that dreaded call

[gush]

I sent a couple guitars off to be set up last week. I got the call that makes your heart skip a beat. You know the one that informs you there was some damage during shipping.

I was lucky though, only ruined the case and not the guitar. Thank god!!!!

Let's hear your bad shipping story. If it's not too painful to talk about.

 

[AP515]

<<puts fingers in ears>>

La, La, La, La ...

I don't want to hear it. I'm about to send one to the PTC for some fretwork.

 

[CatStrangler]

not the shipping companies fault, but I sent out a EC+ condition guitar a couple winters ago and the buyer calls me up asking why it looks like Tom Murphy had a go at it. The cold did a fantastic checking job.

 

[drdoom8793]

I've got a good one for you. When I was younger and into extremely high gain metal, I ordered a used Peavey 6505 1x12 combo from Guitar Center. I was super excited! This was the same amp that some of my favorite bands at the time used. I had saved up for months to get enough money to buy and it couldn't arrive soon enough. Fedex had dropped it off while I was at work. When I got home, I tore into the packaging. To my utter dismay, the amp had been smashed into at least 5 different pieces. It was like someone had run it over with a large truck and then packed it up. Luckily, Guitar Center was cool and gave me my money back. To this day, I'm still leary of ordering any musical equipment online.

 

[Dusty Chalk]

A long time ago, I bought some tubes/valves from an online acquaintance. When I got the box, UPS had repackaged it. When I opened it up, the original packaging had obviously been run over. There was sand leaking out of it. The tubes could not have been more destroyed. In UPS' defense, they did honor the claim in its entirety, and the guy paid me back, but RIP NOS tubes. They should not have even bothered delivering it.

 

[vchizzle]

Hmmm. I got a Bogner Uberschall used at a sick price. Ordered, was super pumped. Had it delivered to my GC store(thankfully). Came in, head cab was completely split on 1 edge, like no longer attached split. Several broken tubes, amp didn't work. Bummin'.

 

[bodia]

Hmmm. I got a Bogner Uberschall used at a sick price. Ordered, was super pumped. Had it delivered to my GC store(thankfully). Came in, head cab was completely split on 1 edge, like no longer attached split. Several broken tubes, amp didn't work. Bummin'.

This is the saddest thread ever. I can't stop weepin', and I'm already on my third Cosmo. Thankfully, I don't have a pony in this race.

 

[veinbuster]

I was waiting for a delivery and after seeing it 'on truck or delivery' for two days, the status changed to something like 'smashed to bits, discussing with sender'. Then there was about a week of 'under investigation'.
At this point the builder called me to say they were having trouble settling with the carrier, but they would get a new one ready as soon as they could and ship it with someone else in a week or two.

 

[django49]

Long ago, bought an older (not collectible vintage) Twin Reverb from a store. It arrived while I was out of town. My assistant told me I should be prepared......The box rattled.
The Twin was stuck inside a very oversized box with ZERO packing material. It looked like it had been tossed off a high loading dock. The baffle board was broken, the speakers ripped, multiple tubes shattered.

Yes, I DID get a complete refund.

 

[nosidamde]

I sent a couple guitars off to be set up last week. I got the call that makes your heart skip a beat. You know the one that informs you there was some damage during shipping.

I was lucky though, only ruined the case and not the guitar. Thank god!!!!

Let's hear your bad shipping story. If it's not too painful to talk about.

Glad your guitar was safe!

 

[Goldfixer]

I bought an SC245 quilt 10 top a few years ago from a guy in Canada. It didn't have the original case, but came with a Gator Hybrid type case, fabric exterior with hard foam lining. It came to me via USPS. When it was delivered, I noticed some obvious damage to the cardboard outer box, and asked the postal deliverer to watch while I opened it. The guitar headstock was pushed through the case, bending 2 of the tuners into the head stock, which in turn chewed up the paint on the head stock. The case was destroyed. I took it to the local post office, the inspector said it appeared to have been caught in a conveyor belt system. They requested I get an estimate to fix it, which I did from PTC. I filed a claim, and they sent me a check for the repair cost.

