Andover Norton Lead Times?

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Onder said:
DHL got me a Pender Norton brake kit in less than a week. Tracking said arr on a tuesday but it came on the preceding friday
although I wasnt home to accept it. Did a online change of delivery and it came monday still a day early. No complaints with the vendor, the product or the shipper.
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As I posted previously, my prior orders were shipped DHL and arrived stateside in about 1 week. This time, probably because it was such a small order, I was given a choice and I opted for Royal Post/USPS because it was less expensive.
 
All very interesting.

Two weeks ago I ordered parts from Andover Norton to be deliver to New Zealand. It shipped via UK and NZ post, was track and traced and arrived in exactly one week. Track and trace showed it came via the Middle East / Asia.

The same day I order from another UK supplier. But they sent FedEx. Two weeks latter it still hasn't arrived. Track and trace shows it sat in Memphis for at least a week. It's now been in their facility in Auckland since Sunday and it's now weds in NZ. That's pathetic. NZ is a small country and overnight is the norm for anything..

The FedEx cost was over double for a similar sized parcel and it isn't here yet.

First rule. Never use US courier companies and never send via the US. They are very poor. Unfortunately for you guys the US postal service is also pretty bad. I'd say about 10% of parcels I have had out of the US have problems. Usually with weird routing going to Japan from San Francisco and then back again to San Francisco. A friend had a parcel from New York Norton take 9 months. Kenny had already long since sent a replacement

Over the past 30 years I have had more than 100 parcels sent UK / NZ post and have only once had a problem which was due to the local delivery driver. Pre covid the parcels often arrived in 4 days - unless it got into the black hole of the Auckland Airport customs postal building which adds another two weeks.

DHL out of Europe is also excellent, more expensive than UK NZ post but particularly good with customs handling in Auckland. I remember one parcel which had customs duty due. It arrived in NZ Saturday night. The DHL agent texted me on a Sunday while I was out visiting a museum. We were able to make the payment on line backed up via a screen shot of my bank payment and she released the parcel in a couple of hours. It was delivered Monday in Wellington. Now that's impressive.

A friend get lots of parts from Germany and they always come DHL. Expensive but excellent service.
 
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johnm said:
All very interesting.

Two weeks ago I ordered parts from Andover Norton to be deliver to New Zealand. It shipped via UK and NZ post, was track and traced and arrived in exactly one week. Track and trace showed it came via the Middle East / Asia.

The same day I order from another UK supplier. But they sent FedEx. Two weeks latter it still hasn't arrived. Track and trace shows it sat in Memphis for at least a week. It's now been in their facility in Auckland since Sunday and it's now weds in NZ. That's pathetic. NZ is a small country and overnight is the norm for anything..

The FedEx cost was over double for a similar sized parcel and it isn't here yet.

First rule. Never use US courier companies and never send via the US. They are very poor. Unfortunately for you guys the US postal service is also pretty bad. I'd say about 10% of parcels I have had out of the US have problems. Usually with weird routing going to Japan from San Francisco and then back again to San Francisco. A friend had a parcel from New York Norton take 9 months. Kenny had already long since sent a replacement

Over the past 30 years I have had more than 100 parcels sent UK / NZ post and have only once had a problem which was due to the local delivery driver. Pre covid the parcels often arrived in 4 days - unless it got into the black hole of the Auckland Airport customs postal building which adds another two weeks.

DHL out of Europe is also excellent, more expensive than UK NZ post but particularly good with customs handling in Auckland. I remember one parcel which had customs duty due. It arrived in NZ Saturday night. The DHL agent texted me on a Sunday while I was out visiting a museum. We were able to make the payment on line backed up via a screen shot of my bank payment and she released the parcel in a couple of hours. It was delivered Monday in Wellington. Now that's impressive.

A friend get lots of parts from Germany and they always come DHL. Expensive but excellent service.
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On the other side of DHL is that about half of my AN orders get put on hold due to customs due. There are no duties UK -> US on vintage motorcycle parts. DHL pays the customs, adds a fee and holds the shipment hostage with twice per day threats of returning the package. Only DHL can fix it. They don't work nights or weekends. They will send a text on Friday just at the close with the first threat. You can email - that takes 2-5 workdays. You can call and if you get a human, it can be fixed in an hour but if you get the wrong human they require things you cannot provide to fix it so back to email. If you send a second email you are moved to the end of the queue. I've had DHL orders shipped on Monday arrive a National Airport (8 miles from my house) in 24 hours and not delivered for 18 days. One package got sent back twice and turned around twice at Heathrow - at least someone there is thinking.

From AU to me I've never had a customs problem but it's Ben Hur time and they are not rowing at ramming speed. I don't understand why it's 1-2 days from the UK and 1-2 weeks from AU.

