Tips About Shipping

When we order a uke online, we expect it to arrive undamaged. That requires good packing. I save all the bubble wrap I receive in packages, stuff it into trash bags, and store it in the garage. That stuff really comes in handy.

You want as little empty space inside the uke case and the packing box as possible, and that's where various types of bubble wrap come in handy.

One thing I would recommend against is using too much Scotch tap inside the box. I have received items that were wrapped tightly in bubble wrap and then loaded up with tape. Why? The wrap is not going to unwrap itself inside the box. It makes it very difficult to get to the item without cutting or breaking what the sender was trying to protect.

I wouldn't have posted this thread except for two packages I received recently. Last week I received a uke that was overly-wrapped - with lots of tape added to that. It was a lengthy and delicate process unwrapping it without breaking or scratching something. A few minutes ago, I received two fretboards from China. They were wrapped in a generous amount of bubble wrap, but that was held in place with lots of tape. Why? There was no way it was going to unwrap itself inside the padded envelope.

So, that's my rant for the day.

I agree 100%. A few months ago I ordered an acoustic bass from Aquila in Italy, it was in a padded gig bag, but no other padding or protection. When It arrived, the end of the box was crushed and opening it revealed that it was dropped from a distance. The side and the binding at the tail was broken, and the top cracked in three places. If it had bubble wrap inside the gig bag and then outside the gig bag, and a second box (as most of my foreign orders have), I'm sure it would have survived. At least Aquila stepped up and refunded 1/2 the price so I could have it repaired. Apparently Italy has ongoing problems with shipping.

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This is Michael Kohan in Los Angeles, Beverly West near the Beverly Center
9 tenor cutaway ukes, 5 acoustic bass ukes, 11 solid body bass ukes, 11 mini electric bass guitars (Total: 35)

• Donate to The Ukulele Kids Club, they provide ukuleles to children in hospital music therapy programs. www.theukc.org
• Member The CC Strummers: YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/CCStrummers/video, Facebook: www.facebook.com/TheCCStrummers

kohanmike said:

Apparently Italy has ongoing problems with shipping.

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This is Michael Kohan in Los Angeles, Beverly West near the Beverly Center
9 tenor cutaway ukes, 5 acoustic bass ukes, 11 solid body bass ukes, 11 mini electric bass guitars (Total: 35)

• Donate to The Ukulele Kids Club, they provide ukuleles to children in hospital music therapy programs. www.theukc.org
• Member The CC Strummers: YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/CCStrummers/video, Facebook: www.facebook.com/TheCCStrummers

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I've heard that before.

We're supposed to be Aloha...not tightly wrapped!

Ukecaster said:

We're supposed to be Aloha...not tightly wrapped!

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Playing the uke relieves the tension on my wrapping.

Ukecaster said:

We're supposed to be Aloha...not tightly wrapped!

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Think of the wrapping as a nice friendly hug! And when you undo it you get two sources of sonic joy: playing the uke and popping the bubbles! Bliss!

I always keep boxes and the inside padding from HMS. They do a great job & their parting is very sturdy for reuse when I sell a uke.

One other tip for selling & shipping. Regular USPS is cheaper, but Priority Mail offers better protection & speed. The nice lady at my post office told me that there is a weight limit & better handling with Priority Mail. Your ukulele package has less chance of having something really heavy piled on top of it. She said she’d never send a musical instrument regular USPS. The price difference is usually less than $20.

RafterGirl said:

I always keep boxes and the inside padding from HMS. They do a great job & their parting is very sturdy for reuse when I sell a uke.

One other tip for selling & shipping. Regular USPS is cheaper, but Priority Mail offers better protection & speed. The nice lady at my post office told me that there is a weight limit & better handling with Priority Mail. Your ukulele package has less chance of having something really heavy piled on top of it. She said she’d never send a musical instrument regular USPS. The price difference is usually less than $20.

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Agreed, I wish I could always ship Priority, but when shipping from MA to the left coast, it's often $35.00 more than standard Ground, especially for tenors in a hard case. Funny, the buyers usually don't want to pay that!

RafterGirl said:

I always keep boxes and the inside padding from HMS. They do a great job & their parting is very sturdy for reuse when I sell a uke.

One other tip for selling & shipping. Regular USPS is cheaper, but Priority Mail offers better protection & speed. The nice lady at my post office told me that there is a weight limit & better handling with Priority Mail. Your ukulele package has less chance of having something really heavy piled on top of it. She said she’d never send a musical instrument regular USPS. The price difference is usually less than $20.

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Be careful about that "always keep the boxes." My two-car garage is now a one-car garage. : )

I always ship Priority, and I print the labels at home with the USPS Click N Ship service. There used to be a discount for that, but no more. Boxing a uke is a compromise between cost and size/weight of the box. Distance is one reason why I like the buyer to pay. Shipping within NY costs very little, but sending a uke and case to CA can cost big bucks.

Ukecaster said:

Agreed, I wish I could always ship Priority, but when shipping from MA to the left coast, it's often $35.00 more than standard Ground, especially for tenors in a hard case. Funny, the buyers usually don't want to pay that!

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Unfortunately, someone has to pay. I just received a Fluke and hard case from CA. The seller paid shipping - $5.30 - but it took fifteen days to get to me. It should have taken three. Given the choice, I would have paid the shipping cost. I'm going to weigh and measure the box later and see how much Priority would have cost with Priority Mail. Shipping is a fact of life, and unless you're in business and making a profit, paying shipping on something you're selling can cut dramatically into your sale.