Thread: Lie-Nielsen catalogue Aussie edition

Do not forget postage buy 5 chisels individually, that would be $50 buy as a set it maybe $20, that is a $30 saving.

Of course.

You didn't buy every item in the catalogue in 1 go did you? That would save a lot of postage.

Hey Wongo,
why don't you organise a group purchase. I'm sure plenty will come on board to get the savings. We'll let you keep the plane sock for your efforts.
TM

Sure

Originally Posted by Wongo

Sure

Are you saying sure you are going to organize the group order or sure you are going to keep the sock?

Group order with no discount. Why would anyone bother?

And the AUD almost = US$
might be cheaper to self import

Sawdust Maker - by coincidence, I had the very same thought today.....

Postage on smaller items would be reasonable if LN USA will ship by USPS rather than Fedex, etc.

LN chisels are US$55 - that's about A$58 at todays exchange rate. Even bigger savings on the planes.

Or is LN one of those companies that won't sell into countries where they already have a local distributor???

I buy direct from Lee Valley all the time, but have never tried to order direct from LN USA.

Originally Posted by Mr Brush

I buy direct from Lee Valley all the time, but have never tried to order direct from LN USA.

Hey Mr Bush,
I was looking on Lee Valley's site the other day and was thinking of ordering some stuff as the Aussie dollar is so good at the moment. I'm thinking about some smaller hand tools.
I'm just curious to know your experiences, i.e delivery time and postage costs etc...

Andy

groeneaj - I think most people on here would agree that Lee Valley represents the pinnacle of customer service. I can't recall anyone having problems with them, and I've had nothing but good experiences.

I've found the best shipping method is UPS, which typically takes 4-5 days to my door. I'm in country NSW mind you - some forum members in capital cities have done even better than that.

Using UPS means it isn't cost effective to just buy a single tool. I tend to wait until I want to order maybe a plane, a couple of other hand tools, and top the order up with some smaller items or books. Lee Valley sell an amazing variety of low cost items, and I've always found these to be of excellent quality.

At the current exchange rate, even allowing for the shipping cost, you don't have to buy much to be well ahead of local pricing.....

Thanks for the reply
I'll have to read through their massive catalogue again and pick out some goodies !

Andy

Seconded. Lee Valley are very good.

They stock what they sell and they ship within 1 day of my order, then it's a week to 10 days to deliver to rural WA. Pricing is usually reasonable. I try and put a bunch of things together to justify the cost of shipping; it is a bit tricky getting the amount just right so the box is full but not too heavy...

I'm currently trying to get some stuff out of a different US supplier and it's like pulling teeth. Hard enough to find one that will ship to AU in the first place. Because of the time difference my emails don't get seen until the following day, then the replies come in the middle of the next night. These guys didn't have stock of what they listed (grrr) so they seem to be waiting for someone to send them stuff (so they can weigh it) before they will give me a price on shipping.

I'm sure it will work out in the end -they haven't touched my credit card yet- but it is a little frustrating knowing the order isn't even together after a week, let alone on the boat or pigeon or whatever it is they'll use to ship the stuff here.

Makes shopping at Lee Valley feel easier than shopping at Bunnings...

In the past LN USA has not allowed Australians to purchase directly from them, refering you to the Australian distributer.

However this has changed, they now allow Non-US recidents to create an account with their US website, and they have no problem selling you anything. They will contact you asap with a postage cost's and options.

I bought a No. 6 and a Block plane from them, about six months ago.

I belive that the change of heart on LN part is due to them losing forign sales to LV. Being able to buy direct from LV in the past has been the main reason why have bought from them, as the Australian LN prices are painfull.

Also sometime LN Aus. does not have stock and it turns out faster and cheaper to order from the USA. I know a bloke in my course who ordered a LN saw and he has been waiting 4 weeks. He would have gotten it in 5 days if he bought it direct.

Helmut - thanks, that's good to know.

You raise a good point regarding availability. Lie Nielsen seems to be selling everything they can make at the moment, and you can bet that direct sales and US outlets have priority. From what I can gather, little old Australia is well down the list of priorities......

I recently ordered a particular LN chisel locally, which I'm still waiting on 4 weeks later. It might be included in the next shipment from the US if I'm lucky. The irony is that if I'd placed an order with LN USA I'd probably have it by now, and at a much better price. Lesson learned.

Do you happen to know if LN USA will ship using the (excellent) standard USPS airmail?? If they did, the postage cost for small items would be negligible, and it would make those US prices even more attractive.

Incidentally, did you get my PM with postal address for those chisel handles? I've been having a few PMs bounce recently, not getting through to recipient. Not sure if this is due to receivers inbox being full, or some other problem.

Cheers