Hey everyone, After looking around some more, I decided I am going t
invest some money and buy a mini cnc mill. UK prices are high as alway so I have been looking to import from the US. The best deal I found wa here:
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the other posts here and other research the tiag seems the cheape and better option. The cnc ready kit is the one I am looking at. An then getting the drivers and steppers from stepperworld.com. Has anyon else found any cheaper sites that ship internationally? I have emaile several companies but havn't yet had any replies, even from th manufacturers directly? So anyway basically what I am asking is does anyone know of anywher else that sells cnc kits at a similar price to stepperworld? Also ar there any good resellers of the taig mill? Thanks, milg
VAT from USA is normally 7% and then its 17.5% for import tax I believe
Delivery quotes come out at about £100-£150. But that still means yo can make a cnc machine for a fraction of the cost. The dollar is quit weak at the moment as well which is a bonus 1.85 to the £. I think som couriers cover the import tax in the quote, but I am not sure
I'm looking at buying the same thing (CNC ready Taig mill), so I'd like to hear how it goes for you. I don't know how much Peatol (the UK supplier for Taig) charges for the mill and whether the exchange rate has altered the price. I'd email and ask, but you can't. Ugh, I hate getting quotes over the phone.
As to import duty and VAT, I found this site:
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and searched the EU's TARIC database for import duty from the US. I think the Taig mill would fit classification 8459 61 90 (machine tools, other milling machines, nc controlled, other) with the TARIC code 8459619000. That says duty is 2.7%. It also says 2.7% for
8459699000 (Other milling machines, other, other). However, for
8459100000 (Way-type unit head machines) it lists 2.7% plus 10% (IIRC the +10% comes from a trade squabble the EU and US are having just now). What is a "way-type unit head machine"?
Please note that I'm by no means an expert, so I could have entirely the wrong codes or have missed something else, so I could be completely wrong.
Remember that duty is added to the cost including shipping, then VAT (17.5%) is charged on the cost+shipping+duty.
In order to get something like this through customs you will probably need to use a freight handler, as it is almost impossible to do this yourself (customs & excise use a computerised system and make it hard for anyone not on their computer system to handle imports). You don't pay US tax as the item is for export, but you will pay import duties (I think around 4% on an item like this) and VAT (at 17.5%). Freight handling charges are likely to be around £200, but you may be able to get someone like UPS to ship it and handle everything (may work out cheaper). Standard freight charges only get the item to the customs depot at your designated airport. You need to look carefully at the "hidden costs" before you decide how much of a bargain this is.
And I forgot to mention that it is technically illegal to use a machine like this in this country. Hardly any of the US machines are "CE" certified, which means it is illegal to use them in the EU. But as long as you don't try to sell it and you're only using it at home I would have thought the chances of getting cought would be about zero -but it is important to be aware of the legislation.
Milgo, PLEASE stop posting via rcgroups.com. This is not a RCGroups forum. This group is available via any usenet newsreader software, your ISP will provide the usenet news server and tell you how to get set up. It's also available via Google Groups. There are two things wrong with the way your posts are appearing in this group: 1) Every post creates a new thread, so there is no flow to the conversation. 2) There is no quoting of previous messages to provide context.
This means that I have no idea what you are referring to when you say "Oh no I wont be doing that.", because I can't see any context and the message doesn't appear with the rest of the thread.
I'm intrigued by that concept. Illegal to sell I can understand, likewise illegal to use in a business environment. If I make my own machine, for my own amusement, it won't be CE marked so will I be breaking the law by using it? Similarly almost any modification to a CE marked machine is likely to nullify the CE certification so if what you say is true, that machine would also become illegal to use.
Illegal to use? Surely the bureaucrats haven't invaded our rights to that extent? Illegal to sell I can believe. Illegal to use in a workplace perhaps. But illegal to use in your own home?
On a compatibility note, would you also need a new spindle motor for the UK? I presume so (or at least a transformer - but that would only deal with the voltage, not the frequency). That's yet more cost. The stepperworld.com controller appears to use a standard ATX PC PSU. Many have a voltage switch for 120/240V, but they are cheap to replace with a UK version anyway.
I think it is illegal to 'offer for sale' without CE marking, but I think there are exceptions for countries with equivalent or better standards.
In any event, a private individual importing equipment for his/her private use is probably not going to have any problems, only if they try to sell commercially.
Peter
-- Peter A Forbes Prepair Ltd, Luton, UK snipped-for-privacy@easynet.co.uk
I just checked UPS. For a 125lb package 3' x 2' x 2' worth $700 it would cost... $460! Ouch! Fed Ex won't do a 3' x 2' x 2' box, but will do a 125lb 2' x 2' x 2' box for $370.
I don't think the rules have a "personal use" clause to get round them, but as I said the chances of anyone doing anything about this are zero. Even in industry when was the last time you were asked to show a CE certificate for a machine? I think this would only ever come to light in the event of an industrial accident that was investigated by HSE.
I think John has the right idea though, probably not much more expensive when everything is included and much less hassle -especially if anything goes wrong. Your hardly likely to ship it back to the US if it breaks within warranty period.
Ok using google now. Sorry about the posts? I tried using a newsgroups software thing before but I didnt really know what I was doing with it. John Stevenson how did you go about getting the mill? £400 sounds like a great deal! I could get that from the UK and then a conversion kit from the states. Am I right in thinking peatol is the taig distributer? From my emails and research delivery will cost between $200 and $295. That is via fedex to my door. I must admit I am confused about all the costs involved, probably emailing fedex themselves would clear up a few questions. But if I can get a taig here then I think I will do that and save all the hassle. For the power I was simply going to get an adapter for £15 or so. Even with all the costs I think you would be getting a good deal. The maxnc mill sells for £2600 in the UK instead of £630ish in the US! Looks like I might be giving peatol a ring. cheers :)
Yes Peatol is the UK agent for the manual Taig machines Just a normal sale, no deal. I asked the price, was given the price of £400, sent the cheque and the box arrived about 3 or 4 days later.
Quick note, I forgot to mention the drive motors are extra, I didn't want one as I already had a suitable motor.
One think to note with the Maxnc mills is the software is crap and UK support non existent. You can retrofit to another system but the drivers are special and so it will cost you new motors and drivers on top of what you already have as in effect you are only buying a manual mill.
The full Taig CNC mill is handled in this country by Quantum CNC but at a far higher price that it's US cousin due to the £ to $$ conversion
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