Paragear.com and Canada.

[Kalrigan 6]

Hey guys, I'm planning to order a few things but unfortunately the only place I ever delt with before is Chutingstar and they happen to be sold out of what I'm looking for.

So my question for all you Canadian skydivers who ordered from paragear before, how are they? Did you ever have any problems with them? Do they have good customer service? Etc...

[IanHarrop 37]

Paragear's reputation is very good. They ship to Canada a lot.

"Where troubles melt like lemon drops, away above the chimney tops, that's where you'll find me" Dorothy

[DcloudZ 0]

I bought a G3 from paragear. I'm located in Quebec and had no problems at all.

I was worried about the size of the helmet being correct but they assured me that if it didn't fit then I could return it for a different size.

Good customer service as well; kept me updated.
However, they forgot the free mousepad that I asked for I guess it's not the end of the world

"Better to have a short life that is full of what you like doing than a long life spent in a miserable way." -Alan Watts

[pchapman 261]

As usual from the US though, shipping costs are the killer. It's usually around $45-50 US (plus customs charges and taxes at the border of course), although I've had really small packages with shipping costs of only $18 or so.

I often get the Priority mail (6-10 working days I think) instead of the faster Express mail. Still, what with Canadian customs, I've had Priority Mail shipments come in at the full 10 working days, or even up to a month from the ship date.

One can ask for Priority mail manually in the comments box for Paragear orders.

However, how much that saves is unclear. I've seen it where for the package weight, it should cost $23 by Priority, $37 by Express. But that's before insurance, and Paragear only ships with insurance. If one added insurance on, and this was for a fairly expensive $400 US package, the numbers would be $29 Priority, $39 Express.

Yet there are a couple confusing factors:
- Paragear uses a private insurer
- shipping costs aren't shown during the order process

As one person at Paragear explained to me in 2009:

Quote

The post office is not an easy company to deal with...for instance we don't insure through them...they never paid a claim...so we have a private insurance company....

So in the end Paragear says that Express costs only marginally more than Priority. Without being able to see shipping costs ahead of time, unlike for some of the big online retailers we are used to, it is all a bit of a crapshoot.

I still tend to ask for Priority Mail.

For the typical amount of stuff I buy, 100-200 bucks at a time, one can usually multiply the Paragear item costs by a 1.3 factor to give the final cost at your door. That's in an era with a strong Canadian dollar. When it was at .67 US or so, costs were another 40% higher.

Other retailers aren't immune to the same postal issues. For example, once a tiny order from Jumpshack was put in a flat envelope, shipped by regular mail, and got to me really cheap, $4 shipping. A similar order in another year, got sent full Priority Mail without me expecting it, and cost me $27.

One really has to work to stay on top of shipping costs!

Usually I've had no customs issues. They tax you HST & their inspection fee and that's it. Once when I had a larger order with some friends, maybe $800, then customs started inquiring about the country of origin of each item, and took $144 in duties before giving me the package. I had to go through the hassle of writing a detailed letter to them, listing each item and where it seemed to be made. (Most from the US, but Cypres batteries in Germany and T-shirts in central America.) Luckily I got the money back. Paragear normally doesn't include any long list of items and country of origin as it isn't usually an issue.

Like most consumers, I just want my stuff, and am not expecting to have to deal with what duties there might be. So in the end, sometimes I'll get an order together with some friends, but I'm now a little wary of any super-large order with a lot of different stuff in it.

Anyway, it's all just my opinion as someone occasionally ordering a few things from Paragear.

[DcloudZ 0]

Oh yes, Peter brings up a good point!

The G3 costs 369$ but it ended up costing me 480$

"Better to have a short life that is full of what you like doing than a long life spent in a miserable way." -Alan Watts

[Chris-Ottawa 0]

Same here, I ordered a box of rigging equipment, and it was $70 shipping. Pretty insane if you ask me, but generally we try to get a few people on any order we need and have everyone split the shipping.

Also, you'll get nailed on duty too because they use UPS. Aside from that, product, customer service etc is all great.


Good luck!

"When once you have tasted flight..."

[Dokeman 0]

I have ordered from them in the past with no real issues except, they won't tell you how much they will charge you for shipping. You have to give them your credit card and they charge you whatever they want. Usually WAY to much. Like $20 to ship a $5 box. I only order from them if I HAVE to. They are making money off of shipping charges. Fyi

[Kalrigan 6]

Thank you for the quick replies, and Peter for that informative post you posted.

Now comes the doubt, I'm considering just waiting for Chutingstar to get the red G3 in my size in stock, they said it's going to be in their next shipment in a week or two. I at least know exactly how much they are going to charge me for shipping. The idea of Paragear not giving me a price and just charging whatever they want doesn't sit well with me. >_<

PS: That's what I get for taking a week to decide what color to pick for my G3. :(

[NWFlyer 2]

You have 14 jumps - surely you can continue using the dropzone's student helmets for another week or two?

