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Would you sell me a bass? NZ Content

BroBro

BroBro

Nov 26, 2015
101
71
New Zealand
#1
Hello,
Bit of background, I'm from New Zealand and I want to buy a fairly high end bass (I'm not going to say what I wan't in case it break any rules, this is NOT a wanted ad!)
But there is a very limited market in New Zealand, currently on Trademe which is our craiglist, there is 102 used basses for sale in the entire country and only 15 are over $1k!! :laugh::thumbsdown:
New and used, the options are basically Fender/Warwick/Musicman.

So... I could import a brand new one from overseas, but that as we know is very pricey, so I thought I could get a fantastic used bass from the classifieds...
For example, if I wanted a Fodera (don't, cant afford it!) there is no chance of getting one in NZ.

However, are sellers on here willing to ship a bass to the other side of the world?
I can pay via paypal, and have over 100 perfect feecbacks on trademe, but I understand it would basically be annoying. (if sellers don't want to I would understand. I would be hesitant to send one overseas myself)
I am not supporting member, but can easily become one if necessary!

TLDR: Would you ship a bass to NZ? Why/why not? What could I do to make you comfortable with it?

Thanks!
 
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#2
BroBro said:
Hello,
Bit of background, I'm from New Zealand and I want to buy a fairly high end bass (I'm not going to say what I wan't in case it break any rules, this is NOT a wanted ad!)
But there is a very limited market in New Zealand, currently on Trademe which is our craiglist, there is 102 used basses for sale in the entire country and only 15 are over $1k!! :laugh::thumbsdown:
New and used, the options are basically Fender/Warwick/Musicman.

So... I could import a brand new one from overseas, but that as we know is very pricey, so I thought I could get a fantastic used bass from the classifieds...
For example, if I wanted a Fodera (don't, cant afford it!) there is no chance of getting one in NZ.

However, are sellers on here willing to ship a bass to the other side of the world?
I can pay via paypal, and have over 100 perfect feecbacks on trademe, but I understand it would basically be annoying. (if sellers don't want to I would understand. I would be hesitant to send one overseas myself)
I am not supporting member, but can easily become one if necessary!

TLDR: Would you ship a bass to NZ? Why/why not? What could I do to make you comfortable with it?

Thanks!
Click to expand...

The only way I would ship to NZ (or anywhere out of the US) is if the buyer pays shipping. There are plenty of basses available in the International Classifieds here, with many that will ship worldwide.

Also, making a wanted ad is allowed for all members, not just supporting members, as long as it's placed in the wanted forum.
 
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#6
No I refuse to sell you a bass. I like both of mine and they are not for sale :D

On a serious note, have you tried eBay and looked for sellers in Japan? They get a hold of some very nice (better quality than the US) instruments that are not suppose to leave the country but do.
 
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#7
5544 said:
No I refuse to sell you a bass. I like both of mine and they are not for sale :D

On a serious note, have you tried eBay and looked for sellers in Japan? They get a hold of some very nice (better quality than the US) instruments that are not suppose to leave the country but do.
Click to expand...
+ one for Japan sellers. I am living in Europe and I had no problem in purchasing second hand basses on a Japanese site (probably the best known). They have plenty of high end local instruments and are fully reliable. This takes a bit of time now, because of the CITES rules regarding rosewood.
 
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#8
You could book yourself an overseas trip, buy a bass that you like and bring it back as luggage.

I have brought on eBay,
a new Squier bass vi from USA to NZ, the first one disappeared at the eBay US international dispatch depot,
got a refund, and the second one arrived fine.
Just the shipping and GST (import duty tax) make it a bit more expensive.
 
#9
I'd sell you a bass, bro (if i was selling one, that is). But I'm already in New Zealand.

You can get good gear here, and some great gear. A quick look at just our three bigger music store chains shows you can get a range of brands new: Aria, Cort, Danelectro, ESP, Fender/Squier, G&L, Gibson/Epiphone, Guild, Hofner, Ibanez, MTD, Music Man/Sterling/Ernie Ball, PRS, Reverend, Rickenbacker, Schecter, Spector, Steinberger/NS Design, Yamaha, Warwick, Washburn. There are a few other half decent brands, and a bunch of cheap garbage in the under $300 range. But you very rarely see great used gear. Maybe that's because great gear is harder to get here so if you own something good you're not going to sell it? Or maybe it's because of people like that guy on TradeMe last month who forgot to put a decimal point in the price and was selling an old Ampeg combo for $50,000?

To add to this conversation though, I was in Sydney last weekend and went into a store there looking for a Fender-branded accessory I can't get here. The store didn't have it, and the owner basically said Fender don't support Australia very well because it's too small a market for them. My eyes popped. With around 400,000 more people in Sydney alone than in the whole of New Zealand, if Australia is too small there's a chance Fender don't even know we exist. We're something they'd scrape off the bottom of their shoe. And therein lies the rub - economy of scale.
 
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#12
bass12 said:
I would. I once shipped a bass to China and it was no more of a hassle than shipping across any other border. Also, being half kiwi I have a soft spot for New Zealanders. :D
Click to expand...

kiwi.jpg
??? :thumbsup:
 
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#14
Great thread mate. I actually managed to get a bass shipped to NZ two years ago from a TBer in the states and he offered to pay shipping if I paid the asking price. Was probably the deal of the century since most people weren’t willing to ship basses to this end of the world. Customs fees are a bit steep though.
 
#16
With regard to the previous post about the size of the market, I work for a musical instrument importer/wholesaler and when I visited one of our suppliers in the US, I was told that what we order in one year is what the US alone orders in one day! New products get advertised in mags about the same time they get debuted at NAMM, but the US market gets satisfied first, so new products can take 9 months before we see them in NZ. For high-end basses, there are bass shops in Sydney and Melbourne who stock Sadowsky, Sandberg etc and who will happily send to NZ.
 
#18
I don't ship international anymore. At least nothing that is worth more than I want to lose. The tracking and insurance is questionable. I had something get locked down in customs and after a period of time the buyer filed a claim and got refunded. I assume it got out of customs eventually but I don't know. I just know I have no item and no money. Not worth the hassle when there are easier sales inside the USA. I understand the frustration to international buyers but it's just too risky for me.
 
#20
What have you found the average cost to NZ from US and which courier would you recommend? Someone wants to buy a Fender Custom Shop J Bass and it feels like its not without it's risks.

bdgotoh said:
I've sold many basses to Australia and NZ, it's a bit of a hassle due to size restrictions but easy enough to do. With CITES I won't ship rosewood or cocobolo, though.
Click to expand...
 

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