The USPS Package of a Cue to me

You should have grabbed some punctuation while you were there :thumbup:

Did you open it up and have a look? If it was in some good bubble wrap or secondary packaging it is probably just fine.

JC

USPS SUCKS!!! I get we missed you slips all the time. All while I’m sitting there waiting. Here’s the kicker, they leave them in the mail box!

Heres one I got recently, luckily the contents were undamaged.

Heres a couple things I have had happen. I sent two cues to a cuemaker in FL and the mailman delivered an empty tube to his door. He ran him down and filed the necessary form and I ended up getting a check about 40 days later. I recently sent a cue to Washington and not only did it go to the wrong address it wasnt even the same zip code. It went to a college in another town, someone caught it and it was eventually delivered the next day.

Heres a UPS one. I sent something to CA with the understanding it would arrive in 3 days because a friend of mine was filming and needed the piece of equipment on time. It doesnt show up because of a late trailer in Illinois. I go to the UPS where I shipped it from and they say call the 800 number, I knew what was coming because they jacked me around the same way when a cue I shipped to Canada was late. The foreign lady at the 800 number whom I could barely understand says "you must file a claim with your UPS shipper"...no shit. Back to the office I go and now they give me another number to call. Long story short I got a letter last week saying we have been made aware of the issue and will be sending a refund at some point. I shipped on February 15th, next time ill say let me know when it arrives and ill come back and pay you. I have shipped cues, cases and other items all over the world and only ever had a problem within the US.

$TAKE HOR$E said:

Heres one I got recently, luckily the contents were undamaged.

Heres a couple things I have had happen. I sent two cues to a cuemaker in FL and the mailman delivered an empty tube to his door. He ran him down and filed the necessary form and I ended up getting a check about 40 days later. I recently sent a cue to Washington and not only did it go to the wrong address it wasnt even the same zip code. It went to a college in another town, someone caught it and it was eventually delivered the next day.

Heres a UPS one. I sent something to CA with the understanding it would arrive in 3 days because a friend of mine was filming and needed the piece of equipment on time. It doesnt show up because of a late trailer in Illinois. I go to the UPS where I shipped it from and they say call the 800 number, I knew what was coming because they jacked me around the same way when a cue I shipped to Canada was late. The foreign lady at the 800 number whom I could barely understand says "you must file a claim with your UPS shipper"...no shit. Back to the office I go and now they give me another number to call. Long story short I got a letter last week saying we have been made aware of the issue and will be sending a refund at some point. I shipped on February 15th, next time ill say let me know when it arrives and ill come back and pay you. I have shipped cues, cases and other items all over the world and only ever had a problem within the US.

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Now I'm hungry, thanks.

I received a package of ephemera once , it had about 25 stamps on it saying "DO NOT FOLD , it was folded in half !

Registered mail.

A hard tubular box is the only way to go for sending / receiving cues - just make sure both ends are taped up really good and the cues / shafts are wrapped in in packing material or bubble wrap even within the tube.

What Chrisin wrote.
Also, if it came usps, you're lucky it showed up at all. I've heard many stories of empty boxes showing up at people's doorsteps. When I sent one of my cues to proficient I sent it in a super sturdy tube, insured it, and didn't use usps. That cue is only worth about $700 but it is irreplaceable due to the maker having passed away a few years ago.
Would have liked to see how your cue was packaged inside the box.

Since late last year the postal service has been awful.
Packages mishandled, everything misdirected taking a countrywide tour, inaccurate tracking information, you name it.
For the first time in 16-years of shipping cues I have been buying insurance just because of the stress I've been going through.
On a South West I overnighted Priority Express I was hours away from refunding the money when it finally turned up.

The condition of that package doesn't surprise me, I've seen it before.

The joke is to overnight Priority Express so you get your money back, and I have had several refunds.
I have a theory on what is going on, and I think there is a conspiracy within the major hubs in certain parts of the country.

