Author Topic: Pagoda World 35  (Read 2195 times)

Jonny B

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Pagoda World 35
« on: August 30, 2024, 15:44:27 »
The next issue of Pagoda World magazine - PW 35 - is being put in the mail today. This is for all areas we send to.

Hope you enjoy the issue.
Kind regards,
Jonny B
1967 250 SL Auto, DB 568
1970 280 SL Auto, DB 904
1966 Morris Mini Minor

lreppond

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Re: Pagoda World 35
« Reply #1 on: September 06, 2024, 14:43:23 »
Got mine yesterday JonnyB.   Really appreciate having production updates all in one spot in hard copy!  Great idea. 
~Len

1971 280 SL
576G red/251 Beige
4 speed manual
Family owned since new (father —> son)

RAY

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Re: Pagoda World 35
« Reply #2 on: September 08, 2024, 17:53:45 »
Got mine yesterday, Sat 7th in the UK  :)

Thanks to everyone who helps in any way with the production of our great magazine.

WRe

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Re: Pagoda World 35
« Reply #3 on: September 09, 2024, 11:22:43 »
Received mine today, great, thanks!

JamesL

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Re: Pagoda World 35
« Reply #4 on: September 09, 2024, 14:10:25 »
Got mine in London today. Thanks
James L
Oct69 RHD 280 in DB906 with cognac leather

Peter van Es

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Re: Pagoda World 35
« Reply #5 on: September 09, 2024, 15:04:43 »
Received mine last saturday... it's like it took no time to get here...

Peter
1970 280SL. System Admin of the site. Please do not mail or PM me questions on Pagoda's... I'm not likely to know the answer.  Please post on the forum instead!

mazmonza

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Re: Pagoda World 35
« Reply #6 on: September 09, 2024, 16:40:05 »
Received mine today, I knew some but have learned a lot many thanks.
Maurice.
1967 250sl ZF 5 speed
1991 300ce-24 coupe Sportline
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1970 Ducati Monza

mdsalemi

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Re: Pagoda World 35
« Reply #7 on: September 09, 2024, 20:24:17 »
Received mine last saturday... it's like it took no time to get here...

Peter

Due to all the mailing issues in the past couple of years, all the internationals are now going first class. So if you live in a non-remote area of a country in western Europe or UK, things will get there very quickly… Provided we have a proper address!
Michael Salemi
Davidson, North Carolina (Charlotte Area) USA
1969 280SL (USA-Spec)
Signal Red 568G w/Black Leather (Restored)
2023 Ford Maverick Lariat Hybrid "Area 51"
2023 Ford Escape Hybrid
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lagolag

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Re: Pagoda World 35
« Reply #8 on: September 11, 2024, 21:08:18 »
Thanks,
Arrived to me in Sweden on Sept 10, that's fast shipping!
230SL 1967 since July 2021
SL55 AMG 2003 since July 2008
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AndrewB

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Re: Pagoda World 35
« Reply #9 on: September 12, 2024, 08:09:54 »
Mine arrived in Guernsey at the start of the week - really impressive, and I really appreciate all the efforts from Mike and Jonny in pulling this together and sorting out the historic postage issues
1969 280SL (unrestored)
1970 280SL (fully restored)
1971 Range Rover Suffix A Kingsley Restomod
1987 500SL
2002 Porsche 996 Targa
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Davek1

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Re: Pagoda World 35
« Reply #10 on: September 12, 2024, 17:27:04 »
Mine arrived in the UK on Monday, really like all the model changes in one place, great job, well done

MikeSimon

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Re: Pagoda World 35
« Reply #11 on: September 13, 2024, 13:09:13 »
Got mine in Ohio yesterday, September 12. Usual unpredictable, unreliable US postal service.
Liked the content, showing all the changes in the 230/250 models.
Has anybody ever bothered or attempted to make a comprehensive list of what changed from model to model? There is always a lot of talk about preference for one of the 3 over the others. Would be awesome to see the details.
1970/71 280SL Automatic
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mdsalemi

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Re: Pagoda World 35
« Reply #12 on: September 13, 2024, 13:36:18 »
Got mine in Ohio yesterday, September 12. Usual unpredictable, unreliable US postal service.

