fotog

This cordless drill with case and two 3.0 AH batteries is 7990 THB. On Lazada.

I got a much better deal, mine came with two 5.0 AH batteries, charger, case, extra bits, and the drill for 1079 THB.

If you shop places like Amazon, Home Depot, LOWE’S, you will see these cordless brushless drills sold in different configurations, I.e; tool only, tool with and without any batteries, batteries only, batteries ranging from 1.3 AH to 5.0 AH., the higher costing more. The prices vary, but no legit store will sell the kit I bought for $30.00 or 1079 THB.

I just bought a DeWalt cordless drill, 2 - 5.0 Ah batteries , charger, case with bits: 1079 THB from Lazada.. I know it’s a fake tool and batteries. Just one genuine battery would cost at least 3-4,000 THB.

However I just returned to Thailand after a 3 year absence. In 2019, during my last trip, I sold all of my power tools.

This trip I returned to find my expensive Microwave, Washing Machine, Cooktop and Kitchen Faucet not working.

If this fake drill lasts for 2 months, I’m good! So far I used it to drill a hole into the concrete wall and it worked well.

On the other hand, if I needed it for every day use, I would pay up for a ‘real’ drill, about 5000 THB.

15 hours ago, DrJack54 said:

Can you make a deposit into a fixed term deposit account on day of your application for extension.

How about trying to make a deposit well before necessary, just to try it out? That way you will have a definite answer. 

Years ago I used to go to Bangkok Bank and request a verification letter to show Immigration. I used to have to wait a few days for the letter and then take it along with the passbook to Immigration on the same day.

Then I started using the income affidavit letter from the Embassy up until 2018.

This year I will revert back to the 800,000 passbook again but will not have it in the bank in time for the 90 day prior requirement. I just returned from the U.S, so will be about 27 days shy of 90 days. Don’t know if Immigration allows any wiggle room on that time requirement?

Actually I wasn’t going to renew my retirement visa this year because I have been living in the U.S., but I own a nice condo here that my wife wants to keep and I figure the 800,000 will be for her and my son when I pass away. 

I know that ‘Visa Services’ can do renewals, but have never used one, always did it myself. Be just my luck they would mess it up.

Do you happen to have the name of a reliable real estate agent in Bangkok, so far I have not found any. 

It is difficult trying to sell from overseas and am reluctant to leave the key with a so called agent.

My neighbor left their key with the front desk and that did not work out well for them.

It’s good that you have found a reliable handyman. I don’t think a formal education is as important compared to how he was trained and his personal work ethic. Someone who is a self starter and can think outside of the box and takes pride in his work.

We have considered renting out our place too, however living overseas would be a challenge. I think better to just sell. I have owned rental homes here in the U.S. with very few good tenants. Can’t imagine doing it long distance.


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6 hours ago, tammydfigueroas said:

Doing international moving as well as international delivery is thrilling, though it is able to additionally be tough. Odds are great that you are going to do this only one time in the life of yours, and nearly all individuals won't ever do it. Consequently I've authored this guide in order to outline exactly how the process functions as well as to enable you to make educated choices, particularly regarding how you can put together and the way to pick a worldwide Shipping Company. This's mainly composed for individuals shipping out of the United States, though it is true for any person who's shipping items abroad. Additionally, this's created for individuals shipping home items for individual use. Might you've a booming action!

Homepage

Thank you, however I did not see the guide on your site.

1 hour ago, GinBoy2 said:

I would have to say, doing it yourself is I'm sure possible.

 

But there are a lot of moving parts, and the possibility of something going wrong, is probably quite high.

 

You said in your OP you are shipping sentimental items.

 

We too shipped similar things. 'Stuff' can get replaced, personal things are irreplaceable, so maybe you might end up spending a little bit more than a DIY relo, but you need to ask, is it worth the risk?

 

When you use a professional mover they are tracking and monitoring the move from start to finish

 

We got emails from Asian Tigers when our stuff arrived in Bangkok.

They updated us when it was loaded onto the ship.

 

Then we were contacted from the agent in Minneapolis when the ship arrived in Long Beach, when it cleared customs and it's ultimate delivery date.

 

They also copied me on all the emails between Asian Tigers and the agents in Minneapolis so I knew what what was going on

 

That stuff is hard when you are doing it yourself

Yes all very good points you make and knowing that the freight forwarder is very reliable is comforting and worth their fee. Thanks again for your interest and recommendation! I can't tell you how many times professional contractors and their subs have come to my condo, only to borrow my tools, some not knowing how to do their work or telling me it can't be done and then me showing them how to do a particular job or task. Even showing the building maintenance engineer and his crew how to change a light in the swimming pool. It reached a point whereby I finally just did everything myself. Just because some call themselves a 'professional', does not make them so. In my business I would often hear; "I've been doing this for fifteen, twenty or thirty years', but they were doing things wrong or sloppy for thirty years too and were still hacks.

