Thanks for starting the thread.
I am familiar with GST rates, thresholds and import duties etc. Over a number of years I've personally imported and cleared through customs lots of very large and expensive objects - boats, trailers, jet skis etc., shipped from the USA in 40HQ containers, scores of guitars from USA, and lots of musical instruments from Hong Kong. And, like you, often (very often!) I purchase ad hoc from overseas. To illustrate the point, right now I am waiting on a number of items to arrive - an MB D2B cable from the USA, some hi-fi parts from Asia, some electronic parts from Sydney, a masthead wind vane for a yacht from the UK, and some upholstery for my 280SL from the USA. Very, very few things are "low cost" in Australia. A week would not pass without at least two parcels being delivered to my door. In November I am planning to go to either Hong Kong/China or the USA for a week specifically to buy rather than holiday.
However, there are a lot of USA suppliers who won't ship internationally, or if they do, then the shipping rates make it uneconomic. Sometimes this seems to be unintentional - the online shipping calculators they have on their sites are just not configured to provide more economic shipping options - and at other times the supplier seems to want to price gouge on international shipping.
For example, there are some very economic international shipping options offered by USPS (flat rate parcels etc.), but if the calculator is driven by weight or size only, then these options never get offered. As a consequence shipping might be quoted at, say, $50, when blind Freddy can see that there are perfectly acceptable $15 options available. Whilst FedEx and UPS may be cost effective within the USA their international pricing is very inconsistent - sometimes it makes sense to use them, but not often.
I wanted to buy a pair of the "horsehair" backrest pads for the front seats of my 280SL. A USA supplier sells them for $149 each and will ship the pair of them anywhere in the top 48 states for less than $20, but his online calculator quoted $330 to ship two of them to Australia. Needless to say I didn't buy. Compare this with the USA upholsterer who will supply me with new MB-Tex seat covers, backrest covers, headrest covers, door covers, rear jump seat seat and backrest covers, and the matching trim on the soft top lid (all for my 280SL) and also cover shipping to Australia all for $1100. For an extra $400 he will buy the backrest pads from the first supplier and consolidate them with his shipment to me .... so he is only charging $100 "extra" to ship the backrests.
I am particularly interested in your experience of the USA freight forwarder - Bongo US (or a similar operator). Have you used them to consolidate purchases from multiple USA suppliers, have these been easy/difficult, do they communicate well, do they get it "right" etc., is their all up cost truly all up (excluding GST, duties, customs clearance if these apply)? They claim delivery within 5 days ..... did they?
I think it would be useful for a lot of members here to be able to confidently overcome the "we don't ship internationally" policy on several of the USA based MB parts supplier's web sites. It will make for much cheaper running costs for our MLs.
Thanks.