Russian Tube Preamp, No Return, Here I go again

lewm,

you would think I had a choice of a lot of vintage stuff, but right now there is not much available,

https://www.ebay.com/sch/67807/i.html?_from=R40&_nkw=tube+preamp&rt=nc&LH_PrefLoc=1

I have 2 Fisher 500C tube receivers downstairs, I just don’t want something that big in here.

This actually started because I am giving a TT to a friend and it/she needs a phono stage, soooo, why not get tube phono for my office and give her my current one. Almost got a Pro-Ject Tube Box S2, that kind of established a budget,

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Pro-Ject-Tube-Box-S2-Phono-Preamplifier-Black/392274169114?epid=28035808843...

 then I saw the Russian one, hmm, tubes for R2R also, what a good idea.

I’ve purchased, maybe about five times from Russia, and they all worked well. They were all small items -- cartridges and tubes. Haven’t purchased any big items like amp or preamps from Russia, even though I purchased quite a few gears from China, including amps and preamps. All amps/preamps I purchased from China were OK. The best was Jungson JA-99C and JA-1 amp/preamp.
There were also quite a few scams from China -- a few from eBay purchase and many from Facebook ads.
I got all refunds from eBay scam, but not from Facebook ads even though I paid with PayPal. What happened was, I purchased a few bicycle related items (shoes, pedals, clothes, ...) from Facebook ads and what I received were random junk items (water bottle, stainless whisky flask, ...) or no items at all. I ignored them as junk mails, but they were actual items sent from the sender. To get reimbursed I had to return those items back to China. Shipping cost was almost half as the amount I paid for. If I did not return the item, PayPal would not have refunded me. Now, I don’t purchase anything from Facebook ads if they are sold from China.
Hope you enjoy the Russian gear.

Elliot, I'm sure you'll be fine.  But the argument regarding size puzzles me. It would seem that those domestic vintage pieces on the eBay page you cited would be about the same size as the unit you are buying.  Just saying.  A 500C chassis is larger, I grant you that.  But it's all in one and darn nice sounding if properly refurbished.

Did you buy  2-year protection plan from SquareTrade - $39.99
:-)
Keep us informed! 

@ lewm
"In support of what Chak says about expedited shipping, I have purchased various capacitors from Russian vendors on eBay. The shipping time is very short, sometimes as little as 4-5 days. Much faster than buying from Canada, most of the time. I stopped using one Canadian parts supplier because customs was so slow."...............



Its actually your countries customs that delays parcels from delivery.
NOT the country shipped from. That works both ways. From your country to here in Canada , then it’s Canada customs who delays its release for delivering.... sometimes it sails right through after a quick check.....other times not so much....their is a human element to it....literally luck of the draw of how/when package is cleared....
The best experience I have always had is with Royal mail out of Britain to Canada post for delivery.
The US/Canada border...crap shoot and sometimes the bs "brokerage" and other various charges we get burnt for from the brown shirts....

In any event....I hope the OP gets his purchase quickly and it exceeds his expectations. ...
Cheers