*image size scaled for viewing computer screen
*I will type informally without focus on grammar or punctuation
*exchange rate based on today 4.635 at 5-year low
[incomplete guide] DIY import newbie accessories for 50% off
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Hardwarezone
- Posts: 399
- Joined: Fri May 17, 2013 2:50 am
- Favourite scope: maksutov
[incomplete guide] DIY import newbie accessories for 50% off
*lacking some critical screenshots of buying stages
*image size scaled for viewing computer screen
*I will type informally without focus on grammar or punctuation
*exchange rate based on today 4.635 at 5-year low
*image size scaled for viewing computer screen
*I will type informally without focus on grammar or punctuation
*exchange rate based on today 4.635 at 5-year low
-
Hardwarezone
- Posts: 399
- Joined: Fri May 17, 2013 2:50 am
- Favourite scope: maksutov
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Hardwarezone
- Posts: 399
- Joined: Fri May 17, 2013 2:50 am
- Favourite scope: maksutov
Re: [incomplete guide] DIY import newbie accessories for 50%
official forwarders prohibit items in these categories
liquid , powder , battery , imitation of branded bags or hello kitty cartoon , tablet handphone electronics , electrical motors
cardboard box length 120cm is the limit for x-ray machine , do not attempt to ship oversize items to offical forwarders , rejected at warehouse
software picks keyword from item title , empty water bottle is blocked as keyword 水 is closely linked to liquid
You can put a few listing from different sellers into shopping cart and find the odd listing not blocked by the bot
payment stage
no screenshot
the page can be glitch to not display the option for SG credit card number , check the top left corner dropdown box 海外 >overseas<
alipay surcharge for singapore credit card is 3% while your card issuing bank will bill you another 3% over the rate seen daily on yahoo finance
e-nets surcharge is ?% exchange rate + SGD $1 per transaction , I don't know the exact spread %, it is slightly better for bigger amount , consolidate multiple orders into single payment for $1 savings
seller may contact you by the ALWW messager to confirm address
most sellers ship out daily orders 4-7pm
item status change from 买家已付款 buyer has paid to 卖家已发货 seller has shipped
you can track the progress of the parcel by truck , copy and paste the town name on google map
cross province 3-5 days
guangdong -> shenzhen 1 day
forwarder warehouse may not update your item during the afternoon during peak days , wait a few hours into the night
item control panel update with weight of individual package and expected shipping bill
100-200grams of cardboard per small parcel , big item 2-3 kg of cardboard
forwarders that provide "sensitive" route for electronics may *erroneously classify your item to bill you more , use ALWW message to tell your story and change it back to normal route price
you can proceed with payment or wait for other items to consolidate into single
add the items into the cart and click orange pay button
possible glitch here with the basket missing out items after you close and reopen your browser, tally the overall billed weight with your calculation , empty cart and redo if incorrect
cutoff time is payment by 12pm to 1pm , pay in morning packaged the same day and possible ship out 出库 in evening time
tracking number varies , some are not compatible with external online tracking website
liquid , powder , battery , imitation of branded bags or hello kitty cartoon , tablet handphone electronics , electrical motors
cardboard box length 120cm is the limit for x-ray machine , do not attempt to ship oversize items to offical forwarders , rejected at warehouse
software picks keyword from item title , empty water bottle is blocked as keyword 水 is closely linked to liquid
You can put a few listing from different sellers into shopping cart and find the odd listing not blocked by the bot
payment stage
no screenshot
the page can be glitch to not display the option for SG credit card number , check the top left corner dropdown box 海外 >overseas<
alipay surcharge for singapore credit card is 3% while your card issuing bank will bill you another 3% over the rate seen daily on yahoo finance
e-nets surcharge is ?% exchange rate + SGD $1 per transaction , I don't know the exact spread %, it is slightly better for bigger amount , consolidate multiple orders into single payment for $1 savings
seller may contact you by the ALWW messager to confirm address
most sellers ship out daily orders 4-7pm
item status change from 买家已付款 buyer has paid to 卖家已发货 seller has shipped
you can track the progress of the parcel by truck , copy and paste the town name on google map
cross province 3-5 days
guangdong -> shenzhen 1 day
forwarder warehouse may not update your item during the afternoon during peak days , wait a few hours into the night
item control panel update with weight of individual package and expected shipping bill
100-200grams of cardboard per small parcel , big item 2-3 kg of cardboard
forwarders that provide "sensitive" route for electronics may *erroneously classify your item to bill you more , use ALWW message to tell your story and change it back to normal route price
you can proceed with payment or wait for other items to consolidate into single
add the items into the cart and click orange pay button
possible glitch here with the basket missing out items after you close and reopen your browser, tally the overall billed weight with your calculation , empty cart and redo if incorrect
cutoff time is payment by 12pm to 1pm , pay in morning packaged the same day and possible ship out 出库 in evening time
tracking number varies , some are not compatible with external online tracking website
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Hardwarezone
- Posts: 399
- Joined: Fri May 17, 2013 2:50 am
- Favourite scope: maksutov
Re: [incomplete guide] DIY import newbie accessories for 50%
q: peak season to avoid
a: October November due to online discount day , transit warehouses across the country flooded with sea of parcels , the staff will climb and step
Jan - April , export customs will inspect more parcels , item loss rate is higher particularly small items they can use
entire month of Chinese new year , their national holiday , delivery system is not functional
q: actual weight or volumetric weight
a: actual is suitable, don't be tempted by volumetric 1/4 lower quote ... volumetric easily 2x of actual weight
almost all forwarders will have the disclaimer 'actual or volumetric whichever is higher'
official forwarders use actual weight less extreme cases of shipping air
q: scam ?
