DewPoint Posted June 18, 2021 Posted June 18, 2021 So I did finally get my last two orders from CD Japan. My blue Legioss came in on unregistered airmail about a month ago and my Arcadia Flashback VF-4 came in last week on EMS with no additional cost. I not sure if they just paid the surcharge just to clear out backlog from their shop. Now I'm just waiting for my HMR Focker VF-4 from N-Y on unregistered SAL.
Slave IV Posted June 18, 2021 Posted June 18, 2021 10 hours ago, DewPoint said: So I did finally get my last two orders from CD Japan. My blue Legioss came in on unregistered airmail about a month ago and my Arcadia Flashback VF-4 came in last week on EMS with no additional cost. I not sure if they just paid the surcharge just to clear out backlog from their shop. Now I'm just waiting for my HMR Focker VF-4 from N-Y on unregistered SAL. You’re going to need to swap shipping or wait since I don’t think SAL is available yet.
DewPoint Posted June 19, 2021 Posted June 19, 2021 Well since it is coming from Nippon-Yasan, based on the experiences of others lately, I'm opting to just wait it out. Shipping changes and "Store Credit" don't seem worth the stress and aggravation required.
Special Sauce Posted June 20, 2021 Posted June 20, 2021 On 6/18/2021 at 3:30 PM, Slave IV said: You’re going to need to swap shipping or wait since I don’t think SAL is available yet. I had a package shipped from Jungle and they offered SAL so I tried it and it seems to be working. I know it'll take a while but I'm in no rush
ps99042 Posted June 21, 2021 Posted June 21, 2021 (edited) If NY actually shipped you something I would be ecstatic as I'm still waiting on $600 worth of stuff to ship. Edited June 21, 2021 by ps99042 Error
vladykins Posted July 1, 2021 Posted July 1, 2021 Just an example of *not* going with EMS (on From Japan):
kajnrig Posted July 2, 2021 Posted July 2, 2021 For what it's worth, I shipped some items from HLJ and the cost via both DHL and EMS to the USA was the same, roughly $170. DHL remained cheaper as I added items to the shipment, though, up to that point.
Kanedas Bike Posted July 2, 2021 Posted July 2, 2021 Adding my .02 to the EMS v DHL conversation, I recently shipped the 1/6 Project BM Kaneda's bike from Hobby Search, they wanted 31,147 JPY for DHL. Luckily EMS had just become available to the states again and it cost me 16,800 to ship that way. Granted it took 11 days, but I have zero complaints. I have another in HLJ's Private Warehouse and the current ask for shipping is 15,430 via EMS and 22,320 via DHL (FedEx is 26,200, but screw those guys, never use them if I have a choice). For smaller items I will absolutely stick with DHL, but for the gigantic min-fridge sized items like Kaneda's Motorcycle it looks like EMS is the way to go. -b.
Kanedas Bike Posted July 2, 2021 Posted July 2, 2021 3 hours ago, Slave IV said: Ferry ftmfw! Not for something that pricey, had some holdovers from Hobby Search that I shipped that way, worked out fine. -b.
Slave IV Posted July 3, 2021 Posted July 3, 2021 21 hours ago, Kanedas Bike said: Not for something that pricey, had some holdovers from Hobby Search that I shipped that way, worked out fine. -b. I get it but I’ve had many, many shipments with a bunch of items worth more and no issues.
Kanedas Bike Posted July 3, 2021 Posted July 3, 2021 8 hours ago, Slave IV said: I get it but I’ve had many, many shipments with a bunch of items worth more and no issues. Yeah, I'm sure shipping by boat is perfectly fine - I mean global commerce and all of that, not to mention your own extensive positive personal experience. But for MY Kaneda's Bike, helllllll naw lol More re: EMS, I have a few items with a handful of vendors leftover from last year that have been waiting for EMS, I think I'm about to start reaching out to see where my stuff is, and if/when they ship how long they take for items like SH Figuarts. -b.
scand Posted July 15, 2021 Posted July 15, 2021 Is there still a backlog on EMS still? it appears Buyee pulled the DHL option and is now back to EMS.
