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  • So I bought a guitar from the US...

Indeed, after the whole stolen Jazz bass ☹ but afterall ?, i thought i must give myself a present so I pulled the trigger and I bought a guitar (second hand) in the US through Ebay

Price was 300 USD plus 88 USD dollar for shipping...

With USPS Priority....

I dont think taxes and import duties will be that high, although I did that dutycalculator.com and it was ending up wioth around 500 Rsa....

Anybody some experiences with this and maybe some good suggestions?
What to expect? (to live in pretoria, if it matters)

thanks!!!



    Far as i know there's no charges or duties on 2 nd hand gear only new where for new guitars it's just the Vat that needs be paid . So make sure package contents is shown as 'used item'
      Thanks Keira

      And delivery is straight forward? What happens when nobody is at home, do they leave a notice or something like that?

      and for those that are wondering what I bought

      a 1969 fender newporter


        Hey, that's pretty man! Congrats. Hope the delivery works out well.
          No import duty on guitars into SAfrica, only VAT.

          They'll add on 10% to calculate the VAT.
          So it will be $330 X 14% = R364.00
          Plus R30.00 clearance fee.

          It won't be delivered to your door, you'll get a slip in your postbox about 2 weeks after the guitar arrives.
          Or, go collect it yourself at International incoming round the corner from Emperors Palace....it will take between 5 and 7 days to arrive from the USA.
            Tokai SA wrote: No import duty on guitars into SAfrica, only VAT.

            They'll add on 10% to calculate the VAT.
            So it will be $330 X 14% = R364.00
            Plus R30.00 clearance fee.

            It won't be delivered to your door, you'll get a slip in your postbox about 2 weeks after the guitar arrives.
            Or, go collect it yourself at International incoming round the corner from Emperors Palace....it will take between 5 and 7 days to arrive from the USA.
            OK, that is usefull and collecting it, does it mean I make phonecall to them and then they say if it has arrived or not?
              5 days later
              Never could get to like that Strat headstock on an acoustic guitar, but nice non the less.
                What about importing amplifiers?
                  Stubbs wrote: What about importing amplifiers?
                  That can get very expensive on ship due to size and weight. I'm looking at bringing a small amp head in and the cost is around $180. I assume import duties will just be VAT, but I haven't looked into that yet.
                    Stubbs wrote: What about importing amplifiers?
                    Some will need conversion to 230v, so factor that in. And remember that you effectively don't have a guarantee. The local guys, quite rightly, will not consider it under guarantee and so if there is any problem you'll either have to get it fixed locally and pay for that OR ship it back to the guys you bought it from.
                      I have Bought 2 x Epiphines G1275 , and a Gibson EDS1275 on E-Bay. Never had a problem getting 2 of them here. Always check the Sellers E-bay history. Of course with Paypal account you can insure the instrument. You are allowed (and I am under correction) 3 Puschases a year to the value of about ZAR 20 000-00. And you only pay VAT on the item. Any more imports ayear, you will need a Import Licence. I bought one Epiphone Custom shop G1275, the seller did not ship anywhere but USA, So I had it delivered to a friend of mine's brother in California. More than 20 months been battling to get it here
                        JoeyBones wrote:
                        Stubbs wrote: What about importing amplifiers?
                        That can get very expensive on ship due to size and weight. I'm looking at bringing a small amp head in and the cost is around $180. I assume import duties will just be VAT, but I haven't looked into that yet.
                        J,
                        have you tried Guitarcenter?
                        Last time I looked, they shipped free overseas if your order is $300+
                        Although a heavy amp might negate that offer, Im not too sure what influence weight will have on the deal.
                        And: You can only get stuff that are not imported officially into SA. So no Fender amps, for example.

                        Any case, if you need to fill up an order to get it above 300, just let me know!
                          JoeyBones wrote:
                          Stubbs wrote: What about importing amplifiers?
                          That can get very expensive on ship due to size and weight. I'm looking at bringing a small amp head in and the cost is around $180. I assume import duties will just be VAT, but I haven't looked into that yet.
                          Can you keep me informed of how it goes importing it?
                            3 months later
                            Has anyone ever bought a guitar from Guitarcentre?

                            I saw some good deals on second-hand Dinky's, however when you have to specify your region, none of them are listed as available for export. Only a limited variety of entry-level guitars are available for export, effectively saying "we ship internationally, just don't ask us for a guitar"

                            Anyone know why they do this?
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