FAQ
DELIVERY:
UK delivery
Free for all items. Shipping will be via Royal Mail Tracked 24, or Special Delivery for particularly valuable items.
International Delivery
Will usually be via Royal Mail International Tracked.
Europe
Free delivery for european orders over £125 (under 2kg weight), and a flat rate of £10 for all other european orders up to 2kg. Orders over 2kg in weight (e.g. large format books, or multi-volume sets) will require extra postage, but will be shipped via the most economical service available. Local taxes (VAT, import duties, etc) are not included in the shipping cost, and payment of any such taxes oe duties is the responsibility of the recipient.
Rest of the World (excluding USA)
Free delivery for Rest of the World orders over £175 (under 1kg weight), and a discounted rate from £10 - £30 (calculated at checkout by weight), for all other orders under 2kg. Orders over 2kg in weight (e.g. large format books, or multi-volume sets) will require extra postage, but will be shipped via the most economical service available. Local taxes (VAT, import duties, etc) are not included in the shipping cost, and payment of any such taxes or duties is the responsibility of the recipient.
USA
For all items up to a value of £590, delivery will be by Royal Mail International Tracked. The cost of shipping will be calculated at checkout, with prices starting at £10 for items valued up to £50. This is a Postal Delivery Duties Paid (PDDP) service, and includes the US import duty charge on items shipped from the UK to the USA. As any US import duties are included in the shipping price, there should be no further import duties to be paid on delivery.
For all items over a value of £590, shipping will be at a flat rate of £25. This is not a Postal Delivery Duties Paid service (PDDP) and does not include US Import Duties or any other local taxes. Payment of any US Import Duties will be the responsibilty of the recipient. When the order has been placed, we will contact you to confirm that duties are not pre-paid before despatching the item.
All items shown on the site are in stock and ready for immediate shipping. Orders will usually be posted within 24hrs and tracking details will be sent via email.
GUARANTEE:
You can return any item, for any reason, within 30 days for a full refund. Please ensure that your item is undamaged and in the same condition as it was originally delivered. Your payment will be refunded immediately when the item has been returned.
RETURNS:
Returns should be posted within 30 days of receipt via a secure, insured and trackable service. Proof of posting should be obtained by the sender. Please contact us before posting so we can provide full details of our returns address.
HOW TO BUY:
Select your item from one of the drop-down menus at the top of the home page, or by clicking on any of the item images. Click on the item title or photo to access its details page. Click on the 'Add to Cart' button. This will take you to the cart screen, where you can select either 'Checkout' or 'Paypal Checkout'. Then just follow the payment method instructions. You will receive a confirmation email to let you know your order has gone through successfully. You will receive another email update when your order has been shipped.
PAYMENT:
Payment can be made by Credit or Debit Card (Visa, Mastercard, American Express), Paypal, or Apple Pay. Paypal allows you to make payments either from your Paypal account, or by credit or debit card using Paypal's secure payment server for online card processing. if you choose the Paypal option at the checkout it gives you the choice of either logging into your Paypal account or selecting 'Pay with Debit or Credit Card’ . You can use the latter option even if you don’t have a Paypal account. Payment by cheque is also accepted.
VALUATIONS:
Due to the large number of requests for valuations, and the time it takes to deal with these requests, a fee of £10 will be charged for a basic valuation. For written, or more detailed valuations or professional advice, please use the contact form or phone 07484853837 and ask for a quote.
LINKS:
Some useful links:
Trademarklondon: the excellent website of Paul Crespel, author of Trade Mark London (2009). The story of Francis Barker & Son, by the acknowledged expert on Francis Barker and virtually all other compasses, can be found in the online PDF version of Paul's book at: www.trademarklondon.com
Compassipedia: the Wikipedia of compasses, an excellent, detailed, very well illustrated and comprehensive guide to all the various types of compass and compass makers can be found at: www.compassmuseum.com
Compass Chronicles (Schiffer Publishing, 2010): a great book by Kornelia Takacs, compass expert and author, full of very useful information and very well illustrated.
Scientific collectables: an online store, with a vast and very useful archive of detailed images of compasses and scientific instruments, can be found at: www.scientificcollectables.com
Wilkinson F-S Collection: an excellent resource, created by Roy Shadbolt, primarily intended for the Fairbairn-Sykes collector, but also detailing the products of the Wilkinson Sword Co. Ltd, including miltaria, the Verner's Mk VI compass, pistols and other weapons. www.wilkinsonfscollection.com
Compass collector: a very useful resource for compass collectors, with articles on the history of the compass and details of the Singer's Patent and WW1 Verner's service pattern compasses. www.compasscollector.com
ENQUIRIES:
If you need any other information, or have any questions about an item, delivery, or payment, please either use the Contact Form or email:
Telephone (Mon-Fri 10am-5pm): 07484853837