Scope Prices

jingojonson

Hi All

Just a quick topic for conversation. Scope price differentials between here and usa for scopes made in Japan/Phillipines etc...

I was looking at sightron SI and SII scopes and i found a SI 3-9x42 for sale in the states for $109, the cheapest that scope can be had in the eu seems to be €169 on optics trade. Similarly the SII is around $200 in states but almost €300 in eu.

Since these scopes are imported into both europe and us how come the prices are so uncompetitive in EU and why would be buy such scopes knowing that they can be had far cheaper in USA?

Is it that sightron etc are giving rubbish prices to their eu dealerships?

Jonty

Go and try to buy a scope from the States. It's impossible

Cass

jingojonson wrote: »

I was looking at sightron SI and SII scopes and i found a SI 3-9x42 for sale in the states for $109,

Where?

On Sigthron's website they are priced at $303 & $358 which is £185/€223 and £219/€264 respectively. The higher spec in 3-9x42 are priced at $521/£319/€385 & $593/£363/€438.

The 3-9x40 models are priced at $200/£122/€147. If other sites (not Sightron) are selloing cheaper then it's that site that is the reason for the price difference and not the EU -v- US market.

the cheapest that scope can be had in the eu seems to be €169 on optics trade. Similarly the SII is around $200 in states but almost €300 in eu.

As above. Check the prices from Sightron's own website against their franchise in the UK. The price are very close when converted.

For example the S-Tac 2.5-17.5x56 in the states is $1198 which is £735. They are being sold at £790 which is a £55 difference or €66.

The SIII SS 6-24x50 is being sold in the states for $1498 which is £919. They are being sold for £937 in the uk so that's a £17 or €20 difference. Nothing really.

All those prices are also exclusive of taxes and duty rthat will be charged for a scope coming from the states as opposed to the prices that are set coming from the EU. So add 25% of the total price onto the dollar amount and it's a different story.


Model | Dollar price $ | Dollar price with taxes $ + 25% | In Sterling £ | In Euro € | Price within EU (£/€) | Saving € | Extra cost €|
3-9x40 | 200 | 250 | 153 | 184 | 169 | 15 | 0 |
3-9x42 | 303 & 358 | 378 & 450 | 230 & 275 | 278 & 332 | Unknown | Unknown |
36x42 | 848 | 1060 | 650 | 785 | £522/630 | 155 | 0 |
STac 2.7-17.5 | 1198 | 1500 | 919 | 1110 | 795/960 | 150 | 0 |
SIII SS 6-24 | 1498 | 1875 | 1149 | 1338 | 937/1131 | 207 | 0 |


As said if other sites are selling cheaper than Sightron themselves then iot's free game, but from a Sightron site against a Sightron site the prices are better in the EU than the US.

jingojonson

Sorry I meant 3-9x40

http://www.amazon.com/Sightron-Hunter-Riflescope-Mil-Dot-Reticle/dp/B00BD55HY0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1391530181&sr=8-1&keywords=sightron+si

and the point im making is that usa dealers are obviously still making money - they dont sell at a loss i think

jingojonson

Also Cass you must know that the rrp from the manufacturer is rarely what is quoted on US sites, bushnell similarly are never sold anywhere near their rrp in the states

check out opticzone in us for real prices

jingojonson

http://theopticzone.com/products-page/rifle-scopes/sightron/sightron-sii-rifle-scopes/sightron-sii-3-9x42-hhr-matte/
269.99

try and find that in the eu for anything similar

Cass

jingojonson wrote: »

and the point im making is that usa dealers are obviously still making money - they dont sell at a loss i think

Undoubtedly.

jingojonson wrote: »

Also Cass you must know that the rrp from the manufacturer is rarely what is quoted on US sites, bushnell similarly are never sold anywhere near their rrp in the states

I understand and appreciate what you are saying. As i've said before in other threads, shipping from the US is not as easy as it's made out to be, and lately rarely done without paying import taxes and duties on the goods (if they can be shipped at all). As a result the prices are almost an exact duplicate of the dollar price only in Euro. So if it's $269 then by the time shipping, taxes & duty are paid on the total price it works out at €268.29.

jingojonson wrote: »

try and find that in the eu for anything similar

In England the same scope can be bough for £240 (€289.93). Add shipping (no taxes or duty) and we'll call it an even €300. A saving of €30. Not to be sniffed at, but hardly worth the trouble.

Also that is only for that particular model. However i took your advice and looked around. The brand new SIII SS 6-24x50 with SFP Dot Reticle (illuminated) is €1498 on Sightron's website, but Optics planet are selling them at a reduced price of $1100. Shipping of say $40. So we have $1140. Add tax and duty at 25% and we have $1375. That's £844 or €1018. It can be bought from the UK supplier at £937 (€1130). So you pay an extra €112. Again nothing to be sniffed at, but not the huge saving as if you were able to buy with a direct Dollar to Euro exchange and no taxes & duties ($1100 = €814). A saving of €300 or so.

I get what you're saying, i really do, but as long as taxes and duties have to be paid from the states the savings, if any, are not so huge as to make it worthwhile for a lot of scopes. As said above that's if they can be shipped at all which seems to be more the trend lately So not a question of how much as can it be gotten.

jingojonson

I agree that by the time you've paid shipping and taxes theres little different but my main point is why are they not cheaper in Europe since they come from asia to both USA and Europe

Sightron etc obviously realise they can charge more relatively speaking in Europe because we can't import them ourselves for significantly cheaper but it makes me annoyed and therefore I am sometimes inclined to buy scopes that are comparatively cheaper in Europe.

279 Us Dollars is 206 euro so to my mind sightron sII for example should be priced around 200- 220 in europe

ah well

Cass

The company is American based, with their scopes made in Japan & philipines. They have to compete with other "locally" based companies that sell scopes cheap otherwise they end up in Nightforce, S&B, March territory.

