Buying online from the USA

[graham]

It's the online question again...... I'm based in the UK and looking to purchase some equipment online. Same reasons as most... it is alot cheaper.

Has anyone from the UK used leisurePro in the States?.... or any other online store? Does it still work out cheaper with shipping costs?

Any advice would be much appriciated. To add to the great debate I use LDS's as well as on line but I do alot of research on what I'm buying first in both cases.:doctor:

 

[DuckDive]

http://www.dive-rite.com/dealers/start/warning.htm

Make your own judgement. I'll keep mine to myself on this one.

Mark.

 

[MacLeod]

Until recently I bought all my major gear from a local LDS that had great prices. He recently closed. I've visited LPro a couple of times and picked up a few very minor things, but always felt a little skeptical about buying the primary, life support stuff like regs., computers, and possibly bc there.

Part of my concern I guess has been that places like LP are really there only to make money...they are not diving afficionados...nothing inherently wrong with that, except that they at the least imply they are. ( I know this bkz after visiting the place I asked a guy I had dived with a couple of times who later worked there briefly after his shop closed...he confirmed this. I guess they hire an occasional diver to work the floor). This false "demeanor" makes me a bit suspect. Again, a dive shop is of course ultimately a business that exists to make money...they don't need to be divers...just straighforward.

More importantly, I simply have concerns about where the equipment has come from. While nothing inherently wrong with the practice, I understand that it often comes from shops that close or have too much inventory, etc. That is fine, but if it comes from other countries I am concerned as to whether or not it is the exact same model as is sold here. Can one be confident as to its "legitimacy"? I *need* to save money as much as anyone and would love to buy without hesitation, I am just cautious.

Having rambled on (sorry), I really would appreciate hearing from people who know LP and Dive Inn. How do the two compare? Where is Dive Inn located in Europe and does anyone know where they get their equipment? Are there better discount sources? Again, I'd really appreciate hearing people's thoughts and insights.

Thanks very much!!

 

[Scubaroo]

LeisurePro and DiveInn (and to a lesser extent, SimplyScuba) are the cheapest source for probably 90% of the gear they sell. I've dealt with both LeisurePro and DiveInn, and have had good service, fast delivery, great prices, etc. I've never had to deal with warranty issues with either of them, so I'm not sure of what that service is like. The goods I bought through them (Apeks regulators, Suunto instruments, Ikelite strobe arms, Cressi mask, plus a bunch of other smaller stuff) has definitely been the real deal, identical to the stuff you would find in any LDS, just better priced. Some things though I wouldn't buy from them, eg wetsuits, some things you just need to try and buy in a store.

Some members of this board have strong opinions against buying online. Some members of this board are also LDS owners or employees. Personally, my LDS is currently 12,000km away the other side of the planet, so buying online isn't a moral dilemma for me. If you do decide to buy online, just be ethical about it, and don't spend an hour in a dive shop checking out their stock, and then go home and buy it over the web. I feel if it's something you can't make a purchase decision about without seeing it or trying it on, you shouldn't be buying it online.

Just my opinion.

Ben

Forgot to mention DiveInn is in Spain, if you buy gear from them and import into the United States, you may have to pay about 4% customs on anything over $200, seperately invoiced by the carrier, usually DHL in this case.

 

[Lost Yooper]

Recently, I've been doing more buying over seas than in the states. I've only dealt with Liesure Pro a couple times. No problems with any of them.

Mike

 

[Zept]

I had some small items shipped from the USA to Singapore, and delivery cost US$35. Since you're in the UK, you'll need to allow for VAT, and there might be other charges.

Customs and Excise

Have you looked at Simply Scuba in the UK or DiveInn in Spain? Postage should be much cheaper from Simply Scuba and might also be cheaper from DiveInn. I haven't used either store, but there are people here who have.

Simply Scuba
DiveInn

Z

 

[stephanwhelan]

UK wise there are few stores that allow you buy online. The biggest thing to bear in mind when buying from anywhere is import duty - however even with this it could work ouot cheaper buying it rather than a local dealer.

At Deeper Blue, we run a partner deal with DiveInn/Scubastore via http://shop.deeperblue.net however we didn't enter into that partnership lightly - we researched with people from all over the world and DiveInn came out top.

You might also want to try some of the Mail Order places in the UK - Collins & Chambers/Nautilus is great - speak to Tony the MD, he will look after you. SDS Watersports is another good one. Best bet is to pick a copy of Diver or Dive and check out the adverts!

Of course you could just plan your new kit purchases around the two dives major dive shows!

 

[jonnythan]

www.scubatoys.com sells, supposedly, only gear they're authorized to sell.

Check them out, I've had great dealings with them.

 

[whitemac2003]

These guys are related to Divers Direct and claim to be the biggest dive shops in the world. They run retail stores in Florida but mail a catalog and have really good internet prices too.

 

[outlawaggie]

www.scubatoys.com sells, supposedly, only gear they're authorized to sell.

Check them out, I've had great dealings with them.

Better yet call them. They are an operating LDS in Dallas. All of their geasr comes with a manufacturers warranty. They are great guys.

Ty