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Hey guys! B))

Normally I would not buy from this place. But, they have something now that I really need to get and that leaves me no choice. So I need some advice from some people that have had some "good" experience with HLJ including some questions with the shipping and payment types. Reason why I am stepping carefully? 1. I have lost $200 to them in the past. 2. They won't return about 2 of my emails by now. It's been almost a month. <_<:angry:

1. Anyhoo, I need to buy a huge quantity of FAST Packs, about 11 pcs. Now, do they ship items well and what method should I choose if I live in Australia?

2. What value to they declare on the package? Do they declare the actual vlaue, or do they lower it so I can avoid the tax? This has not been a problem for me with dealers such as Toywave, Twinmoons and Valkyrie-Exchange. I don't want a letter turning up to my house asking me to go to customs office and paying them $100 just to get my shipment.

3. With money matters, I will pay by CC. That's clear and easy. But do they push the conversion rate down like Angolz?

Thanks in advance for any help guys.

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I have bought from hlj a few times and never encountered any problems.

To answer your questions,

1. Their boxes are not the toughest. Although they use airbags to fill up empty spaces, it is likely that the item's own box will get dings and creases. You have to check out the shipping table on their website to decide if you want ems or sal.

2. They declared the exact value of the package in yen.

3. I always thought the card issuing bank determines the currency exchange rate? I could be wrong though.

You are welcome. :)

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Wow, sorry to hear about ur bad experience with them.

I've never had any trouble with them either. Their shipping to the US wasnt pretty and it took a while but theyre from overseas so I dont blame them.

1. Sorry, I dont live in Australia so I cant help you out. I've ordered a huge shipment of models and they came without a scratch (just my personal experience). It actually came in several boxes and I got them quite a few days apart. Just a heads up that you might recieve your entire order in one day.

2. They declare it in yen. I'm not exactly sure what else youre asking. It came straight to my house so I didnt have any problems paying extra for tax, etc. They usually sent me an email of the total price plus shipping so I expect no surprises.

3. I pay with credit card everytime I've ordered with them and the exchange rate seemed fine to me. Maybe I didnt pay close enuf attention but on the statement the amount that showed up definitely wasnt off enuf for me to notice or complain.

Hope this helps.

Good luck with your order. :)

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I to am sorry to hear about your bad luck with HLJ i have bought multiple things from them in the past 2 years and have never had a problem.

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I've ordered from them in the past. I ordered a couple of hasegawa kits and they arrived in a dented box. So now, I have two very dented Hasegawa boxes. I'm a box guy so this upset me. I decided to give them another chance. Well, my second order of kits arrived slightly dented as well.

You should feel confident ordering from them if you don't care about the condition of your box. You will get your item.

Don't order from them if you're a box guy.

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I've ordered from them in the past. I ordered a couple of hasegawa kits and they arrived in a dented box. So now, I have two very dented Hasegawa boxes. I'm a box guy so this upset me. I decided to give them another chance. Well, my second order of kits arrived slightly dented as well.

You should feel confident ordering from them if you don't care about the condition of your box. You will get your item.

Don't order from them if you're a box guy.

You should have read thier FAQ first it would of saved you some grief. ;)

http://www.hlj.com/faq/hljfaq.html

Notice to Toy and Model Collectors: While HobbyLink Japan appreciates your business, we regret that we cannot accept requests for compensation or replacement of merchandise due to superficial shipping damage to outer packaging, such as bends, creases, minor crushing, etc. While we carefully package everything we ship in brand-new boxes, some cosmetic damage will occur from time to time with any mail-order service. We will happily replace items if the actual product is damaged, but if you absolutely must have an item with a "mint" condition outer box, we recommend you make your purchase from a shop that caters to collectors.

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Knowing Australia’s tough customs, you will be for sure taxed on every penny you paid for the Fast Packs. I know this because I have a friend living there and whenever I send him anything, I got to make sure all the packaging was removed, tags cut etc. or else if they see it is new you will be taxed!

HLJ is perhaps not the cheapest, especially when it comes to shipping, not to mention big items! I would send them an e-mail and let them know your situation and maybe if you are lucky they might give you a better deal and declare less than the actual amount, worth a try anyway!

Andy :)

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That was quick! Thankyou all. :)

It's cool. I'm not a box person, I am a toy person. As long as it is not FULLY shredded, any dings, creases or scratches are fine.

Yes Valk009, Aussies have very tough customs. One I ordered 8 VF-1A Max, and they charged me a further 50 USD Tax for it, I was lucky, the dollar against the USD was favourable and I mistakenly said that the whole thing was shipped for 30 USD :lol:

What happens is, that if I buy something that is higher than $500 AUD, (items + shipping + insurance + GST), BANG! tax. That'st he unfortunate thing about AUS Customs. But people like Tamim and Toywave keep the value of the itme 100 USD, so I always get away with it. And because its a toy, they just let it pass through.

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EMS is pretty quick for me (through USPS - 94606). I ordered a BT-08 on Nov 12. It shipped on November 16th and I received it on November 20th.

I miss HLJ using UPS. I used to get my stuff in under 7 days easily.

Never used SAL. I have had issues before with orders from J-List being shipped SAL (items received in excess of 30 days).

I am curious if anyone has tried using SAL with HobbyLink Japan. Could anyone post their experiences with this shipping method?

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So far I only used SAL with HLJ as I normally order in small quantities and its a cheaper means of shipping when your order is less than 2kg. It normally takes about 2 weeks for Australia, but sometimes a little longer or sometimes shorter. With EMS I got my items send by Hobby Search once and that took about 3 days to receive it. Send out on Fri/Sat got them on Monday.

HLJ will declare the item cost only on the package and not the shipping cost. However, they will not under declare as they would like to maintain their good relationship with the post office or customs (in their FAQs).

As for using the Credit Card, HLJ will charge in Yen and the rates used will be based on your credit card company.

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You pay for what you get! EMS is one of the fastest and safest shipping method. Between two civilazied countries it usually takes 2-3 days, includes tracking and sometimes even minimal insurance.

For cheap and small items I usually take the risk and go with SAL but for bigger items it always has to be EMS or at least something with tracking or registered post!

Andy :)

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