That said, I have seen rare cases of some excellent work too, in particular a cabinet maker for two bathrooms I renovated myself. But mostly never had much luck finding the latter, just pain and frustration.

Last year I sold all of my tools and many household items, some of what I want to keep and ship are high quality chinese furniture pieces, a couple of antique pieces from Tibet and some wall art, all of which would be difficult to find in the U.S. Oh, and a beautiful condo for sale too.

Again thank you GinBoy2 for your input, it has been very helpful!

8 hours ago, blackcab said:

The company I work for use these agents. You will need a Thai speaker as I don't believe they have an English speaker:

 

https://www.dearborn.co.th/Contact.php

Blackcab, Thank you for taking the time to provide all of your very excellent detailed information, along with the contact details and replying to my topic. It sounds like quite a precise complex process and something that, in the long run, may be too involved for a novice. I will consider it further. I greatly appreciate all of your help!

8 hours ago, GinBoy2 said:

Actually I just found the original email from these guys, and this was the contact;

 

Dir: +662 687 7896 | Tel: +662 687 7888 | Fax: +662 687 7999 | Mobile : +669 2223 9529 |
[email protected] | www.asiantigers-mobility.com

GinBoy2, Thank you for taking the time to find this information and replying to my topic. Very much appreciated! 

7 hours ago, GinBoy2 said:

I just checked what we paid.

 

We didn't ship major furniture, few side tables, personal effects, clothes, electronics, kitchenware with Asian Tigers. 

 

Door to door, it cost ฿160K inc VAT

 

They came, packed everything, transported it all from from Khon Kaen, arranged the clearances and it was delivered to our home in South Dakota. 

 

The timing depends on where you live, but to cut the cost on transportation in the US, they use the steamship line to transport it as a bonded shipment to your nearest port of entry, so ours went from Long Beach to Minneapolis, cleared customs there, then was trucked back West. 

 

I think all in all it took 6 weeks, but it was seamless, insured, and they dealt with all the paperwork.

 

And as for customs, they had me sign a form stating that it was all my personal property and I was a returning US citizen, so no fees or duties

 

I wouldn't have wanted to do it myself, too much can go wrong

GinBoy2, Thank you for your reply. I am not looking for the cheapest way to accomplish this, just a reliable way at a reasonable fee. What you shipped sounds pretty much like what I want to ship too, with a bit more furniture perhaps.

 Can you tell me which agent you used and their contact details? Did you take the optional insurance they offered? Any other information would be great too. 

I have friends who work and worked for the State Department who have told me stories, over the years, about shipments that have gone missing, partially lost or damaged, although rare, but it does happen.

Thank you!

11 hours ago, blackcab said:

I've used icontainers to move full container loads from the US to Thailand. They are cheap but there is a lot that can go wrong if you don't know what your are doing.

 

I plugged in your details: 20 foot FCL, Bangkok port to Long Beach, California for personal effects and the prices were under 2,900 dollars for the sea freight portion only. You still will have to pay all the costs to get the container on the ship and off the ship.

 

However you have to understand there could be extras. For example you will be charged if you don't have a loading dock. You will be charged if the truck has to go to a non-commercial address. You will have a maximum of 2 hours to load the entire container. You will need your own bolt seal. You will have to prepare your own customs paperwork. (For Thailand that means paperless customs which you have to be previously registered for). You need to weigh the container. Also check if each pallet has to be individually weighed for a personal effects move, or whether the total SOLAS VGM can be used.

 

Any mistakes and you will incur time delays which you will be charged for on a daily basis. If your paperwork is not correct you will be charged container hire per day and dock storage per day.

 

"I would at least use a Thai customs agent to clear your container this end. They cost a few thousand baht and they will talk to the truck driver, get your load into port, process the paperwork and pay any fees on your behalf. However you will still need to ask them about paperless customs and how to deal with that."

 

I would suggest you first move your goods to a storage unit which has good access, a loading dock and a forklift (if such a place exists). Palletize your goods, wrap and band the pallets and have your tie down straps and bolt seal ready.

 

Make arrangements to hire their forklift and driver on loading day as well as a few people to help load and tie down. You will have 2 hours to load.

