UK to USA shipping/EBAY

[minicountryman1961]

building a H/R in the USA is hard enough and I am trying to buy parts on EBAY in the UK that are not easily available in the USA. It is frustrating that many sellers say UK only on the shipping options.

Why is this? Is it that hard to take a part to the post office and mail it here?

ARRRGH!

[ozzy1]

Maybe worth listing what parts you are trying to get and we can suggest alternate companies that will post to the U.S.A. Personally havent had much trouble getting stuff sent out here just takes a while if its big stuff.

[AshG]

send it to one of us and we will forward it on to you. it pays to contact the seller, ebay sets the uk only option by default. where are you in the US? i can get stuff out to atlanta easily as i have an office there that i can send it to for free.

[spud69]

Some builders, while having bodywork sent over or other parts will get parts delivered to Saturn so that it can all be dispatched on the same pallet - South Africa, New Zealand, Australia and USA.

It's always an option....Andrew

[Spikehaus]

Our company sent out some research submarine spare parts last year via UPS, this generated numorous phone calls from goverment departments and considerable problems and interest by customs, not to mention import duty!

I guess its down to what you are sending and and the paperwork associated with it.

Not sure if it ever helped but I always wrote down that goods were "samples" and if I was ever quizzed about it my answer would have been that I hoped to gain further orders from the States.
It does amaze me though as massive as the USA is that folk have to buy from the UK but then the US gets cheap snap on tools where we have to take a mortage on a 10milly spanner so it's swings and round things

[minicountryman1961]

Thanks for the helpful replies. Sorry to take so long to get back, I have been working on the car in my basement.

Perhaps it seems odd that someone in the big old USA needs to buy stuff from the UK. Although the Locost and Haynes Roadster books are popular here, the fact is the donor cars for either are difficult to find. So, most every car being built here is majorly changed to use parts from a Toyota, Mazda, Nissan or whatever the builder has sitting on blocks in his driveway. So while there are some people selling Locost parts, those that are specific to the Cortina or Sierra based cars are not readily available.

The only Ford Sierras sold here were the Merkur XR4ti and they are very scarce.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merkur_XR4Ti

I am unusual in the USA because I did have a wrecked Merkur sitting in my driveway, so that is what I am using for suspension, transmission, diff and brakes.

I have contacted a couple people on EBAY that had their auctions listed as selling to UK only and they are willing to ship to the USA. So I am good for now. The main item I was looking at now is the brake lines and I will be getting those from Ben Copeland.