FISMA

jingojonson wrote: »

Since these scopes are imported into both europe and us how come the prices are so uncompetitive in EU and why would be buy such scopes knowing that they can be had far cheaper in USA?

What about taxes? Has the Irish gov't ever met a tax they didn't like?

I cannot believe the prices asked for Remingtons. Right now, I see a Howa 1500 in 25-06, brand new, for about €270 in the States. Want to get more depressed? Have a look at what Tikkas and Sakos sell for in the States. Let's just say it is a bit less than the local sioppa.

Last time I checked, Ireland purchased oil on the market at about the same cost as the States. However, the price at the pump is shockingly different. Why? At least in part, taxes.

Aside from taxes, you have to consider markets and business.

Ireland does not have the hundreds of thousands, if not millions of hunters and shooters that the States has. People like opticsPlanet can move bulk. People who move bulk get discounts. Rather than a large profit off a few people, they make a smaller profit on a larger number.

Now consider that the small Irish market is going to be a headache because of nebulous import/export laws. Is it worth the hassle?

Lastly, would Sightrons sell? I tried selling a new Sightron SI Series 3-9x40mm with the Hunter Holdover Reticle. I had the scope on a rifle, but it never felt a shot. At €115, which was a loss, even at American prices, she didn't sell.

So from a business viewpoint, is the return on investment worth it, for a company to set up shop in Ireland?

Cass

FISMA wrote: »

Last time I checked, Ireland purchased oil on the market at about the same cost as the States. However, the price at the pump is shockingly different. Why? At least in part, taxes.

Okay i know this is a shooting forum, but one thing that bothered me about this. During the height of the oil price rise a few years ago a barrel of oil cost around $149. The price at the pumps was around €1.55 per litre.

The rate of tax (allowing for small changes) remained the same. So when the barrel of oil cost $109 per barrel, and the price was €1.12 per litre it stands to reason as the price of a barrel rises so too does the price at the pump. The price hikes were quick and as soon as the cost of the barrle rose so too did the price at the pump.

Thing is since the last hike the price of a barrel of oil has dropped down to around $109 again. However the price at the pumps stopped coming down once it hit €1.41 (Diesel, and cheapest i've seen it. Petrol at around €1.51)

So if the tax rate is pretty much the same (again give or take a half/full percentage) then how has the price per litre not fallen in conjunction with the drop in price?


Again sorry for the non shooting related topic, but this bothers the crap out of me.

German pointer

So if the tax rate is pretty much the same (again give or take a half/full percentage) then how has the price per litre not fallen in conjunction with the drop in price?


Again sorry for the non shooting related topic, but this bothers the crap out of me.[/QUOTE]

When the wholesalers/retailers hear the price of crude has gone up they raise their prices immediately but they have oil on in stock or on option bought at the lower price. This is where they make the killing.

When the price of crude falls a while later the wholesalers have already bought the oil or the option on it at the dearer price so they will want to sell it at a dearer price to recover the money paid when it was dearer. This is called recovering investment.

Put together its called by the public screwing the consumer every which way they can or by business interests the cost of doing business

Cass

German pointer wrote: »

When the price of crude falls a while later the wholesalers have already bought the oil or the option on it at the dearer price so they will want to sell it at a dearer price to recover the money paid when it was dearer. This is called recovering investment.

Yeah i get that, but if it started to fall after a few weeks as the deaer stuff dwindled away and they were bringing in the cheaper crude, the price should fall. Thing is the price has been in excess of €1.40 per litre for over two years. Surely they did not buy that much at that price.

Put together its called by the public screwing the consumer every which way they can or by business interests the cost of doing business

That's more like it.

tikkahunter

Drop optics trade .eu a mail ,you wont have to pay any taxes

Cass

Be aware of the forum rules, not to mention laws on tax evasion.

Forum Rule #8 wrote:

This rule means no advocating, no condoning, and no soliciting or providing information about means of breaking the law, either in the ROI or NI (or in any other jurisdiction for that matter). This includes but is not limited to:

• Breaching conditions of a license or authorisation;
• Use of a firearm for any purpose for which it is not licensed;
• Evasion of taxes and duties.

Seriously folks, for pity's sake, it's a public forum and both the Department of Justice and the Gardai are reading it. Utilise your common sense.

Mr.Flibble

Cass wrote: »

Be aware of the forum rules, not to mention laws on tax evasion.

You & your rule-writer need to look up the difference between tax avoidance and tax evasion.

Cass

Why?

Sparks

Mr.Flibble wrote: »

You & your rule-writer need to look up the difference between tax avoidance and tax evasion.

Buying something outside of the state and importing it into the state without paying all necessary import duties and taxes or by providing false declarations ("It's a gift!", etc) does not fall under the heading of tax avoidance.

garv123

The link tikkahunter is a site within the EU, hence the avoidance of tax..(well you're paying it to another country in the price)

arrowloopboy

Sparks wrote: »

Buying something outside of the state and importing it into the state without paying all necessary import duties and taxes or by providing false declarations ("It's a gift!", etc) does not fall under the heading of tax avoidance.

Or receiving it back from a Repair job,would be tax free too .

Sparks

arrowloopboy wrote: »

Or receiving it back from a Repair job,would be tax free too .

Indeed, but this thread's about buying a new scope and importing it legally.

You want to do it illegally, we're not the police, but go talk about it somewhere else please.

arrowloopboy

Sparks wrote: »

Indeed, but this thread's about buying a new scope and importing it legally.

You want to do it illegally, we're not the police, but go talk about it somewhere else please.

I don't want to do anything illegal Sparks,just pointing out a scenario that's NOT illegal.