Why don't you guys direct some of thee questions to me? Rather than everyone just keep grasping at straws.
I think we were kinda hoping you would volunteer the information once you saw what we had posted, as you did.
1. Yes this looks to be the bag...otherwise I wouldn't have bought it
Awesome, but no offense, I don't know you or your priorities and getting a second opinion on this forum isn't unreasonable when you're ordering something in another language. It "looked" the same, but if you've ever put in "gas mask bag" into eBay you'll notice that unless you know exactly what a MKVII is, you might be guessing a lot.
2. I obviously asked if he would ship to the US...otherwise I wouldn't have bought it.
Great, we didn't know that and so it's good to know he responded to you. That answers that for J!m. Assuming he'll ship to Canada (which is another country with different laws
) might be a bad idea if communicating with the seller isn't going to go smoothly.
3. If you can do the math, you would figure out what the shipping costs were. I said I paid $70 US, and the Buy it now is 15.9 Euros... little conversion and some currency exchange rates will show that I was quoted 35 Euros for shipping (which is about what Jens is having to pay).
I can do all the math in the world I want, but unless I know the costs involved I'm just guessing. Of course I was able to convert the 15.9 Euros, but adding on the VAT, shipping (for two bags)...I want to know what I'm spending before I start sending money willy nilly across the world.
4. Shipping to US and Canada would be roughly the same...both need a boat to get here. But just ask "How much shipped to Canada?" And he'll e-mail you back.
I emailed him and haven't yet heard a reply. "Roughly the same" could be a lot different in the end...trust me I have ordered a few things overseas and it can get a little odd at times...all I wanted was confirmation. As well, two bags is different than one...so "roughly" could be 35 Euro more.
6. As for VAT, etc....does it really matter? If you're going to be on the list for Jens, aren't you going to have to pay it anyway? It is what it is.
Sorry, but yes it matters. When I'm trying to figure out a cost so I can see if it's worth it to do so (both here and Jens) or simply for peace of mind so I can tell what I am spending.
All in all, if this doesn't pan out, $70 isn't going to land me in the poorhouse. As with everything in this hobby/obsession, if your budget is that tight that you're worried about an extra $10-20 here or there, you should check you priorities. I don't mean to sound condescending, but the level of tension over this all of the sudden is a little weird.
$70 isn't going to land me in the poorhouse either, but I'm sure if I said, "Hey, why not send me $70 and I might send you something back, and I might not!" I'm not sure you would be super likely to do so.
I'm not "worried" about $10 or $20 here, but money is still money and I don't have a "flush it down the toilet due to laziness" budget. I'm glad you had the guts/ability to order your bag, but I think it's reasonable to be a little informed instead of making rash decisions that might make things harder for myself and the seller.
These are not unreasonable questions for an eBay transaction, the problem is that there is extra "tension" because there are three bags, I would like 2 of them, and J!m would like one....so it makes things little tense when I have no way to communicate with the seller like I normally would, and the description of the product is in a language I can barely read.
All I am asking for is for someone to translate what is there, and perhaps ask the seller these questions in proper German so I can go ahead and order knowing exactly what I'm getting into.
).
), it's the product which sells itself. ;-)
it's on its way. Maybe it'll show up the day that my AB finally arrives (14 months 16 days and counting).