You DID get it...so it is reliable. All USA is going out presort first class. This provides us with a return service in the case of wrong addresses. The origin is the Raleigh area in NC, a major sorting center. How the individual mail pieces make their way around the country is a bit of a mystery. Some sorting centers better than others. Some individual post offices are really bad. The "standard" as it were, for presort first class is 1-4 days nationwide. But, as you can see it took about 12 days to get to you. AlexD in Cary, a short distance from Raleigh, is also one of the last to get his. I'm the other side of NC and mine comes quickly. Go figure. Mail volume at the local PO? Who knows. Bottom line is you got it.

I'm particularly pleased that we've improved the overseas delivery by a vast margin. It cost a bit more but the reliability and speed is a huge improvement over a couple of years ago.
Michael Salemi
Davidson, North Carolina (Charlotte Area) USA
1969 280SL (USA-Spec)
Signal Red 568G w/Black Leather (Restored)
2023 Ford Maverick Lariat Hybrid "Area 51"
2023 Ford Escape Hybrid
2024 Ford Mustang Mach Ex PEV

MikeSimon

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Re: Pagoda World 35
« Reply #13 on: September 15, 2024, 14:52:31 »
You DID get it...so it is reliable. 

I have my experience with US Postal Service that is contrary to that! In the last 2 months, they have lost 2 checks I mailed to pay bills. There is no reason that mail from wherever the Pagoda World is sent out to Ohio takes longer than to an overseas destination. The poor USPS service is the talk on a national level. All kinds of excuses are made...
1970/71 280SL Automatic
Sandy Beige
Parchment Leather
Power Steering
Automatic
Hardtop
Heated Tinted Rear Window
German specs
3rd owner

mdsalemi

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Re: Pagoda World 35
« Reply #14 on: September 15, 2024, 16:39:35 »
I have my experience with US Postal Service that is contrary to that! In the last 2 months, they have lost 2 checks I mailed to pay bills. There is no reason that mail from wherever the Pagoda World is sent out to Ohio takes longer than to an overseas destination. The poor USPS service is the talk on a national level. All kinds of excuses are made...

If you know of any other service that will deliver our magazine from Raleigh to you, for a few dollars, please let us know.
If you would like to pay, we'll be happy to ship it Fedex or UPS. Contact us for the additional cost.
Every mailing is around 1,200 copies, more than 600 in the USA, twice a year. We've had our eyes wide open and ears to the ground for years optimizing the best way of moving the merchandise. What we are doing now is the best we've found. We do get some undeliverables and 90% of the time it's because the member doesn't provide a proper address, and most of those are not USA since we can correct and verify USA addresses.

As for your comment about Ohio vs. overseas, first class mail in the USA goes mostly by truck and through a number of sorting centers. So our members in the major markets of UK and certain major destinations of Europe generally will get Pagoda World at least as quick, or quicker than many USA destinations since it goes by air to London and other major markets. When the stars align for them it can be a few days to London and surrounding area.
Michael Salemi
Davidson, North Carolina (Charlotte Area) USA
1969 280SL (USA-Spec)
Signal Red 568G w/Black Leather (Restored)
2023 Ford Maverick Lariat Hybrid "Area 51"
2023 Ford Escape Hybrid
2024 Ford Mustang Mach Ex PEV

rwmastel

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Re: Pagoda World 35
« Reply #15 on: September 15, 2024, 18:28:47 »
There is no reason that mail from wherever the Pagoda World is sent out to Ohio takes longer than to an overseas destination.
I got mine in Ohio at least a week before you.  It must be a poorly managed regional depot or something local.
Rodd

Did you search the forum before asking?
2017 C43 AMG
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1966 230SL auto "Italian"

Pinder

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Re: Pagoda World 35
« Reply #16 on: September 16, 2024, 13:12:41 »
i received mine weeks ago in NJ.
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MikeSimon

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Re: Pagoda World 35
« Reply #17 on: September 19, 2024, 12:11:08 »
I got mine in Ohio at least a week before you.  It must be a poorly managed regional depot or something local.