 

[Parralax view]

While incredibly, nothing was damaged. My entire rig and collection was put in wooden boxes shipped overland to Long Beach, then rode 3 weeks in a cargo container to Honolulu, starting in Dallas, Texas. It was the first box I opened. I was stunned that nothing was damaged at all. I've done more Budweiser damage to them myself than anything else.

 

[Boogie]

This wasn't a guitar, but a high $$$ Dell server. We shipped it, on a pallet with approved strapping, in proper factory shipping materials to Philadelphia. I flew out for the install in time to watch UPS arrive for the delivery. Watching through the customer's window, we witnessed the back door of the truck slide up and the driver KICK the server off of the tailgate (that's a 4' drop). That broke the pallet, strapping and the 120lbs server (deformed the chassis). When we confronted the driver he simply said,

Driver: "inadequate shipping materials".
Me: "But you kicked it off the truck!"
Driver: "take it up with the office and my union"

 

[CVS]

My sympathies to all of you. Nothing to report from my side (and I hope it stays that way)

 

[gush]

This wasn't a guitar, but a high $$$ Dell server. We shipped it, on a pallet with approved strapping, in proper factory shipping materials to Philadelphia. I flew out for the install in time to watch UPS arrive for the delivery. Watching through the customer's window, we witnessed the back door of the truck slide up and the driver KICK the server off of the tailgate (that's a 4' drop). That broke the pallet, strapping and the 120lbs server (deformed the chassis). When we confronted the driver he simply said,

Driver: "inadequate shipping materials".
Me: "But you kicked it off the truck!"
Driver: "take it up with the office and my union"

Nice.

 

[Stephen Rudnick]

In 1972 I had Gibson build me a one-off replica of a '59 Les Paul. I sent them, directly from Anvil Cases, a heavy duty flight case and asked them to send the guitar in it to me. When it arrived, there was no shipping box, only the Anvil case, which was scratched up terribly. The corner of the case had been pried back like a sardine can, but luckily enough, whomever did that, could not get it open far enough to take the guitar.

The shipping company, however did replace the Anvil Case, but I was ripping mad that Gibson never boxed the case up, and that the shipping company tried to just drop it off without my signature, after seeing that the case had been tampered with.

 

[Deleted member 5962]

my wife is a US Postmaster. Every time I ship guitar gear, she reminds me of the different types/methods of shipping... With them, "Priority Mail" means 2-3 days, air shipped, and "better handling." Parcel post means ground shipped. I shipped my Mesa TA15 from Cincinnati to Louisiana and it was $40 PP and $50 Priority. I shipped priority. Yesterday, I shipped my 2 Channel H from Cinci to Seattle. Much bigger box, much heavier. The buyer said he had an account with FedEx and they would be the cheapest way. Sure enough, $50 insured. I'm sure as soon as I say this that someone will come in with a horror story about shipping with the post office, but it's proven that their track record is far better than FedEx or UPS, and this includes both shipping methods. She said if you use priority mail, the chance of damage is a fraction of what FedEx or UPS is. Costs a few bucks more, but I do it almost every time. A few years ago, before they quit doing it, I was shipping big gear (Mesa Lone Star combo, and Rivera Fandago 2x12 combo!) to South Africa to a friend. We could track it all the way til it hit S.A. and he had a friend at Customs so he'd hit them up as soon as it got there. Those two amps, several guitars, multiple pedals... we never had one issue. He said the issue would be on his end as Customs was a bit crooked and guys see "Mesa/Boogie" on a box and that box would disappear from Customs. LOL But his friend there would look out for his stuff as soon as it hit.

Nobody is perfect, but this is only the second time I've shipped anything big and not used the USPS.

 

[Dusty Chalk]

I prefer the USPS. And of course there will be horror stories, but still...

 

[CatStrangler]

I prefer the USPS. And of course there will be horror stories, but still...

The USPS has very strict limits on size and a lot of guitar boxes fall just outside their limits. I tend to go UPS just because they will also pack and there is no hassle, but if USPS does accept the package they have been very reliable for me.

 

[jfb]

The first time I went to The Vault I ordered two guitars. They both arrived looking like someone drive a forklift through them at the point where neck meets body. The first was bad enough that before opening the case we thought the guitar was certainly in two or more pieces. Luckily, both were fine. The dealer and PRS kindly replaced the case. But, yeah...my heart sank when it arrived.