Shipping Cues

cuenut

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Many people don't know about this, and I have used it for shipment for several transactions. I probably spend more than most on shipping and insurance relative to cues, but feel comfortable doing so, even though I have never had a cue damaged or lost/stolen in transit.

I have a buddy who used to work for the Postal Service. He stated that I should send any really valuable item Registered mail. There is a formal chain of custody for the item, and each person who touches the package during delivery has to sign for it. He said the carriers didn't particularly like the process because they had to sign as responsible for the item.

I have used it and it is piece of mind.

Also, one extra level of protection. This also carries additional cost. I have also used a shipping "store". I hand them the cue, fill out the paperwork for registered mail, stated insurance value, etc. Normally when I give them the value, their eyes open wide and they understand that the item needs to be packaged well. I tell them that I wrap each piece in bubble wrap, then wrap them all together in more bubble wrap. When the cue/item is shipped, if there is any damage/loss, etc. the claim is processed through the shipping company. Due to volume of business, claims tend to be addressed quicker. I shipped a Rolex years ago in this manner, and got a check in 3 weeks for the insured value. I am pretty confident that if I had showed up with a box already packed and simply had them place the label and ship it, I would have had a much harder time getting my claim paid. The box was sent back with a note stated that it was damaged and contents were not in it. The fact that I placed the watch in their hands and they packed it, etc. is what I think helped the most.

I would also like to know what others think and how they ship valuable items.

Here is what I pulled off of the USPS site:

What Is Registered Mail?

The USPS® offers a service called Registered Mail™ that provides extra protection for high-value letters and packages. When you elect to send a package by Registered Mail, the USPS establishes a chain of custody that tracks and secures your shipment throughout the entire transit process—from the moment you drop it off at the Post Office until the moment it’s delivered. Additionally, in the unlikely event of loss, theft or damage, your shipments can be insured for up to $25,000.

The cost of Registered Mail is based upon the declared value of your shipment with rates at $11.70 and up.

You can use Registered Mail with the following mail classes and services: First-Class Mail®, Priority Mail®, Collect-on-Delivery, USPS Tracking (packages only), Restricted Delivery, Return Receipt and Signature Confirmation™ (packages only).

Please note that due to the tight security provided for Registered Mail, it may take 10–14 days for your shipment to arrive at its destination
 
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Bavafongoul

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Any shipping carrier can screw up which is just stark reality.
We hope that our shipments are the ones that don't go south.

It's been my experience, and I have shipped many cues valued
well over $2k using USPS because of horrible experience and
treatment both by Fed EX and UPS......so I switched carriers
years ago and so far, my track record is 100% success and
that represents approximately 15 deliveries over approx. 10 yrs.

However, I always pack my cues extremely well when I am the
shipper and when I have been the buyer, the cue-maker or seller
has followed my instructions on packing and shipping to the T.

I always ship my cue 24 hrs. overnight delivery (signed delivery)
with full insurance value for cue replacement cost. Coast to Coast
Coverage by USPS 7 days a week delivery.........the fastest method
and based on my experience, also the most reliable.

Nonetheless, as stated as the outset, and carrier can screw up. I've
found that when the package moves as fast as it has to to be able to
get delivered 3000 miles away after I drop the item off at my local Post
Office the attention the item receives along the way for delivery the
very next day has really paid off for me.

I pick a carrier based upon probability of a problem or another way of
expressing that, avoiding a problem. 24 Hrs next day delivery is the
only way I will ship my cues or custom cases......It works great for me.



Matt B.
 

cuenut

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Thanks Matt. I have never had a package come close to the 14 day deliver time noted by the USPS. Thanks for your input.
 

mortuarymike-nv

mortuarymike-nv
Silver Member
Cue shipping containers

I go to the flooring stores thrash and get the heavy walled carboard tubing that come's out of the center of the carpet roll. I bring a hand wood saw and cut the tubes 33 or 34 inch long on site..

I have used black ABS 4 inch sewer pipe capped .
Make sure you vent the tube and I made sure customs knew which end wasn't glued on for easy inspection .
 
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gregnice37

Bar Banger, Cue Collector
Silver Member
Ive never shipped with registered within the US. I frankly didnt know it existed within the US. Ive used it multiple times when shipping out of the country.

Problem here for me in my thread is that we did a trade and my cue showed up to him. My new to me cue coming got "lost" in the past 2-3 days. Of course he didnt ship registered or insured for that matter. We both did 2 day priority with signature confirmation. I believe my actual delivery guy to be honest & sincere with me because between cues & cards i used to collect, he always got everything to me securely. He even let me search his van the day be was supposed to have my cue.

So i really find it hard to believe that no employee can seem to find a 3 foot long cylinder white container weigging in at a bit over 3 pounds.