FedEx isn't much better, and they need to pay their people, because what they have is a bunch of liars.
The drivers may be great but the other people are incompetent and they lie a lot.
At least the USPS doesn't lie...nobody likes a liar.

Sadly the USPS will not pay the insured amount on collectible cues.
Insured packages seem to be handled better from a misdirection standpoint.
I'm spending a fortune on insurance.
My postmaster could not collect the full amount on a lost collectible item he shipped,
they paid him what they felt it was worth.

Right now I am staying with the postal service because FedEx blows.
Maybe UPS is the answer.
I recently sent a case UPS and there were no issues, but for me the post office is more convenient.

ChrisinNC said:

A hard tubular box is the only way to go for sending / receiving cues - just make sure both ends are taped up really good and the cues / shafts are wrapped in in packing material or bubble wrap even within the tube.

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I heard the triangular box is better, something about the round tubes rolling off the belts and such. But I believe the round tube is stronger.

Round tube inside a triangle box?

jimmyco said:

I heard the triangular box is better, something about the round tubes rolling off the belts and such. But I believe the round tube is stronger.

Round tube inside a triangle box?

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Bingo! I use thick walled cardboard tubes inside of the triangular boxes for this very reason. Some people even use PVC pipe in lieu of cardboard tubes.

Some of you are shipping cues worth several hundred dollars without insurance? What the he'll is wrong with you? You are asking for trouble. It would worry me to death wondering if it would make it there in one price, if at all.

The insurance should cost you nothing. Pass the cost to the buyer. Everybody else does. And refuse to ship anything of value without it.

Priority Mail flat rate boxes. If it fits, it ships.

But it may not make it to the destination in one piece.

I shipped a box of wheel weights a few years ago. Selling for 75 cents per lb on eBay at the time. double boxed about 42 lbs. Was sent a picture of the delivered box which was broken and only contained 12 lbs of lead.

Ended up breaking even after refunding the prorated purchase price.

Had to wait a few weeks to file a claim, then I lost the connection when trying to submit it. Lost track of time and did not file in time.

Should have written "HEAVY" on the box. Somebody probably got mad and dropped it.

buckshotshoey said:

Some of you are shipping cues worth several hundred dollars without insurance? What the he'll is wrong with you? You are asking for trouble. It would worry me to death wondering if it would make it there in one price, if at all.

The insurance should cost you nothing. Pass the cost to the buyer. Everybody else does. And refuse to ship anything of value without it.

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I've shipped hundreds of very expensive cues, never had a any lost or damaged cues.
I've just recently started buying insurance because of the stress created by so many misdirected packages.
Chances are if I do have a claim it will not be paid, so I think insurance is a bad bet, but I'm doing it anyway in an attempt to get better service and eliminate some stress.

Before this year i could count on one hand how many times I've purchased insurance, zero claims.

justabrake said:

insurance
All domestic insured items now bear a barcoded label. This includes those items with a value up to $50. Note: Unnumbered indemnity is no longer offered.
Insured items valued up to $200 use PS Form 3813, Receipt for Domestic Insured Parcel, and receive a scan at delivery, but no signature is collected.
Insured items valued over $200 use PS Form 3813–P, Insured Mail Receipt, and receive a scan at delivery, and a signature is collected.
Unlike Certified Mail and Registered Mail scans, an insurance scan by itself will not provide electronic verification that the article was delivered or that a delivery attempt was made.
Prices for insurance coverage changed as follows:
Value up to $50 is $1.65.
$50.01 to $100 is $2.05.
$100.01 to $200 is $2.45.
$200.01 to $300 is $4.60.
The price per additional $100 of insurance, valued over $300 up to $5,000, is $4.60 plus $0.90 per each $100 or fraction thereof.
Prices for Express Mail insurance:
The first $100 of value is still provided. Values above $100 are now priced differently than for regular insurance.
Value over $100 up to $200 is $0.75.
$200.01 to $500 is $2.10.
$500.01 to $5,000 is $2.10 plus $1.35 per each $100 or fraction thereof.

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So what's the point? Pass off the cost.