eggy99 Posted July 15, 2021 Posted July 15, 2021 (edited) If anyone is interested, still no EMS from HLJ to Australia. Rate for shipping a DX VF-1 Edited July 18, 2021 by eggy99
Atheonyirh Posted July 17, 2021 Posted July 17, 2021 On 7/14/2021 at 10:52 PM, scand said: Is there still a backlog on EMS still? it appears Buyee pulled the DHL option and is now back to EMS. I got an item out of Japan via Mandarake using EMS just fine? Didn't take very long at all.
scand Posted July 17, 2021 Posted July 17, 2021 (edited) 4 hours ago, Atheonyirh said: I got an item out of Japan via Mandarake using EMS just fine? Didn't take very long at all. Yep, already hit NY 2 days after shipping notice. Things are moving along again. Edited July 17, 2021 by scand
sqidd Posted July 18, 2021 Posted July 18, 2021 Does anyone know what carrier EMS is subcontracting to now?
Atheonyirh Posted July 24, 2021 Posted July 24, 2021 On 7/17/2021 at 9:54 PM, sqidd said: Does anyone know what carrier EMS is subcontracting to now? That would depend on the country, surely. In the US my Mandarake order went Japan Post to USPS via NYC's customs entry point.
Anasazi37 Posted July 24, 2021 Posted July 24, 2021 On 7/17/2021 at 7:54 PM, sqidd said: Does anyone know what carrier EMS is subcontracting to now? That's a good question. Pre-COVID, they worked with commercial airlines and anyone else with space in the holds of their aircraft, I think. With fewer flights leaving Japan these days, maybe DHL or another global courier service? It would partially explain why EMS costs as much as FedEx and DHL right now. We've all heard that the price increase for EMS is temporary, but I'm not convinced that it will go back down.
F360 Posted July 24, 2021 Posted July 24, 2021 On 7/17/2021 at 6:54 PM, sqidd said: Does anyone know what carrier EMS is subcontracting to now? On EMS packages, you will normally see another barcode somewhere on the package. It will the the code of the Airline that it was supposedly loaded on.
Special Sauce Posted July 27, 2021 Posted July 27, 2021 (edited) Ordered from Mandrake, used EMS and only took 6 days from the day I ordered to the day it arrived on my door step. Not too shabby. Edited July 27, 2021 by Special Sauce
Special Sauce Posted August 13, 2021 Posted August 13, 2021 Ordered from Jungle and used SAL mail. Ordered on the May 22nd and it arrived yesterday. So approximately 11.5 weeks. I thought for sure it would take longer since I read they were cancelling SAL for anything past the end of April but not horrible considering the state of things right now.
F360 Posted October 18, 2021 Posted October 18, 2021 my package that was shipped out by Surface mail at the end of July finally landed in USA. . I'm in California , the shipped land in JERSEY CITY NJ... better than waiting at the port.
wm cheng Posted October 19, 2021 Posted October 19, 2021 I just got a SAL from HLJ last week that took 1.5wks to get from Japan to Canada - pretty lucky I guess.
weiser21 Posted October 20, 2021 Posted October 20, 2021 My friend in Japan just shipped me a DX VF-1D and DX Armored Parts set via EMS for 9400 Yen. I think might have been cheaper to order via a proxy. Didn't know EMS would charge an arm a leg to ship something to Texas. Their webpage quoted less than half what they actually charged.
F360 Posted October 20, 2021 Posted October 20, 2021 54 minutes ago, weiser21 said: My friend in Japan just shipped me a DX VF-1D and DX Armored Parts set via EMS for 9400 Yen. I think might have been cheaper to order via a proxy. Didn't know EMS would charge an arm a leg to ship something to Texas. Their webpage quoted less than half what they actually charged. perhaps you did not quote the total weight (shipping box, packaging materials ) ? or many your friend used a more sturdy shipping box which increase the weigh which increase the shipping cost. Here is the quote for EMS with a estimate total weight of 3050grams Also your friend , unless they works for a shipping company , they probably will not be able to offer you the discount rate that store or proxy can. tell your friend to apply for a parttime job at DHL or FEDEX so he can give you a 75% discount next time. .
weiser21 Posted October 21, 2021 Posted October 21, 2021 On 10/20/2021 at 2:12 PM, F360 said: perhaps you did not quote the total weight (shipping box, packaging materials ) ? or many your friend used a more sturdy shipping box which increase the weigh which increase the shipping cost. Here is the quote for EMS with a estimate total weight of 3050grams Also your friend , unless they works for a shipping company , they probably will not be able to offer you the discount rate that store or proxy can. tell your friend to apply for a parttime job at DHL or FEDEX so he can give you a 75% discount next time. . Dude was helping a brother out, was just a little shocked when he sent me the receipt.