As an aside - have you had a chance to try on a G3 to confirm fit and comfort and the appropriate size? Helmets (and in particular full face helmets) are tricky to fit and fit depends a lot on the shape of your head/face. Hopefully you've been able to get your hands on one for a fitting.

"There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

[Kalrigan 6]

NWFlyer

You have 14 jumps - surely you can continue using the dropzone's student helmets for another week or two?

As an aside - have you had a chance to try on a G3 to confirm fit and comfort and the appropriate size? Helmets (and in particular full face helmets) are tricky to fit and fit depends a lot on the shape of your head/face. Hopefully you've been able to get your hands on one for a fitting.

Oh I know I'm in no rush. I have tried on my tunnel coach's G3 in Large and it was a bit snug, then tried on my PFF's instructors XL and it fit me like a glove so I'm very confident in that size. Thanks though. :)

[Freakazoidile 0]

I had the same issue with USA shipping and Canada customs, the cost is killer. It also delays the shipment by a couple days, and at times a up to 2 weeks because of customs delays.

A family member recently showed me this great service. There's a PO Box service just across the Rainbow bridge in Buffalo (I see your located in Toronto). For a low price of $6(USD) they will receive your package and keep it however long it takes you to pick up the package. Be it 5hrs or 1 month it will be waiting their for you. Also because most online retailers offer free shipping within the USA you will save once again on more costs.

http://www.cbiusa.com/services.php

Blue Skies!

If you don't like it do it yourself and shut up
https://i.chzbgr.com/completestore/12/8/21/RJq7qFNeoECVymQBZu1E3g2.jpg

[Kalrigan 6]

Freakazoidile

I had the same issue with USA shipping and Canada customs, the cost is killer. It also delays the shipment by a couple days, and at times a up to 2 weeks because of customs delays.

A family member recently showed me this great service. There's a PO Box service just across the Rainbow bridge in Buffalo (I see your located in Toronto). For a low price of $6(USD) they will receive your package and keep it however long it takes you to pick up the package. Be it 5hrs or 1 month it will be waiting their for you. Also because most online retailers offer free shipping within the USA you will save once again on more costs.

http://www.cbiusa.com/services.php

Oh interesting, never heard of that place. Thanks for the link, I'll look into it.

[JerryBaumchen 1,048]

Hi Peter,

Quote

The post office is not an easy company to deal with...for instance we don't insure through them...they never paid a claim...so we have a private insurance company....

One needs to understand bureaucrats if you are going to deal with bureaucrats.

A number of years ago, I bought a sewing machine head from a friend in Canada. We agreed to a price & he shipped it to me via Canada Post ( or whatever you folks call your national postal system ). He also insured it.

A few weeks later I get a call from my local post office and they wanted me to come down & look over this package. I go down there and the very substantial wooden box that the shipper built is almost completely broken apart.

I took the sewing machine head home, called a local service repair guy that I used and asked for as estimate of the costs to repair ( as requested when I picked up the machine ). He said about $250.

I then had him write me up an estimate of $745 for the repairs. The shipper/seller asked why I would inflate the costs so much. I responded that I know how bureaucrats work; trust me.

One morning at 5.10 AM west coast time ( I am sound asleep ) I get a phone call from some Canada Post bureaucrat in the east. She informs me that she is willing to offer $500 ( Canadian ) for the repairs based upon the photos and the estimate that I had submitted. I said that would be fine.

Canada Post sent the $500 ( Canadian ) to the shipper as he was the one who paid for the insurance.

He then sent the money on to me. After I paid the exchange rate, my bank fees, the result was about $275 to me.

You just have to know how to deal with bureaucrats.

I'm very sure that that woman in eastern Canada, who works for Canada Post, got a bonus for 'saving' them the $245, which was the difference from my 'estimate' and what she offered me.



JerryBaumchen

[PastorPete 1]

I had a good result with Paragear. I order items from a number of US vendors and use a border mail drop service called kinek. Same idea, the parcel gets shipped to their depot on the US side of the border, they charge you a small fee based on weight, you pick it up and bring it across. (and pay the Hst) Of course, you need to live near the border for this to be effective. It works very well for me, especially for the many retailers that ship for free to the lower 48. Kinek (www.kinek.com) offers email and/or text notification once the order arrives.

[kingbunky 3]

as mentioned above, the shipping and customs charges are a killer. if you live near the border, (again, as mentioned above) check out kinek.com to get a us shipping address. if you are heading sourth over the winter, most dropzones will receive shipments for you, but call ahead to confirm.

"Hang on a sec, the young'uns are throwin' beer cans at a golf cart."
MB4252 TDS699
killing threads since 2001