Good price or not

[baggywrinkle]

I have to go to Japan and Korea later this month.

Just been checking a couple of astro shops in Tokyo.

One has Pentax XW ep's for £180 new. Is this a good price?

Also seen Takahashi LE ep's for £100-130

[rowan46]

certainly good prices by british standards but I suppose it depends on how much tax they sting you for

http://www.firstlightoptics.com/pentax/pentax-xw-10mm.html

http://www.telescopehouse.com/acatalog/Takahashi_LE_5mm_1_25___Eyepiece.html

[Andy_E]

Seems good to me. UK asking price for XWs tends to be around the £250 mark

[baggywrinkle]

The prices I saw are including local taxes..

[Naemeth]

Look like a bargain to me. Try and get some Nikon NAV eyepieces if you can, I hear they are a bargain in Japan (comparatively speaking) .

[John]

Thats a good XW price as long as you don't get stung for tax / duty when you get home. I've always thought the Tak LE's a bit overpriced to be honest, even at those prices.

[baggywrinkle]

I am booking flights to Tokyo and Busan. I lived in Tokyo for 2 years a good few years ago and I know it quite well.

I will be handcarrying anything I buy back into China. Then I will have to wait until I am in the UK but it does seem too good an opp' to miss. A bit of future proofing.

[nerointegrale16v]

http://www.takahashijapan.com/

shop in akihabara,tokyo

http://www3.snowman.ne.jp/~s-ussy/telesco/shop1.htm

starshop translated

map  translated six minutue walk or get a taxi from JR suidobashi station

another shop   translated

directions translated

from JR akihabara station i would print japanese page and give taxi driver

martin

[baggywrinkle]

Thanks Nero for the links, Starbase is one shop I will visit. I knew Akihabara (AKA Electric City) from when I lived in Tokyo (Mejiro). Right on the Yamanote line so easy to get to.

My son was 6/7 at the time and he loved it. The gagdet shops there and in Shinjuku were a big draw at the weekends when we were not at the kendo dojo.

[baggywrinkle]

http://www.mmjp.or.jp/takahashi-sb/

[Stargazer_00]

See how much Nikon NAVs cost there.     Think TeleVue Ethos on steroids.

[nerointegrale16v]

See how much Nikon NAVs cost there.     Think TeleVue Ethos on steroids.

nikon eyepieces

1 pound = 156 yen

[alan potts]

A little less than  the 21mm Ethos then at 543 pounds, but not everyone gets a chance to go there, I would go for a NAV because they are so rare here.

Alan

[baggywrinkle]

According to their price lists £178 ea. for 5, 7 10 & 14mm

I wear glasses and am astigmatic so I am not too sure whether these are for me.

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Regarding tax, I was told by Dutch customs that anything less up to 425 euro does not need to be declared when entering the eurozone, so no tax involved there. If you do not live in Japan, you can buy tax-free in most stores, provided you hand in the correct form at customs when leaving Japan.

[baggywrinkle]

I will do that. Definately going. I have to do some equipment training in Japan and I have the weekdn there. So I will head off to Akihabara with my slush fund

Will also catch up with my old kendo dojo to which is at Takadanobaba up the line from Shinjuku.

After that it is off to Busan in Korea.

Any advice on the orhto's from Nikon NAV would be appreciated. Especially as I am astimatic. I normally take my glasses off when viewing though.

[Mark in Macc]

Are there any novel goodies you could get from Korea? Do they make any astronomy equipment?

[baggywrinkle]

There are and I know the shops in Seoul, but not in Busan....one call always go exploring though.

From experience the shops in Japan are great for tech goodies both serious and fun.

[baggywrinkle]

Just found another shop in Tokyo selling Pentax PEXW for £185, seem reasonable...anyone using them.

The trouble is there is 3 choices

Takahashi

Nikon

Pentax...

Thed Takahashi are the cheapest, the Nikon & Pentax arer the same prices roughly.

[tarotrocola]

I've been recently in Japan, and If you are interested in Vixen eyepieces, best place is at Yodobashi's. You get tax free (8%) and 5% extra discount if you pay with visa.

Aproximated prices in Yens:

Vixen LVW 8mm 16420!! with discount  14350

Vixen LVW 22mm 19000 with discount  16606

Others focal lengths same price almost

Vixen NPL 11100 all focals with discount 9700

Pentax 10mm XW 29000 with discount 25346

Nikon nav 5,7,14 around 30000  with discount around 26000

But Nikon and Pentax there wasn't much stock.

Very good prices at current exchange rate with Yen.

Regards,

Ivan.

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Sounds very interesting. Given the price difference between Pentax XWs and Nikons NAVs in Europe, it is a great surprise to see them going for roughly the same price in Japan. That would make me veer towards the Nikon. If you want to sell them here there will be an eager market.

[YKSE]

Sounds very interesting. Given the price difference between Pentax XWs and Nikons NAVs in Europe, it is a great surprise to see them going for roughly the same price in Japan. That would make me veer towards the Nikon.

That's how I got my Nikons

[Piero]

Go for it! 

[tarotrocola]

Sounds very interesting. Given the price difference between Pentax XWs and Nikons NAVs in Europe, it is a great surprise to see them going for roughly the same price in Japan. That would make me veer towards the Nikon. If you want to sell them here there will be an eager market.

Sell? I'm willing to came back for more!