saf_25
Contributor
I posted this last week in the So Cal Olympus User's Group forum, but haven't gotten any responses. I'm not sure if people just didn't see it, or weren't interested, but since more people check out the So Cal forum than the Oly group one, I thought I'd post it here as well. I guess if I still don't get any responses here, I'll have my answer. Let me know your thoughts on combining our buying power for getting dive items at bulk together and then dividing them - specifically, I was looking at dessicant for camera housings, but I know there are other items that we could do this with as well.
Here's what I posted in the other thread:
Since our So Cal Oly Group meeting is just over a week away, I thought this would be a good time to see what people thought of this idea I had. (re-reading this, I realize I got a bit wordy. Sorry it's so long!)
I'm getting to where I need to buy some dessicant - I've been using my camera faster than my 'source' can keep up my supply (my father, who is a pharmacist, has been colleting the dessicant packs that come in the pill bottles at work, but the majority are too big, so he doesn't get me that many. Plus, since they've essentially already been used before I use them, I like to have a # of them in the housing at a time, and don't reuse them, so I got through them quickly).
From looking around, it appears that most people (ok, Dee and Gilligan, but I trust their camera expertise enough for them to be considered "most people") recommend the Preserveation Station dessicant. They sell packages of 50 small packs for $14.95 + $4 s/h, so $20 for 50 packs. Or, they sell 4 of the packs of 50 for $44.85 + the same $4 for s/h. So, 200 dessicant packs are only $50, which is a significant savings.
Since I'm cheap and hate to pay almost double what I have to, the idea of ordering "in bulk" definitely appeals to me. But, 200 packs is an awful lot and I don't know when I'd go through all of those (especially since these are rechargeable and they have an indicator that shows when they're spent, so I won't be wasting much).
So, my idea was for the group to form a "co-op" of sorts. I don't really need a commitment from anyone now, but I just wanted to see what interest there would be in people splitting an order. If we divided an order 4 ways (they come as 4 packs of 50, so that's easy to do) then it comes out to $12.50 each, after shipping and everything. Close to half off. Anyone else interested? It says shipping is 2-day, so if I order the beginning of next week, then they should be here in time for me to be able to bring them to the meeting on the 30th and we can distribute them then. Let me know what you think.
Also, if anyone has a source for o-rings, silicone gel, beer coozies, or any other camera housing accessories that are cheaper in bulk than individually, this might be a good idea for us to consider. Since we get approx. 30 people together at a time, we have a significant enough buying power to make it worthwhile.
Any thoughts?
Here's what I posted in the other thread:
Since our So Cal Oly Group meeting is just over a week away, I thought this would be a good time to see what people thought of this idea I had. (re-reading this, I realize I got a bit wordy. Sorry it's so long!)
I'm getting to where I need to buy some dessicant - I've been using my camera faster than my 'source' can keep up my supply (my father, who is a pharmacist, has been colleting the dessicant packs that come in the pill bottles at work, but the majority are too big, so he doesn't get me that many. Plus, since they've essentially already been used before I use them, I like to have a # of them in the housing at a time, and don't reuse them, so I got through them quickly).
From looking around, it appears that most people (ok, Dee and Gilligan, but I trust their camera expertise enough for them to be considered "most people") recommend the Preserveation Station dessicant. They sell packages of 50 small packs for $14.95 + $4 s/h, so $20 for 50 packs. Or, they sell 4 of the packs of 50 for $44.85 + the same $4 for s/h. So, 200 dessicant packs are only $50, which is a significant savings.
Since I'm cheap and hate to pay almost double what I have to, the idea of ordering "in bulk" definitely appeals to me. But, 200 packs is an awful lot and I don't know when I'd go through all of those (especially since these are rechargeable and they have an indicator that shows when they're spent, so I won't be wasting much).
So, my idea was for the group to form a "co-op" of sorts. I don't really need a commitment from anyone now, but I just wanted to see what interest there would be in people splitting an order. If we divided an order 4 ways (they come as 4 packs of 50, so that's easy to do) then it comes out to $12.50 each, after shipping and everything. Close to half off. Anyone else interested? It says shipping is 2-day, so if I order the beginning of next week, then they should be here in time for me to be able to bring them to the meeting on the 30th and we can distribute them then. Let me know what you think.
Also, if anyone has a source for o-rings, silicone gel, beer coozies, or any other camera housing accessories that are cheaper in bulk than individually, this might be a good idea for us to consider. Since we get approx. 30 people together at a time, we have a significant enough buying power to make it worthwhile.
Any thoughts?
