Thread: The prices we pay

Here's an example.

Most of us probably have bought from this seller on ebay or at least looked at the items on offer and thought that the prices are good (I've bought lots of things over the years and only had great and speedy service), but when you compare -


Transfer Punch Set 3/32" to 1/2"

28PCE 3 32" 1 2" Transfer Punch SET Free Postage | eBay


Transfer Punch Set 3/32" to 1/2"

Transfer Punch Set 3/32" to 1/2" - LittleMachineShop.com

$45.00 compared to $7.95 for exactly the same identical item........that's a MASSIVE difference. When your talking about buying maybe 10, 20 or even 30 such items, the difference starts to get staggering.

I hear what you're saying Jim, to be fair though that $7.95 is a weekly special from LMS.

I bought this set for $19.95 from Gary Pye, as I was calling in there on a recent trip to FNQ I didn't have to pay postage either.

GPW Transfer Punch Set

Fred, that's a good price you paid, but it's still double the price that you would pay in the US for exactly the same item -

Transfer Punch Set - 28 Piece

Originally Posted by Jim Ferrous

Fred, that's a good price you paid, but it's still double the price that you would pay in the US for exactly the same item -

Transfer Punch Set - 28 Piece

Yep, and that is why I buy so much of this stuff overseas, but in this case the postage from os would have pushed it beyond the price I paid. However, if I would have had to pay the postage within Oz, it probably would still have been cheaper to get it from the US.

Normally, our Oz prices for these things are 2-3 times what they are in the US.

I was at the Lake Goldsmith Steam Rally last Sunday and there was an Oz importer (LPR Toolmakers) selling lots of tooling, the prices on them were absolutely staggering, but even at those ridiculously high prices he was still selling a fair bit. So, as long as people are prepared to pay those sort of prices they will continue to charge those prices.

Originally Posted by Big Shed

Normally, our Oz prices for these things are 2-3 times what they are in the US.

On the odd item, it's just a case of suck it up, but if you get bit with the bug and want to really tool up, it starts to sting if you think in the U.S it would cost $10,000 to have all these 'goodies' and here it would cost $20,000 - $30,000+ for exactly the same items.

If the items were actually made in the US you could understand the discrepancy, but they're the same items, same packaging and they're all made in Asia.

You have to keep in the back of your mind that U.S. wages compared with Australia's is vastly different. Median income for the U.S. is about 50K and Australia it's about 73K. Therefore, taking in consideration inflation, the price of goods in the U.S. is comparable to income. In reality the prices of goods supplied by retailers in Australia reflect the cost of wages. As wages go up so do the price of goods. Inflation, a terrible beast!

Originally Posted by Scott

You have to keep in the back of your mind that U.S. wages with Australia is vastly different. Median income for the U.S. is about 50K and Australia it's about 73K. Therefore, taking in consideration inflation, the price of goods in the U.S. is comparable to income. In reality the prices of goods supplied by retailers in Australia reflect the cost of wages. As wages go up so do the price of goods. Inflation, a terrible beast!

It's an even greater discrepancy if you look at minimum wages i.e. US$7.25 in the US and US$15.20 in AUS. If purchasing power via the PPP index is taken into account the AUS minimum wage is US$9.77 but US minimum wage earners get fewer benefits and social support i.e. still have to pay for medical and only get half the annual holidays.

At least we can buy overseas but they can't buy stuff like their medical and extra holidays on ebay.

If you don't mind Asian the place to go for some items is aliexpress. In some cases they sell the same items as Hafco but at sometimes half the price. I prefer Chinese or Taiwanese sellers to Oz sellers, simply because of attitude. The Asians will bend over backwards to ensure you don't give them negative feedback, Oz sellers don't seem to give hoot. I bought an 80w flexible solar panel a while back; unfortunately it was damaged in transit so they were unsuitable for fixing to my Jayco camper. After a few threats they replaced it with two 40w panels and I got to keep the damaged 80w panel as well. After a little bit of panel beating I now use it as a portable panel. The original panel was 1/3 the price of those on sale in OZ.