 

Take photos of the load, bolt seal the door, take a photo of the bolt seal, take a photo of the container number.

 

If you haven't done this before you will be lucky to get it through without any problems.

 

A much easier option would be a LCL. I plugged in 1,000kg, 10cbm and 5 boxes of personal effects and got a price of about 1,100 dollars.

 

This way you could palletize, box and weigh your goods and have a forklift put them on a truck for you and then the rest is taken care of.

 

Understand that with LCL your goods must be stackable, meaning they must be boxed in a way that allows another pallet to sit on them, otherwise you will be charged extra because the shipper loses to ability to make money from the space on top of your pallet. Obviously for double height pallets (bulky but not heavy items) this will not apply.

 

Good luck, and understand you will need a Thai speaker who is used to dealing with Thai businesses or who is capable of doing so. The first thing you need to do is talk to a Thai customs agent about exactly what you have to provide them to clear the container onto the ship.

Blackcab, This is very useful detailed information, thank you! Do you have any Thai or on the U.S. side, contacts and their contact details that you could share with me? In any regard I really appreciate your taking the time to reply. A PM is ok too if your not comfortable sharing publicly.

Having lived in Thailand since 2002, I have found that, unfortunately, you don't always get what you pay for when dealing with so-called 'professionals'. That is why early on I invested in my own tools and did my own maintenance, repairs and renovations. Even though the building I lived in, provided maintenance. Just found that if I wanted it done right, better to do it myself.

Thanks again!

"I would at least use a Thai customs agent to clear your container this end. They cost a few thousand baht and they will talk to the truck driver, get your load into port, process the paperwork and pay any fees on your behalf. However you will still need to ask them about paperless customs and how to deal with that."

2 hours ago, Langsuan Man said:

Go with the flow or abandon all your goods

 

You don't get a divorce without a lawyer

You don't get a operation without a doctor

You don't move household goods without a freight forwarder

 

Professionals want to deal with professionals and as you so aptly put it you are a peon

 

Good look pushing this particular noodle 

Thank you Langsuan Man for the very thoughtful, helpful information.

Please excuse me if this topic has already been covered, I did search and found nothing.

If it has been covered, what is the link.

I want to move my household goods from Bangkok to USA via sea freight. Does anyone know how one can  arrange, without an agent, a 20’ container or LCL from the Bangkok port - arrange the shipping to U.S. - Pick it up in Long Beach, CA or whatever port on the West coast they deliver it to? There is no hurry to receive the shipment, so sharing a container, and waiting for it to be full, is ok too.

I have contacted several freight forwarder companies and have been given various estimates all between 256,000 THB - 320,000 THB ($8k-$10k) without insurance and not counting a possible and probable customs inspection in U.S which can add another 32,000 THB ($1k)

The way I read their  proposal / contracts is that it is ‘only an estimate’ and that final charges, if any, will be applied after I have already paid the full estimated charge and they have my goods.

Insurance will add about another 3.5% to the total but it doesn't cover everything and according to my neighbor they refused to pay for damages in her case.

My household goods are mostly sentimental things we want to have in the U.S., but if I can’t find a reasonable way to ship them, they will be sold before I depart.

It seems to me that the freight forwarder companies are only middle men contractors and then they subcontract the job out to others for the best bid. They arrange everything including a U.S receiver, and then collect their commission. Very convenient of course, however I am capable of doing my own packing, getting permits from the Ministry of Culture and delivering my household goods to the port in Bangkok and pick up the goods in the U.S.

I realise this will be a huge headache but unlike friends who have had their relocations subsidised entirely by the U.S Embassy Department of State or other large corporations, these forwarders deal mostly with the latter and don’t deal too much with peons like me. Companies I have estimates from include: Crown, JVK, Santa Fe, Siam, K-Line, Guru Transport.

Thank you for any useful information you may have in connection with this inquiry.

personal effects are free of duty. But that might be a hasle

Piano is 10 % not 50 %

Not so fast, or perhaps Thai Customs did not get the word yet.

In July I lost my eye glasses in NYC. They were found and my son mailed them to me here in BKK.

The post office sent a notice that I had to pay import duty.

I gathered all my evidence that the glasses were lost, then found and were simply being returned to me as a 'used personal medical item'.

I filled out the paper work and requested a 'waiver of the duty fee'.

The post office said it would take about 14 days to be resolved.

Yesterday it was one month and my wife called the customs department. They told her there is a queue and hung up on her.

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I think it was a mistake to reward him with a raise for his poor performance. In my experience it is a mistake to try to change someone unless they are agreeable to change, otherwise they will wind up resenting you for trying to bring out the best in them.

