posted on December 10, 2005 05:06:07 AM new
I have an antique couch listed right now that's going to end for quite a bit of money. I've left shipping arrangements up to the buyer and stated a packing fee in my TOS, but am getting a lot of questions about shipping costs from people I suspect are as clueless as I am about how you'd go about getting an item this big picked up. I'd like to point them in the right direction. Any suggestions?
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Habla siempre que debas y calla siempre que puedas....
posted on December 10, 2005 06:04:01 AM new
profes, are you packing it youself? I am probably not the right one to give you advice on this, but I do know if you have the dimensions, etc, you can check out a site called freighters and craters dot com(something like that,sorry-not exactly sure. But it should come up in google.)
Last I looked, they are not exactly cheap, but if somebody's willing to pay a good bit of money for furniture, they might not balk about paying for a professional shipping service?
I'm sure somebody with more know than me will tell you about the other options available.
posted on December 10, 2005 07:36:42 AM new
I don't know if I'll pack it myself or not. I notice some of the shippers will pack for you. My plan was to move it into town to a location where it'd be easy for a shipper to pick up. UPS won't come out this far, so I'm sure nobody else will either. I just plugged in a quote from Freighters and Craters from here to NYC...holy crap! packing and shipping estimate 1350 bucks! The piece will sell for a lot more than that, but still....the last big piece I sold was a chair, and the buyer happily came from California to pick it up. I'm thinking there's no way somebody on the east coast is going to get off cheap if they want this couch.
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Habla siempre que debas y calla siempre que puedas....
posted on December 10, 2005 08:31:17 AM new
..i noticed on another thread a discussion RE: measuring packages. i have been shipping furniture for about ten years[but that doesnt make me an expert].
..however,the "information" about measuring packages doesnt make sense to me...
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..as examples..ups site, or fedex site.
i used max parameters for an o/s1 maximum size...24 x 21 x40 as a box size-which is 130inches..
..no matter how you plug the numbers, the UPS indicator will compute the same tariff.
..just fill-in the 'L'x'W'x'H' boxes...swap the numbers, 40 x 21 x 24, then 21 x 40 x 24, then 21 x 24 x40. the ship costs will be the same no matter what. if what the threads infer was true, then UPS/Fedx wouldnt accept the numbers in all combinations - because some of the examples-inferred "methods of measuring" exceed 130inches.
..well, actually, they would, because both have os/2 maxes also..BUTTTTT, price would increase dramatically. again, no matter how you plug the dimensions, the tariff will be the same.
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..i ran same numbers on fedx; using same numbers in 3 combinations, and fedx gives same tariff also on all 3 combinations..fedx beats ups on my example by 4.50/carton..ups charges $1/carton to p/up,etc.and fedx liability is limited to $100MAXIMUM..
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i cant speak for any but UPS, but they always calculate very simply...doubling the two smaller sizes, then add actual, longer side...that is no matter how you "call the dimensions."
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myoldtoy
[ edited by myoldtoy on Dec 10, 2005 08:32 AM ]
[ edited by myoldtoy on Dec 10, 2005 08:33 AM ]
posted on December 10, 2005 06:42:02 PM new
Profe...Build a crate for it. Pad it well and set it in the crate on something that will take the weight off the legs. Use plenty of dunnage to fill in the empty spaces. Nail the lid on it shut, get the weight and dimensions (don't forget to include the pallet you put under it), and get quotes from different common carriers such as ABF or any large carrier that services your area. You might even want to check with FedEx Freight. It'll likely be to large for UPS or FedEx ground to take. With the weight and dimensions, the buyer can even make their own arrangements.
A $75.00 solid state device will always blow first to protect a 25 cent fuse ~ Murphy's Law
posted on December 10, 2005 07:34:03 PM newWith the weight and dimensions, the buyer can even make their own arrangements.
That's been the plan all along, I was just hoping to steer buyers in the right direction for estimating shipping, to keep them from bidding and then having sticker shock when they get shipping quotes. I guess I'll go ahead and get it packed up and then use those final dimensions and weight to inform bidders so they can get estimates. I can use my cattle scale to weigh it I think, if it's packed up first. Not that it's so heavy, it's just big and unwieldly. My scale will weigh down to about 200 pounds pretty accurately.
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Habla siempre que debas y calla siempre que puedas....
posted on December 10, 2005 08:15:56 PM new
If you live in a town close to a large military base, you might be able to pick up a premade sofa crate for next to nothing from one of the local movers. The lift vans that they use for international shipping are only 4'x7'x7' so an 8 foot sofa won't fit. It necessitates a seperate box being built to accomodate the sofa. I've sold and given away many of those things over the years. People use them for everything from tool chests, to dog houses to play houses for the kids. By the time it's safely packed, 200 lbs will be a reasonable weight to quote. I've had a couple of those crates that came in from Subic Bay in the Phillipines that weighed 200 lbs empty. They were made from the local cheap wood. Mahogany.
A $75.00 solid state device will always blow first to protect a 25 cent fuse ~ Murphy's Law
posted on December 11, 2005 04:45:12 PM new
we use PackShipUSA.com ... they're good .. they come and pick up (free), then crate and send to customer curbside ... nice prices ... no problems yet and i've used them maybe half dozen times over the past two years ... (am using them next week for dining set we sold on ebay)
