budiak shipping to the philippines

[Ian]

Hi Philip,

This information is very helpful too for those who have encountered difficulties shipping weapons in general internationally in recent years. The vagaries of Fedex, DHL, etc. are common, unfortunately, when shipping from Australia also. Accurate (but helpful) descriptions of items have been useful in overcoming some objections. I've found, for example, "Antique Philippine tenegre, cultural artifact made from iron, buffalo horn, and wood," to be more successful than "Philippine sword in sheath." I like your suggestions of flagpole, fishing item, parade item, etc. for spears. Any thoughts for a massive, five foot long panabas?

Regards,

Ian

[Philip]

Originally Posted by Ian

Hi Philip,

This information is very helpful too for those who have encountered difficulties shipping weapons in general internationally in recent years. The vagaries of Fedex, DHL, etc. are common, unfortunately, when shipping from Australia also. Accurate (but helpful) descriptions of items have been useful in overcoming some objections. I've found, for example, "Antique Philippine tenegre, cultural artifact made from iron, buffalo horn, and wood," to be more successful than "Philippine sword in sheath." I like your suggestions of flagpole, fishing item, parade item, etc. for spears. Any thoughts for a massive, five foot long panabas?

Regards,

Ian

In the US, the post and couriers like the object to be named in English, and nuance is everything. So "saber" is more subtle than "sword" and just about any dagger or short sword can pass as "cutlery", with the adjectives "antique", "old", "decorated", "ceremonial", or "regalia" added as appropriate. Tenegres would do well posing as "farm tools", and your big panabas can masquerade as an "agricultural implement". "Indigenous" is a good qualifying adjective. I used the latter label in declaring a Vietnamese dao truong falchion that I polished for a Hong Kong client not long ago.
It's a good time to recall that creative writing class you had to take in high school or college!

[Rafngard]

Originally Posted by Philip

In the US, the post and couriers like the object to be named in English, and nuance is everything. So "saber" is more subtle than "sword" and just about any dagger or short sword can pass as "cutlery", with the adjectives "antique", "old", "decorated", "ceremonial", or "regalia" added as appropriate. Tenegres would do well posing as "farm tools", and your big panabas can masquerade as an "agricultural implement". "Indigenous" is a good qualifying adjective. I used the latter label in declaring a Vietnamese dao truong falchion that I polished for a Hong Kong client not long ago.
It's a good time to recall that creative writing class you had to take in high school or college!

I don't have a whole lot of experience with international shipping, but I did recently successfully send an old garab to the Philippines labeled as "antique farming equipment."

Have fun,
Leif

[Philip]

Originally Posted by Ian

Hi Philip,

This information is very helpful too for those who have encountered difficulties shipping weapons in general internationally in recent years. [/i]?

Regards,

Ian

Yes, Ian, it is a problem but so far fairly easy to get around with describing the item in the right way. These outfits process a gazillion parcels daily, so if you do a reasonable job in keeping "red flags" to a minimum you should do OK.

Of course it helps to remember that some Asian countries like Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan can be really strict about edged weapons so if you are shipping to buyers there, it helps to allow them to make the necessary import formalities on their end in advance. If you cover the bases and mind the p's and q's, it should go smoothly.

The one thing you can't fudge on these days is CITES! I keep hearing horror stories from colleagues who have had trouble with inspectors because either they weren't paying attention, they assumed too much, or had not kept up with ever-changing rules. What was OK a year or two ago may not be allowed now. Just as an example, a dealer in the US had his stock seized by Customs on return from a show in Europe, on the grounds that American law now regulates import of any object made from a WILD ANIMAL, even if not endangered nor on the CITES list. A customer in the UK who wants to send me a BONE hilted dagger for polishing the wootz needs a British CITES permit, even though the hilt has the obvious grayish hue and surface texture of, say, bovine origin. So it will be a couple months before I see the thing!

[tanaruz]

Hello my friends,

with the budiak shipped inside a plactic PVC pipe, it was cleared and on its way to Manila. Description: "Spear used by Capt Ahab..." just joking, but the ceremonial flagpole desciption passed with flying colors. Now the dealer in the US is more knowledgeable now on how to ship things like these.

again, thank you so much,

Yves