Beware of using UPS to ship retro computers

[netmosis]

Just got 2 large boxes delivered of retro computers I had purchased at VCFSE last weekend. I watched the UPS store manager carefully and correctly pack each item. They were well padded and packed, and marked fragile.
Literally every single item in both boxes took major damage. IBM 5150, keyboard, 2 C64s, 2 laptops, 2 IBM monitors, and even a 1541 disk drive had the lever broken. One of the monitors had been w/o any damage at all and that one was totalled. Somehow one of the function keys on one of the C64s is just gone, maybe they are so malicious that they open the boxes to damage things? how is it just gone? Rest of the broken keys were in the bottom of the box.

All I can guess is UPS drivers just drop the boxes hard on the concrete and kick them. Photos attached. I lost everything. I may give up now on this hobby, it's just devastating.

BEWARE of UPS. DO NOT USE UPS at a convention to ship anything. I thought this would be a safer bet than checked luggage, I was wrong.

 

[Caluser2000]

Packed with what? News paper?

 

[tradde]

FedEx is not much better. I got a bike for my brother shipped FedEx. The end had a big tear in it as did the sides. The bike was fine but a box of parts was also missing. I don't know what they do with these boxes? Play tackle football? Throw them off the truck onto concrete?

 

[Timo W.]

If these pictures show how the stuff did sit inside the boxes, the damage is totally to be expected. Where's the padding? That's just a very poor packing job.

If you put multiple large items into one box, you need to bubble-wrap each item. And heavy items such as a 1541 need special care.

It's easy to always blame the carrier, but they can't do wonders if the stuff is badly packed.

Throw them off the truck onto concrete?

Yes, that happens and they tell you your package must be able to take that.

 

[Chuck(G)]

Packing is an art, not to be taken by someone inexperienced. My commercial customers send all sorts of old stuff--and never lose any of it to damage. Here's what little I can offer:

1. Find a box that fits what you're trying to send. Throw it away and get one twice the size.
2. Pack the item(s) using polyethylene (closed-cell) foam made for packaging. Pack so that nothing can touch another item or move if the box is dropped.
3. You can use bubble-wrap for filler, but be generous (see 2 above), but it should not be the primary packing material. Forget about packing peanuts--those can shift during shipping.
4. Ship using the fastest method. My customers use Fedex Next Day routinely. The less time the package is in the shipper's custody, the better.

Is it expensive to ship this way? Yes, it is, but you get what you pay for. If the item is heavy and bulky, take it to a shipping service who can palletize it and ship it via truck freight.

 

[ClassicHasClass]

And make sure you never hear anything shifting when you shake the box.

 

[SomeGuy]

Oh, man, That is awful. Yes, they just throw stuff around, stand on it, drop it long distances, and so on.

I would not have even tried to ship one of those IBM monitors, those are so fragile there is almost no way they would survive with zero damage. Eventually someone is going to have to start 3d-printing replacement cases for those. Did the tube get smashed too?

If those keyboards/c64s were not packed in individual boxes, then yes, they would have collided with other objects in the box and broken things.

Although I was looking at some of the keyboards myself there, and some of them already had missing or damaged keys. I've gotten a tad weary of removing keycaps for cleaning as the plastic in key stems is increasingly becoming brittle.

Like everything else these days, the USPS, UPS and other shipping services are all degrading in quality. And somehow people lust put up with them, even as prices skyrocket. I've had simple envelopes with bill payments get lost or destroyed by the USPS lately. And it is not even the holiday season yet.

 

[ajacocks]

All of the things that I see there in the photos can be repaired. @netmosis , I'm not sure where you live, but there are probably folks who live nearby who would be willing to help to get that equipment repaired.

- Alex

 

[the3dfxdude]

I was returning some equipment after a project ended. The company (which shall never be named, because it is well known) wouldn't send me the label for return, but gave me instructions to just come to their office, which is in different state. So my company generated a UPS label, and I used the original packing material and box (might have been UPS anyway?) that it came in with the original label blocked out. I had my wife go drop it off, and the guy there asking what was in the return, and then the guy said they would not take it as it was not packed by them, that we needed to pay them to pack it and that we needed to add insurance. She called and I told her just to leave. So she did and went to another store. The guy at the other store grumbled something about not being in the right box, but he'll let it go through. (I mean c'mon, the label should be good for something right?) Anyway, that is not confidence inspiring. It would have been just UPS to blame for this story, I suppose, except the company I was supporting made me ship it to my office that is nearby, and I had to get someone to drive it over to their office, because they wouldn't give me a shipping address. But at least it made it there in one piece.

 

[arnuphis]

Looks like too many items were in the same box with inadequate protection to stop them bumping against each other. The good news is if UPS packed this you can make a claim for the declared value.

 

[mark0x01]

It was fully protected by the FRAGILE label on the box.

 

[daver2]

>>> I watched the UPS store manager carefully and correctly pack each item.

If the photographs accurately reflect how the packing was actually performed, I am afraid that was not "carefully and correctly".

>>> I may give up now on this hobby, it's just devastating.

That would be a shame. As Alex has previously stated - most (if not all) of the damage can be repaired. Treat it as a learning opportunity.

There are recognised "standards" for packaging equipment if you search the internet.

Dave

 

[Caluser2000]

>>> I watched the UPS store manager carefully and correctly pack each item.

If the photographs accurately reflect how the packing was actually performed, I am afraid that was not "carefully and correctly".

>>> I may give up now on this hobby, it's just devastating.

That would be a shame. As Alex has previously stated - most (if not all) of the damage can be repaired. Treat it as a learning opportunity.

There are recognised "standards" for packaging equipment if you search the internet.

Dave

Should be double boxed for starter............

 

[Malc]

Unfortunately *some* folk and i include agency workers that work for these companies just don't give a Shit, They drop / Throw and Kick parcels and it's not going to change, I stopped buying a lot of gear unless it's local and i can pick it up in person.