Prepping a stick for shipping

[DBLMINR 0]

i have recieved shafts in pvc before.

[bbruins8 0]

I just went through the ropes on the USPS website and got all the way to entering my credit card number and no where did it ask for the size of the package, anyone know what the deal is here?

[mickz 107]

Does anybody have pictures of their sticks ready for shipment?

[Drewhunz 3]

I have one going out tomorrow. I'll post step by step photos. You'll have to do the postage yourself however.

[Drewhunz 3]

Here you go. Should be self-explanatary.

[the1gwiz 0]

I just went through the ropes on the USPS website and got all the way to entering my credit card number and no where did it ask for the size of the package, anyone know what the deal is here?

Seconding this, I'm all ready to ship a stick but am a bit worried that I've been given no options to enter dimensions despite several reports of others having needed the info.

[Rustpot 1]

I found it just fine

[the1gwiz 0]

The package dimension fields show up for a domestic shipment, but not for US to Canada.

[bbruins8 0]

Can anyone comment on this issue? I have to ship a stick to A_steeves later today...and I'm unsure on whether I should try USPS Priority International or not.

[Drewhunz 3]

Shipping to Canada doesn't require dimensions, thus why it isn't there.

[Rustpot 1]

I would say go talk to the post office workers about the issue. The 2 people who work the desk at my local PO are always helpful and friendly.

I had to ship rocket motors to England and there were several Federal and international restrictions on the transportation of the explosives and they helped me work through all the red tape.

A little legwork goes a long way. I've taken packages from UPS to FedEx to USPS to find the best rate, ended up saving ~$25 by shopping around. Besides, a quote from a person trumps what the website says any day.

[Drewhunz 3]

Not when it's the PO. I shipped 2 sticks to IN on Monday for a little over $9 insured. I've tried to have the PO send 1 stick to CO and the quote from them was $34. I did it at home and shipped for just over $7. FYI- in most cases, sticks sent Priority mail will actually be handled by UPS but to you Cannucks, it gets absorbed back into the USPS system saving you brokerage fees.

[Rustpot 1]

Well hot damn, I'm printing my own labels. I knew you saved cash, but I didn't realize it was on the order of $10-$20. For the whole 2 sticks I've shipped I think I spent a total of $35 and you're doing multiple for $14.

[Drewhunz 3]

I had 3 sticks Express Mailed to Mack about a year ago for $22.50 I believe. That is overnight from Texas to Alaska for less than the cost of taking one to the Post Office

[stickglovesshirt 0]

share your wrapping/shipping method?

[pisani34 10]

share your wrapping/shipping method?

its already in this thread, go through it and you'll soon figure it out

[pisani34 10]

ok, updating the thread with the stick i shipped on february 1st.

It was a cut down (-2" off retail length) xxx-lite stick, being shipped from edmonton (western canada) to brewster MA (eastern USA). I ended up going with some cardboard wrap, just kinda made a shell for the stick basically, and also the blade.

I input the dimensions as something very small, (13x6x2")....i used these dimensions because of the way it calculated its "volume". I also put it in as weighing 2lbs. There was no option for a "oddly shaped object"

The cost, with insurance coverage, was 13.93 from paypal shipping, which includes a small discount over what it is on canadapost or of course in the post office.

I slapped on that shipping label, drove over to the nearest post office and handed it over. That was February 1st, and today i saw the tracking show that it had been delivered.

It did end up taking the full 12 business days that the expedited USA service standard showed (6-12 days) but we were also cross border and cross country.

So all in all.....STOP PAYING 3x THE PRICE TO SHIP A STICK THAN WHAT IT REALLY COSTS!

I never at any point in time during this process encountered an "insufficient postage" problem or anything.

Lets all buy in to Drewhunz' method, i owe him many thanks.

[Drewhunz 3]

I appreciate the thanks, but I'd appreciate the money saved even more :)

[mickz 107]

Quick question for you Drewhunz... I'm not quite sure I understand the parts of the stick you are measuring...

Are you measuring just the length, width and thickness of the blade of a stick and not the length of the shaft?

Thanks in advance.

[Drewhunz 3]

rough approximation of total legnth of the stick, + 12" width, + 1" height.

[mickz 107]

This, is the stupidist thread ever. Just wrap the damn thing in the smallest box possible.

Strange, I found this thread extremely helpful. I took a stick to the post office today and the guy behind the counter turned me down saying the stick was simply too long. Canadapost.ca advised me it was a $50 charge to ship to England. The man behind the counter then told me to go down the street to Fedex... I don't know how Fedex calculates their packages but the lady said due to the dimensions of the item I am shipping. Fedex classifies it as a 6lb package rather than a 1.2lb package. And they wanted $162.40 to ship it to England!!!

I just finished printing out my shipping labels from Canadapost and it cost me just under $50. I'll be dropping the stick off at the post office tomorrow. Thanks to everyone who has contributed in this post.

[jeffw 1]

This, is the stupidist thread ever. Just wrap the damn thing in the smallest box possible.

To the contrary. This thread is very informative and contains a lot of useful information.

[bbruins8 0]

I used the wrapping the shaft and blade in cardboard routine...and shipped to Canada from U.S....and there was no problem with it at all.

[pisani34 10]

I used the wrapping the shaft and blade in cardboard routine...and shipped to Canada from U.S....and there was no problem with it at all.

and did you print your own shipping online? how much did you end up paying compared to the $30+ you would encounter at the post office?

[bbruins8 0]

I used the wrapping the shaft and blade in cardboard routine...and shipped to Canada from U.S....and there was no problem with it at all.

and did you print your own shipping online? how much did you end up paying compared to the $30+ you would encounter at the post office?

I paid 17ish online via USPS...although I recently made the mistake of paying at UPS Store for a visor I just shipped to a MSHer instead of online and paid 2 bucks more because the measurement was 8.015 inches and he put in 9 instead of 8...what a douche bag...I felt like hitting him. I will pay online, either with UPS or USPS, from here on out. At UPS you just drop off the package and signed Customs forms...at USPS they review the weight and rebill you for shipping but hit a button on the PC that says you paid online, ergo you must get the weight accurately. I watched a woman drop off a pre paid UPS package when the guy was overcharging me and she just set it there and left, which leads me to believe they don't remeasure/weigh, but USPS definitely does.