And here's a fun one. My last order, about $3000 tracked to Brazil and was on hold for pickup. When I called they said that they reuse tracking numbers, and it would straighten itself out the next time it was scanned. It sat that way for two days and then was shown in NY and was shown delivered in Brazil an hour before! The next day I had it.

Safe to say that DHL in the US is not up to German standards!
 
marshg246 said:
On the other side of DHL is that about half of my AN orders get put on hold due to customs due. There are no duties UK -> US on vintage motorcycle parts. DHL pays the customs, adds a fee and holds the shipment hostage with twice per day threats of returning the package. Only DHL can fix it. They don't work nights or weekends. They will send a text on Friday just at the close with the first threat. You can email - that takes 2-5 workdays. You can call and if you get a human, it can be fixed in an hour but if you get the wrong human they require things you cannot provide to fix it so back to email. If you send a second email you are moved to the end of the queue. I've had DHL orders shipped on Monday arrive a National Airport (8 miles from my house) in 24 hours and not delivered for 18 days. One package got sent back twice and turned around twice at Heathrow - at least someone there is thinking.

From AU to me I've never had a customs problem but it's Ben Hur time and they are not rowing at ramming speed. I don't understand why it's 1-2 days from the UK and 1-2 weeks from AU.

And here's a fun one. My last order, about $3000 tracked to Brazil and was on hold for pickup. When I called they said that they reuse tracking numbers, and it would straighten itself out the next time it was scanned. It sat that way for two days and then was shown in NY and was shown delivered in Brazil an hour before! The next day I had it.

Safe to say that DHL in the US is not up to German standards!
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Definitely sounds like it.

In NZ you pay import duty and a clearance fee on everything but the minimum they charge is $50. So provided you stay under about $350 total cost your OK and it goes straight through.

Perversely DHL are the best for customs her and definitely work Sunday because I talked to a very efficient woman DHL agent on a Sunday as I walked around the NZ Army museum in Waiouru.

An update on my FedEx parcel. Their website now says it cleared their facility in Auckland at 3:30 this afternoon and will be delivered by 6 tonight in the southern North island

That will be a good trick. Either their using a fast helo or a private plane and police escort or I think they are telling stories again.
 
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marshg246 said:
.....Safe to say that DHL in the US is not up to German standards!
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Not sure DHL in France is up to German standards either!

I have a parcel recorded as in the distribution centre that delivers to me on Tuesday....say 60km from here....but last week they told me they will deliver Thursday, so I have to wait and apparently Thursday it is....

However, last time I got similar messages, they delivered the day before....just I was getting in my van to leave the house!

Hey ho....
 
28 years in CNC machinery field service. "lived & died" by the brown truck & white truck in the US. What a shitty feeling on Thursday when you realize your parts are not coming, and you have to cancel travel plans and explain to the family why you won't be home Friday as planned.
OTOH, DHL finally is able to reliably find my house after 39 years. https://yambits.co.uk/?gclid=CjwKCA...JDousVDdlXJVEGD86W3eJRCgpPlY5hJxoCSQgQAvD_BwE use DHL, reliable.
 
concours said:
28 years in CNC machinery field service. "lived & died" by the brown truck & white truck in the US. What a shitty feeling on Thursday when you realize your parts are not coming, and you have to cancel travel plans and explain to the family why you won't be home Friday as planned.
OTOH, DHL finally is able to reliably find my house after 39 years. https://yambits.co.uk/?gclid=CjwKCA...JDousVDdlXJVEGD86W3eJRCgpPlY5hJxoCSQgQAvD_BwE use DHL, reliable.
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Ya, forgot to buy coffee at the grocery store. Ordered from Amazon. Was supposed to arrive by brown truck on Monday by 10pm. Tracking showed it out for delivery all day Monday. Showed Tuesday afternoon. No coffee to drink Tuesday morning - not amused!

DHL, 100% of the time if there are no customs issues, delivers the workday before tracking says they will. Pretty clear when a package gets to National Airport Thursday night and there's no problem that it will get the eight miles to my house on Friday, but tracking always says Monday - why are they so bad at estimating?
 
When Greg told me how much shipping cost in the USA I nearly spilt my tea!!! The land of free commerce it maybe, but it looks like the shippers within the US have the citizens pants down, soon they'll be charging a shipping charge in bars for beer from the counter to the table.
 
Madnorton said:
When Greg told me how much shipping cost in the USA I nearly spilt my tea!!! The land of free commerce it maybe, but it looks like the shippers within the US have the citizens pants down, soon they'll be charging a shipping charge in bars for beer from the counter to the table.
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They already do. If you don't tip the waiter/ess for the first round of drinks, you'll wait as long as for DHL for the 2nd round. At least it was that way when a student in Boston (a few years ago!).
 
