Whew...I need a break from the auction...I'm going crosseyed bidding on that good stuff over there. While I'm taking a break...if you don't mind:
I need to ship a very expensive bow back to a bowyer for some work. I've never shipped a bow before. Any suggestions as to shipping companies, insurance, and packaging the bow up, and delivery confirmation, etc. :notworthy:
If it's a longbow, wrap it in bubble wrap and put it in a piece of PVC pipe. Takedowns can be wrapped in bubble wrap and sent in a cardboard box. I've always used the US Postal Service. Less expensive than than UPS, though others have used UPS to send bows to me. I've had a few scares with longbows and one-piece recurves packaged in cardboard when the package came with a noticeable kink in it, but so far, no bow has been damaged. Insurance is fairly expensive, often amounting to more than the shipping charge, but is probably worth it. Good luck.
I have always used USPS, without any problems. I ship Priority Mail and insure it. The price seems reasonable to me. As far as packaging goes, use bubble wrap and newspaper for packing, and don't scimp on the tape. I tape and tape until I'm positive that package is secure. The hard part is finding a box for one piece recurves. Take downs and longbows are easy.
USPS is US Postal Service, not UPS. In case you didn't know.
I would definitly get insurance, also a tracking number! Better safe than sorry!
I sold a bow that the buyer gave me his old address and the POst office didn't forward it new mailing address it was a long month...
Everything turned out OK finaly...
Longbow:
I wrap a big wad of socks around the limb tips. PVC, bubble wrap as explained above. US postal priority mail insurance. No problem. under $20
UPS is United Parcel Service or Brown as they choose to call themselves. It's not USPS.
I shipped two longbows today... 3" pvc pipe cut to 73", including any end cap. Padding in both ends and a cut out, tapered wood end piece inserted. The circumference of the 3" pipe will be 10 1/2", making the final post office measurement of the package a total of 83.5", just under their cutoff point of 84" for oversize charge. cost was $15 per, plus insurance. I wrapped the tip before sticking the bow in the tube, wrapped each limb with upholstery fluff, then tucked fluff around the other tip before taping the wood end on.
Now, if you shoot those bows with the bent ends, it ain't that easy, and the only advice i can give you is that if you would stop standing them in the closet, the ends would stop bending...
Dick in Seattle
The advice here is sound. I would get at least a Delivery Confirmation along with the insurance, but a Signature Confirmation is better. The recipient or their agent must sign for the bow, and a picture is taken of the form they sign (3849) so you will have the name and address of where it was delivered. You can check on it online at USPS.com.
Killdeer
Lot's of great advice which I really appreicate! Unfortunately, it is a 60" one piece recurve (when strung) which sounds like the toughest to ship. I looked at the boxes on-line on the USPS site and didn't see anything they would have that would do the trick. I'm at a loss for a box right now? :confused:
Carpet tube. Just about any carpet shop will give you one for free and they're as tough as nails.
Stay away from Fed Ex.
Last bow I got was by usps,had about 3 short boxes taped together,lots of tape,its cheep!!
I just shipped a 62" recurve via USPS (only way to go,IMHO).As you've found out,the toughest part is the box.I wound up building one out of a refridgerater box,which is double thick.Just have to watch your combined dimensions so they don't exceed 84".Check out USPS.com for shipping rates & dimension details.I paid $13.95 shipping + a couple of bucks for insurance for Priority Mail.Take Killdeer's advice;she's the resident mailma'm. :)
USPS for me as well. One little tidbit.....if it's insured for over $200, a signature is required. Getting delivery confirmation on top of that is not really necessary unless you want to check it online. I also mark the box "fragile please" and pack safely enough where someone could through the box across the room without damaging the bow.
Dick's is on top of it thats the best way to shipp em.
check it out:
http://www.hummingbirdbows.com/No_UPS.html
Sounds like mqqse has seen the parcel area of the Post Office!
:wavey:
That is quite the pic there Woodduck. UPS is notorious for not paying insurance claims. If it can be broken than it obviously wasn't packed correctly is their claim most times.
Okay, letting out a well guarded secret here.....
Go to your local HVAC company and ask them for "baseboard boxes". They are perfect for recurves and are easy to shorten to your desired length.
Whenever we do a job that requires adding or replacing baseboard, my guys know that I get the empty boxes.
(Thanks to Droptine59 for this one)
With the gas prices so high I decided to fly out for my Montana pronghorn hunt this september. Trouble was the cases I needed to protect my bow and arrows from the airlines were gonna offset the savings the flight was supposed to get me. So I looked around a bit and found that you can get a 10 foot stick of 6" sewer line for around 25$ at Menards( home depot,lowes whatever). Cut one piece long enough for my longest selfbow and cut the left over piece 3 feet long for arrows and I just saved roughly 120$!My 60" recurve fits right down inside the tube no problem. Depending on what kinda bow quiver you have you may have to remove it if you wanna ship it as well.
Wooden ends cut froma 1x8 and screwed on through the side of the pipe and some 2" foam padding and its bomb proof.
Course if its only goin one way it might be better to get a carpet tube from a arpet place. Get some padding there too while yer at it.
Chris
Orion, when they say USPS they did not mean "Brown, it stands for United States Postal Service, just some info and you seemed confused. USPS is the way to go, but they are tough to get to pay claims, but so are the other shippers too! Shawn
I've personally had bad experiences with UPS both domestic and overseas. IMO USPS is the only way to go. Cheers, Matt
OK... for recurves... which really are a bear to ship. I used to have a collection of vintage target recurves, and selling those and shipping them when I gave it up for longbows (the only way to fly... when will the rest of you learn?) was a real ordeal.
I made cardboard boxes out of many an appliance box. Neat tool trick... get a plastic pizza cutter. Work out the dimensions you need and mark where the folds will have to come. Use a long 1x2 as a straight edge and compress the cardboard on the INSIDE of the fold by running the pizza cutter over the line, pressing down hard. The plastic cutter won't cut the cardboard, but will make a compression that controls the fold.
Now, if you want to do it right, you'll spend more money, but it's worth it. go to a good lumber yard and buy some 1 x 3's and a sheet of 1/8" plywood called "doorskin". Using the 1x3, build a frame just big enough for the bow and some padding. Cut a rectangle of door skin and nail/glue to the bottom of the frame. Pad the bow and put it in. Screw a top on the box you've built. Pay what it takes to ship it. For a recurve, it will be oversize. so, the bow cost $1000 and it costs $50 to ship it... worth it? You decide.
Here are a couple of pics of a take down bow I just shipped to The Netherlands last week:
(http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h186/CaptainDick/shippingboxi1.jpg)
(http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h186/CaptainDick/shippingbox2.jpg)
Dick in Seattle
I wimped out and made the long drive early this morning to the bowyer. Just got too worried to mail this one piece recurve. I'll probably pick it up in a couple weeks too. The $1,200 bow took me a while to save for and it the most expensive piece of equipment I own...I don't want to have my own horror shipping story to share with others some day.