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your thoughts on current 4-way joysticks please
Jimbo:
--- Quote from: pbj on April 15, 2021, 09:41:24 am ---Mail the joysticks to me, I'll slap a label on them and remail to the UK as a gift for the cost of shipping. I do not give a ---fudgesicle--- about your government and their taxes.
:cheers:
--- End quote ---
Thanks pbj that's very kind of you - I have managed to sort it in this instance though! :cheers:
Grasshopper:
Yeah, I found out about the new VAT rules when I ordered something from Aliexpress about a month ago. When I got to the checkout, they slapped on an extra 20% tax! At first I thought it was a scam, but no, after further research, this does appear to be a genuine change to the rules.
It's actually got nothing to do with Brexit. This is an EU-wide rule change that was supposed to come into effect from the 1st January 2021 for all EU member states. However, the EU decided to postpone the effective date to the 1st July 2021 because of all the disruption caused by the pandemic. For some reason, the UK decided to stick with the original implementation date.
I've got mixed feelings about it. No one likes paying taxes. But it kind of makes sense when you consider the wider geo-political situation. Chinese sellers generally take the piss when it comes to customs declarations. They tend to either mis-declare the item as being a gift, or they give it an artificially low purchase price. That's great for consumers, but not so good for governments that need to raise taxes somehow. It's also not so good for western companies who tend to be more honest when completing customs declarations. That puts them at a competitive disadvantage when compared to their Chinese counterparts.
Prior to my recent Aliexpress purchase, I'd never paid a penny in tax for anything I'd purchased from China. However, over the years, I've paid a huge amount of tax on items purchased from other countries such as the US. I also have to pay tax on any items purchased from withing the UK, as the tax is automatically included in the purchase price. This rule change does at least level the playing field a little.
Grasshopper:
Getting back to joysticks, I wouldn't rule out the mag-Stik set to 4-way mode. It's quite stiff, and not to everyone's taste. However, I've heard that its feel is massively improved if you swap out (or modify) the microswitches to make them softer.
For example, check out this guy's video:
http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=143797.0
Jimbo:
The trouble with the magstik for me is that it's a bat-top joystick. Most of the old 4-way classics used a ball top, a bat just feels wrong to me. Although I admit I don't actually know whether you can swap the handle to a ball on the magstik!
Grasshopper:
Yes, you can swap the handle to a ball. For example, check out this Spanish seller:
https://www.arcadexpress.com/en/joysticks/223-407-joystick-magnetico-bola-industrias-lorenzo.html#/11-colour-black
I believe Ultimarc also offers ball handles if you prefer to order from the UK.