Any thoughts on the 145% Chinese tariff on purchases?

[coffeebreak]

Not sure how AliEx did it, but I was very happy. Ordered April 30, delivered on May 8, so it was during the peak tariff period.

Good to know. When did it reach US shores?

[laneweaver]

Good to know. When did it reach US shores?

It arrived to the US on May 5. Uploading a screenshot of the travel history for your viewing pleasure.

[srf0638]

On one hand, I just had a fairly big-ticket panic buy show up via Fedex and it looks like another one will show up today, so that's cool.

On the other hand, I've heard of Fedex billing for import duties a couple weeks after delivery.

(On yet another hand, the Fedex tracking for both of the relevant packages shows that the package originated/label was printed in Fontana, CA, so maybe I'll squeak by. We shall see.).

[JG4700]

My Fedex IE (international economy) tracking number also says from California, but no delivery date yet. "We'll add a delivery date as soon as we get your package." Marked shipped on aliexpress on May 11 with an estimated delivery of May 18 but still nothing yet.

[GSoroos]

I placed an order on May 12 for some small items as a test to see about any extra charges or what the process was.

Things I noticed:

• Many items in my wishlist are no longer available to be shipped to my location (USA)
  
• Some items have Estimated Charges that are broken down to: Sales Tax, Import Charges, Delivery Fee. These can be expensive, but not all items have this. None of the items I ordered had this.
  
• Also some items are just higher in price than a couple months ago (not sure if this is tariff related or not).

One item I ordered has come in via USPS and they haven't asked for any additional ¢ besides what was paid for up front (which included a $5 shipping charge for an item that was less than a dollar). I expect the same for the other items when they arrive.

But it seems like AliEx and the sellers on there are mostly up front in the way it's priced out. It's still confusing and some items are not the deal they used to be. But still bargins compared to other marketplaces.
 

[jonathanf2]

Only small ticket and high volume items seem to have remained cheap. Cassettes, Chinese groupsets and carbon fiber components have gone up in price significantly. I've also noticed most of the Sensah hydraulic shifters have disappeared as Choice items or are no longer available. For example, Sensah released a new SRX mechanical rear derailleur that is now nowhere to be found. It was available last month. AliExpress isn't the wild west anymore of affordable, yet high end equipment.

[coffeebreak]

LTwoo e groups have more than doubled while cheap Shimano groups have simply vanished/ are un-shippable to the USA. I am glad I stocked up on couple of 105 R7100 and an eGR just in time. I wonder if this is the end of it or they are figuring out the logistics and will be back again.

[jonathanf2]

Last week I helped my buddy revamp his 2x SRAM Rival gravel bike into a 1x low gear climber. He was blown away at how much better it is for the local hilly terrain. I attached a knock-off Garbaruk cage for SRAM rival, a 38t chainring and 11-50t Sunrace cassette. Everything worked out great and you would have thought it came stock that way. Also shifting is spot on perfect. From what he told me, the bike shops were telling him to replace the whole setup, get a new groupset, etc. Yet with a few parts we were able to do it without breaking the bank while keeping most of his drivetrain intact.

At least from a cyclist prospective, AliExpress has been great at building bikes at an affordable cost. Other cyclists will make snide jokes about being cheap junk, but I think there's a bit of bike shop gate keeping. They rely on their customers being dumb and unable to build/fix their own stuff!

[jonathanf2]

Quick update. Order items on May 14th. Finally arrived in the US for import customs processing on May 22nd. Ordered another item on May 20th and it's already in the US as well, May 23rd. Perhaps AliEx has streamlined shipping service with better work arounds. Now I'll see how long it takes to clear customs and get to my front door!

[JG4700]

^That is some quick shipping. My Aliexpress order was marked shipped on May 11 but I don't think it actually shipped until the 13th. Now ten days later and the FedEx tracking number still has no updates.

[coffeebreak]

Getting those packages on the USA shores isn't too difficult because that has always been in place. Its what happens next that's worrying me. UPS and FedEx have been charging hefty fees lately. It will be interesting to see what USPS does for small packages and if they have a website to pay the fees before last mile delivery is attempted. Many of my packages in the last 6 month have not come through USPS at all but a private small courier company. Just to test what happens, I placed a small order of Choice items. I am fully prepared to be hit by a bill that I cannot decipher.

[laneweaver]

FWIW, my items shipped by Choice were not affected by tariffs and arrived via private courier, not FedEx, UPS, or USPS. From my brief experience, Choice is the cheapest and most predictable shipping option.

That's not to say that the private courier was the best, however. The guy delivered some of my packages to a neighbor 2 doors away... I'm glad my neighborhood is a relatively safe community and was able to retrieve my packages.

As always, YMMV.

[jonathanf2]

My first batch of Choice items arrived with no additional fees. Other than high volume, small replaceable items (disc rotors, brake pads, etc.) which haven't been affected too badly by price hikes, everything actually decent on AliEx seems way more expensive and/or no longer available. 

[00Garza]

My first batch of Choice items arrived with no additional fees. Other than high volume, small replaceable items (disc rotors, brake pads, etc.) which haven't been affected too badly by price hikes, everything actually decent on AliEx seems way more expensive and/or no longer available. 

Yup. Here is the price difference I'm seeing on things I've purchased.
What I paid vs price now. (If they even ship here anymore)

Tagoola Carbon wheelset $373 with expedited shipping vs $450 with slow shipping.
Ltwoo egr group $413 vs $614
Tubleess tires $23 each vs $43 each
Senicx crank $58 vs $92
Lexon integrated handlebar $124 vs $216
Bxt 135 frame $425 shipped vs $625 shipped

[lavistaa]

Brutal price increases, bummer esp on groupset prices and testing out cool offerings.  Talk about slamming the lid down on our hands !