G'Day Fellas,
3 or 4 years ago I regularly purchased from the U.S. but of recent times their postage has become so expensive it is no longer a viable option, with some sellers asking $30 - $40 to post small items like micrometers.
Like the above post I too use Aliexpress for most Chinese or H.K. purchases, postage is usually free or a few dollars for China Post which takes about 3 weeks or $20.00 for E.M.S. which takes 5 days. The only stuff up I have had with an Aliexpress seller was a dial caliper with the wrong resolution sent, the money was refunded within 2 days and I got to keep the caliper (a very nice Anyi). Maybe the Australian market is too small or too much trouble for the U.S suppliers to bother with.
Regards,
Martin

Hello,

I hear and feel your pain. It's not only tools that are seemingly expensive, I buy a lot of camping and hiking stuff from the US. Some of the stuff I have imported, I have paid 1/2 the price of what it costs to buy here INCLUDING delivery to my door!

While the retailers bitch and moan about lack of GST paid on imports under a certain amount, I would be happy (well maybe not happy but accepting) of paying the GST just to shut them up because it would still be cheaper!

Don't forget, if I can buy just 1 item at nearly half their retail, what must they be getting it for if they purchase dozens/hundreds? Don't get me wrong, I would prefer to support Australian retailers but not to the detriment of my own finances!

I agree that shipping to Australia is hit and miss, both in costing and also if they ship outside of US at all. I could set up a mailing address in the US with one of the many on forwarding companies but I have not really had the need yet.

My last purchase from the US in the way of tooling were a couple of 123 blocks (similar to the ones shown) for $17 and a set of parallels for $29. Shipping was pretty steep but I went in partnership with Jack620 (from memory) and it was quite reasonable.

When I imported my mill from China, some of the extras were dirt cheap and of equal quality to H&F. Example: X axis power feed (same brand as H&F) was $230, coolant system $99, clamp kits (minimum 5 packs) about $40 ea. Cabinet stand $99, this was crap so I sold it and recouped my money!

Simon

Originally Posted by toolman49

Like the above post I to use Aliexpress for most Chinese or H.K. purchases,

G'day Martin, I've never heard of them before and just Googled them. Very interesting site that I will explore tonight when I have time.

It is not just wages, it is everything else, from the rules and regulations, which greatly add to cost, plus things like rates, taxes, building rent (if you own your building) fees to get things from the ship that is berthed in an AU port to the street outside the port often far exceed the freight charge to get the goods to au in the first place...

There are many reasons why goods are so expensive here.... And a lot of those reasons are why we can afford to buy from China in the first place...

Hands up those that would like to take a 30% pay cut? Plus a cut in benefits and see less government services, poorer roads, worse health services, less education funding, less restrictions on what an employer can do (less OHS and environmental rules etc)..

Australia is an extremely expensive country to run a business in, and thus has to charge the costs, or go broke...

Originally Posted by .RC.

Hands up those that would like to take a 30% pay cut? Plus a cut in benefits and see less government services, poorer roads, worse health services, less education funding, less restrictions on what an employer can do (less OHS and environmental rules etc)..

We already have all this in NSW without taking a 30% pay cut

Originally Posted by .RC.

Australia is an extremely expensive country to run a business in, and thus has to charge the costs, or go broke...

Yes.

But your argument would hold more weight if I was purchasing say a 3" machinists vice that was local company by employed Australian workmen. I would happily pay a premium for such a vice.

It becomes much more sticky when a 'business' just buys the exact same item from China, same packaging, same everything and literally only on sells that item after putting an inflated middle man profit on the item. Naturally, if there is a possible way to cut this middleman out of the loop, it will happen and we see it happening now as buyers become, through the internet, more educated as buyers.


The world is changing, more and more people are able to deal closer to the source of where items actually originate from and feel quite happy purchasing without touching and actually holding a product. Hence, why there are so many review sites by savvy informed buyers on the internet.

There's no way that the face of the middleman, on selling business's are going to be the same as they are in another 10 years from now.