Robert White has long enjoyed a sterling reputation for friendly and effective service, one that is well deserved.
The low prices are a bonus .... the customer service and knowledge alone are reason enough to buy there. Robert is very frank about shipping and other charges, so ask them directly.
Robert White has the best service and support you can find anywhere.
What do you mean glib??.....RW has never been glib to me or to anyone I know. If you're dealing with RW himself or Jon White, they'll reply personally to any and every e-mail you send, how many dealers will do that?
Even if it means losing the deal, they'll tell up front about a serious delay. If there's a $100 difference after shipping, duties, whatever, they you get the deal and keep $100 in your pocket. If the diff is only $20, I'll give the folk here the business.
RW and his folks are not glib, they are very sincere, and very respectful.
If the $100 is based on looking at RW's price and comparing it with the best U.S. price you've found, I'd forget it. You're going to pay three separate charges with RW that you wouldn't pay when buying U.S. - significantly higher shipping charges, an import duty or fee or tax or whatever you want to call it (unless you luck out, as happens sometimes but not others), and a charge by your credit card company for the currency exchange and international transaction. On the last purchase I made from RW (a carbon fiber tripod that cost about $500) I paid an import duty of about $35, about $40 more in shipping than I would have paid in the U.S., and a $15 "transaction fee" I think it was called to my credit card company. On the tripod it was still a good deal because the purchase price was only a little more than half the U.S. price. It also was a good deal on my 210 mm G Claron lens for the same reason. But if the opening savings are only $100, I doubt that you'll net much more than maybe a $30 savings if that (unless you get lucky and don't get charged the import duty, which seems to be kind of a hit or miss proposition).
Brian Ellis
Before you criticize someone, walk a mile in their shoes. That way when you do criticize them you'll be
a mile away and you'll have their shoes.
Brian....that goes without saying, but if you could save $100.00 free and clear after all the gyrations, I'm sure you would go RW just on GP, which is what I'm saying. I think we're all agreed it's not worth the trouble to save 20 or 30 bucks to go out of the country.
I never charge my card anymore for camera equipment, a couple of folks here in the US decided to change their price(and their word), after the transaction was long over and charge it to my card, neglecting to tell me about it. I now pay by cash, U.S. Postal money order, or Bank Draft B.R.P. or Euro for out of the country.
I would say also Brian that you consider that the price issue notwithstanding, ordering gear from out of town is pretty much the same for me regardless if it from B&H or RW, correct me if I'm wrong, but you're not charged a duty on camera/lenses but everything else when ordering from the U.K/Europe.
Having said that, I've saved some big chunks 5 or 6 pieces of gear. What irritates me is some folks attitude that they are doing me a favor by taking my money. Even B&H, which is absolutely first rate, prompt honest, and polite, still I'm always left with the feeling that were in hurry to get me off the phone so they can get to the next customer.
RW, Ries, Steve Grimes, Photomark, Mr. Cad and others have talked with me for as long as I cared to stay on the phone, treated me like a human being, and charged a lot less than most, and no tricks. Mr Cad who is also out of the U.K. actually called me long distance in response to an e-mail. What really attracts me to these folks is that they are not greedy.
FWIW I would suggest that anybody who is fortunate/unfortunate enough to have credit cards to go over you paperwork with a magnifying glass, I decided to do this no long ago, and found more than a dozen charges on my cards of $20 here and $30 there that I/my wife had not authorized, small enough charges that would've slipped through, because initially I thought my wife made these charges and of course she thought that I had.
I found the remarks above about B&H (no longer a discount store) to be amusing. The fact is that B&H does not carry gray market Schneider or Rodenstock like Badger Graphic. They only carry Schneider or Rodenstock equipment that is imported by the official USA distributor. B&H does sell gray market Nikon and Cannon equipment, as well as the official USA versions of Nikon and Cannon. I suspect that most of Schneider and Rodenstock sold by B&H is for professionals who want the USA warranty.
On other equipment, where B&H and Badger are buying from the same distributor, I think you will find B&H prices very competitive, if not lower than most other places.
I've just been checked the websites of both Robert White and B&H and here's an example of what's possible depending on what gear you want. Say you want a Toyo 810MII and a film holder, B&H sells the Toyo for $4180.00, the film holder for $143.00 for a total of 4323.00.
Robert White sells the same exact camera for $2878.76, and the film holder for $77.00, for a total of $2955 and change. That a difference of $1445.00.
Say you want Mamiya, a Pro-SD 67 from B&H is $1359.00 and the 180KL lens is $1399.00 for a total of $2758. The same camera from Robert White is $816.00, the lens from RW is $712, for a total of $1528.00. A diff of $1230.00. The Robert White prices are in U.S.D.
Big time savings.
But Mamiya and Toyo are both coming from the same distributor in the U.S., if I'm not mistaken. RW is better on anything that B&H gets from Mamiya USA, Gitzo, Schneider, and perhaps a few other European manufacturers. I'd be surprised if they were that much better on Nikon or Canon or Pentax or Minolta, if at all. B&H certainly does better on film.
Agreed.....I haven't quit doing business with B&H, when it's to my advantage to buy from B&H, I'll buy from them in a heartbeat. The gear I mentioned is for the benefit of anybody where their budget gets them into LF or MF depending on the difference in price.
I'll buy from anybody, I would love to have had RW a U.S. dealer, but this is a world market now, and I be stupid not to take advantage of some of these deals out there.
Robert White gives deals when he can, and he still makes good money, so what does that tell you about everybody else.
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