pay even a fraction of what UPS charges!



Dude, DC have a resale price maintenance policy, but if you check with some internet shops they will email you a "discounted" price.

Just make sure you get it shipped by the post office express post. Whatever you do, stay away from UPS.

[GearOff]

I bought a headset at Sporty's Pilot Shop in the States and had it delievered by air-mail.

It took a couple of weeks to come through, which was alright, but the bit that really annoyed me was that the packaging was almost completely destroyed upon its arrival. It seemed to be pure luck that the headset itself was undamaged.

Won't be ordering again from there.

One thing to consider with headsets too, is as far as I'm aware, DCs don't come with international warranties. So if you buy it from the states, your warranty is invalid in Australia.

[MinimaNoContact]

About 3 yrs ago, I bought a David Clarke ANR headset from Marv Golden. I saved a bundle of money buying it online, compared to buying the exact same headset in Aus I saved over $600. I think it took about 10 days to arrive.

MNC

[Capt Claret]

I recently purchased a Bose Aviation X directly from Bose in Sydney. Paid by CC over the phone and had it delivered overnight (Friday) to the hotel I was expecting to check into on the Sunday.

Headset arrived on time in good condition. Me, I was 4 weeks late! :{ so had to resort to Plan B, thanks Corp31!!! ;)

Bloody great headset BTW. :D

[Desert Duck]

Sunfish

There are some very good prices available in Australia for DC, with overnight delivery.
I hope you got a good price in US?

[Sunfish]

Duckling pray tell?

[dude65]

Reckon you still came out ahead there Sunfish

Thanks for the info

[Capt Fathom]

Just did a quick look on the internet to compare AUS vs US purchase.

On the surface, the US price looks good. But add on delivery, US dollar conversion, and Customs duties here in Oz, and the price here is cheaper.

Plus you don't have to worry about what country your package will go to, and you keep an Aussie in a job! :ok:

[Lukeatme]

Anyone interested in some DC headsets, uses stereo style plug (used to run military A/C) going cheap at $100?