Has any one had a problem with UPS breaking things ? A fellow sent me a broken 4 1/2 ' UL rod via UPS , it came no problem. The rod was already broken , like I said no problem . I re-shafted the rod with a quality blank . packaged the rod using the same packaging materials the broken rod came in (large bubble bubble wrap) , it fit in the box centered and secure . When the rod was sent it came with return postage , again no problem ! When the customer recieved the rod the package was crushed from both ends and the newly shafted rod broken , just like the original ! Is there a more reliable service to use ? What do most builders use ? And what should be done about this type of problem ? Thanks , Larry

You will have some percentage of breakage problems with UPS, FedX and the USPS. They all damage parcels to some extent, although it wouldn't be a high percentage. But it certainly does happen.

............

I have used the Post office and have had very good luck

I also pack rods in Sewer Tube I get from home depot Without the holes and pack with a lot of crumbled up news paper wrapped around the rod

Bill - willierods.com

I typically use sch 40 PVC which I have a lot of and caps instead of tape on the ends. Never had 1 broken this way but if it can be broken they'll figure out how.

Did they have that Triangle cardboard packaging ???

Bill - willierods.com

Insure it for enough to cover replacement cost & labor.

I use USPS and had no problems, triangular box or pvc tube, but I prefer pvc. And make sure it is insured.

______________________________________
Super Tight Lines......Don



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/05/2011 06:51AM by Don Morse.

Worse than 50/50 for me via UPS! Received 4 rods, 2 broken; reported to UPS & to supplier. Supplier shipped 2 more rods, no problem. Returned the 2 broken rods in the same packaging used to receive the replacements; package STILL NOT received at supplier! To add insult to injury, UPS charges exorbitant brokerage fees into Canada. Recommend USPS/Canada Post for ALL shipping!!

99% of the time, I have shipped with different carriers with 0 issues.
However, in one two week period of time, I had a shipment broken with Fed EX, one with UPS, and one with USPS. Since then, I have had no more issues. I guess that the shippers were all having a bad day.

When a rod package gets caught in a conveyor, it doesn't matter how it has been packed, it will be broken. There are tons of force in the conveyor. So, if the package gets jammed into a corner of the conveyor belt, the package will break.

All that you can do is to package the rod to meet standards and then insure the rod to be well above replacement value. So, if you do have the misadventure of having a rod break, you will be well compensated for your work as well as your materials.

Any time that I had an insurance claim, I have never had an issue in the payment for the full value of the insured package. If the shipper accepts the payment for a given amount of shipping insurance, they are obligated to pay the shipper the full value of the insurance value.

Good luck, pack well and ship safe. But above all, be sure to pay for adequate insurance on every package. Stuff happens to even nice folks.

Roger

if you use sewar/ water, pipe with screw on caps make sure you put in a small hole some where in it [ about 1/16 inch]

for a little air to come an go, if you don't, it could split from Air Plane ride,

matthew jacobs Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I typically use sch 40 PVC which I have a lot of
> and caps instead of tape on the ends. Never had 1
> broken this way but if it can be broken they'll
> figure out how.

X2 with the schedule 40 & caps. I always use USPS.

Chuck

_________________________________________
"Angling is extremely time consuming.
That's sort of the whole point." - Thomas McGuane

i have shipped only a few rods.

I use sched 40 PVC pipe with a cap on the butt end.

I wrap the rod with 1/2 in pipe insulation. I then use 1 1/2 in. pipe insulation on top of that.

Next come the foam peanuts and wadded up news paper

Tape the tip end with a lot, I said a lot of news paper.

Then tape the heck out of it.

I never thought of leaving a small hole. That may be a good idea.

Now on the other hand, I recieved some blanks which must have been sideways on the conveyor. three blanks in about 8 pieces.

Bill

Ohio Rod Builders

Canton, Ohio

As long as a container does not get caught in a conveyor, a simple cardboard tube, a triangle cardboard container, or a lightweight pvc tube will be more than enough to protect anything that you ship.

If the container gets caught in a conveyor, there is no container that is of a reasonable weight, that will protect the rod from damage.

If you ship a lot of rods every day, you really don't need to be using anything as heavy as schedule 40 pipe for the rods and spend as much money as the cost of the schedule 40 pipes.
. The much lighter containers will protect the rods just fine, as long as the shippers are reasonably careful with the containers.

By the way, if you happen to be shipping a number of rods to a specific recipient, then just go with an appropriate sized cardboard box that has a bit of packing to keep the rods from bouncing around in the box. You can easily ship 20-50 rods in a single cardboard box, as about the same cost of shipping a single rod in a pipe. Generally, the balloon charge on the shipping completely outweigh the weight of any container that you might be using for the shipment.
This is the method that sporting gods shops receive their rod shipments. It is not at all uncommon to get 50 - 100 rods in a single cardboard box for a store.

Also, if you happen to be shipping across a border and have to clear customs, it is generally much to your advantage to bulk pack any rods that might be going across the border to help minimize customs charges.



Good luck

Roger

I had one breakage so far and it came in a triangle cardboard box. For the money and convenience use a pvc tube with newspaper and duct tape ends. Never had a problem with that setup and I'm sticking with it.

I had USPS break a rod that was shipped to me in a PVC tube. They taped the tube back together but didn't wipe off the tire tread pattern....... insure it!

Sporting goods stores get 50 rods in a box that sell for $15 a piece. You are shipping one Custom Rod with the best components, best blank, and personalization worth hundreds of dollars. The shipping is most likely paid for by the customer. Use the schedule 40 pipe and pack it up good. Charge the extra freight and show the customer his rod means as much to you as it does to him. Nothing worse than getting a rod that you plan to use on the trip of the year and and the cardboard triangle is split in the middle, rod broken and the trip is in 5 days .

Freddwhy (Rapt-Ryte)

I only use USPS priority mail. i figure 2 days cross country is probably better than a week via UPS/Fed Ex. Could be wrong but that's what I use. For those of you who use cardboard triangular box, I admire your courage...:) I for one could never muster enough gumption to use anything less than a very rigid tube, and then suspend the rod in the middle of the tube via three strategically placed padded rings for both ends and the middle.

Mo

Thank you for your input . I used the same box and bubble wrap that the broken rod to be repaired came in , (it was wrapped & packaged by UPS) which was paid for by the customer for shipping both ways . I don't know if he insured the rod for both ways , I was under the impression that UPS automatically insures for $100. included in base price. This was a repair job . If I were the customer I would ' ve insured for the return trip as the rod was already broken and did not need to be insured for the primary trip except for loss ! The customer told me he was going to hash it out with UPS . and that he wants another rod built from scratch . Time will tell . Larry

is the breakage because of your build or from the owners abuse ??

Bill - willierods.com

Neither , UPS broke it in shipping . It was a repaired rod , all I did was re- shaft it , UPS did the rest . Larry