a: check individual seller rating and product page sales volume , buyer comment
language proficiency needed to understand seller stated terms and avoid dispute, some item price are per 1 quantity not exactly shown in photo
use ALWW messager to ask about stock status before payment for item listing with 0 sales in last 30days and 0 buyer feedback in last 6 months
q: go through buying with google translate browser plugin to English ?
a: possible , early pioneers have done it , very hard
q: can the sellers communicate in English on ALWW messager ?
a: nope
q: can the sellers ship directly to Singapore ?
a: yes , high price not economical , SF express starts from 160 cny
q: I used my Singapore address and paid , the shipping cost calculator shows 海外 200 cny
a: the calculator is bugged, it only apply for mainland china excluding far off western provinces
the seller will hold your money and do nothing until you request refund , most of them have no experience sending parcel direct out of china
q: payment limit and unverified alipay payment account
a: credit card is 2000rmb max per day transaction , e-nets no limit
q: verify account ?
a: some accounts are flagged for verification by passport photo , may require proof of entry into mainland china
contact CSO to solve
q: spam by phone or email ?
a: received sms are related to parcel update , email spam very little
q: pricing in china
a: nationwide price controlled, the packaged goto scopes are higher than USA, with shipping cost it is not competitive against existing options
during promotion they give free 7ah powertank , price is negotiable in private by ALWW messager
Non-electronic, easy to produce items are cheaper than western countries. Accessories have the widest difference in pricing.
q: how many days from china forwarder to doorstep delivery ?
a: off peak season at least 5-7 days
custom inspection and reject can cause severe delay up to 1month , follow some TB online community to keep up with daily updates
payment -> 3 days domestic -> 1 day warehouse update and payment -> 7 days -> nearly 2 weeks
q: lemon ? returns ?
a: singpost at your own cost , repair or sell it away cheap
q: GST ?
a: official forwarder air shipping is processed the same as postal system parcels , below 400sgd inclusive of shipping cost no gst
daily exchange rates calculated based on customs.gov.sg website
q: sea shipping bulk
a: outside the official forwarders there are many providers of this service
minimum 1 cubic meter is 450 to 580 rmb (SGD $120) + 7% GST on all goods + possible SGD $39 permit fee not every company charge this
they don't do 0.5 cubic for 580/2 ... above 1m cubic is pro rated
q: agents ?
a: there are a handful of local companies providing this service at a service charge of ~8% + other surcharges , billed volumetric
they cannot help you check the quality or whether this adapter fit that part
a: October November due to online discount day , transit warehouses across the country flooded with sea of parcels , the staff will climb and step
Jan - April , export customs will inspect more parcels , item loss rate is higher particularly small items they can use
entire month of Chinese new year , their national holiday , delivery system is not functional
q: actual weight or volumetric weight
a: actual is suitable, don't be tempted by volumetric 1/4 lower quote ... volumetric easily 2x of actual weight
almost all forwarders will have the disclaimer 'actual or volumetric whichever is higher'
official forwarders use actual weight less extreme cases of shipping air
q: scam ?
a: check individual seller rating and product page sales volume , buyer comment
language proficiency needed to understand seller stated terms and avoid dispute, some item price are per 1 quantity not exactly shown in photo
use ALWW messager to ask about stock status before payment for item listing with 0 sales in last 30days and 0 buyer feedback in last 6 months
q: go through buying with google translate browser plugin to English ?
a: possible , early pioneers have done it , very hard
q: can the sellers communicate in English on ALWW messager ?
a: nope
q: can the sellers ship directly to Singapore ?
a: yes , high price not economical , SF express starts from 160 cny
q: I used my Singapore address and paid , the shipping cost calculator shows 海外 200 cny
a: the calculator is bugged, it only apply for mainland china excluding far off western provinces
the seller will hold your money and do nothing until you request refund , most of them have no experience sending parcel direct out of china
q: payment limit and unverified alipay payment account
a: credit card is 2000rmb max per day transaction , e-nets no limit
q: verify account ?
