Winter uke delivery - Should I be concerned?

mikelz777

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A long awaited solid wood uke has finally become available and unfortunately I don't have the luxury of waiting or buying later, I have to buy it now or risk never getting it. I realize that I have no control of the situation in transit but should I be overly concerned about a winter delivery? (to MN) I'm having it delivered to my wife's work place to avoid any chance of it being delivered and left outside. I know that once I receive it, I should leave the box as-is without opening it until it can acclimate itself to the temperature/humidity of our home. Am I being paranoid?
 
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It all depends on what finish is on the Uke. Something like nitro-cellulose lacquer can react pretty dramatically to sudden changes in temperature and humidity, whereas a UV cured polyester finish is pretty much impervious to such things.

Just to be safe, I would suggest the following:

If the Uke is in a hard shell case, wait about six hours after delivery before taking the case out of the shipping box and then wait another twelve hours before opening the case. If it's not in a hard shell case, wait about sixteen hours before opening the shipping box.


Scooter
 
It all depends on what finish is on the Uke. Something like nitro-cellulose lacquer can react pretty dramatically to sudden changes in temperature and humidity, whereas a UV cured polyester finish is pretty much impervious to such things.

Just to be safe, I would suggest the following:

If the Uke is in a hard shell case, wait about six hours after delivery before taking the case out of the shipping box and then wait another twelve hours before opening the case. If it's not in a hard shell case, wait about sixteen hours before opening the shipping box.


Scooter

+1 ^^^

This can be some of the most painful time in a winter delivery but force yourself. You won't be sorry you waited.

Additionally, if you can afford it, go for expedited delivery so the instrument is exposed for less time. Overnight if you can.
 
Good stuff.
I have a uke that should be arriving today in the freezing weather here in MD (14 degrees but nothing like MN though!) a guitar in 3 days and another uke in 5 days!
Hopefully none of them crack, check, etc!!!
 
Yes, leave it in the box for several hours before opening. These were the instructions I received from Elderly when I ordered a guitar and I think it holds true for any solid wood stringed instrument.
 
The reason I'm so concerned is that we've been having such brutally cold weather where some of our highs have been negative or single digits. The predicted high for this coming Monday is 16 below zero!! The predicted high temps for next week range from -16° to 31° a swing of 47 degrees! I don't have a ship date yet but I'm guessing it would be around the middle of next week at the earliest. I guess all I can do is follow the advice above, cross my fingers and hope that it will survive unscathed.
 
It all depends on what finish is on the Uke. Something like nitro-cellulose lacquer can react pretty dramatically to sudden changes in temperature and humidity, whereas a UV cured polyester finish is pretty much impervious to such things.

Do you happen to know what kind of gloss finish Ohana uses on their ukes?
 
I don't know for sure, but chances are pretty good that it's some kind of poly.

The guidelines I posted above should work out well, no matter what the finish is. It's also a great exercise in patience!


Scooter
 
Another bit of advice, if this option is available to you, is to have it shipped to a fedex or ups shipping center and have it held for pickup. That way, it won't be left outside, and depending on the type of shipping location, you might be lucky enough to have it at room temperature by the time you pick it up.

Also, just to emphasize, it is not necessarily the cold temps that hurt an instrument. It is really about quick swings in temperature. Think of how you can crack a windshield by pouring hot water on it when it's frozen. It's all about rapid expansion and contraction of materials. In the case of the ukulele, you have the wood itself, and then the finish on top of that (nitrocellulose, etc). These two things will expand and contract at different rates which can cause problems. If allowed to happen slowly, however, the risk is greatly reduced.

Good luck and congrats, if you decide to but this new uke!

-Steve
 
Just have your wife leave it at her workplace until the next day (assuming it can be done securely). Then you won't be tempted to open it too soon.
 
Or have it routed out to me in sunny California. I can unpack it, break it in and have it here ready for you to pick on your next trip out west.
 
When shipping to the East Coast during the winter I always watch the weather. I would never ship in zero degree weather. As has been mentioned, time in transit is critical. Express mail is the way to go. And if you can, try to avoid shipping through a Sunday or holiday, adding an additional day in travel.
 
Good gravy! I mean congrats! :D

What kind of ukes are you both getting?
Collings UT2SB from a trade. MyaMoe myrtle tenor (didnt want to buy another uke but couldnt pass it up as it was great price).
Mya-moe is now here in a box. Will have to wait until tomorrow to open it, bummer.
 
What kind of ukes are you both getting?

I've been waiting for this so long with so many postponements that I don't want to jinx it until I receive it. I can hardly believe that it's going to happen. I'll report back once I get past the shipping/temperature/survival worries. :uhoh:
 
I actually have the same concern with my ukulele delivery here to Ohio -- albeit mine is only a solid top. Glad to know someone else shares in my anxiety!
 
Most ukes make it just fine shipped through the cold. As others have said, if you let your uke warm up slowly you'll likely have no problem. I'm sure there are limits based on the wood, prep, and finish as well as temperature extremes.

I've only had one cold temperature related problem when a uke (of a particular brand/model susceptible to finish cracking) was sent via UPS ground for 6 days from West Coast to East Coast in record cold temps (-17F). The extreme cold, bouncing around in trucks, plus cycle warming temps at sort facilities ended up cracking the finish, but the wood and glue joints were fine.

My advice for those who have ukes in transit is don't worry.

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So how did everyone who was having a recent delivery make out? Any issues with your instrument(s) due to the cold shipping? I'm glad mine isn't in transit yet. We've had highs in the negative teens and lows in the negative twenties with wind chills in the negative forties! I think we're supposed to warm up to upper twenties by the end of the week.
 
I actually had a uke that had its finish crack when it was shipped to me. I waited 8 hours to open that uke. It was shipped from Massachusetts to Georgia. Just a finish crack. A couple weeks ago I received a guitar am the temps were double digit negatives when I got it. I waited 6 hours to open with no concern. I received a uke last week with temps at 10 degrees. I waited two hours to open. No issues.
 
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