Preparing cues for shipping

The tubes are more expensive, but much more durable. I received a cue in a rectangular box with some bubble wrap and noticed the box had something stacked on it since the box was slightly bent. The cue was fine though.

When I shipped the cue back for repair, I used a 36" tube and 1/8" bubble wrap and put 4 1.5" screws on each end to support the caps. If you ever have to ship or receive hydraulics in low to single volume, this is a common practice and what I based the shipping on (It's very robust).

Here's a link but the price looks high for a 4"

https://www.uline.com/grp_74_heavyduty/Heavy-Duty-Kraft-Tubes

This price is WAY BETTER

https://www.packagingsupplies.com/c...-heavy-duty-brown-mailing-tubes-with-end-caps

We use rolls of stuff at work that have 3" diameter cores. I bubble wrap, put it in the core and put the whole thing in one if those triangular Priority Mail boxes and insure it if it's worth more than a few hundred bucks.

For lower end cues I've also just reused the boxes that cues or shafts I've bought came to me in. A corner of my basement is my collection of "good" boxes that stuff comes in so I always have a supply of sturdy boxes to ship things in.

I've never tried but I would think a carpet store might have some sturdy tubes they'd be glad to get rid of. Hack saw them to length. Stay under 36" or you might pay a premium.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

I just received a cue with both pieces wrapped in plastic, placed in a pvc tube,
pvc wrapped in bubblewrap, the whole thing in a cardboard box..
great cue sandwich..would recommend!

I use shipping tubes from an office supply store. I'll glue one cap on and tape the other. I usually fill the bottom and top of the tube with plastic shopping bags and wrap the cues in bubble wrap so nothing is moving around

Don't ever ship through the US Postal system. Pay a little more and ship UPS.

Buckzapper said:

Don't ever ship through the US Postal system. Pay a little more and ship UPS.

Click to expand...

I've shipped about a thousand items in the last 30 years. I wouldn't make that generalization. I've had 0 issues with the last several hundred USPS Priority Mail shipments.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

hurricane145 said:

Just wondering what your thoughts are on preparing a pool cue for shipping.
I haven't done any yet but have a pile of them to sell and probably most of them will be shipped. They are part of a friends estate.
What long boxes or shipping tubes do you use? What do you wrap them in? If you don't ship any but have bought a few that were shipped to you how were they packaged?
I have shipped a lot of odd shaped or oversize stuff but not anything like the shape of a cue.

Click to expand...

If they're 'relatively' cheap cues, a good heavy duty cardboard shipping tube won't run you more than a few bucks at Staples/Office Depot, etc, and should be sufficient with the cue wrapped (each part separately) in bubble wrap with a snug fit, and some padding on either end.

If there are any cues of 'higher' value, it's worth going the extra mile for peace of mind. I think a lot of people overestimate the cost of what it takes for real protection.

You can buy a 3" x 10' length of PVC pipe for about $11, long enough to cut into 3 sections so it really only adds about $4 to the base cost of shipping a cue. There's a little extra weight, so that's a couple more dollars, but that's about it. Most of the cost in shipping is the base freight and insurance.

I wrap & pack the cues in the PVC, seal up the ends, put a shipping label on the PVC pipe itself (so that in the event the outer cardboard should, at the carrier's discretion, "fail," there's still a fully viable package with all the delivery information there), and then pack that for a snug fit in the cardboard tube.

In my opinion, any time you're dealing with a cue of $500 or more, it's worth it.



Pack'em up good and you and the end recipient can sleep knowing that it would take pretty much willful intent for your package not to arrive safely.

My usual warning, round things roll

Already noted, several people have mentioned tubes then placed inside a flat sided box. The reason is round things roll. They roll off of conveyor belts into awkward places to retrieve them even if they are noticed, roll into awkward places to retrieve when truck drivers open doors, roll under neighboring cars or down hills and far away!

Some people claim I overpack. I put things in PVC and use screws to secure the endcaps made from wood. Sometimes I make these square. Then I put the pvc pipe in a flat sided box so it can't roll. The usual bubble wrap and other padding to do the job and so far I have never had an item shipped damaged or lost.

Hu

https://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=291828&highlight=shipping

7 year old thread...

JV