Got my new torch yesterday

[Jezza]

Charged it up during the day so had to dive last night to try it out.

I have just got rid of my Custom Divers 50W Halogen/SLA so I was eagerly awaiting my new arrival. It's a Sartek 10w HID, with a 5.2Ah Li-Ion battery pack.

I'm pleased to say that I'm suitably impressed, nice bright white light, tight focused beam and a 4 hour burn time. It looks well made too.

All this for under £300, Bargin!

[Simon A]

jezza,
where did you get the Sartek from for that price?
Simon A

[Jezza]

Ebay of all places, was looking at a second hand hid & found these.

There's a steady supply of them on there normally selling for the $400 mark, (though I could be bothered to bid after missing out on one in the final seconds by $5 so I did the 'Buy Now' for $450), add $50 for delivery, total £269.17. I also had to pay £13 vat & £13 post office handling fee.

This one end in 4 hours
eBay.co.uk: Sartek HID Dive Light System Brand New (item 160039220249 end time 13-Oct-06 03:43:55 BST)

They appear to come direct from Sartek, it comes with the normal charger 110-250V (just need a shaver adaptor) plus a car charger. It was well boxed up & took about 5 days to get here.

Another good source is Dive Rite HID Lighting Systems...Head, Bulb, Canister, Battery, Charger, Guide I've got a load of friends that have bought the 10W Sunspot and they're all very pleased. It works out about £330 including goodman & elastic handles and a hard storage/travel case.

[miniman]

I have just bought one of these for my wife and although not as good as the salvo, for the price it is a good torch.

[applepie]

you got yours from eBay US?

how come your VAT is only £13?

isnt it 17.5% of the price of the goods + shipping then add on customs tax after that (dunno if there is for a torch)

[Jezza]

I don't really know, I just got the invoice from the Post Office.

I think you get some sort of allowance for 'Gifts' maybe you just have to pay VAT on the difference, or maybe tax was paid in the States??

[applepie]

thanks for the links, they certainly look very promising and interesting. let us know how you get on with the torch, bet your well excited.

but i am not convinced by the taxation, just in case future buyers get caught out and have to pay a much higher tax fees.

you do get an allowance under "gifts" but thats for err gifts , its illegal to sell and ship goods and brand them as gifts.

or possible as you said they have paid for UK VAT tax, but I find this unlikely if they are shipping worldwide and not include a surcharge for UK like they did for NYC (8.5%).

[Jezza]

Originally Posted by applepie

thanks for the links, they certainly look very promising and interesting. let us know how you get on with the torch, bet your well excited.

but i am not convinced by the taxation, just in case future buyers get caught out and have to pay a much higher tax fees.

you do get an allowance under "gifts" but thats for err gifts , its illegal to sell and ship goods and brand them as gifts.

or possible as you said they have paid for UK VAT tax, but I find this unlikely if they are shipping worldwide and not include a surcharge for UK like they did for NYC (8.5%).

I still have the box with the customs label, I could scan it & PM it on if you know anything about it

[applepie]

thats alright thanks for the offer.

I'm not an expert in it, I have imported alot of goods from around the world and quite a bit from the US. (not torches though). the charges struck me as being quite odd.

just a word of warning for people who may purchase similar torches from the US. best give a ring to customs to make sure you know the full cost of things plus you dont break the law.