Hello,
I need some references for Probikekit.com…
I was shopping for a 4iiii crank arm power meter, and their price is substantially lower
than everywhere else.
Makes me suspicious!
Glen
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I’ve bought a couple items from them and have not had any issues. I would say buy with confidence.
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I’ve bought from them and they were fine
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I’ve used them - no issues. Shipping to the US is free but takes a while (1-2 weeks at least)
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They’re legit. I’ve stopped buying from them because customs charges to Canada are outrageous, but that’s not their fault.
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I buy loads of stuff from them in the UK, no issues at all
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what do you use instead? Chain Reaction?
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Yeah, Chain Reaction has an option for pre-paid customs with shipping by DHL(I think is the courier), which usually comes out to a fair bit cheaper than what the customs would be otherwise.
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Bought a bike box on sale, it arrived earlier than indicated and cashback through a 3rd party link got paid out too.
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It really varies so much from time to time - my last purchase was a pair of tyres and a bunch of tubes; they shipped in 2 separate lots, 2 separate boxes, arrived same day, same path (British post to Canada Post), the tubes got dinged for customs + taxes, the tyres made it through no tax, no fees. Go figure. But indeed I tend to have less issues with Chain Reaction Cycles.
Even with the customs and taxes, I still saved a bundle over buying it locally. I know, I’m one of those bad people who cause local bike shops to die.
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They are definitely legit, I used them in the past to buy some tires and tubeless kits. However shipping from them took ages to Canada and did not come with tracking so I ended up getting the stuff a bit over a month after I ordered it. Frustrating compared to something like Chain Reaction where I get tracking and shipping is super fast with the option to prepay duties.
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They’re legit. I’d also recommend www.powermetercity.com though. Super fast shipping in the US and consistently low prices. It’s where I picked up my 4iiii PM.
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Anyone in the U.S. buy from Chain Reaction and/or Probikekit.com? If yes, what were your experiences in terms of shipping time, tracking # and customs fees?
I’ve purchased from Probikekit and Chainreaction. Live in Ohio.
No issues with either but I believe Chainreaction stuff arrives faster. Probike is usually a couple of weeks or so. I usually order stuff that I don’t need urgently and recently ordered a Scicon bike case as they had a great sale price. So far have not been dinged customs or taxes.
Merlincycles.com is another UK shop that has some great deals and ships to U.S. Bought a bunch of Team Sky clothing super cheap earlier this year as they liquidated it.
I have made several purchases from Probikekit.com over the years and am in the US (MN). As others note, shipping takes a little while - probably about 2 weeks.
I have never had any customs issues or been charged any extra import taxes.
I find their pricing on Conti tires a particularly good deal as well.
Always use PBK for tires and tubes and have never had an issue sometimes they can be a little slow 8-15 days but I never order when I am in a hurry
Always had a positive experience with PBK, I ordered a brake calliper once as it was the cheapest place online - checked beforehand on online chat whether it came with the hose or not and was told it did. When it arrived without the hose they refunded the cost of the hose on its own (which I could only find on eBay on its own). Find stuff normally comes next day in the UK
I buy a lot from PBK, but nothing I think I might have to return, so make sure you get the correct size. If you don’t need it immediately (shipping to the US takes 7-10 day), the prices are great. But returning something is a waste of time and money… customs charges and shipping make it more expensive to return than to bite the bullet and put it on eBay.
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Probikeit have good prices and service to New Zealand. Find them better than Wiggle now
If you search the internet there are examples of PBK issues. Specifically when something is defective – PBK won’t take it back and the company (e.g. Deda, Campy, etc) won’t warranty it because PBK isn’t an authorized dealer for your area or just isn’t an authorized dealer and you can’t prove that it’s not a counterfeit part.
On top of that I’ve ordered from UK shops before and have lost packages. The response is basically “tough shit” – especially from PBK.
Then there’s the ethical implications of buying things under MAP/MSRP/wholesale – it does a significant disservice to the industry at a local level. It’s a long + complex discussion and I’m not sure there’s a great solution (money talks, right?) but with a 30%+ contraction in LBSs over the past few years . . . things just don’t look so good and it might be worth spending the extra $ to help ensure that there’s a network when you need it most.
FWIW, the last time I checked, I could get an Ultegra group from the UK for less than I could through Shimano’s Platinum industry discount program.
Dear Shimano, that’s pretty effed up. And yes, you have the power to control that kind’ve stuff – I know because I had a legit OEM account with you.
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Lemme clarify, I’m not throwing stones or suggesting that folks that buy from the “gray market” are horrible. I’ve ordered P L E N T Y from the UK. I just see things a bit differently after being a product manager and frame builder for a bunch of years.