Originally posted by Marcus Rowland The problem I'm increasingly running into is that for the cheaper crappier heavy auction items e.g. old Praktica bodies, big heavy lenses with faults, etc. I'm ending up selling at a loss if I send them overseas. For example, a bigger Adaptall zoom with mild fungus might sell for a fiver. It costs me £11.60 to send it to Australia without tracking, and ebay and paypal charge fees on the price including postage. Realistically I should charge at least £14 for postage. I don't, because I know that there's a good chance the buyer will change his mind and I'll end up having to relist, or (increasingly common) will pay but eventually say that it has gone missing. I also get occasional packages returned by the post office because the buyer wasn't in and didn't collect them from the post office, which is a pain because it always leads to a huge argument.
If I use the Global shipping program postage costs me £3.90, it's tracked all the way, and I don't have to do the paperwork for customs etc.
My break point on this is now 750g; anything under that goes by post, anything over that I wouldn't normally send by a tracked postal service goes by the global shipping service.
The good old days are long gone.
Now eBay/PayPal charge high fees. Money transfers to friends (that used to be free) now are charged outrageous fees.
I'd happily ditch eBay if only I could find an alternative...
Regarding shipments from the UK, for the kind of lenses I acquire these days (mainly cheap old preset teles, I'm kind of broke) I found that the best solution is "Royal Mail International Signed". Of course it is too expensive for dirty cheap accessories, but it works fine for low cost lenses.
It is traceable, safe (never had a lost parcel), reliable, just a tad slower.
Some people are put off by the lack of insurance, but I guess that few of them really know how insurances work. If they knew, they would be less concerned.
According to my personal experience, the only items that got damaged were either very heavy or very badly packaged.
I have seen parcels that were CRUSHED, but the lens inside was still fine.
Job lots or very heavy items are more likely to be victims of mishandling. Smaller parcels were always fine, at least in my experience, even when it seemed that they had been through an ordeal.
At the end of the day the most important variable is the human one.
If I buy anything that is posted non-traceable, I wait till the end to ask for refund, then I wait to the end of the 15 days. A few times the parcel arrived almost two months later!
The same way, if I ask for non-insured shipment, I am ready to take the risk myself, and I would never complain if the goods get damaged (unless the packaging was a real disaster).
Unfortunately honest buyers pay the price of the misdeeds of dishonest ebayers.
It is understandable. What I find more difficult to understand is that very very few vendors seem to be willing to make exceptions, based on the feedback status. I have more than 1000 feedbacks as a buyer. Spotless. 100% positive. Despite this, I almost always get the default answer, even when I am willing to take all the risks upon myself.
I find this lack of trust kind of saddening...
---------- Post added 01-02-19 at 03:42 PM ----------
Originally posted by pepperberry farm my adventure with the EX DG line started with the 28/1.8 lens, then adding the 50/1.4, the 70/2.8, the 20/1.8, and now the 24/1.8
all are stellar lenses, but large and bulky when compared to some of their Pentax contemporaries...
I see, I thought you started with the 50mm.
Yes, very good lenses, fast and sharp, but huge.
The macros are not as big as the others. I agree with your choice, among the macro lenses the 70mm is said to be the best, and according to my experience it beats the 50mm by a long stretch.