Buying directly from Uhlmann?

[_fence(1)]

I remember someone posted here that it was cheaper to buy jacket/knickers/other stuff directly from Uhlmann and get it shipped from Germany.

I went to their web site, http://www.uhlmann-fechtsport.de/ and they say that they don't ship to US...

Has anyone from US tried to buy anything directly from Uhlmann?

Thnx!

[KD5MDK]

My impression is most orders to Germany from the US go to Fechtsport-Langenkamp. I've never dealt with them myself, but everybody I've heard of who has had an excellent experience.

[Kettu]

As I understand it, Uhlmann and Allstar have in fact merged into one company. (Visit the Allstar site for mention of a 10% discount for products of both vendors). I recently ordered from Allstar UK, and being a resident of the US, they preferred that I order from the US supplier. You need a sufficient reason to convince the UK vendors to ship to you; in my case, the jacket was not available in my size from the US supplier, (m98L), and they therefore agreed to ship the product directly to me. This is cheaper, and there is no markup this way, but the convincing part may give you some trouble.

[wlc]

I remember someone posted here that it was cheaper to buy jacket/knickers/other stuff directly from Uhlmann and get it shipped from Germany.

I went to their web site, http://www.uhlmann-fechtsport.de/ and they say that they don't ship to US...

Has anyone from US tried to buy anything directly from Uhlmann?

Thnx!

I suggest you email Valeria Weissgerber and ask about purchasing directly. Her e-mail address is on their contact page. I have been very pleased with their service. You can't order directly off their website, and you will need to call with your credit card info, but I have not found this to be a problem.

[CvilleFencer]

As mentioned it is not possible to order directly from Uhlmann or Allstar in the US without doing a little work (in the case of Uhlmann) or a lot of work (in the case of Allstar). However, Fechtsport Lagenkamp has the same prices and carries both Uhlmann and Allstar versions of almost everything. Plus they have great customer service and are very easy to work with. I recommend that you give them a try.

[wpotere]

I remember someone posted here that it was cheaper to buy jacket/knickers/other stuff directly from Uhlmann and get it shipped from Germany.

I went to their web site, http://www.uhlmann-fechtsport.de/ and they say that they don't ship to US...

Has anyone from US tried to buy anything directly from Uhlmann?

Thnx!

I have gone down there a few times and spoke to them, great folks. They will ship to the US (as I have been told) if there is not a vendor local to you. The person to contact at Uhlmann in regards to this is Valeria Weissgerber (Valeria.Weissgerber@uhlmann-fechtsport.de). She speaks very good English and can help you get the issue resolved.

[SJCFU#2]

I have ordered from both Fechtsport Langenkamp and Uhlmann with no problems.

Fechtsport Langenkamp is easier to order from and generally ships faster. Uhlmann lists a wider variety of items (including reel parts) but they lack on-line ordering so it takes a bit longer to write up an order and air-mail across the Atlantic.

[foily]

I wrote an email to The Fencing Post about some Uhlmann knickers they'd have to order, and it sounds like it will be no problem. So, that's another option, dealing with a seller in the US, but maybe able to order what you need.

[oiuyt]

Has anyone from US tried to buy anything directly from Uhlmann?

When I was coaching at UMass we routinely placed 2 largish orders/year directly with Uhlmann without problems. At the time the club purchased all of the club equipment in this way and many of the individual members attached personal orders to the club shipments.

When this first started the dollar was VERY strong ($0.82 to the Euro) and it was a complete no-brainer (Uhlmann equipment was cheaper (including shipping) than the lowest-level items from BG, PC, Blade, etc.). A couple of years later, after a massive currency slide (to ~$1.33 to the Euro) it was still definitely worth doing, but it was less slam-dunk.

UMass has apparently since moved away from doing this, but I haven't heard anything that would indicate that there were any problems with such ordering even after I left.

-B
*edited to fix the quote block*

[KD5MDK]

Wow. I wish my club could have afforded Uhlmann as their club supplier, or knew it could.

[oiuyt]

Wow. I wish my club could have afforded Uhlmann as their club supplier, or knew it could.

Well, as mentioned previously, it was cheaper than the other options at the time. Note that this is no longer the case.

-B

[CvilleFencer]

I usually don't order from Lagenkampf until I need about 5-800 worth of gear. With the dollar holding fairly even around 120-123 vs. the Euro, on orders of that size I find I still save about $125+ over ordering in the US, even if I factor in the club discount I get from most of my vendors. Some things are just so much cheaper (parts, cords, lames, masks, bags, gloves) that it still saves money, even with the fairly steep shipping cost. If you have a large order, or you get a few people to go in with you, it makes a lot of sense.

[_fence(1)]

CvilleFencer, just wondering if you remember - how long does it take to get your order from them?

[CvilleFencer]

CvilleFencer, just wondering if you remember - how long does it take to get your order from them?

It's not quick, but considering the distance it is fairly reasonable. They will also ship air express but it costs a small fortune. IIRC it usually takes about 3 weeks, but I have gotten items in around two before. If you place your order on a Friday, there are no major Euro comps coming up and you don't start counting until the next business day I would say to start looking for it in about 12-16 days.

[bigdawg2121]

I generally order all of my non-urgent stuff from Uhlmann and although I haven't had to place an order in a bit I generally got my orders in much closer to the 12 days than the 16, a couple of times the turnover was actually closer to a week. (Although that would seem to be a rather rare case, maybe they just like be better )