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Anyone here going to be near Milan anytime soon?

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Anyone here going to be near Milan anytime soon?

Old 01-28-08, 03:05 PM
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Anyone here going to be near Milan anytime soon?

So I won this auction, https://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...MEWN:IT&ih=013

I asked the seller before I bid if he would ship to the US. He said yes. Now he wants 300 Euro to ship. I find that to be excessive. We are probably at an impasse. Any suggestions?
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Old 01-28-08, 03:14 PM
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To bring it home on a plane could be more or about the same.. it depends on the airline and the exact route. Ask first, before deciding what to do.
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Old 01-28-08, 03:16 PM
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Member Johnny Monkey is in Milan...you could try sending him a PM.

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Old 01-28-08, 03:27 PM
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Originally Posted by 2manybikes
To bring it home on a plane could be more or about the same.. it depends on the airline and the exact route. Ask first, before deciding what to do.
I did ask what the charge would be, he did not answer. Shipping a bike from Italy is about 130 Euro with Paccocelere Internazionale. I don't mind paying something for handling, but as I said, 170 Euro is a bit excessive.
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Old 01-28-08, 04:03 PM
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i think you could probably get help or at least advice on the CR list..

where is matteo ?
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Old 01-28-08, 04:10 PM
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I've done some off-list emails but I thought I would try here too. Matteo is in Firenze, I wouldn't want to ask him to travel so far.
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Old 01-28-08, 07:18 PM
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Did you try Johnny Monkey yet?

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Old 01-28-08, 07:51 PM
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I sent him a PM but he is probably sleeping. I don't hold much hope even with the outside chance of someone going to pick it up. I think the seller wants to screw the stupid American. If you look at his listing, he has 25 Euro for shipping in Italy. For a bike, Poste Italiane will charge 9 Euro for Pacco Celere 3. So he only wants 16 Euro for handling from an Italian but he want 170 Euro from me.
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Old 01-28-08, 08:34 PM
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perhaps it would be worth considering shipping to a friend within europe and relaying to you from there..

or go and collect in person and take the free trip to italy ?!
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Old 01-28-08, 08:41 PM
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i think this is a message from god telling you to take a trip to italy
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Old 01-28-08, 08:46 PM
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Wouldn't that be nice.
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Old 01-28-08, 09:02 PM
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I know there are BF members from Italy... in fact, look at the regional area in BF. I just read about someone coming back to the US to interview for a job!
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Old 01-28-08, 09:08 PM
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It might just be a communication problem, and there can be large variations in shipping prices for stuff like that, same as here if you are not well versed in shipping. I would try to get Steven Maasland or Matteo to email the guy in Italian, and make sure if he really is just trying to drill you for the extra cash or if he just does not know how to find a good rate.

With that said, I would offer the guy at least a hundred bucks extra for tear down and packing. You can do a lot of damage to an old "seasoned" steed like that with a hasty tear down. I have to think most of the parts on that bike are not going to want to budge without a lot of finessing. That would worry me more than the cost.

Good luck!
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Old 01-29-08, 01:17 AM
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I'll be in Milan in May, and I've got a stop over at O'hara on the way back. That's 4 months away though.
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Old 01-29-08, 05:49 AM
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Seeing as how you can't get that bike in the US, your options are kind of limited. If you do end up paying his asking for shipping, at least make sure it's packed correctly!
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Old 01-29-08, 08:09 AM
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Well, thanks for the ideas, but I got a message from the seller this morning and he has decided to sell the bike locally without any "problems". I'm convinced he wanted to rip-off the dumb American. He is willing to ship within Italy and the only differnce in shipping to the US is more money for Poste Italiane, there are no extra steps.

I sent him instructions on how to pack a bike with pictures, in Italian (Otis, that information came from Steve). I sent him the Poste Italiane web page showing the maximum box dimensions, L+W+D < 225 cm. A typical bike box is 200 cm total. To do the same packing, shipping within Italy, he want 16 Euro, for me he wanted 170 Euro.

I will say there is an outside chance I may still get the bike. I'll keep you posted.
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Old 01-29-08, 06:52 PM
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I am sorry that I did not respond to your email message to me, but I really don't believe the fellow is out to make a quick buck off of shipping. To ship a bike with pacco celere in Italy, you will normally pay 35 euros for a bike that remains basically whole. Anybody with access to the most rudimentary tools can make a bike fit into the inner-Italian sizes. To ship internationally, you must disassemble the bike. Then you must find a box which is by no means an easy task in Italy. Many bikes are still shipped without boxes in Italy and it is rare that boxes stay around. In certain parts of Italy, the shippers are also required to take back shipping material, fault of which the shop owner needs to pay a recycling fee that is quite expensive. This means that to ship internationally, you need to more often than not pay a private company to box the bike for you. Mailboxes etc... will generally do the packing for 40 euros if you also charge the shipping to them. Since they use UPS, the 300 euro price is not odd.

As far as dealing with the Italian post office, there is a major difference in dealing with national and international shipments. You should count on an hours worth of time to ship something internationally. Plus if you look on the poste italiane website, you will also see than not all post offices offer the full range of services. In Gattinara, there is only one post office that is able to handle this type of shipment. Furthermore it is my experience that many postal workers don't have much experience with dealing with international shipments and will therefore immediately quote EMS rates to ship which would mean perhaps 233.15 euros plus supplements. Check it out here:

https://www.poste.it/postali/pacchi_estero/tariffe.shtml

Another item you may not understand too well is that it is not at all common in Italy to have a car large enough to fit a bike in a bike box, so to drive the bike to the post office a few towns over is not always possible. Whereas, for an inner Italian shipment, they can bring a bike to the post office and then do the packing on the spot.
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Old 01-30-08, 08:10 AM
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Interesting. Thank you for the information, I will keep that in mind the next time contact a seller. I will carefully explain the effort involved in shipping to the US instead of just getting a quick yes. I was just shocked when I saw the 300 Euro charge when I see other Italian sellers charge the paccocelere internazionale rate.
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Old 01-30-08, 09:20 AM
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Hi Iab,
.
Why don't you fly to Milan and RIDE the bike
home!
.
And on your way through France, you could
pick up some of those Clement Criterium
Seta Extra 28mm tubulars you're seeking! :-)
.
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Old 01-30-08, 10:05 AM
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Originally Posted by A.Winthrop
Hi Iab,
.
Why don't you fly to Milan and RIDE the bike
home!
.
And on your way through France, you could
pick up some of those Clement Criterium
Seta Extra 28mm tubulars you're seeking! :-)
.
I wish.
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