M 800 Renaissance Brown

[daenghafez]

The wait is killing me.

I keep hoping I'll forget that I've bought it and it'll just show up unexpectedly, but every time I look at the date I am keenly aware that I saw a release date of 5/22 and its not 5/22 yet, lol. But if it's "available now", then I would think they would be shipping very soon...like next week.

LCDC just confirmed that they were still waiting for the delivery. Once received, they will ship the pen. No date offered on when the pen will be delivered to them.

[whichwatch]

 

 

I buy my Pelikans almost exclusively overseas these days. Over a hundred purchases and only 1 instance of a customs fee and that was more related to how it was shipped. It's nothing that I consider when purchasing. Even if you do get hit with a fee, the savings are still signifiant.

 

 

Pretty much the same experience here. I once had FedEx clear a pen and send me a (small) bill, and once I think it was USPS mail carrier who requested the payment, but usually no Customs charge.

 

I wish this were different, as I would certainly prefer to buy domestically and would do so if the price were anywhere close.

Edited May 14, 2017 by whichwatch

[jkingrph]

The only time I paid any fees was when a Delta pen was delivered by DHL from Martemodena in Italy. The pen was less than $500, but cannot remember the exact price. I decided at that point not to order from that vendor in the future, as shipping was too expensive. I just looked on ebay and for one of their pens they have a shipping fee of $69, which honestly is outrageous and gouging.

 

I do not remember if there was anything in the statement/invoice from DHL to indicate that it was customs. Could it be that they simply charge customers customs in case it is assessed by US customs, and if not simply add to their bottom line??

Edited May 14, 2017 by jkingrph

[sirgilbert357]

LCDC just confirmed that they were still waiting for the delivery. Once received, they will ship the pen. No date offered on when the pen will be delivered to them.

Thanks for the update. I guess the situation would be similar with Appelboom (that's who I ordered from).

[Erik Dalton]

I think they recently raised the minimum value for custom's fees to $800. Even still, the only times I've been charged any customs duty was when products were shipped by DHL.

Good to know. I hope you're right.

Like you the only time I paid customs fees was a DHL delivery from Martemodena, in Italy. I think they get a fee for what they collect. Not sure exactly how it works, but they were acting as shipping agent.

[mulrich]

Good to know. I hope you're right.

Like you the only time I paid customs fees was a DHL delivery from Martemodena, in Italy. I think they get a fee for what they collect. Not sure exactly how it works, but they were acting as shipping agent.

I think my package was also from Martemodena. The bill from DHL include a few service fees for paying the duty on my behalf which was frustrating since I wasn't given any other options to pay. It seemed like a racket to me since I never agreed to any contract with DHL to pay the bill for me. I'm willing to pay duties if I own them but I'm not willing to pay for services I didn't ask for and was given no alternative. When I complained about the service fees to DHL they waved both the service fees and import duty. This was great but seemed strange since in theory they had already paid the import duty to customs and I was willing to pay that. it was while looking into this that I learned the minimum value for import duties was being raised to $800 (but was a few weeks late for my package).

Before ordering internationally I now make sure the shipper doesn't use DHL. Although, I don't regularly order packages worth over $800 so he shipper shouldn't matter.

[Erik Dalton]

Yea, the two times I've ordered from Martemodena, I've got hit with "customs" fees. I don't buy from them anymore. I've ordered better than 50 pens from overseas and never had to pay any customs fees, except from Martemodena and their DHL shipping.

[EclecticCollector]

I received a package from Stilograph Corsani sent through DHL and that was also the only time I've been charged customs duties and "service fees". My next order from them came via FedEx and there were no fees at all.

[jkingrph]

I will try to insure that nothing, domestic or international orders, is delivered via DHL. I do not care for their policies. I once had a problem getting a small parcel of a precision part delivered. When the local office said if I did not care for their service they would not bother with delivering. I offered them the option of legal action and they promptly delivered. That was about 20 years ago. The one pen I received from Italy came DHL and I paid.

 

If I should receive another via them and they try and bill me for customs plus a fee, I shall simply return their bill and tell them what they can do with their fee and that customs can bill me directly.

[sirgilbert357]

Well, I couldn't stand it anymore and since I already had to email them about something else, I asked Appelboom if they had an updated estimated shipping date for my Renaissance Brown. I'll let you guys know what I find out...

[sirgilbert357]

Got a reply from Appelboom:

"We expect to receive the Renaissance Brown tomorrow and start shipping them over the weekend..."

 

YEEESSSS!!! Assuming the shipping is reasonably quick and no customs drama, I might have my pen by next Friday!

[Erik Dalton]

Great news!!!

[jkingrph]

Got a reply from Appelboom:

"We expect to receive the Renaissance Brown tomorrow and start shipping them over the weekend..."

 

YEEESSSS!!! Assuming the shipping is reasonably quick and no customs drama, I might have my pen by next Friday!

 

After seeing this, I shot off an email to Dennis ad LCDC, and requested that he hold shipping on mine until the last couple of days of the month as I will be out of town. I just received an affirmative about the receipt and shipping, so looks like all is good. I should have mine hopefully in the first week of June.

[sirgilbert357]

I'm honestly blown away more people aren't commenting on this news. Am I the only one on the edge of my seat waiting to receive this pen? LOL.

[jkingrph]

I'm honestly blown away more people aren't commenting on this news. Am I the only one on the edge of my seat waiting to receive this pen? LOL.

 

I decided that I am not going to get anxious about this one. The last time I ordered from LCDC, admittedly before the Christmas holidays, my package was not only held up briefly in the Netherlands, but for about three weeks in Chicago. I am hoping it does not go through Chicago this time, it seems as though every time something goes there it is a much longer delay than with say Boston or New York on the east coast.

[BillH]

 

I decided that I am not going to get anxious about this one. The last time I ordered from LCDC, admittedly before the Christmas holidays, my package was not only held up briefly in the Netherlands, but for about three weeks in Chicago. I am hoping it does not go through Chicago this time, it seems as though every time something goes there it is a much longer delay than with say Boston or New York on the east coast.

 

 

I'm with Jeff. Not going to get too excited until I get the email saying mine has shipped, and then I will not be anxious one way or the other... if we have to wait until Fall to see the next two, I won't mind a few extra days in the post for this one. But I'd rather not see it routed through Chicago either.

[Erik Dalton]

Jamaica/JFK customs is a tangled mess as well. The once held a pen for 90 days then sent it to a mail sorting center in Vermont. It eventually came down from the far north to Mid Atlantic Delaware.

[jkingrph]

Got to thinking about all of this and sent email to LCDC requesting that they not send via dhl, which I think they do not normally do. Dennis said no problem that they only use dhl if a customer requests it.

[jkingrph]

Talking about customs, I have a couple vintage razors coming. One arrived in New York from Germany, the other in Miami from France, withing 3 hours of each other. en route to Texas. We shall see how this plays out time wise.

[Erik Dalton]

Just got this update from La Couronne du Comte regarding my Renaissance Brown Order.

 

"We expect them to arrive short after the weekend, at which point we will start processing and distributing the pens ourselves right away."

 

Met vriendelijke groet - Kind regards - Bien cordialement - Mit freundlichem Gruß - Saludos cordiales,

 

Wesley van de Camp