AndyTravis Posted November 12, 2009 Posted November 12, 2009 Hi folks, Has anyone used Ishibashi Music in Japan before? I've spotted a used precision on there, and i've emailed them to take it further. I was really just wondering how people got on with them, the process of waiting, being stung for import duty etc. I did email them last year, but the bass i'd seen was sold, so didn't get much further. Fingers crossed this time. Any wise words? Andy Quote
Noisyjon Posted November 12, 2009 Posted November 12, 2009 Hi Andy, PM Clarky, he has imported from them before so will know the specifics. Regards, Jon. Quote
fatboytoo Posted November 12, 2009 Posted November 12, 2009 [quote name='AndyTravis' post='652503' date='Nov 12 2009, 11:59 AM']Hi folks, Has anyone used Ishibashi Music in Japan before? I've spotted a used precision on there, and i've emailed them to take it further. I was really just wondering how people got on with them, the process of waiting, being stung for import duty etc. I did email them last year, but the bass i'd seen was sold, so didn't get much further. Fingers crossed this time. Any wise words? Andy[/quote] Have you seen the pinned 'Importing Guitars' thread in 'Bass Guitars'? Rich Quote
Paul_C Posted November 12, 2009 Posted November 12, 2009 I've bought a few basses from Ishibashi in the past and always been happy. Shipping was about £80 IIRC, and you pay tax and vat on both bass and shipping. Quote
AndyTravis Posted November 12, 2009 Author Posted November 12, 2009 oooh, silly me, hooray for other people! I will research at lunch. Rich, this is what the bongo is paying for! Dangerous. Quote
Clarky Posted November 12, 2009 Posted November 12, 2009 Very friendly communications but some issues over different time zones (which dragged things out). Remember (as the Importing thread will point out) that you pay c.20% tax on the total (IIRC thats the total including shipping costs) so the 'real' price is a fair bit more than the sale price simply converted to sterling. I imported the nice 70s white P bass that beerdragon currently has for sale. Took about 2-3 weeks to get it, but that was mainly due to the slowness of customs clearance in the UK. Quote
fatboytoo Posted November 12, 2009 Posted November 12, 2009 [quote name='AndyTravis' post='652547' date='Nov 12 2009, 12:39 PM']oooh, silly me, hooray for other people! I will research at lunch. Rich, this is what the bongo is paying for! Dangerous.[/quote] At least it's going to a good cause!! Quote
BigRedX Posted November 12, 2009 Posted November 12, 2009 I've bought a bass from them before. My experiences are in the importing a bass thread. The hardest part of the process is beating the Japanese to any of the interesting basses. Not only do you have the time difference to contend with but also the fact that Ishibashi is a chain of actual stores so you're having to compete with walk-in customers as well. On prices, as someone buying from outside of Japan you pay the slightly lower price on the store which is without Japanese sales tax (currently around 5%), but you will have to pay import duty and VAT on the combined price of the bass plus shipping (approximately 20% of the full price). The way I always look at the deal with import duty and VAT is to figure it into the final price of the bass and if you're lucky enough to avoid it count it as a bonus. Quote
AndyTravis Posted November 12, 2009 Author Posted November 12, 2009 yeah, i'm hoping the precision is still about, guitar experience want £695 for the same bass new, and it works out at £480 as a rough guess with the 20% factored in. Damned Lake Placid Blue, gets me every time. Quote
OldGit Posted November 12, 2009 Posted November 12, 2009 I've bought from them. No problem at all. Was it the super clean PB62? Quote
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