Well, mostly.
I recently sold my bari sax to a gentleman from Great Britian (the ad's HERE if you want pics). I called the USPS (US Postal Service) to confirm that the measurements/weight were good and I could ship it out -- as well as find out how much it'd cost.
I then called the UPS Store about getting packaging: the USPS didn't have a box big enough. I bought one: 46l x 20w x 10h. Box alone cost $25. (Shipping international through UPS was almost 2x more than USPS, so I didn't use UPS.)
Kewl. I package the horn per the rather obvious instructions at cybersax.com, remove the carseat from my car and take it to USPS.
"I'm sorry. The box is 2.5" too long."
"Hey, I called your service line and they said that it was fine."
"Sorry. It's not. You need to shorten the length by 2.5" or we can't mail it."
So, I lug the horn back home, unpack it and take a hacksaw to the cardboard box. I cut off 4.5", repack it and bring it back. Which takes a grand total of about 1.5 hours.
"Let's see. Your measurements are ... exactly to spec."
Umm. I measured twice and cut once, so I *know* I cut off 4.5". They also measured twice. Each person. For a total of 4 times. And the box had the measurements stamped on it from the factory. Something tells me that USPS uses tape measures that ... aren't exactly accurate.
Now, I packed the thing with foam peanuts and bubble wrap. The weight ballooned from 29lbs to 32lbs 13oz -- which is important because 35lbs adds a significant penalty. Mmm. Sure the foam peanuts and bubble wrap weigh that much.
So. Not fun. Next time I ship international it'll either be under 4lbs or really small.
I recently sold my bari sax to a gentleman from Great Britian (the ad's HERE if you want pics). I called the USPS (US Postal Service) to confirm that the measurements/weight were good and I could ship it out -- as well as find out how much it'd cost.
I then called the UPS Store about getting packaging: the USPS didn't have a box big enough. I bought one: 46l x 20w x 10h. Box alone cost $25. (Shipping international through UPS was almost 2x more than USPS, so I didn't use UPS.)
Kewl. I package the horn per the rather obvious instructions at cybersax.com, remove the carseat from my car and take it to USPS.
"I'm sorry. The box is 2.5" too long."
"Hey, I called your service line and they said that it was fine."
"Sorry. It's not. You need to shorten the length by 2.5" or we can't mail it."
So, I lug the horn back home, unpack it and take a hacksaw to the cardboard box. I cut off 4.5", repack it and bring it back. Which takes a grand total of about 1.5 hours.
"Let's see. Your measurements are ... exactly to spec."
Umm. I measured twice and cut once, so I *know* I cut off 4.5". They also measured twice. Each person. For a total of 4 times. And the box had the measurements stamped on it from the factory. Something tells me that USPS uses tape measures that ... aren't exactly accurate.
Now, I packed the thing with foam peanuts and bubble wrap. The weight ballooned from 29lbs to 32lbs 13oz -- which is important because 35lbs adds a significant penalty. Mmm. Sure the foam peanuts and bubble wrap weigh that much.
So. Not fun. Next time I ship international it'll either be under 4lbs or really small.