Lying DHL strikes again: "We were unable to deliver your DHL Express shipment with waybill number 8228435622 from BURLEN LIMITED today because you were not home at the time of our attempted delivery" is a bald-faced lie! I have everything delivered to my business office because it is open and staffed by a minimum of two people 8am until 8pm six days a week.

This is not the first time the driver has told that lie. Besides, it is marked as a business not a residence so they can't even get the message right!
 
Well don't try FedEx either. My parcel made it to Auckland a week ago. It is not stuck in customs. It is stuck in a FedEx depot. The parcel sent by post at half the price arrived over a week ago.

It's in a ODA depot. Which supposedly means a remote off grid delivery area like an island or military base.

I live about 1 hour from the NZ capital. One km from a railway station and about 200 metres from State Highway 2. It's a commuting and farming town of about 8000 with 5 or 6 commuting trains into Wellington every day. Not exactly London Oxford St but not the Outer Hebrides either. Post office couriers would have taken less that 18 hours to deliver from where the parcel has been for over a week now.

FedEx are useless useless usless.
 
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johnm said:
Well don't try FedEx either. My parcel made it to Auckland a week ago. It is not stuck in customs. It is stuck in a FedEx depot. The parcel sent by post at half the price arrived over a week ago.

It's in a ODA depot. Which supposedly means a remote off grid delivery area like an island or military base.

I live about 1 hour from the NZ capital. One km from a railway station and about 200 metres from State Highway 2. It's a commuting and farming town of about 8000 with 5 or 6 commuting trains into Wellington every day. Not exactly London Oxford St but not the Outer Hebrides either. Post office couriers would have taken less that 18 hours to deliver from where the parcel has been for over a week now.

FedEx are useless useless usless.
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It turned up. After sitting a week in Memphis and another 8 days in Auckland.

It had a rough trip but nothing had fallen out.
 

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It has been 15 days since my last order was "despatched" from AN. 13 days since the last Royal Mail update.
 
2 weeks would drive me up a wall. These days we are accustomed to getting things fast.

If the order amount is above a certain price level, do they automatically send via DHL?
What has been some of the shipping costs of using DHL from the AN to the US?
 
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elefantrider said:
2 weeks would drive me up a wall. These days we are accustomed to getting things fast.

If the order amount is above a certain price level, do they automatically send via DHL?
What has been some of the shipping costs of using DHL from the AN to the US?
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Yes I think there may be an amount that automatically triggers DHL.

Royal Mail USPS shipping was $5.87 for an order totaling $137.30 in parts. DHL was nearly 3X that IIRC.

DHL shipping was $19.35 for the previous order totaling $264.30 in parts. No option for Royal Mail USPS

DHL usually has the parts delivered in less than one week with up to date tracking.
 
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I ordered a clutch center bearing, snap rings and a brake cable from AN on 2/14. Received notice 2/15 that package was dispatched. Royal Mail tracking shows it left Heathrow at 12:26 on 2/16. Wonder how long customs and USPS will hold it up?
 
MikeG said:
I ordered a clutch center bearing, snap rings and a brake cable from AN on 2/14. Received notice 2/15 that package was dispatched. Royal Mail tracking shows it left Heathrow at 12:26 on 2/16. Wonder how long customs and USPS will hold it up?
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Here's what USPS has on tracking. No further updates.

February 2, 2022, 1:20 am
Processed Through Facility
LANGLEY HWDC, UNITED KINGDOM
February 1, 2022, 6:39 pm
Acceptance
UNITED KINGDOM
 
Dan1950 said:
Here's what USPS has on tracking. No further updates.

February 2, 2022, 1:20 am
Processed Through Facility
LANGLEY HWDC, UNITED KINGDOM
February 1, 2022, 6:39 pm
Acceptance
UNITED KINGDOM
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In my experience Royal Mail are very good and never had an issue with then in 30 years. They link well with NZ Post and tracking on both their sites is consistent.

I think your problem is with USPS.
 
johnm said:
In my experience Royal Mail are very good and never had an issue with then in 30 years. They link well with NZ Post and tracking on both their sites is consistent.

I think your problem is with USPS.
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I think the problem lies in the interface between Royal Mail and USPS. USPS on its own is very reliable and provides instant tracking once the tracking number is created,.

Perhaps the 2 systems don't play well together.
 
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Dan1950 said:
I think the problem lies in the interface between Royal Mail and USPS. USPS on its own is very reliable and provides instant tracking once the tracking number is created,.

Perhaps the 2 systems don't play well together.
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Interesting. Royal Mail and NZ post link seamlessly.

Must have been that Revolution. The Royalty are still grumpy. :)
 
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