Geeky husband wants to ship electronics hobby items ,any advice?
 

hi guys!

my husband would like to ship his electronics hobby items to US.
Items like components, modules, development boards, test tools / equipment (power supplies, scopes, meters etc.) Computers and computer parts.

has anyone done that before ? is it going to be an issue ? is the customs going to release easily ?

honestly my opinion is : order a skip and chuck them in ..because I don't think we will even have the space for all the crap over there.

however it is his only hobby so I thought I would try here first just in case someone done that before.

thanks

Re: Geeky husband wants to ship electronics hobby items ,any advice?
 

Computers and computer parts won't be a problem I suspect as long as the boxes are clearly marked with a pretty solid itinerary. Expect CBP to open the boxes for inspection though.

In terms of components, boards and power supplies - (assuming they can switch to US voltage) surely it would be more cost effective to buy that stuff here and bin it. Saves you having to worry about import duty (if applicable), shipping costs.etc .etc .etc

When I moved here, I flew with my geek stuff (xbox, iMac, laptop.etc). I pretty much gave away/binned stuff like scanners, printers.etc and bought new power cables on ebay.

Re: Geeky husband wants to ship electronics hobby items ,any advice?
 

My heart goes out to you. I live with one of those geeks and have had the third bedroom turned into a playroom for electronics, piece parts, computers from the dinosaur era and every other gadget electronic he can lay his hands on. My advice: Leave it all behind and let him start fresh.

Re: Geeky husband wants to ship electronics hobby items ,any advice?
 

Shipped as part of a shipment of household goods, so long as clearly labeled and described in detail on the load manifest, they shouldn't be a problem, especially a surface shipment. That said, there is an increased likelihood of your shipment being searched however they arrive in the US.

I wouldn't worry about having room, because most American homes are much larger and have more storage space than homes in the UK. That probably isn't what you want to hear though! :lol:

Re: Geeky husband wants to ship electronics hobby items ,any advice?
 

No!!! No!!

Now is probably your only chance to get rid of all the crap... Stuff like that is cheap as chips here.

There is an electronics store called Frys (Fry's Home Electronics | Computer Parts &Accessories, Software, Games, TVs, Cameras - Frys.com=) that sells everything. In Austin, where I live, they have a starbucks-like cafe inside as well. I'm not sure if it's for the geeks when they need a bit of sustenance or whether it's for the geek's partners who would otherwise be getting ready to kill after spending 2 sodding hours wandering round looking at hard drives.

Re: Geeky husband wants to ship electronics hobby items ,any advice?
 

I left all my computers and just brought the hard drives (about 10) as hand luggage. Raised a few eyebrows but that was about it.

Re: Geeky husband wants to ship electronics hobby items ,any advice?
 

Best thing about Milwaukie I'm 20 minutes from Frys. I park Mrs L at the cafe as she is a bloody hindrance wandering around Frys. Keeps asking stupid questions like "Why do you want this" and "You do realize what it costs". Of cause I know what it costs it has a bloody price tag on it. She is even worse at Ham Radio Outlet.

OP - I packed all my bits and shipped them over. No problems at all. No duty to pay. Let the man have his hobby and enjoy himself. On the other hand you could tell him about Frys and how much fun he can have replacing it all once he gets here. :lol:

Re: Geeky husband wants to ship electronics hobby items ,any advice?
 

I was thinking the same thing ..... don't mess with a guy's stuff! :frown:

Re: Geeky husband wants to ship electronics hobby items ,any advice?
 

Printed circuit boards are a red flag with CBP so you are very likely going to get hit for an intensive examination.
I do not know how much weight you have but consider shipping it separately with Trans Global Express or Parcel Hero.
An intensive examination can cost two thousand dollars and upwards.

Re: Geeky husband wants to ship electronics hobby items ,any advice?
 

May I come and worship at the shrine? This sounds too good to be true! :)

Ian - a geek

Re: Geeky husband wants to ship electronics hobby items ,any advice?
 

I left most of my electronics at home, shipped my server and that was about it. I found ne hobbies/tasks like cutting up trees, house repairs and doing taxes. I still dabble in electronics, but no where near as much as I did. Frys is about the only place you can walk in and buy stuff, but Amazon and Ebay are your friend.

With the pound being so low, shipping costs may be quite high. Tell him to save the shipping costs and allow him to spend that money on new toys. Maybe he could buy a decent drone for that money.

Re: Geeky husband wants to ship electronics hobby items ,any advice?
 

Typical boy/girl argument happening here! a mans crap is his life!! just let him be!!

I brought all my geeky 'crap' over as hold baggage, I had a hard shell case lined with bubblewrap, it worked perfectly.
It was worth it just to see the wifes face when she helped me unpack!!

Mans answer - bring it
Womans answer - dump it

Re: Geeky husband wants to ship electronics hobby items ,any advice?
 

Let the record show that I was actually in favour of him keeping his stuff, just dumping some crap that can be easily repurchased here :starsmile:

Geeks unite! :nod:

Re: Geeky husband wants to ship electronics hobby items ,any advice?
 

Was that the old style hard case and pre 50lb weight limit?

I did ship my archery gear. I had previously taken a bow on a plane as in my carry on many years ago.

Re: Geeky husband wants to ship electronics hobby items ,any advice?
 

All bow to Rete!!

I live in a small 1 bed apartment, all my 'crap' is filed in a large chest of drawers.

I will just point out that when 'er indoors' was struggling with wifi at her new build hotel, Mr DJ6372 saved the day with offerings from his altar of 'crap'