F360 Posted October 21, 2021 Posted October 21, 2021 26 minutes ago, weiser21 said: Dude was helping a brother out, was just a little shocked when he sent me the receipt. My friend helped me out before when I was not familiar with proxy yet,,, and the final price is normally more expensive than using a Proxy. . Your friend would also need to pack it well and bring it to the post office. and even when you transfer the money by paypal friend and family to Yen, they will automatic charge you the PayPal currency conversion.
Angesdad Posted October 21, 2021 Posted October 21, 2021 I had friends who live in Japan send me some exclusive rare Japanese stuff and we are no longer friends.
eggy99 Posted October 22, 2021 Posted October 22, 2021 Yep my friend in Japan helped me get the DX 1D, and it cost about $100 AUD to get here via Yamato Neko courier (which use UPS - arrived in 6 days), as we decided to pack the Bandai shipper in another box to protect it, but the extra size and padding added pushed it over the weight threshold we were aiming for and doubled the shipping. 😅 My friend felt bad about it and offered to pay 1/2, but I told him no way I'd let him do that for me, as he was doing me a big favour already. Next time I have to ask my friend to get me a TWE we'll try to repack it better, or ship it to my Rakuten private warehouse and ship it out from there.
Captain Global Posted November 29, 2021 Posted November 29, 2021 One question, Is EMS getting more expensive? Recently placed an order in mandarake for a Yammie YF 19 and they want to charge me 8100 for a 1220 gram package. It has nothing to do with the prices stated in their charts nor with the estimations I also made with buyee. Has anyone experienced something similar?
Rein+ Posted November 29, 2021 Posted November 29, 2021 7 hours ago, Captain Global said: One question, Is EMS getting more expensive? Recently placed an order in mandarake for a Yammie YF 19 and they want to charge me 8100 for a 1220 gram package. It has nothing to do with the prices stated in their charts nor with the estimations I also made with buyee. Has anyone experienced something similar? Isn't the EMS service calculate the price not only by weight but also by size? THe YF-19 box is about 30x30x12cm barebox now add padding and extra cardboard package. For item that big its about 3000~3900JPY for EMS for me (south east asia).
Captain Global Posted November 29, 2021 Posted November 29, 2021 29 minutes ago, Rein+ said: Isn't the EMS service calculate the price not only by weight but also by size? THe YF-19 box is about 30x30x12cm barebox now add padding and extra cardboard package. For item that big its about 3000~3900JPY for EMS for me (south east asia). Thanks for the info, makes more sense then. The oficial EMS page does not allow you to enter the dimensions, only the weight, so I calculated the 4.300/4850JPY. However when using the Buyee shipping calculator, wich includes dimensions, the price was still 4300. I just sent them a mail this monrning asking if there is any problem. We'll, see.
F360 Posted November 29, 2021 Posted November 29, 2021 2 hours ago, Captain Global said: Thanks for the info, makes more sense then. The oficial EMS page does not allow you to enter the dimensions, only the weight, so I calculated the 4.300/4850JPY. However when using the Buyee shipping calculator, wich includes dimensions, the price was still 4300. I just sent them a mail this monrning asking if there is any problem. We'll, see. besides the dimensions you also need to add in the extra weight of the shipping box and packaging material which can range from 600gram to 800 grams.
Anasazi37 Posted November 30, 2021 Posted November 30, 2021 4 hours ago, F360 said: besides the dimensions you also need to add in the extra weight of the shipping box and packaging material which can range from 600gram to 800 grams. And EMS is more expensive in general these days, often higher than alternatives like FedEx, UPS, and DHL. It used to be very much the opposite. I think it's mostly because Japan Post has to contract with other organizations to get their EMS stuff shipped, which I think historically were commercial airlines, and there simply aren't as many passenger flights out of Japan right now. They're likely contracting with whomever they can find, and it's not cheap. Greater expense for them means higher prices for consumers....
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