The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

It turned out that the Asian buyer wasn't happy with his purchase.

Arrgh! I'm sorry to hear that it was damaged in transit. It was a nice machine. It really underlines the horrible state of package handling these days. Whatever service you choose, you are at the mercy of people who are rushed and distracted. As shippers of historical artifacts, we are forced to engineer our packages to an absurd extent. However, the reality today is: if you want your machine to survive, it must be able to withstand being dropped 10 feet onto concrete. Sad news, but hopefully the receiver will choose to repair it.
-Martin

This is the exact reason why I have never even
considered shipping a machine, nor have I ever
considered buying a machine and having it shipped.

The handling of packages is all done automatically, and they put the boxes in to big
bins that dump the contents. (hey moe! Hey larry!)

If a package happens to be underneath a big
pile of heavy ones, it gets crushed.

It amounts to automated handling where the normal
expected result is that everything ends up getting mangled more or less.

Then, as they are being transported by trucks
on the highways, the whole trailer invariably
breaks into a violent resonant vibration.
That vibration shakes screws clear loose and
completely out of their threaded holes.
Anything loose gets vibrated for many hours
on end.

Shake it. Crush it. Mangle it. Then Run it over with the truck a few times just for good
measure!

It's a wonder anything ever makes it through
with little or no damage.

Chuck