conus curious

hello there. well i'm new to astronomy, new to astromart (introduced to the site by an enthusiastic mate),new to computers too, actually, this is the first time I've posted anything, anywhere. I am hoping by next year, to purchase my first scope. I am leaning towards some kind of goto equipped 8"SCT. only problem is I'm on the other side of the world in NZ and there is not a great deal of second hand telescope trading happening here. this leads me to my(no doubt first of many) enquiries. as I peruse the classifieds here I see'CONUS'included fairly often. I gather this indicates sales to within US only. not complaining, but curious to know why so? I have two american friends who come down here more or less annually, so no biggy.
regards all, Mark Wilding

Hello Mark, and welcome aboard!
Most people want to avoid having to deal with the hassle of shipping overseas, extra charges, customs, possible problems due to the distance/rough handling of goods, and possible scams too... (not that it happens often, but it has happened before...)

To some it is simply not worth the effort.

I personally have shipped small items as far as Singapore, but shipping a Large Telescope is a completely different matter...



Clear skies! 8)

Mark:

There are a variety of reasons why people might specify CONUS. For me there are two main reasons.

First is, I normally like to handle the deal in person so that the buyer knows exactly what he/she is getting. So normally say something like "Southern California Only."

The second is that added effort/hassle of shipping something to a foriegn country. It must be packed better and there are all sorts of unknowns like customs that just make it a more tenuous transaction.

I know that for someone in another country, the US prices are most often very attractive, so it may be frustrating to be on the outside looking in. Probably if you had a firm understanding of the import and shipping regulations and were prepared to explain them, a prospective seller might be more comfortable selling the NZ.

Best wishes, clear skies

jon