I did a search and got a lot of good advice. How to package. Should get the cue insured. What shippers. But I did not see anyone mention this. Should you have the person receiving sign to receive the cue. I want to do what is common practice. A lot of people are not home to sign for it and don't want it. It is a expensive cue and want to do what is right. Thank you.
Shipping a cue
- Thread starter 34YearsOfPlayin
- Start date
Unless you know and trust the person,
ALWAYS request a signature. If they paid by paypal, NEVER ship to an address other than the one attached to thier paypal.
dirtvictim
Ignore the entitled they haven't earned respect
Usps supplies priority large triangle tubes should fit any cue without a case and will hold smaller size cases. They ship automatically with 50.00 insurance, if you need more then it is approx 3.00 per 100.00 value. Always insure for full value, never ship to another address after the sale, that's a red flag. Larger boxes would have to be bought separately and those will usually ship priority only.
If it isn’t written down, then it never happened.
Ironclad rule in Human Resources & Contracts.
Quid Pro Quo requires evidence….get a signature.
Ironclad rule in Human Resources & Contracts.
Quid Pro Quo requires evidence….get a signature.
USPS Priority Mail insured for whatever the PayPal payment shows. They will not pay a penny more than that.
If insured for more than $500, it will require a signature automatically
As of April USPS adds $15 to the cost of any shipped box greater than 30 inches in length including their own triangle priority boxes that many people use to ship cues. So the old $16 priority mail shipped cue is now $31! I got hit with this last week shipping a vintage Brunswick cue case to someone and had to eat the $15. Shipping prices on. E bay have gone up on cues and cases BC of this.
Fed Ex is not adding the surcharge on cue or case size boxes as long as they are rectangular or triangular - but they will add a surcharge on round tube mailers ( claim that they require extra care on conveyor belts).
dirtvictim
Ignore the entitled they haven't earned respect
Yea I saw that a few days ago when I mailed out 2 cues. It is what it is. Cost of doing business. I still prefer usps.
If you are mailing an expensive cue it is not a bad idea to first wrap and place in a round tube then put that into a triangle so you have an extra layer of protection.
An additional strategy for shipping expensive cues is to send usps express which used to be next day guaranteed but now some zip codes are 2 day but, regardless, I find a dual benefit in shipping this way.
1. This keeps your package in the hands of the post office folks the least amount of time so less risk and better service to your customer.
2. For the approx 20% of the time that they miss the promised delivery time (my guesstimate) you will be entitled to a refund and it's easy to collect on; just go with your receipt to the po counter and they will issue either cash or a money order. The insurance will not be included in any refunds, however.
best,
brian kc
An additional strategy for shipping expensive cues is to send usps express which used to be next day guaranteed but now some zip codes are 2 day but, regardless, I find a dual benefit in shipping this way.
1. This keeps your package in the hands of the post office folks the least amount of time so less risk and better service to your customer.
2. For the approx 20% of the time that they miss the promised delivery time (my guesstimate) you will be entitled to a refund and it's easy to collect on; just go with your receipt to the po counter and they will issue either cash or a money order. The insurance will not be included in any refunds, however.
best,
brian kc
True- but it was not widely advertised by USPS and thousands of folks like me who charge flat rate shipping on e bay for cues and cases were hit with a surprise $15 charge at the P.O. counter in the past 2 months- we could not go back to our customer and ask for the $15.
By now, most know about this change and you see it reflected in shipping charges nearly doubling when the shipper is using USPS for cues and cases.
E bay did not alert sellers to the new USPS surcharges which begin at 22 inch length packages and go up to $25 at 30 inch packages- $15 is a significant increase - almost doubling postage fees for cue and case shippers on basic priority mail service.
I can ship a cue halfway across the U.S from where I live for about $16 Ground Fed EX and USPS with the surcharge is now approx. $32- big difference in price! No more USPS for me on cues.
Pack it well, we have a cash pool for the most accurate package handler at the Post Office, that can launch a tube parcel across the sorting floor and through the basketball hoop. The pool gets won every month.
In Prov. You have to fill out papers now to get a refund. You still get it right away but the papers discourage some.
I just laughed at the counter person and said
Ok. Give me the papers then my money!
I have shipped many cues with the USPS........ never had a problem.............. I wrap the cue and shafts in soft cloth........... then in bubble wrap............ I put it in a 3 inch PVC pipe about 36 inches long........... plug the ends with test caps............ tape the caps on with clear shipping tape.............. do not use duck tape....... USPS will refuse it............. don't forget to purchase insurance................ and yes the price has increased lately.................... pay it and be happy
Agree. Tell me something that HASN'T gone up. I went to Whata-Burger and my usual combo had gone up pretty big. Did i whine and cry about it? No, i made the CHOICE to go ahead and order. I've never had an issue with USPS either.
I
Just a word of advice.
Ship on a Monday of a non-holiday week.
You never want a cue sitting in a hub somewhere over a weekend.
Best
Fatboy
didn’t read this thread
Just a word of advice.
Ship on a Monday of a non-holiday week.
You never want a cue sitting in a hub somewhere over a weekend.
Best
Fatboy
I ship my cues in 2” PVC pipe that you can buy at Lowe’s or Home Depot.
Bubble wrap the cues and into the pipe.
I use 2” test caps and duct tape them in place.
As stated before, insuring for $501 and above automatically adds a signature.
Otherwise just pay for an added signature.
My idea on insurance is do you want to pay a few bucks to cover a lost cue and refunding payment? I do.
Bubble wrap the cues and into the pipe.
I use 2” test caps and duct tape them in place.
As stated before, insuring for $501 and above automatically adds a signature.
Otherwise just pay for an added signature.
My idea on insurance is do you want to pay a few bucks to cover a lost cue and refunding payment? I do.