That is exactly what i am saying. And it doesn't really have anything to do with Pagoda World. Seems like Mike Salemi took this post personally. 8)
1970/71 280SL Automatic
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Parchment Leather
Power Steering
Automatic
Hardtop
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German specs
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mdsalemi

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Re: Pagoda World 35
« Reply #18 on: September 19, 2024, 14:38:28 »
That is exactly what i am saying. And it doesn't really have anything to do with Pagoda World. Seems like Mike Salemi took this post personally. 8)

Of course I take it personally! JonnyB and myself, along with our printer partners, have worked very, very hard--harder than most members know--to ensure everyone gets their mailings. It's a constant battle and we are on the front lines nearly constantly on this. And yet we have complaints.

None of us really know precisely how and where mail of various classes moves from one place to another. Maybe Brad Badali can enlighten us as I know he worked for the USPS. The assumption when somebody gets their issue later than someone else is that there is a failure in the system. The reality is unless someone with insight into the inner workings of how mail moves around the country lets us know, we're only guessing. I have enough experience to know, however, that from our printer in Raleigh, NC, to London, UK--those members in the greater London area will get their Pagoda World faster than a good portion of the USA. Part of that has to do with the international mailings going FIRST CLASS which aside from expedited service, is the fastest class of mail. USA mailings go out STANDARD MAIL which provide a whopping discount. Standard mail isn't available to non-USA addresses, and the slower international services (we've tried them and were not happy) just are frought with issues. You may not remember (but I certainly do) that we've had to do two re-mailings with failures of international shipping in the past couple of years. Those days are behind us.

Putting it into perspective, on this last issue, we paid $1.24 per issue for each USA address we mailed to. Had we sent those first class, the cost would be $4.68 each. That's a savings of $3.44 each, and with 770 mailed out to the USA, a savings to our members and the group of $2,648.80 on this issue, #35 alone.

If anyone has any suggestion on how to improve what we are doing now with the mailings--let us know. Our printer is also what is called "a mailing house" so we work with them closely on this.
Michael Salemi
Davidson, North Carolina (Charlotte Area) USA
1969 280SL (USA-Spec)
Signal Red 568G w/Black Leather (Restored)
2023 Ford Maverick Lariat Hybrid "Area 51"
2023 Ford Escape Hybrid
2024 Ford Mustang Mach Ex PEV

debel56

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Re: Pagoda World 35
« Reply #19 on: September 19, 2024, 15:14:19 »
Pagoda World #35 arrived to Sant Cugat (Spain) yesterday. :)

Many thanks

Carlos

yves

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Re: Pagoda World 35
« Reply #20 on: September 19, 2024, 20:12:14 »
And it arrived here in France 10 days ago…!
Anyway, what’s the problem if it arrives 10or 30 days before or after?
We have all of us the pleasure to read it and keep it by us during breakfast or coffee time👍
Thank’s a lot to every board member who does the job.
Yves , French happy member 👍👋🏻
Happy owner of a 69 blue 280SL ,  63 FHC  osb E-type , 55 FHC XK 140 to be restored...

MikeSimon

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Re: Pagoda World 35
« Reply #21 on: September 20, 2024, 12:27:32 »
Of course I take it personally! JonnyB and myself, along with our printer partners, have worked very, very hard--harder than most members know--to ensure everyone gets their mailings. It's a constant battle and we are on the front lines nearly constantly on this. And yet we have complaints.......

Oh, for crying out loud, Mike. You still don't get it. You act like an old woman. Nowhere did I complain about you and/or the team that works on the magazine and getting it out. I complained about the USPS and I sure have my reasons. Unfortunately, there are little or no alternatives and I understand this. I have to use them too and it upsets me how lousy the service is and that you can't do anything about it. They give you the cold shoulder when you complain about it. That's all I have to say... 8)
1970/71 280SL Automatic
Sandy Beige
Parchment Leather
Power Steering
Automatic
Hardtop
Heated Tinted Rear Window
German specs
3rd owner