The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Valecnik wrote:NIce kitchen too btw!

I was also noticing the period kitchen and the collection of juicing machines.

On the topic of machines damaged in shipping, I agree with the other posters' nervousness about shipping anything more fragile than an anvil. I also have stories that I could tell. All the of carriers are guilty of rough handling. Some people say that shipping a machine by a bus company is safer and cheaper.

http://www.shipgreyhound.com

I have had a Standard and a Home arrive, very heavily damaged from shipping.

Both were shipped via USPS.

I have since been told to ask the shipper to remove the mechanics from the oak case and wrap each separately.

You guys really know how to keep me awake at night.

I will let you know how things turn out. The machine is scheduled to arrive tomorrow. The seller said he would package the motor and case separately, so I hope he did so. I do hold my breath a bit when a machine is shipped, but the success rate has been running somewhere around 90 plus percent. The secret is all in the packing. Having things shipped is often the only realistic option when you don't live in a major metropolitan area where there is a ready supply of sellers and restorers and in my case where there is only one phonograph show in the area a year and no guarantee you will find what you want even then.

Clay

RAK402 wrote:I have had a Standard and a Home arrive, very heavily damaged from shipping.

Both were shipped via USPS.

While I was between careers, I spent a year carrying mail for the USPS. One of the things I was required to do was to participate in what was called the "package throw". We would sort the outgoing packages by throwing them into large mesh bins on the loading dock. Some were from as far away as 20'. The heavier items were tossed like a shot put. If they missed and fell on the concrete loading dock, too bad. Imagine a delicately packaged cylinder on top of a pile with the point of a very heavy box crashing into it. (Uggh.) Boxes with "Fragile" stickers were rarely handled differently.

Unfortunately, this is the reality of shipping packages today. There isn't enough time, money or manpower to do anything but a brutal job in the competitive field of shipping. I felt like a criminal every time I had to participate, but it really gave me insight into just why we have to over-engineer our packaging. The forces our packages are subjected to are tremendous.

If we want our 100+ year old items to survive, we really need to over-engineer our packaging. Sometimes the flimsiest packaging will get through OK, but that is the exception rather than the rule these days. The biggest problem facing the collector is educating the shipper on packing. Nobody believes the insane amount of extra packaging (and cost) until they have a loss. All we can do is try to educate folks, one shipper at a time. (Hmm, maybe I should invest in U-Line stock...)

Clay - this is not to cause you greater concern, rather to caution others. By separating the case and mechanism, you've already done the first major good thing - which is to keep all of the mass of the mechanism from crushing the delicate wood parts. I'll keep a good thought and hope to see you posting a photo of your untouched new machine here.

Regards,
Martin

Geez, Martin, it is even worse than I suspected. Thanks for the inside view. And folks, if you like the Post Office, you're gonna just love socialized medicine once it becomes fully implemented.