"You shouldn't try to teach a pig to sing, because it annoys the pig and leaves you frustrated!"

I understand that perhaps you may have substantial time and training invested in this employee, it is difficult to see that it is not working out, but sometimes it is better to come to the realization that it is not going to work and move on.

Been there, done that.

You get what you pay for.

Little dental facilities aren't monitored for hygiene or screen the staff.

I'd pay the extra and go to the hospitals.

The link posted above is the best I've found.

When it comes to dentistry this is not true. There are many variables and paying high prices alone does not equate to good quality dentistry.

How do I know this? Just thirty-five years in practice and owning my own office before retiring. Generally speaking I find the dentistry very good in Thailand, but as in all things one needs to know what to look for.

If one needs an extraction, especially a molar that has three-roots, try to find a competent dental surgeon who specializes in surgery. If you need dentures, do the same thing, try to find someone who is really good at it.

Avoid 'clinics' with fancy advertising that hire inexperienced dentists who work on a commission basis.

It is rare to find a dentist who can do everything well. Some know their limitations and refer patients to other dentists for procedures they are not comfortable or experienced in doing. While others just say; "Oh I have this dental degree from xyz university, so therefore I am now qualified".

Having years of experience also does not equate to good dental service either. In the U.S. One can call the Board of Dental Examiners and inquire as to how many complaints and reprimands the dentist has on file.

Finally, when someone says; "my dentist is a great dentist!" How do they know? They cannot see what the dentist is doing in their mouth. Great personalities do not equate to great dentistry. Some dentists are 98% bull hockey and 2% quality and they thrive, while other dentists are 2% personality and 98% quality and they starve.

No need to investigate:

*The electric to the pole was not grounded.

*There was no Ground Fault Circuit Breaker (GFCI) installed in the panel that is wired to the lamp pole.

The contractor:

*Saved a few bucks when it was installed or

*Never even heard of a GFCI Breaker.

The building inspector:

*Never inspected the electric or

*Looked the other way for some tea money

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This is the reason I bought tools and power tools shortly after I bought my condo. Long story but no one I ever hired knew jack and most were incompetent or tried to pull the wool over my eyes. 'Professionals' borrow my tools, use my ladders after I tell them not to stand on my antique furniture, painters don't use drop clothes and then want to sand or scrape dripped paint off expensive furniture, when they could have covered it in the first place. If they do use a drop cloth it is because I have provided it.

My friend built a home but he is an engineer and was very specific about the electric he wanted. Even with a blueprint and a signed detailed contract he had to watch their every move and stop the builder at each step and say; " this is not correct, this is not what we agreed on so let's stop right here at this stage and do it over before you continue" unfortunately he went through this same dance from start-to-finish, but in the end he got what he wanted. The grief he experienced took a toll.

I do my own work but even if I didn't I would purchase all plumbing, paint, fixtures, etc myself and just deal on a labor-only basis with the installers, otherwise they will buy cheap faucets, sinks, door handles, add water to the paint, etc and you don't know what you are getting. Then you still need to watch their every move because if they are not incompetent they will take shortcuts that won't be apparent until after you have moved in.

I know this does not answer the OP but hopefully it will help in the future.

DPReview have published their A7 review.

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/sony-alpha-a7

Based on the review, I am happy I opted for the E-M1 instead. I'll be waiting for the review on the a7r to see if it is better.

David

Yes agree that the a7 and the Rx1 review is a deal breaker for me. I am married to Canon with my investment in their body's / glass / strobes. I bought the Fugi X100S recently and it is a good tool for what it is. Canon strobes work well with it but no TTL. Put a transmitter in the hotshoe and the off camera strobes work great. Tired of feeling all beat up after carrying a heavy DSLR and 'L' lenses around, so for now the Fugi X100S is my go to walk around.

The BIBs take action over Red Shirts ... I witnessed 12 BIBs siting 20 Meters away from 1 redshirt throwing Bricks at a tourist bus ( Tourists inside) .. They sat there 12 to 1 with their arms folded and where Laughing ..... Please no more jokes about the BiBs arresting one of thier own ....

Don't believe it, people can say anything they want without producing any evidence to support it. Idiots all!

No wait! Was it a Chinese tourist bus? Makes sense then.

Where in Bangkok do they sell the A7r? Have not seen them. Sony website shows them but when it comes to showing what is on offer they are showing the A7 only for 49900 THB .

I knew Chaikiri Srifuengfung personally. I am sorry and shocked to hear this tragic news, may he R.I.P.