Leupold VX I vs VX II vs VX III

**Maroelas** · 02-05-2012, 07:16

Originally Posted by Kapt_Sardyn

I have come to the conclusion that somebody in South Africa is making a lot of money on rifle scopes. The scope i want is priced in the US at around $610. Now this is selling price and include all the traders mark-ups etc. Translated into ZAR it is R4,880. The very best price for this scope in SA is R7,400. WHERE DOES ALL THE OTHER COST COME FROM TO BRING IT TO ALMOST DOBLE???

I'm assuming you have never heard of import duties, import VAT and shipping costs?

And then with just about every imported gun related item we have agents in SA. So the Agent needs to sell at a profit to the dealer and the dealer sells at a profit to you. We're talking small profit margins. Btw, the agent network is to protect you the consumer.

But try to inport the scope yourself...just remember to get the state dept permits in the US. That, with shipping, duties and VAT should put your R4880 nicely in the R8000 range and you lose. So stop complaining and support the local guys!

**Kapt_Sardyn** · 02-05-2012, 09:52

Guys really!
Buying a scope from the US from a company who has been a major international supplier since 1999, has received world wide good ratings for service and reliability AND buying a scope that hardly if ever needs the warrantee to be invoked at so much lower seems like a very low risk to me.

If what they do is illegal, why have the US Customs not caught on?? You want to tell me that they have been exporting scopes illegally for 12 years without US Customs finding out when all contents are clearly indicated on the package??

Next to that, there is NO import duty on rifle scopes only VAT. The cost of shipping in large consignments is spread over the quantity imported and surely makes it cheaper but should not be more than $50/scope. This include insurance.

How many agents before we get to the dealer?
I can accept 1 but surely not more, and since they buy and import in bulk it is definitely cheaper per unit than for the individual buying from a retail supplier.

The R4,880 is AFTER the US retail supplier has added ALL his cost and profit etc, therefore the actual price of the scope from the manufacturer is much less!!

I am in favour of supporting the local guys but cannot ignore that this seems way over-priced

**JS4** · 02-05-2012, 10:01

Still not close to the "ALMOST DOBLE" claimed in your initial example though...

And don't forget currency fluctuations... the exchange rate you get charged invariably favouring the bank and not you... the fact that you are unlikely to sell a whole container-load of scopes in a few months so you'd need to store them, insure them etc...

I'm not saying you are wrong mate, just that your insistence that we are being ripped off is not necessarily correct.

If there is such a nice big gap in the market then howcome you are not in the importing scopes business?

**Kapt_Sardyn** · 02-05-2012, 10:09

Did you see the "almost"??
If you consider the manufacturer's price I believe it is around 130%

I will surely spent a lot more on other products at local suppliers but simply cannot believe that an indiviual could buy and pay for all cost to bring the scope in and do it cheaper.

Reverting to to petty shots definitely does not erase the facts.

**JS4** · 02-05-2012, 10:21

Originally Posted by Kapt_Sardyn

Did you see the "almost"??

Yes I did, which is why I edited my post to put it in there for you.

Still (in your example) R7400 from R4880 equals a mark-up of R2520 which translates into a margin of 51.64%. That is not close to 'almost double' and typing such in capital letters does not make it so.

Originally Posted by Kapt_Sardyn

If you consider the manufacturer's price I believe it is around 130%

As shown above I am loathe to trust your math on this one, but I don't know what the manufacturer's price is - if you share it with us then we can work it out.

**Kapt_Sardyn** · 02-05-2012, 11:05

Originally Posted by JS4

Yes I did, which is why I edited my post to put it in there for you.

Still (in your example) R7400 from R4880 equals a mark-up of R2520 which translates into a margin of 51.64%. That is not close to 'almost double' and typing such in capital letters does not make it so.

As shown above I am loathe to trust your math on this one, but I don't know what the manufacturer's price is - if you share it with us then we can work it out.

Since your maths is so good, assume that the 51.64% in your above calculation applies to the US Supplier and do a backward calculation. It would not seem unreasonable for them to have the same markup on the manuafacturer's price as the local supplier apparently have on their price on top of the manufacturer's price.
Are you guys getting a kickback or something?

**Skaaphaas** · 02-05-2012, 11:13

Originally Posted by Kapt_Sardyn

Are you guys getting a kickback or something?

Are you a conspiracy theorist or something?

Do you have knowledge of ALL the costs related to importing scopes on a commercial basis? I don't, before you ask. But I have noted that ALL items imported from the US are pretty much twice the price in ZAR than they would have been if simply converted from USD.

I am not saying we are not paying a lot. I am saying just because you don't understand it does not make it evil. Quite a bit like the Church and Quantum Physics, back in the day.

**JS4** · 02-05-2012, 11:16

Originally Posted by Kapt_Sardyn

Since your maths is so good, assume that the 51.64% in your above calculation applies to the US Supplier and do a backward calculation. It would not seem unreasonable for them to have the same markup on the manuafacturer's price as the local supplier apparently have on their price on top of the manufacturer's price.
Are you guys getting a kickback or something?

I do not know who you are referring to as "you guys" - I'm not in the business at all, I'm just another consumer.

No, I don't think it would be reasonable to assume a US dealer to also have a 50%-odd mark-up because they do not have half of the added expenses that the SA dealer (or private citizen) will have.

Remember: that 50%-odd increase in the price from what you pay in the US and what you pay here is not all profit, it also goes towards paying all those things that has been mentioned (shipping, permits, import duties, VAT, storage, bank fees, currency exchange fluctuations etc. etc.) and it goes to that first.

You can only work out what the profit margin is if you know what all of that will cost you.

Again: if you are so certain that there is a lot of money to be made in rifle scopes, then why aren't you in the business yet, offering us all nice and cheap deals?

PS: would you mind going to the introductions-thread and posting an intro as requested in your welcome-mail please? We like to know who we are sparring with... ;o)

**Kapt_Sardyn** · 02-05-2012, 11:31

Originally Posted by JS4

I do not know who you are referring to as "you guys" - I'm not in the business at all, I'm just another consumer.

No, I don't think it would be reasonable to assume a US dealer to also have a 50%-odd mark-up because they do not have half of the added expenses that the SA dealer (or private citizen) will have.

Remember: that 50%-odd increase in the price from what you pay in the US and what you pay here is not all profit, it also goes towards paying all those things that has been mentioned (shipping, permits, import duties, VAT, storage, bank fees, currency exchange fluctuations etc. etc.) and it goes to that first.

You can only work out what the profit margin is if you know what all of that will cost you.

Again: if you are so certain that there is a lot of money to be made in rifle scopes, then why aren't you in the business yet, offering us all nice and cheap deals?

PS: would you mind going to the introductions-thread and posting an intro as requested in your welcome-mail please? We like to know who we are sparring with... ;o)

Skaaphaas, you win!! ...lol
I chose to work in the construction industry in Qatar as selleing things is not up my alley.
Will go to the introduction section immediately!! :-))

**Robert.375** · 02-05-2012, 16:29

Bought me a Leupold VX1 3-9x40 on special @ R2191 - VLT Arms. I think this was a great deal as the scopes average about R2500(for arguements sake), then also they charged me R290 for a stud-ring base and then fitted and columnated the scope free of charge. My own gun shop that I have been supporting all the years will charge me R2900 for exactly the same scope(make, model, year), then R330 for the base, and R380 for fitting... I think one must support the locals when they are not trying to screw you. We pay a lot especially for products like Leupold, but that doesnt mean we are being ripped off- it is how it is, but I do believe some locals will try and hike the prices up and I will not support that, because I can find a better deal somewhere else, and locally.