2 legs move our bodies. 4 legs move our souls.
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Posted: 3/9/2026 1:00:16 PM EDT
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What a Charlie Foxtrot! Enjoy your raises and perks Fed Ex And UPS. |
Pure blood saved by His.
In my defense I was left unsupervised.
In my defense I was left unsupervised.
2 legs move our bodies. 4 legs move our souls.
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41965
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ID, USA
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Originally Posted By Walkure: I don't have any problems. I ship UPS via PirateShip - it is a PITA to ship insured through UPS directly, in addition to being considerably more expensive (even with a small business account). You’re right; It’s no problem shipping if you don’t mind forking over pick up trucks full of cash. |
Pure blood saved by His.
In my defense I was left unsupervised.
In my defense I was left unsupervised.
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Originally Posted By BTccw: You’re right; It’s no problem shipping if you don’t mind forking over pick up trucks full of cash. I build guitars, the vast majority of which get shipped. Direct UPS pricing is stupid unless you can actually negotiate volume discounts, which virtually no small business can do. PirateShip is reasonably priced, and also offers affordable insurance without a bunch of extra BS hoops to jump through. I just shipped a guitar Friday to KY for less than $40. Adding in my packaging costs, it was just over $50. Basses get a lot more expensive as they are large enough to trigger oversize charges (which adds like $30 IIRC), but guitars are just within the normal limit. |
2 legs move our bodies. 4 legs move our souls.
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ID, USA
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Typical guitar box…25lbs. 9x21x51 From ID to CT via UPS. Add a one and a zero to your shipping costs. $1,400.00. Like I said; enjoy your raises-you are not going to have a job much longer. Ie; Pirate Ship etc. I did have to insure it. |
Pure blood saved by His.
In my defense I was left unsupervised.
In my defense I was left unsupervised.
|
A standard guitar box is 46x19x7. Your box is more like a bass box, which will trigger oversize charges. I just told you my actual shipping costs. Shipping a guitar to KS in November was $43. It has been a bit since I shipped a bass, but the last one was around $70 to GA. These all include insurance as well. My costs billed to customers are an extra $15-$20 to account for packaging materials. PirateShip is just an aggregator for UPS and USPS, able to offer volume discounts that even most businesses can't get. That's the only part that is so absurd - that UPS would rather a third party take a cut than just offer those rates directly to small businesses. Their insurance requirements for shipments valued over $999 are also ridiculous, which is another win for PirateShip with their third party insurance. The actual cost of insurance is fine with UPS, but the paperwork requirements are stupid. |
2 legs move our bodies. 4 legs move our souls.
Joined:
Nov 2012
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41967
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ID, USA
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Originally Posted By Walkure: A standard guitar box is 46x19x7. Your box is more like a bass box, which will trigger oversize charges. I just told you my actual shipping costs. Shipping a guitar to KS in November was $43. It has been a bit since I shipped a bass, but the last one was around $70 to GA. These all include insurance as well. My costs billed to customers are an extra $15-$20 to account for packaging materials. PirateShip is just an aggregator for UPS and USPS, able to offer volume discounts that even most businesses can't get. That's the only part that is so absurd - that UPS would rather a third party take a cut than just offer those rates directly to small businesses. Their insurance requirements for shipments valued over $999 are also ridiculous, which is another win for PirateShip with their third party insurance. The actual cost of insurance is fine with UPS, but the paperwork requirements are stupid. You must build electric guitars. Those cases are smaller. I normally buy guitars-this is the first really expensive one I’ve sold and had to figure out the shipping myself. This thread is also one of the best reasons to be a member here…I’ve just learned how to SAVE money on Arfcom. 
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Pure blood saved by His.
In my defense I was left unsupervised.
In my defense I was left unsupervised.
|
funny timing, i was holding onto some guitars for a friend while he got settled in after a relocation. check out StewMac.com for their packaging system options, as they call it i was shipping acoustic box size is: 48x20x9 one 13# & other 19# https://www.stewmac.com/luthier-tools-and-supplies/supplies/guitar-shipping/ friend was paying, but this plus Pirate Ship [adult sig., insur & 3 day UPS - ~$145 each] seemed best options. slower ground would have been $50 cheaper via UPS & USPS would have been over 200 for slow boat option |
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Aimless = Suburban Pot Bellied Snow Chicken
2 legs move our bodies. 4 legs move our souls.
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ID, USA
Harley owner in the Church of J. M. Browning
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Originally Posted By BTccw: It was an extra $56.00 because of the size.  That’s not really surprising when just adding a signature requirement is a $8-9 upcharge. |
"I see dumb people... they're everywhere. They walk around like everyone else. They don't even know that they're dumb."