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Let’s talk SHIPPING CHARGES!!


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1 hour ago, gtrdaddy said:

I know every shipper has issues, but God forbid you wind up with a broken guitar with USPS. You will never get resolution. I speak from experience. 

Agreed, that's why I have an account with FedEx as I've had way too many things broken using UPS

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2 minutes ago, Studio Custom said:

Get a Heritage Musician's insurance policy, it is real insurance underwritten by Travelers. 

This is a great suggestion and I have a policy with them as well, but when it comes to worry-free shipping and pain-free claims, I'll still pay Reverb's nominal protection fee and let them be my first line of defense should something go to shit in shipping.

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I purchased Reverb shipping insurance for the Marshall amp I sold a few months ago, and they paid for the repairs when it was damaged. Well worth the $10-$20 fee.

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41 minutes ago, Studio Custom said:

Get a Heritage Musician's insurance policy, it is real insurance underwritten by Travelers. 

+1!  I am a big fan of Heritage.  

I've gone on and on about them in other threads, so I'll save the keystrokes, but one thing to remember is that they cover your guitar when it is being shipped, so you don't ever need to waste your money on FedEx/UPS/USPS BS shipping insurance.

They cover everything, pretty much no questions asked, except terrorism.  Yes... terrorism.

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Heritage insures my shop, including clients' guitars that are in my possession for repairs and restos, FYI.

Here's one for the story board ... I just put an Earthen Maple I TLC'ed for Thundersteel on the UPS truck. Louisiana to Florida panhandle, UPS Ground, $3K declared value, delivery sig required. A cut-and-paste of what I just messaged him.

The shipper, Baton Rouge Packaging and Shipping, was $76.72. It was my second stop. My first stop, the UPS Store by my house, wanted $104 for shipping UPS Ground AND they said they would have to pack "our" pack (I packed it like you did exactly, same materials, same box) in a custom-made box for ANOTHER $48 because our pack was insufficient for a $3K shipment. I politely told them because I've shipped hundreds (literally) of guitars just like this over the last 30 years, many of whcih valued at even more $$$, you'll never see me again, wished them a nice day and left. Unbelievable. 

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UPS uses the popcorn styrofoam bullshit... I hate that stuff!!! Shifts in the box and exposes portions to minimal protection not to mention the mess to the person opening the box. Rant over... I feel better now : )

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18 hours ago, kizanski said:

Not to muddy the waters, but has anyone purchased guitar shipping boxes from ULINE lately?
Do they come with guitars already in them, FFS?

They can only be purchased in quantities of 5.  Of course I only need 6 boxes, so fuk me.
With shipping (oh, the irony of shipping empty boxes), the 10 boxes comes to $130.

Reverb/eBay fees, PayPal fees, shipping fees (again)...

I should just throw these guitar out into the street.

Be sure to check the length of those boxes. Last time I bought ULINE boxes, I noticed they were about 6” longer than I needed.

It is well worth the time to trim the box before packing. Besides the extra packing material, that extra length can really bite you in the ass when the shipping company calculates their “dimensional weight.” 

On the bright side, they are nice, sturdy boxes. 

To address @Dutchman’s concerns, I almost always use USPS. They’ve been cheaper than FedEx, though perhaps a little slower. And I think their insurance is actually insurance. (Still enjoying that 390, BTW!!!)

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53 minutes ago, Dutchman said:

UPS uses the popcorn styrofoam bullshit... I hate that stuff!!! Shifts in the box and exposes portions to minimal protection not to mention the mess to the person opening the box. Rant over... I feel better now : )

Amen! I've paid sellers extra to not use said popcorn styrofoam bullshit. Nothing kills the vibe of a NGD like those dumb-ass things getting everywhere.

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23 hours ago, Dutchman said:

I’m kinda floored by the increased shipping cost’s lately. I thought it was high before but it’s taken a jump again. I also noticed that shipping out of Nashville price wise was different than Sioux Falls SD. 

What do you folks do for shipping to keep costs down? Who’s got the best rates? I shipped a guitar out of Nashville to Austin Tx and it cost $120.00 FedEx. I’ve shipped several after that out of Sioux Falls to all over the USA and the most expensive was $92.00 with FedEx for a Precision Bass. 

Also while I’m on the subject I always ship with what I thought was insurance. The person told me at the FedEx counter that it is NOT insurance but a declared value. So why am I paying more if it’s not insurance?? Never had a claim so hopefully those who have had the misfortune of filing a shipping claim can explain the declared value vs insurance part. Thanks!!

 

USPS, FedEx, and UPS all raised their "dimensional shipping" rates last month.  That's where they measure the box and base the charges the size, not the weight.  So if the weight charge is higher they use that, if the dimensional charge is higher they use that.  Sounds like guitars might be light enough where they are charging based on dimensions.  Shipping two pillows in a guitar shipping box would cost just as much!  It's such a ripoff.

Don't even get me started about the "coincidence" of the three biggest shippers all deciding to do this the same month.  I thought there were laws against that type of thing.

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4 hours ago, cynic said:

When you consider you're hiring someone to carry a box across the country and deliver it to a specific address for $50-$100, the cost is more than reasonable.

Yeah, that's some bullshit.  

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8 hours ago, The Shark said:

Delivering a box is all about price.  Kind of like buying a new car.

Everything is all about price.  

The price of a new car continues to rise every year, but you can almost always see improvements year to year.  Technology improves.  Safety features improve.  

Shipping costs continue to increase even though they're providing the same shitty service in the same shitty way.  

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47 minutes ago, hamerhead said:

Fixed.

Precisely my point, so the the cost is NOT "more than reasonable."
It's not even anywhere near reasonable.

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Moral of the story, play what you have, love what you got, because flipping isn't what is used to be. Even if you want to break even, I don't mind loosing a few bucks here and their (Rental Fee) but its a tough market for the non ultra high end stuff, or ultra rare. 

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40 minutes ago, bubs_42 said:

Moral of the story, play what you have, love what you got, because flipping isn't what is used to be. 

Someone check on bubs.  He's clearly taken a blow to the head.  

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2 minutes ago, kizanski said:

Someone check on bubs.  He's clearly taken a blow to the head.  

I'm staring down the barrel right now. It appears this whole shop i'm working in, is headed to China at some point. At least that is what the ancient scroll say. Lets push all the kid into manufacturing! 

 

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43 minutes ago, kizanski said:

Edited slightly. 

Let's Make America Bubs Again! 

I don't think America needs that kind of punishment, I think IL has done enough damage to the system. 

Back to the thread! 

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2 hours ago, bubs_42 said:

I don't mind loosing a few bucks here and their

I think you mean "I don't mind LOSING a few bucks here and THERE.   

Sorry--it's a sickness.

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