Some more shots of the store if you are interested.

This is about 25% of thier snares

[IMG]http://www.vintagedrumforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=9447&stc=1&d=1254482048[/IMG]

The 'smaller sizes' section

[IMG]http://www.vintagedrumforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=9448&stc=1&d=1254482048[/IMG]

A nice window display

[IMG]http://www.vintagedrumforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=9449&stc=1&d=1254482048[/IMG]

Yikes! And I thought I had a lot of drums! That dealer has some great looking stuff. How much does it cost to ship and pay import fees? Don't you have to pay the tax whether you buy them there or here? Assuming none of them come with snares, the prices look about two times what they would be in the US.

These quoted prices include tax (we don't add sales tax at the checkout here in Europe, it's included in the ticket price).

Import duty is 3%, and the 25% sales tax applies to the cost of the item and shipping. So this adds an approximate 30% to the price of the drums and shipping costs from the US.

Given your thoughts, it looks like I would be better to buy direct from the states?

That's freekin' insane pricing. Those drums are "overvalued" as per U.S. current market prices. I may just load up the trailer and drive my drums on over to that Sweden place and sell 'em for a boatload of cash!

What's that? Sweden's where? Oh man. Dang. Well............never mind.

In all honesty, those prices are a bit high. But, if that's what you have to pay over there, I understand. It's what the market will bear. If it were me, I'd buy from across the waters and ship 'em over.

[COLOR="DarkRed"]Yes, the prices are high. MOST vintage drum STORES really price their drum sets incredibly OVER market value, so this is no real surprise.

I might suggest, rather than buying from a US drum store and having 'em shipped...you look at local and European sites which sell or auction used drumsets. eBay, or online classifieds in EU. The prices will be lower than store prices.

That store has some decent stuff, but seriously, his prices are just way, way too high.

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To give you an idea of general pricing differences between the US and Sweden, an iPod Touch 32gb is 440 USD here compared to 299 USD over there

:) That's exactly what the shop owner does. He travels to Chicago once a year, buys a bunch of stock and then sells it over the year.

Given what you guys are saying about the pricing, I'm better off doing the same myself, given I travel to the US a couple of times a year.

Thanks for your help!

When you plan that trip...contact us and we will help you out on your scores. Most all of us are looking and buying and selling and watching. Take care.

This is pretty standard pricing for Europe at a shop (I live in Italy). Generally there is very little selection. This guy seems to have a better selection as is quite clear.

As far as importing, there are ways to deal with that. For instance, friends of mine in South Africa and Israel use www.myus.com. Basically they take your shipment in the US (as a lot of sellers won't sell outside the US) and then push the limits of the law in terms of declaring value when they ship them on to you.

Another way is as suggested, make a trip of it. Go to USA and bring them back yourself like that guy does.

Great, I'm actually in NYC on business in couple of weeks. Free for a day on 21st. Any tips much appreciated. Looking for BD/toms 12,14,18/20 Gretsch RB or Ludwig.