# Questions about Importing Precision-Matthews Machines into Canada



## LDM (Jan 8, 2014)

Greetings:

I have noticed a few members on this forum have purchased machines from Matt and imported them into Canada.

I was wondering how smoothly the shipping went, and how long did it take from leaving the warehouse to arrival at your front door. 

Did Matt look after all the shipping, customs brokerage, duties and taxes in his invoice to you, so you knew what the costs would be up front? Or, was it handled by you at the receiving end? If so, how much?

Any comments would be appreciated.

Len


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## Sparkymacker (Jan 8, 2014)

Hello Len

I have received a lathe and milling machine from Matt and being about 2,500 miles away that is almost as far as you can get! The shipping was totally painless, Matt arranged everything on his end and there were no issues at all. In my case the shipping was about a week, the item left on a Monday say and I either got them on the Friday or the next Monday. Matt calculates the shipping and tax so you only pay the one invoice, I think it was about $800 to my location but should be cheaper for you as you are closer. In my case I had the items shipped to my work as I have a forklift to unload them, you might have to pay a bit of a premium if you need a power tailgate to a residence. You need to plan out all the logistics on your end for unloading the machine and moving it to its final resting place well ahead of time, you will be glad for it (trust me..hahah)

Gerry



LDM said:


> Greetings:
> 
> I have noticed a few members on this forum have purchased machines from Matt and imported them into Canada.
> 
> ...


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## Ray C (Jan 8, 2014)

Folks,

I just want to point-out one simple thing here...  It makes no difference if an item is being shipped 1000 miles or, across the street...  Sometimes things go very smoothly and sometimes things get damaged.  Matt uses regular carriers to pick things up at his warehouse but, shipments may actually be carried by several different trucking companies along the way.  He's got no control over who ultimately delivers it to your door...  Whenever he ships something, he pays insurance and if something gets damaged, he takes care of it up-front and deals with the insurance later.

As far as transferals to Canada, that's easy and it's done all the time...


Ray


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## wrmiller (Jan 8, 2014)

Costs $45 extra for a lift-gate truck to a residence.

Bill


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## Ray C (Jan 8, 2014)

wrmiller19 said:


> Costs $45 extra for a lift-gate truck to a residence.
> 
> Bill



...In the Continental United States...  In Canada, the shipping and trucking fees are regulated unlike here in the US.  In any event, at the time you place an order, any reputable company can arrange the entire ordeal and tell you all costs right up-front.  I know that Nicole and Matt do this dozens of times a year.

... And on a related note, I should be receiving my PM 45 CNC pretty soon.  Not exactly sure when but probably in a week or two.  I told Matt and Nicole to make sure everybody else's machine got taken care of first.  Also, unless we have a bad weather condition, I'm going to actually drive-up next week and meet Nicole and Matt in-person for the first time.

Ray


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## LDM (Jan 8, 2014)

Gerry and Ray

Thanks for both your responses.

My inquiry on shipping was not related to damages which may occur during shipping but rather other aspects of the shipping procedure which can only be cured with a wave of the plastic card. 

My limited experience importing from the US has been with the brown truck. Notwithstanding the shipper's assurance that freight and taxes have been included in the shipping costs to Canada, it was a surprise when the driver asks for a credit card to cover various fees which were apparently not covered. [Rant On]If I had known the total costs up front, I could have made the the decision to pick up the shipment in New York state and import it myself. [Rant Off]

Now that I know the order of magnitude of the shipping costs, I will play with the numbers to see if my financial advisor (wife) will approve my business plan and then ask Matt for a formal quote.

Len


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## Ray C (Jan 9, 2014)

Again, reputable companies should be dealing with a known transportation broker who claims the items on your behalf when they cross the border.  That party charges a fee for their service -which is to act as your proxy to claim the items and pays the appropriate tax to the Canadian Import Authority.  You can do this yourself if you want but, you need to have the appropriate truck to get your stuff off the dock in a fairly short time-frame.   I know that Nicole and Matt deal with the same couple brokers for all their transactions and they have standard/regular fees.  The amount of tax to be paid actually depends on the value of the equipment and again, Nicole knows how to figure all this out.  She's a wiz at it.

Ray




LDM said:


> Gerry and Ray
> 
> Thanks for both your responses.
> 
> ...


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## johnnyc14 (Jan 9, 2014)

I bought a PM32 mill from Matt last summer. Like you, I was also leery of dealing with crossborder shipping because I have been stung in the past. Especially by the "Brown Van" guys. I asked Matt to handle all the details including customs brokerage so there would be no screw-ups on my part that would cost me money later. Matt took care of everything and sent me one invoice. The machine arrived one week later and all I had to do was pick it up at the local Day & Ross freight depot. The people there loaded it into my truck and didn't ask for any money. No extra or hidden charges of any kind. It was a pleasurable experience to deal with a company that delivers exactly what they promise with no BS.

Here's the invoice so you can see what the charges were.





John


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## Sparkymacker (Jan 9, 2014)

I checked my invoice for the milling machine I purchased and it was $499.00 shipping. For a 2,000 pound item that is pretty reasonable. I refuse to have anything shipped by "Brown Truck" as well. The way they operate is almost criminal, brokerage fees are ten times what they should be. I have a hassle going on with them right now; contrary to my instructions the seller used them to ship. Same scenario I had to pay their outrageous fee before it would come off the truck, then a couple of weeks later I get another invoice for something explainable which I refused to pay.


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## jx3 (Jan 12, 2014)

Hi 
          Just thought I would add my two cents with my experience with Matt when I bought my 16x60 lathe , I am in St Catharines , Ont . I found Matt to be very straight forward to deal with and knowledgeable about his products and shipping procedures. We had a couple of hiccups along the way but he was a man of his word and I am happy with my purchase and would buy from him again.
                                  John


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