Who Buys This Heavy Stuff?

[corkscrew]

Tourists when they come to Thailand love to buy souvenirs of their trip. This is very understandable. Over years of travel I have managed to 'fill' our house with things that I bought abroad. Some are actually useful and pleasing to the eye; others are...well...now left lost on a back shelf or in a deep drawer. But, all of them were capable of fitting into my suitcase.

This is why I am amazed at some of the cast bronze work that is for sale near our home in Bangkok. This is not the work of one crazy merchant who really got it all wrong. There are four or five of these places within a 15 minute walk from me that offer similar lines of truly heavy and hard to haul art work. And I am not talking about stuff that would just dwarf a steamer trunk; no, these pieces weigh more than most automobiles.

And what do you do with it when you get it home? A 1,000k pound gorilla? A 3 metre high Indian on horseback? A life size alligator?

[Jockstar]

Nice work though.

[corkscrew]

Nice work though.

Yes, the work is nice. Maybe they sell to hotels....like for lobby art.

[Phil Conners]

Lukdod in Pattaya seem to sell a lot of that kind of stuff to Russian tourists.

[corkscrew]

Lukdod in Pattaya seem to sell a lot of that kind of stuff to Russian tourists.

How do they lug it back?

Edited June 25, 2006 by corkscrew

[lopburi3]

There are over 60 million people living here in Thailand and believe that is well above the number of tourists. Some of us expats are probably buyers too, and don't need to pack it in our checked baggage.

[corkscrew]

There are over 60 million people living here in Thailand and believe that is well above the number of tourists. Some of us expats are probably buyers too, and don't need to pack it in our checked baggage.

Do you know anyone in BKK who has bought one of these?

[toptuan]

Lukdod in Pattaya seem to sell a lot of that kind of stuff to Russian tourists.

How do they lug it back?

Carry-on baggage allowances are pretty liberal on Aeroflot.

Sorry, just joking.

I was an exporter for 20 years, so perhaps I can shed a little light on your inquiry. Actually the shops, at the customer's request, will usually work with a local shipping company to package the item into a protective (usually wood) crate. These companies abound near Bangkok's ocean shipping ports/terminals. The item is usually solidly braced inside the crate, and surrounded by impact-resistant stuffing (bubble-sheets, expanded cardboard, etc.)

That, in turn, is put into one of these 20-foot or 40-foot metal shipping containers, and then it's sent by ocean freight. Ocean shipping charges, to me, are surprisingly cheap. A 1,000-kilogram item would ship for only a few hundred US dollars (crating/packaging charges added to that).

OK, now that you've got the inside scoop, you can sleep at night!

[lannarebirth]

Well, I just kicked in for a pair of half scale alligators that are guarding the collection bowls in front of the "day of the week" Buddhas in front of our local chedi. They're painted gold now of course, but look kinda cool.

[Phil Conners]

Lukdod in Pattaya seem to sell a lot of that kind of stuff to Russian tourists.

How do they lug it back?

They (Lukdod) ship it for them. Don't ask me about the cost, I have no idea, wasn't interested enough to ask

[Plus]

Ten years ago wealthy Thais used to fill their lawns with "Lui" statues, maybe bronze is the new craze.

Imagine someone peeks through the fence and sees a life size alligator by the pool, or you can keep it in the back and watch your party guests stumble on it in the dark.

[corkscrew]

Lukdod in Pattaya seem to sell a lot of that kind of stuff to Russian tourists.

How do they lug it back?

Carry-on baggage allowances are pretty liberal on Aeroflot.

Sorry, just joking.

I was an exporter for 20 years, so perhaps I can shed a little light on your inquiry. Actually the shops, at the customer's request, will usually work with a local shipping company to package the item into a protective (usually wood) crate. These companies abound near Bangkok's ocean shipping ports/terminals. The item is usually solidly braced inside the crate, and surrounded by impact-resistant stuffing (bubble-sheets, expanded cardboard, etc.)

That, in turn, is put into one of these 20-foot or 40-foot metal shipping containers, and then it's sent by ocean freight. Ocean shipping charges, to me, are surprisingly cheap. A 1,000-kilogram item would ship for only a few hundred US dollars (crating/packaging charges added to that).

OK, now that you've got the inside scoop, you can sleep at night!

But...but..but..What do these buyers do with 4 tons of this bronze....I mean, where do they put it...and why? In the bathroom...in the bedroom...the living room? Where?

[tourleadersi]

Some of it would lovely in the bag garden of my council house in Chingford.

Probably gets foam packed into s specially made wooden box and then added into a container for sea shipping. Doesn't cost as much as you would expect as you only pay for volume as opposed to weigh for container shipping. So the same volume of cotton wool would cost the same....

[toptuan]

You pay for volume, but limited to the maximum shipping weight of the container. So be careful about shipping a dozen of those 9m-high Indians on horseback!

Edited June 25, 2006 by toptuan

[The Dan Sai Kid]

If you had a theme bar some of that tat would maybe suit the surroundings - but as for a bronze gorrila in your living room?!

[tourleadersi]

You pay for volume, but limited to the maximum shipping weight of the container. So be careful about shipping a dozen of those 9m-high Indians on horseback!

Ahhhh nuts, I hope I kept my receipt so I can take the 9th one back!

[astral]

Wealth needs to be ostentatious, especially in Thailand and China.

Not really for tourists.

[Donz]

My fiancees house has heaps of those things, she has 2 lyons that look simular to those pics just before you enter the house, I think it looks pretty neat.

What about the things made out of chains and other random metal parts.

In Patpong they got the preditor in the metal chains, looks great IMO

[Heng]

Plenty of heavy/bulky antique items (and yes, some "tasteless" items from another century included; but also some rather interesting items as well) for sale at River City. Plenty of locals and foreigners bidding for items. And as another poster mentioned, yes, they crate it and deal with the freight forwarder for you (you'll need to sign of course) if you ask them to.

[Patex]

Lukdod in Pattaya seem to sell a lot of that kind of stuff to Russian tourists.

How do they lug it back?

Carry-on baggage allowances are pretty liberal on Aeroflot.

Sorry, just joking.

I was an exporter for 20 years, so perhaps I can shed a little light on your inquiry. Actually the shops, at the customer's request, will usually work with a local shipping company to package the item into a protective (usually wood) crate. These companies abound near Bangkok's ocean shipping ports/terminals. The item is usually solidly braced inside the crate, and surrounded by impact-resistant stuffing (bubble-sheets, expanded cardboard, etc.)

That, in turn, is put into one of these 20-foot or 40-foot metal shipping containers, and then it's sent by ocean freight. Ocean shipping charges, to me, are surprisingly cheap. A 1,000-kilogram item would ship for only a few hundred US dollars (crating/packaging charges added to that).

OK, now that you've got the inside scoop, you can sleep at night!

But...but..but..What do these buyers do with 4 tons of this bronze....I mean, where do they put it...and why? In the bathroom...in the bedroom...the living room? Where?

This stuff only looks heavy... The rising horse is probably way under 400 kg's.

Ugly shit, for tasteless people