How to ship something heavy?

not familiar w/ shipping really heavy items. planning on shipping Jabba's throne and according to the SS page on it, it weighs 28 lbs (tho they call it oversized and state it has a dimensional weight of 57lbs. WTF?). so anyway, for something about 30+ pounds, go w/ USPS or UPS , or even FEDEX? thank you for any help

Mookeylama said:

not familiar w/ shipping really heavy items. planning on shipping Jabba's throne and according to the SS page on it, it weighs 28 lbs (tho they call it oversized and state it has a dimensional weight of 57lbs. WTF?). so anyway, for something about 30+ pounds, go w/ USPS or UPS , or even FEDEX? thank you for any help

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The weight is not your concern. The size of the shipping box will be. Just go to the various websites and get the shipping quotes based on the size of the shipping box and go with the cheapest or the shipper you prefer.

I've found that for heavy/large items, FedEx Ground/Home Delivery is by far the cheapest way to go! Your mileage may vary...

I always ship the big, big stuff (X-Men #1 Dio, Thing PF, etc., etc.) USPS Priority . Cheaper by far than UPS (Whom I don't trust anymore) or FedEx. A tracking number is only $0.65 and Insurance isn't that bad either.

Everyone that has bought from me has gotten their stuff from USPS Domestic Priority or International Priority and I've never had a complaint yet.

Honestly, the best route is to find a Mail center kind of store. A place that sends stuff out through various carriers. They usually will find the cheapest source for you, and save you a LOT of money in the long run. I use a Postal center down the road and they have saved my butt many a time.

I got burned in my early days sending a Jaws Maquette. The shipping ended up being over a hundred dollars for UPS, and I didn't know any better so I just mailed it. I know better now.

For me, UPS has been the easiest to ship large items with.

UPS really should really translate to OOOPS

DarkArtist81 said:

Honestly, the best route is to find a Mail center kind of store. A place that sends stuff out through various carriers. They usually will find the cheapest source for you, and save you a LOT of money in the long run. I use a Postal center down the road and they have saved my butt many a time.

I got burned in my early days sending a Jaws Maquette. The shipping ended up being over a hundred dollars for UPS, and I didn't know any better so I just mailed it. I know better now.

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may i ask the name of that Mail Center? never heard of a place like that. i usually go thru USPS but this box is close to being over their limits.

Go to ups. usps will hammer you beacause of the box dimensions. ups is more concerned with weight. Best rule of thumb is usps likes little packages and ups likes big ones. ups is actually more expensive on small packages. Go to a ups counter. If you go to an authorized outlet they charge you a premium on top of ups normal rates. Sometimes 2 to 3 times as much.

Mookeylama said:

may i ask the name of that Mail Center? never heard of a place like that. i usually go thru USPS but this box is close to being over their limits.

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The place I deal with is called Goin Postal, it's a Mom and Pop shipping center next to my local Wal-Mart. They know me by name now, it's funny...

Great place though, they always save me money. Just yesterday they saved me $20, I was going to ship a PowerLoader USPS... they showed me the cheaper rate with UPS.

customizerwannabe said:

Go to ups. usps will hammer you beacause of the box dimensions. ups is more concerned with weight. Best rule of thumb is usps likes little packages and ups likes big ones. ups is actually more expensive on small packages. Go to a ups counter. If you go to an authorized outlet they charge you a premium on top of ups normal rates. Sometimes 2 to 3 times as much.

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Actually, I just printed out paostage for a 3 lb small-medium sized box from AZ to PA. USPS parcel was $8.50. UPS ground was $7.

I'd definately go online and get ehir online quotes. If you can, purchase postage online, it has a slight discount.

And PLEASE, remember to tape those styrofoam halves together, use lots of peanuts or crumpled newspaper, and tape the top/bottom box in multiple places to prevent opening during transit. Some people think the handlers will carefully place your box from one neat pile to the next, which isn't the case.

a shipment I got from a fellow board member used one piece of tape to seal the top of the box. It had opened, and UPS man was literraly picking up toys as they dropped out of the box while he was delivering it. Needless to say, I was a little dissapointed.

If you have a job with a shipping/receiving, go there and stock up on packing materials that are going to be recycled anyways.

UPS all the way. I just used them to send out a Thing Ex. PF and the price compared to other carriers was worlds cheaper.

Good point usps is always cheaper online than at the counter. Don't go to a 3rd party shipper though. They pay normal ups fees and what they charge you has their profit built in. Do your own homework online to find the best price. Takes 5 minutes.

customizerwannabe said:

Go to ups. usps will hammer you beacause of the box dimensions. ups is more concerned with weight. Best rule of thumb is usps likes little packages and ups likes big ones. ups is actually more expensive on small packages. Go to a ups counter. If you go to an authorized outlet they charge you a premium on top of ups normal rates. Sometimes 2 to 3 times as much.

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may i ask what's the difference between a counter or authorized outlet? like examples of each.
and any opinion on which is better, FEDEX or UPS? in this i mean the service. who provides better care, less damage, ect

and thanks everyone for the input.

An authorized outlet is licensed by UPS to represent them. Staples usually do this as well as Mailboxes Etc. They have a formula and it varies. They look at what the cost is for ups to ship and they then tack on their fee. They don't tell you this. At a UPS counter you are only paying the actual shipping fee. I believe you need a business to ship fedex but I'm not positive. I only use UPS or USPS and I ship 10-50 packages a week. As far as damage goes, you'll find haters for each service. I've never had a problem with ups while I've had packages damaged by usps.