I feel that someone may have taken it. Some think it couldve roolled away, but i find that hard to believe. Who knows, im totally sick to my stomach about it & hopefully it is found soon.
 

Texdance

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I have posted something similar to this before, but it is worth repeating.

For several years I recorded the problem percentage of our company shipments, which were in the tens of thousands of transactions per year. We used all the big shippers except USPS. We shipped boxes of small items much like an early version of Amazon, and we also shipped heavy full truckloads of paper products.

Every carrier eventually averaged about a 5% error rate. Though some years were better than others, the average was always right at 5% carrier errors - either lost, damaged or mis-delivered shipments, always due to carrier error.

Sometime around mid-2006 I got wise to this problem and it lead me to stop selling on Ebay. What with rising Ebay and PayPal costs, and rising shipping prices, not to mention the horrendous customer expectations of brand-new quality and condition no matter if the item was a well-used thirty year old baseball glove - well, there was just not enough meat left on the bone for me to make any money, so after nearly two hundred transactions I closed up shop and never looked back.

My point is that I would warn anyone selling odds and ends (or cues) every once in awhile, and shipping by means of *any* carrier, that they can depend on a certain percentage of shipments going wrong in some manner, either lost or damaged or mis-delivered. We found that percentage to be steady at 5% of all shipments, and we made thousands of shipments every year, ranging is size from a single five-pound box of little note pads to full truckloads of custom-printed paper rolls. Guess what? The customer still expects the seller to make things right, even if the problem originated with the shipper, and 'making it right' probably includes a full refund of the purchase price as well as refunding shipping costs both ways.

I think 5% error rate is still about the industry average, if shippers are honest in reporting errors to their customers. The good business plan takes those expenses and hassles into account, and sets prices accordingly, so as to not lose money too badly when that certain 5% carrier error rate eventually raises its ugly head.

I recall once a guy shipped a steel bicycle. It arrived bent in half. How do you bend something in half when it is made of welded steel tubes formed into a strong double triangle configuration of steel tubing. Beats me. Anyway, the shipper refused the claim, saying the bike was not packaged well enough. I guess the guy could have put the welded steel bike inside a welded steel bike, or something.
 

cueman

AzB Gold Member
Gold Member
Silver Member
I always get four inch PVC thin wall pipe and put that inside a 4 x 4 square box. Then I wrap the cue with bubble wrap and put it inside the tube. I have never had a cue damaged with either UPS or Post office using this method of packing. Full insurance and signature required should also be used. If the customer does not have to sign for it then it can get tricky to collect if he says he never received it. The post office once left a cue in my mailbox sticking out and it got stolen. They never paid me. Lost about $600.
 
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Bob 14:1

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Registered is the hottest piece of mail that exists. It is used to send irreplaceable objects.

Custody is proven by the signature of the next person whose job it is to be the next in the chain of custody to handle and have possession of the registered mail.

It is kept locked in the station safe until morning when the carrier then signs for it. He must return the piece at the end of the day, or present a #3849 receipt signed by the designated recipient of the item.

Examples of registered items that I've carried in my 30 year career include huge bags of collectible coins en route to a coin dealer, funeral ashes, gold ingots and original works of art.

If anything, being registered does not delay the parcel, it is handled and delivered as expeditiously as possible.

The loss of a Registered piece is generally considered grounds for dismissal from the U.S. Postal Service.

The only higher category of Registered is Registered/Restricted Delivery in which case only one specific individual can sign for the document or item. Visual proof of identity is required of the carrier as a second layer of security.
 
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cuenut

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Registered is the hottest piece of mail that exists. It is used to send irreplaceable objects.

Custody is proven by the signature of the next person whose job it is to be the next in the chain of custody to handle and have possession of the registered mail.

It is kept locked in the station safe until morning when the carrier then signs for it. He must return the piece at the end of the day, or present a #3849 receipt signed by the designated recipient of the item.

Examples of registered items that I've carried in my 30 year career include huge bags of collectible coins en route to a coin dealer, funeral ashes, gold ingots and original works of art.

If anything, being registered does not delay the parcel, it is handled and delivered as expeditiously as possible.

The loss of a Registered piece is generally considered grounds for dismissal from the U.S. Postal Service.

The only higher category of Registered is Registered/Restricted Delivery in which case only one specific individual can sign for the document or item. Visual proof of identity is required of the carrier as a second layer of security.

Thanks Bob for your clarification. I understood the same, but didn't know that loss of the item is grounds for termination.
 

Rico

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
usps

Yes good advice ,i use pcv pipe for each shaft and larger of course for the butt. Adds weight so the shipping a little more,but its very protective. Also remember many many parcels sent ups or fed ex are delivered by the usps via final destination.The usps delivers to every address the private sector doesn't.
 
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