a: some accounts are flagged for verification by passport photo , may require proof of entry into mainland china
contact CSO to solve
q: spam by phone or email ?
a: received sms are related to parcel update , email spam very little
q: pricing in china
a: nationwide price controlled, the packaged goto scopes are higher than USA, with shipping cost it is not competitive against existing options
during promotion they give free 7ah powertank , price is negotiable in private by ALWW messager
Non-electronic, easy to produce items are cheaper than western countries. Accessories have the widest difference in pricing.
q: how many days from china forwarder to doorstep delivery ?
a: off peak season at least 5-7 days
custom inspection and reject can cause severe delay up to 1month , follow some TB online community to keep up with daily updates
payment -> 3 days domestic -> 1 day warehouse update and payment -> 7 days -> nearly 2 weeks
q: lemon ? returns ?
a: singpost at your own cost , repair or sell it away cheap
q: GST ?
a: official forwarder air shipping is processed the same as postal system parcels , below 400sgd inclusive of shipping cost no gst
daily exchange rates calculated based on customs.gov.sg website
q: sea shipping bulk
a: outside the official forwarders there are many providers of this service
minimum 1 cubic meter is 450 to 580 rmb (SGD $120) + 7% GST on all goods + possible SGD $39 permit fee not every company charge this
they don't do 0.5 cubic for 580/2 ... above 1m cubic is pro rated
q: agents ?
a: there are a handful of local companies providing this service at a service charge of ~8% + other surcharges , billed volumetric
they cannot help you check the quality or whether this adapter fit that part
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Hardwarezone
- Posts: 399
- Joined: Fri May 17, 2013 2:50 am
- Favourite scope: maksutov
Re: [incomplete guide] DIY import newbie accessories for 50%
exchange rate based on 4.635 x 1.03
estimate should be close to e-nets , credit card payment add a further 3%
pic album
http://imgur.com/a/BzazU
estimate should be close to e-nets , credit card payment add a further 3%
pic album
http://imgur.com/a/BzazU
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orly_andico
- Posts: 1616
- Joined: Sun Aug 09, 2009 11:14 pm
- Location: Braddell Heights
- Contact:
Re: [incomplete guide] DIY import newbie accessories for 50%
I purchased some motors from a China seller and had them ship it to VPOST China. Worked fine.
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Hardwarezone
- Posts: 399
- Joined: Fri May 17, 2013 2:50 am
- Favourite scope: maksutov
Re: [incomplete guide] DIY import newbie accessories for 50%
Thread deserve a bump as the buy/sell section prices are rising again.
Reminder that the international shipping cost by official forwarder airmail is about SGD$5 per kilo actual weight, if you get something heavy parcel like the Ioptron Tri-Pier the shipping cost is only a fraction compared to USA import.
1cubic metre volumetric sea shipping have also dropped from ~550rmb to ~480rmb = SGD 105 +7% gst on value you declare
A box the size of 8se can fit 4 or 5 into 1 cubic metre , just an example ... the 8se pricing over there isn't competitive.
Reminder that the international shipping cost by official forwarder airmail is about SGD$5 per kilo actual weight, if you get something heavy parcel like the Ioptron Tri-Pier the shipping cost is only a fraction compared to USA import.
1cubic metre volumetric sea shipping have also dropped from ~550rmb to ~480rmb = SGD 105 +7% gst on value you declare
A box the size of 8se can fit 4 or 5 into 1 cubic metre , just an example ... the 8se pricing over there isn't competitive.
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Hardwarezone
- Posts: 399
- Joined: Fri May 17, 2013 2:50 am
- Favourite scope: maksutov
Re: [incomplete guide] DIY import newbie accessories for 50%
Astroslew aim 2015 production run , with dovetail bracket
Estimated $202 Sing dollars including 2kg forwarder shipping cost.
Estimated $202 Sing dollars including 2kg forwarder shipping cost.
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Hardwarezone
- Posts: 399
- Joined: Fri May 17, 2013 2:50 am
- Favourite scope: maksutov
Re: [incomplete guide] DIY import newbie accessories for 50%
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tBuuEMSsF58
4 minute english video guide on how to create account over there
I'm not affiliated with the video producer nor do I use their cashback service as I don't key in sensitive password into 3rd party popup window.
4 minute english video guide on how to create account over there
I'm not affiliated with the video producer nor do I use their cashback service as I don't key in sensitive password into 3rd party popup window.
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Hardwarezone
- Posts: 399
- Joined: Fri May 17, 2013 2:50 am
- Favourite scope: maksutov
Re: [incomplete guide] DIY import newbie accessories for 50%
saw this on ebay.com.sg
