Hi folks:

I have a whole bunch of things I want to ship to myself here in Medellin before heading south to Ecuador. It's mostly camping/electronics/etc. However I do have front/rear break pads, and adjustable risers to raise up the rear end of my V-Strom (man I didn't anticipate lack of ground clearance being the problem it has been). I also want to minimize my DIAN duty as its 28% here!

In any case, I've heard from a few sources that I cannot ship myself used motorcycle parts. I have also just gotten off the phone with GIRO Express (a shipper in Florida who will then ship to Colombia) who told me there's no problem with shipping parts; you just have to pay the tax. So I'm a little confused.

So I'm asking:
1) Can I ship motorcycle parts to myself here in Medellin?
2) I have researched shippers and found that many use Giro Express, Tampa Freight, and one other I can't remember. In addition, my friend says he can get me 75% off FedEx. Which would be the best/cheapest combo in terms of overall cost?
3) Any tips on how to minimize the value of tax I'll pay? You can see the full list of items (with full retail value) I want to send below. I've heard that marking everything used (most of the items are) will let me lower the value... but I don't know what the "minimum" value would be.

*salt & pepper shaker, $5
* headlamp $25
* led keychain light $5
* bug net for hammock $40
* brake pads for front / rear: $80
* ear plugs from amazon sent two day - $10
* gps mount - $10
* replacement SPOT device: $50
* four pack of rechargeable batteries for my water filter: $5
* paper maps of bolivia/chile/peru/ecuador: $60
* rei rain pants : $100
* waterproof winter moto gloves; $25
* soupy's raising links $50
* replacement keyboard for my lenovo laptpo $20
* symtec grip heaters - 100
* kisan taillight modulator replacement: $20

So this is $605 worth of stuff at retail... and I'd like avoid the $170 in taxes it would be if everything were claimed as retail (many items are used and I think that should dramatically lower the value).

I'd love your thoughts.

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Hi I'm David; headed to South America via a Suzuki V-Strom 650.
http://www.davidparkinson.com