Mailed a 66" longbow yesterday in a lite PCV tube and it cost me $ 40.15.from tx to pa and it weighted 14 lbs. 5.70 of it was for ins.
a month ago a recurve cost me $ 50.00(oversize box).
if i had shipped the longbow with ins. UPS ground it would have cost $ 18.00. but taken 4 days.
you might be able to send it regular postage thru the Post Office for about the same.
My point is the Priority mail has gone up jan 1.
The same longbow above was costing me about $ 25.00 last year. I think i am going to try ups ground! Ken
Ken,
PVC tubes are the best protection but you must have been using schedule 80 to end up with 14 lbs.
With longbows I've used the lighter weight 160# or DWV and my cost hasn't been near that expensive. If the bow is highly R/D I use 4" diameter but with straight longbows use the 3" tubes.
I think you must have run into a newbie at the postal counter that charged you for irregular shape and oversize packaging.
I've never run into costs that high but have paid $25 before.
Ken,
They may have charged you the oversized fee if the length plus the girth is over 84 inches. If you can stay below 84 inches, it is usually about the prices you quoted. One problem is a miss understanding on the part of the postal workers to their own rules. I have had to print them out and take them in and show them a couple of times. Their system also does not know what to do with a round package like our bow tubes. That has caused me some problems.
Good luck in the future! jwingman
I agree with jwingman! In my experience it ALL depends on who you get at the Post Office. Over time I developed a good relationship with our postal workers and they would give me the benefit of the doubt. More often than not when shipping a bow.....I used UPS.
Last longbow I mailed was $11.80, plus insurance. I always use USPS Priority. As noted above, keep the dimensions below 84", and the weight down, and it should be under $20.00, in the continental U.S., and two day delivery.
Good advice from all but it cannot be overstated that the postal worker MUST know the rules to get it right. I learned to not try the P.O. in the town I used to live in - drove 15 miles down the road to get to a P.O. where the clerk knew what to do.
On the other hand, I have been the victim of my own over-packaging and paid the exorbitant cost. I'm very careful about package dimensions and weight now. (but honestly, I've never shipped a 66" one piece bow)
I have experienced HUGE differences in USPS prices for identical boxes. I don't know if the agents just don't know their own rules or they just make them up as they go.
On more than a couple occasions, I have received a bow in the mail, shipping cost was right there on the box. Later I mailed the same bow, same box and it cost considerably more $$.
I just don't get it????
for longbows, the way to go is 3" DRAIN pipe - very light, great protection and a 10' section is $7 from lowes ... if you get a pair of pipes, the leftover pieces dovetail together and make another shipping tube, so 3 really good longbow shipping tubes for $14.
That was a heavy pipe,like others I ship mine in a 3" drain pipe.It cost less and usally weighs less then 5#.And you need to keep your packages under 84" total,that is length plus girth or there will be an oversize charge.I shipped one bow in the heavier schedule 40 pipe and it was over 10# and did cost about $10 higher.A 3" drain pipe is lighter and still offers great protection.I always weigh and measure my packages before I get there and I'll know pretty close to what the shipping will be.
Hey Ken, stop sellin so many buddy, I did, my cost went way down !!! {Yes, Smile goes here} ... Also, I use Carpet tubes, never had a Problem Yet ...
I prefer to recieve my funds via PayPal because I can package and know my exact shipping charges before heading to the post office.
Also delivery confirmation is free if you print your label from the PayPal site.
I just mailed an oversize recurve last Fri. to Ala. with insurance and tracking number through the Post Office with 2 day delivery for $16.25.
QuoteOriginally posted by Archer Fanatic:
I just mailed an oversize recurve last Fri. to Ala. with insurance and tracking number through the Post Office with 2 day delivery for $16.25.
what kind of packaging, what did it weigh and what were the dimensions? my guess is ... a cardboard box?
Carpet tubes seem to be as tough as PVC. Plus they are free... I sent a longbow recently USPS Priority. When the clerk first wieghed it, she said the total was $34 and change. I sent it in the same carpet tube I recieved it in, and the cost to me was $18 Priority. She showed me the printout, the weight showed 11 lbs plus. I told her that it shouldn't weigh over 4lbs, she re weighed and sure enough it was 4 on the dot. She couldn't explain why it happened. I can only imagine how many go through with the wrong weight such as this, and folks pay more than they should. Ended up it cost me right at $19 to send it to PA. Keep it under 84" or they will hit you with the balloon fee. Get on USPS website and calculate your package so you will have a close estimate and no surprises at the PO...... Good Luck !!
Froggy
One thing I like about the USPS is if it's Priority Insured it has to be signed for, UPS just leaves it at the front door.
QuoteOriginally posted by vermonster13:
One thing I like about the USPS is if it's Priority Insured it has to be signed for, UPS just leaves it at the front door.
you can request that ups require a delivery signature.
I haven't found a suitable package to ship recurves. I do use as heavy cardboard box that I can find and carefully reinforce the tips.
I hear all the gander from people saying they won't ship in anything but a PVC tube.
Show me a tube that a recurve will fit in.
For an additional $4 if you request it be an adult that signs.
I just shipped a bear super mag and had to get a 6" piece of pipe. The pipe cost me more than shipping priority
Signed for only if it's insured for over $200.00 ...
