Well, I just had my sox knocked off. Packaged a 7' rod in fed ex packing tubes turned inside out (triangle shaped) and took it to UPS. From NY to Az $70 !!!!!!! Needless to say it's still in the back of my truck. They take measurements and make up their own weight......(70 pounds) when it actually weight around 3. Does any one out there use Fed Ex or DHL or any company for that matter that ships cheaper? If I have to I will by some kind of light weight tube.
Thanks for the help....

I just sent 5, 6 1/2 to 7 ft rods, in a 5 inch ABS pipe with USPS priority mail for $25.

Louis,
If you go directly to a UPS hub it is much, much cheaper. I found out the hard the way the first time when it cost me $75 from California to New Jersey using the UPS store. I researched it afterwards and could have saved as much as $50 had I gone to the hub in the first place. Randy.

Its the oversize length thats causing tha problems, I'd try UPS they might be more reasonable about the weight aspects of the situation. TUBES; this all depends on the 1st SPINNING guide height off the blank. You can buy schedule 30 PVC which is light (thin walled) enough but it is too wide as you only can get it in a 4" dia. whereas the schedule 40 PVC with the same dia. restrictions is heavy with bullet proof wall thickness.

What a lot of distributors ship their blanks in is ELEC PVC CONDUIT or Vacuum tubing which has a 2" O.D. 580-762-2457. The trouble is two fold these distributoors need to buy the stuff in 10,000 lin. ft lots and it can only be used for assembled fly rods as you need 2.5" I.D. tubing to accomodate a Sz 25 high frame concept guide. The Elec PVC Conduit tubing may offer this size, and I have bought the 2" PVC vacuum tubing form a shop retail..not cheap $10 for 10' length of the 2" OD., would be worth it if they have the 2.5" I have seen some thin walled 3" PWPIPE and gotten rods from Loomis in 2-3/8" OD. thin stuff also. What is lighter and cheraper is to go down to a carpet store and get a thin walled cardboard core they just toss out, you may have to rig up some round reinforcing plugs the rod passes through in 3rds up the tube to resist crushing better, and then spiral clear tape up ther exterior. Or whats left is the elongated triangle card board tube ploy, but I think you have already been down that road.... good luck..some one wants a 1 pc rod that long built the 1st thing I think about is the oversize shipping charges

Louis,

You can probably send it for under $20. Go to UPS.COM Enter your shipping information in to their rate calculator. Make sure you enter the "extra" details of your package dimensions. A 7' rod package usually goes about 86" X 3" X 3". When you get your shipping info input, look at the rate for "3 day select". Believe it or not, this is the best rate you can get on a long box (MUCH cheaper than "Ground"). We ship oversized 7' & 8' blanks all over the country and I think the MOST we've ever paid is $24 for four blanks and it was because the customer lived so far from a terminal.

If you're not dealing directly with UPS (Mail Boxes Etc, Kinko's & so on) you're going to pay a mark up. Find a "UPS Store" on the website above and you'll pay the rates that their shipping calculator tells you on the internet.

On boxes over 108" long, we switch over to "DHL Ground" as their rates are far better on the REALLY big stuff. We recently shipped a 10' Seeker ULULA from Calif. to Ohio for just under $25.

I'm headed to the Show in Long Beach for the next couple of days, but if you have ANY questions, my wife Colleen will be manning the Fort while I'm gone. She actually handles all of our shipping. Her email address is Colleen@@#$%& or you can call her at the shop between 8AM-5PM at 909-394-7486.

Good luck!

Mark Griffin
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C&M Custom Tackle
San Dimas, California

WOW! Four other posts just while I was typing! Your container (three sided box) should be plenty light, but if it's an issue, we use the 3" PVC Co-ex drainage pipe sold at Lowes or home Depot for $3.50 per 10' length. 10' weighs under 2lbs and it's tougher than a UPS handler! Cut it to size, then cut two "discs" out of cardboard. Bubble wrap your rod so it doesn't bang around in the tube, then simply tape the cardboard caps in place.

Mark Griffin
[]
C&M Custom Tackle
San Dimas, California

Thank god for duct tape!

Putter
Williston, ND

I sent a 7' rod cross country in a heavy cardboard tube last week through USPS for about $21.00. Sometimes the USPS guys have a better price and sometimes not...it pays to check. around. The light weight PVC pipe is always a good choice.

Joe Douglas

I'm like Joe, I send everything USPS in PVC. It's about 20-22 dollars if the girth and length is between 84" and 108". I still have customers however that don't understand that balloon rate the USPS charges. LOL

Big John
Rio Hondo, Texas
Blessed are those who can give without remembering and take without forgetting

Thank you all for the information. I think the first thing is to repack in a smaller round container.
I used concept guides so 2" will be fine. I'll let you know how I make out.......

Something to think about is tracking. I have had a number of customers claim they never got the package I sent them. Now what do you do? I always pay the extra amount for tracking and insurance. Once it ships I email the recipient the tracking number so everybody is on the same page as to when it gets there.