Phil Sieg wrote that he was suprised by a modest customs charge for something he had shipped from overseas.
Customs charges are usually provoked by the value of an item. I had an extremely rude surprise when I had a rare tandem shipped from France. I made the mistake of having the seller insure it and declare full value. As a result, I ended up paying customs duties and release/agent fees to DHL that were significantly higher than the actually air-freight cost!!
Word to the wise: if you're importing something valuable, try to keep the declared value to a minimum, otherwise, you're gonna get killed. I'm still recovering from the shock..
Charles Andrews
SoCal