I get on the USPS website and do it myself, print my own label, then I know its right.
Eric
Froggy has a PVC tube that a recurve was shipped in, LOL. I think he might be using it as a tinhorn.
>>I get on the USPS website and do it myself, print my own label, then I know its right.<<
+1
I've never taken a shipped bow to the post office.
QuoteOriginally posted by WESTBROOK:
I get on the USPS website and do it myself, print my own label, then I know its right.
Eric
+2
If you do this often at all, it pays to take the time to set up an account. Get a scale to weigh your package and do it yourself. You'll get it right, not have to stand in line, and it's cheaper online than it is at the PO.
Mailed one Priority Mail monday, a light wt. griffin LB in those triangular boxes they provide...A new counter person tried to hit me for $39.00 before insurance.... I asked for another person real quick... have mailed several thru that office and this was the first time I had a problem.
Next guy came up with $21.20 including ins. Got to keep an Eye on the newer people. :wavey:
All the gear I have shipped is through USPS Priority, I am able to track it and I have never had any problems. The delivery guy at my end even knows the best time to catch me before work. :)
try to get one to the Yukon and then you can whine.....
Jer Bear
For a bow over AU$1000, it costs about AU$320 minimum to ship it here, including import duties. And when I slay some mighty Outback beast with it, I couldn't care less about the cost.
I mailed a plywood box(Yes...plywood) with a one piece 60" recurve in it with insurance and it was 18 dollars.VT to IL.Not sure what they were charging you for.
I use what I would call the "black drain spout pipe" that has the small drain holes in it for shipping recurves. If my memory serves me it is 6" across and with the bow completely wrapped in bubble wrap, tips wrapped in extra foam, they fit fine.
I literally picked up a utility trailer load of these from Lowes for .25 a piece! They were discontinuing the item and when I saw that price I bought all they had. Still have a pile of them in the barn. Cut the pipe long and you can use all sorts of things for the end caps.
Ken and everyone,
I know that P.V.C. SCHEDULE 40 D.W.V. comes in two different makeups cause I was a plumber for most my life and not everyone knows what I'm about to inform you with...P.V.C. has a solid core and a foam core that most people can't notice the difference unless you read the marking on it..It states it has a cellular core and is made by Challotte pipe co. In the area I live in you could rough in a house with it on Drains and vents but couldn't use it under ground going to a septic tank or street...The reason most used it was cause the cost was half the price and that it weighs hardly nothing...You can use reg. 3" or 4 " p.v.c. caps NOT the thinwall fittings....This pipe used to have the black writing on it and I had seen it in Low's at times...It is lighter in weight but just as strong as the solid core...The reason I am letting you know is I noticed they weigh whatever I ship out and wonder if that makes a difference...Again I am not talking the thin wall pipe nor schedule 80 it is schudule 40... Hope this helps if you use P.V.C and want to loose some weight in shipping cost ....Keefer's <")))><
Rob is dead on about the 3" drain pipe for shipping. Great way to ship 1 piece long bows. :thumbsup:
Depends a lot on just where it is going as well. East & west coast are much higher for me shipping from WI. Same package can vary by as much as $10 using the online calculator.
The reason I use PRIORITY MAIL when shipping almost anything is because a postal agent told me that fewer hands touch items sent PRIORITY and that in itself is enough reason to spend a little extra.
Check out the USPS website for size and weight requirements and make your package as close as possible to their sizes and weights.
The reason I use PRIORITY MAIL when shipping almost anything is because a postal agent told me that fewer hands touch items sent PRIORITY and that in itself is enough reason to spend a little extra.
Check out the USPS website for size and weight requirements and make your package as close as possible to their sizes and weights.
I use 3" or 4" thin walled PVC to ship bows. Very strong and light.
The USPS seems really expensive these days. My company offers a discount for FedX Ground and it is really amazing how much cheaper it is than USPS (approx 50%). The admin lady has no idea why I have to ship these packages all the time but it saves me some bucks.
ups is a joke....sending oversized? you thought usps was bad.....hang onto you wallet man.ups is just way outta line on there shipping rates.
I just shipped two take down models today, using USPS. Total cost for both bows to be shipped in a 36x8x8 box was 45.00, insured, and it was two different 36x8x8 boxes. One to OH, The other to AR.
We always print our own USPS shipping labels online, figure the cost thru their charts. Print package and drpo off. The brain work is done by us and never a question.
I shipped a bow about a month ago in a nice box and it cost me about $15. I received one and it was $18 and change. Both Priority. I think that the standard insurance on Priority is $100, so you just need to add the difference which
is a few cents per hundred. They measure length width and girth and if that's under 88 inches it does not get a surcharge. NOt sure how they measure a tube? I agree that you need to go to a different post office since you're getting hit pretty bad. SAM
USPS and UPS will deliver right to my door. FED EX leaves it laying it in the snow at the bottom of my 1/2 mile driveway. The last package delivered by FED EX was extra memory for my computer and I found it after the snow melted.
I am fortunate to have great delivery people on my route. (At least the regular ones are - when they are gone it's hit or miss)
One suggestion that really seems to help with your deliveries - don't forget a little something for them around Christmas time! :readit: