Be careful "Free shipping" deal from Hobby King

[Oscar]

There is no free lunch.

http://canadaquadcopters.ca/blogs/news/46971073-hobbyking-com-raises-prices-dramatically

[BJROB]

Well theirs a surprise...
Shipping is free...     Right... 
Well that take all the fun out of impulse buying....
So now we have to shop around... ... for the best deal...

[Oscar]

Usually for general items, I go to local hobby store.

[octagon]

I have learned a lesson about Hobbyking. I ordered a 100 amp ESC that was supposed to have an internal 10A BEC. It was a Hobbywing brand and seemed like a good deal at $69usd. I wanted it specifically for a Phoenix Spitfire I wanted to maiden before the snow flies, so I paid the $23 UPS shipping. Then I paid the $15 duty when it arrived after about 4 days. The invoice says it is what I ordered. The sealed box is what I ordered. What is in the box is not what I ordered. I got an 100 amp ESC, but with no ESC and it is to be used for 6 to 12S batteries. I am using 5s on the Spit. I have contacted HK, and sent them pictures, but my emails have been ignored. So, I ended up paying about $105 USD for an ESC I cannot use. Lucky for me, someone at the field I met wants an ESC like that and had something I need so we can trade. In the end I did what I should have done in the beginning, I went to a local shop and bought an Eflite that came with an on/off switch and with the terminal ends already soldered on. And it cost me about the same as the HK one. I maidened the Spit yesterday, and it is a joy!

[wollins]

Good on you Rob! Congrats on your successful test flight.

Oscar ... does their free shipping cover lipos?

Colin

[Oscar]

Congratulation Rob!  Hopefully I can see you fly the Spit before the winter. 

Colin - Last time I spoke to Stuart (from HK), he insists never order Lipo from International warehouse.  It will take at least 2 months and high chance to lose your shipment.  (side note: For HK Lipo, use West coast warehouse.  But then, it will cost more because they use FedEx).

With the FPV quad racing getting popular, I noticed some local hobby store starting to carries some HK Lipo too (high C rate). You might want to check them out.

NGHobbies.com (Zoltan - who did a presentation to us last winter on FPV) - Last I went to his store (Weston / 7), he carries some Zippy, Rhino and Tattu. 

RotorGeeks.com (locates in Don Mills / Yorkmills) - They sell some Nano-Tech, Zippy, Tattu

[wollins]

Awesome Oscar, thanks! Had never even heard of those vendors.

Colin

[Oscar]

Two more

www.robojax.com - Ajax - They sell Nano-tech Lipo
autobotix.ca - Scarborough (Birchmont / Lawrence) - They sell Nano-tech and Tattu Lipo.

[Crazyflyer]

Unfortunately the local vendors really jack up the prices on the Nano-techs (and I get that they have to cover their overhead and make profit). A few guys I know order the lipos from the international warehouse and use the fedex option that will take 2 days to arrive. One guy I race with, ordered $900 worth of lipos for his team and only paid $80 in shipping. Got it in two days. He also lowered the value of the package to pay less duty and taxes.
I just ordered 2 lipos and a few more things last night from the international warehouse and Fedex called me today letting me know it will be there on Tuesday ($23 shipping).
Although HK is scamming everybody with their "free" shipping and price increases, they are still cheaper. I would really like to support the local retailers but $40 for a $20 battery is a bit much to swallow.

[Oscar]

There is an update from Hobby King.

They lower back the price and cancel the "free shipping" promo.

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/newsPage.asp

[Skyking]

Hi Guys,

Does anybody know how to qualify for free shipping to Canada from HK?
I tired ordering stuff and they said it wasn't allowed.
Tried both USA East and international.
Thanks,
Ken

[Oscar]

Hi Ken,

Hobby King stopped the "free shipping" promo already