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Buggyjam

Are we being royally ripped off with Tamiya spares?

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Hi all

I've never actually bought an rc car kit that isn't Tamiya. I've ordered after market spares like shocks but they've been Chinese items on the whole. I've never seen anything like Traxxas, Losi products etc.

 

anyway, I recently had cause to order a set of CVA short shocks for my lunchbox. At the same time I ordered a set of Traxxas shocks for my clod build.

 

The Traxxas shocks arrived. The quaility and feel of them was silk. It just left the Tamiya plastics in the shade. And the real kicker. The price for 4 pre assembled shocks complete with bag of fittings was LESS than one pair of CVAs. 

 

Dont get get me wrong, I love my Tamiyas and yes we all know they do a trade in retro fun that appeals to us 80s/90s guys but seeing what the alternative manufacturers are putting out made me feel a little annoyed.

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I did think that the price of Tamiya spares was a bit high, but assumed it was because most of the ones I looked at were for old/discontinued models.

 

When looking for replacement shocks at the time I bought my son's rising fighter I was told the ally shocks would be about £9 a pair.

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When dealing with current vintage models..... not really

 

vintage stuff...... oh god yes!!!!

heh

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If you look at the prices in Japan no not really, but since Banzai stopped selling Tamiya I would say yes

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4 hours ago, waterbok said:

If you look at the prices in Japan no not really, but since Banzai stopped selling Tamiya I would say yes

I do not buy at the prices charged in this country. Banzai was 1/3 the price on a lot of small bits so I hopped up all my cars without thinking.

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Yes crazy price, probably works out cheaper buying a kit and selling off the bits you don't need half the time lol! Kits are much better value when you break out the parts!

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13 minutes ago, Nitomor said:

Yes crazy price, probably works out cheaper buying a kit and selling off the bits you don't need half the time lol! Kits are much better value when you break out the parts!

Unfortunately, I may have to do this for a Clodbuster just to get an extra set of axles for my mod clod.  Cheaper overall (in theory if you wanted the other extra parts) to buy a kit and have some extra spare parts than to piecemeal them.

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Just curious, my Lunchbox came with standard Tamiya oily grease and my clodbuster came with nice tubes of ceramic grease. Why is this? I see ceramic grease mentioned as recommended in the LB instructions. Is it just because the Clodbuster is a "higher end" kit? 

 

 

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46 minutes ago, Nitomor said:

Yes crazy price, probably works out cheaper buying a kit and selling off the bits you don't need half the time lol! Kits are much better value when you break out the parts!

You have set me off thinking now. There's quite a few bits I won't use on my next build. Unfortunately I don't think an

entire sprue will remain untouched. I'll be left with a lovely Tamiya solid scale body and decal set which I won't be using. I'm not sure whether to sell it or hang onto it "in case". I'm an eternal hoarder :D

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Ha, sorry ;)

I just bought a DT03 kit because I needed a new chassis! Waiting for the likes of Tamico to go on special is the best way, oh no its a Vajra this week ;)

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1 hour ago, Nitomor said:

Ha, sorry ;)

I just bought a DT03 kit because I needed a new chassis! Waiting for the likes of Tamico to go on special is the best way, oh no its a Vajra this week ;)

Whu.... link!!

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I don't think we're being ripped off as such, it's just that we have direct access to a much wider range of suppliers than we would have thought possible a few years ago, and can see the difference in prices from country to country.

Higher prices in the UK is just the reality of international commerce. Tamiya sell in bulk to the UK importers. The importers will add transport costs, any import duty and tax they've paid, and their own mark-up before selling to retailers. The retailer then adds their own profit and then VAT on the total. We're at the end of a long, expensive logistical chain and the pound is fairly weak, so yes, prices in UK shops will be high. 

When we buy from a retailer in Japan or Hong Kong, there may or may not be a national importer/distributor, transport costs will be lower, import duties and taxes may be different and they're not charging UK VAT.

It wouldn't surprise me if it's more expensive for a UK shop to buy Tamiya spares from the UK distributor than it is for us to buy the same item from a seller in Hong Kong!

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47 minutes ago, SNAKEBITE said:

Does anyone get stung for import tax when they order from overseas?

In the UK I used to get caught ALL the time. Some retailers mark down the value but your in a world of hurt should the package go missing.

So often i would get a delayed delivery with the "You owe HM Customs 1.20 tax and 10.00 to the RM for dealing with it. the tax i could live with but the RM charges where taking the widdle.

 

I have been caught twice in Germany. Its not as bad here as i just get the tax bill...But i have to drive 50 miles to the customs office to pay and collect my goods...Then 50 miles back. That is a P.I.T.A.

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1 hour ago, SNAKEBITE said:

Does anyone get stung for import tax when they order from overseas?

Within Europe you don't pay any import charges as VAT etc is already applied in the country of origin - That might well change once Britain's out though.

For imports outside Europe you risk paying around 20% VAT plus  3-4% import duty plus a Royal Mail customs clearing fee (£8 - £13 I think) on any personal imports over £18 value (check that on HMRC webiste, the threshold may have changed).
This clearing fee is charged by UPS, FedEX, DHL etc. too, it's not just Royal Mail/Parcel Force making a quick buck - If there's customs fees to pay, the carrier pays them for you then bills you for doing so.

In general, US sellers declare true value (especially legitimate stores) whereas Japanese, Korean and HK sellers will sometimes under-value declarations if asked - this lessens the charges due at this end.

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