Online merchants

[Aquamaniac]

Alot is said in these threads about the performance of LP, Diveinn and a few other Online Merchants.
What about the smaller operators?
Does anyone have any bad experiences with these stores?

I recently forked out a few hundred dollars to "diveremporium".
Its been well over a month ago now, and i doubt I will ever see the goods. Im just taking it as a "bad move"

I was just wondering is this a common thing in the USA?

Dave

 

[Bob3]

Main question, have you & the seller been communicating?
I've had merchandise sit in the OZ customs for close to 3 weeks, so much for that expensive 3-day shipping.

 

[Aquamaniac]

Yes, I get an email every few days saying that its "on its way"
If it is in OZ customs, that may explain the delay, and I cant really blame the merchant.
However, why it needs to be in Oz customs when being shipped from AZ to GA kind of baffles me.

Dave

 

[Stogie1020]

I recently (six months ago) bought a fair amount of gear from DiveUS.com They may be different from other online stores, as they also have a retail store in San Diego. I actually went to the store and tried some things on before buying. I ended up buying from their website, as it was cheaper than from their store, and the goods arrived in less than a week. I guess I expected to have a bad experience with Internet buying but was VERY suprised by this outfit. I would definitely buy from them again. Just my two cents...

 

[DazedAndConfuzed]

Stogie1020,

Most internet shops has a retail store. For me here in NYC, LP is a LDS, albeit one you don't have to establish a relationship with. I could try 20 different regulators with tanks sitting around or get a checklist of all the BC I am interested in and try them out all under one roof.

 

[Stogie1020]

I guess living within 200 miles of ocean has it's benefits!! Maybe I will get you to test gear out for me...