hey guys,

i am looking at making a few purchases of kite-line.com, and from previous forums I can see that it is a trustworthy website.

I wanted to know how much shipping is for 1 kite to Australia.

If you purchased your kite from kite-line.com, how much shipping costs did you pay from the store to your house?

Thanks.

About a $100 to Japan for USPS... FedEx etc are more expensive, but I can't remember what they use.

If you've got good local shops, support them.

email Michael at kite-line direct, he will normally ship for free any purchase of kites or boards

If your kite costs $1000 or more then its not just the postage you will have to worry about.

I have never been able to beat my local shop when it comes to big items like kites and boards.

Not pimping for shops, just sayin.

Buy local, if no-one does then no-one can.

If what I've seen on here is correct, local stores are organizing "Pass the gear" opportunities around the country, so people get to try before they buy. Doesn't happen here, except by very special request, constant reminders, begging, cajoling, nagging, borrowing personal gear, being in the right place at the right time, making a PITA of yourself etc etc... basically, we don't get demos here.

Be nice to have decent shops to support...

I've bought a ****e load of gear from Kiteline and the service and price is top shelf. When I have bought from Kiteline I usually get a price for the gear including delivery to Australia so knowing the actual shipping cost is not always obvious. People on these forums (especially retailers) always bang on about buying local. In the real world money talks and bull****e walks - by that I mean the best price will always get the deal. The last kite I bought was a couple of months ago. I got a price from Kiteline. Then I got a paypal purchase currency conversion for that amount. I then rang a local supplier and asked him for the best price on that item. He gave me a price that was maginally better than what it would have cost with currency conversion so he got the deal. Its not rocket science. When I buy I always try to buy local but if after all the costs and conversions are factored in there is still a $100 or more saving then for me the choice is obvious.

You should be factoring import duty tax and possible brokerage fees for any item over $1000. Gear doesn't get picked up all that often but once you have been caught out once you are more likely to get caught again. Then factor in any warranty issue and you may find you have to fund another round of postage to and from who you purchased the gear through. I cant see it being worth all of the hassle unless it is something you cant get in AUS.

Mate I just shredded my kite at Cottesloe on Saturday and since I buy all my kites from one shop they definitely looked after me, scored 2 kites at a very, very good price!!

I buy plenty of stuff online... But not kites, surfboards etc. The owners of local shops around here are great blokes, good for banter, and I want to support guys like that who are having a go in business, employing staff and supporting the local kite community.

eppo said..

If the price difference is only 100 bucks I would still buy local.

Damn straight - if you have a warranty issue, you can take your kite back and get it sorted straight away. Most places, if the fault is clearly a manufacturing issue, will give you a new kite straight away and sort out the returns with the supplier later - resulting in minimal downtime for yourself.

If you buy the gear online, and there is a manufacturing fault, you'll either have to send it back (at cost in time and money to yourself) or go to your local and get it sorted under international warranty. Now the local guy is unlikely to hand you a new kite off the shelf, he'll just put the kite back through the supply chain and once it's assessed, the replacement will make its way back down the supply chain. Meanwhile, you can pretty much guarantee the next 4-6 weeks will be consistently amazing conditions for your absent kite, only for the wind to drop out as soon as you receive the replacement! I can guarantee you won't be saying, "Oh well, at least I saved $100!"

Hi all, Just my 2 cents

Had a quick look on the website, prices are very competitive, and a very good buy, However i looked at the pricings for kite only for a ozone catalyst and while the price was cheaper than my local (not by much however) i purchased my kite from my local when they were having a sale so got a wicked deal hundreds less the both normal retail price at my local and kite-line. so in my opinion if you want it RIGHT NOW and want the best price then go for the online store. if you are not super eager for the kite and can maybe wait a little longer, wander down to your local, try a bit of bargaining, and if that does work find out when their next sale is on, you can normally pick up a great deal, have a chin wag, and potentially make some connections.

my 2 cents

Why no buy a $10 replacement valve and get back out there

That's another reason I hate my local - waiting. Takes forever to get anything done, and when I know it's been done cos I was standing around going "So you ordered it yet? So you ordered it yet? So you ordered it yet?", then suddenly he's the one person in Japan who doesn't have their cell phone on or doesn't answer it instantly.

Number said..

Kamikuza said..

That's another reason I hate my local - waiting. Takes forever to get anything done, and when I know it's been done cos I was standing around going "So you ordered it yet? So you ordered it yet? So you ordered it yet?", then suddenly he's the one person in Japan who doesn't have their cell phone on or doesn't answer it instantly.

But in this case he's looking for a Naish in WA and the Perth reseller here is well known for superb service.


They weren't that much cheaper than you can find in Australia either. I'm not fanatic about buying local but to just save $100-$200 and risk to get hit by custom don't make sense to me.

So that changes things

When the Yen was strong, the difference was more like $1000 now, it's only... well, it's better to just wait for "last years" gear and buy it on sale!

Thought I add to what has already been said, I am still new to kiteboarding and relatively new here.

I have purchased from Michael at kite-line.com. He is a great guy, kiteboarder, his wife is Australian and he has been working in the industry for many years. I have picked up goods directly from him so you will have no problems with trusting him.

The only issue you could have is if you need to get a refund for any reason you will loose out as the conversion rate on purchase by the banks is always different on a refund, and always in the banks favour. Also with the current exchange rate it may makes more sense to buy local especially with warranty issues. But I am all for a free market so if it is a great deal and you are happy with the increased risk of international purchases, postage, customs etc then go for it. I typically buy local but when I am in the US then I also buy local :)