To Folks Who Ship Guns Using Packing Peanuts
- Thread starter V-Tach
- Start date
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No protection even if the firearm is in a case of some kind?
I always like getting boxes packed with the air pillows, but it's all on one side or the other, never surrounding it, lol....
I always like getting boxes packed with the air pillows, but it's all on one side or the other, never surrounding it, lol....
Shipping and packing rifles with wood stocks is not just throwing them in a box and pouring peanuts around it. Even wrapping it in the very thin bubble wrap then pouring peanuts in is not enough. We've seen countless broken and cracked stocks/fore ends from both private sellers and distributors...The peanuts settle and so does the rifle and the butt or barrel will end up on the bottom of the box against the cardboard. They toss it or drop it and Bam...its cracked or broken, especially older stocks and some new ones that are extremely dry wood.
UPS, FedEx, USPS are all toss and drop lightly shippers....Bolt handles poking through the box, barrels poking through the box, cracked/broken stocks and fore ends are not all that uncommon. New guns that are in their factory box and placed inside other boxes fare better. We had 3 NIB Marlin guide guns in a row delivered with cracked stocks or fore ends....Take the bolt out and wrap it separately....
When a box is badly damaged, we start taking pictures immediately and continue to take pics on opening and inspecting the firearm. We ask the driver to stay while we open it (yes, they are in a hurry, and yes it is an inconvenience for them). When picking up at the Post office, they let me come around back to open and inspect the firearm before accepting it if the box is badly damaged.
So......good large bubble wrap, wrapped completely around the firearm then more large bubble wrap around the end of the butt and the end of the barrel, placed in a box that fits well, not too large, then placed inside another box with bubble wrap on each end and then more placed around the interior of the outside box, will get it there safely the majority of the time. Anything less, and all bets are off if it will arrive safely.
I never, ever use peanuts. They are totally worthless to protect firearms (rifles in particular). Always ship with adequate insurance (which will more than double the cost of shipping the rifle most of the time).
Pulling a rifle out of a box and peanuts (and bits of peanuts) sticking to everything and falling over the floor is really unnecessary, because peanuts will not protect the rifle to begin with.....and should not be used....imho..
Telling a customer his stock is cracked starts a another headache.....when he finds out the damaged rifle is between him and the carrier/insurance, not the person who shipped it. If the insurance pays for the firearm and it becomes their property. Or worse yet the individual they bought the firearm from didn't insure it before shipping.....
UPS, FedEx, USPS are all toss and drop lightly shippers....Bolt handles poking through the box, barrels poking through the box, cracked/broken stocks and fore ends are not all that uncommon. New guns that are in their factory box and placed inside other boxes fare better. We had 3 NIB Marlin guide guns in a row delivered with cracked stocks or fore ends....Take the bolt out and wrap it separately....
When a box is badly damaged, we start taking pictures immediately and continue to take pics on opening and inspecting the firearm. We ask the driver to stay while we open it (yes, they are in a hurry, and yes it is an inconvenience for them). When picking up at the Post office, they let me come around back to open and inspect the firearm before accepting it if the box is badly damaged.
So......good large bubble wrap, wrapped completely around the firearm then more large bubble wrap around the end of the butt and the end of the barrel, placed in a box that fits well, not too large, then placed inside another box with bubble wrap on each end and then more placed around the interior of the outside box, will get it there safely the majority of the time. Anything less, and all bets are off if it will arrive safely.
I never, ever use peanuts. They are totally worthless to protect firearms (rifles in particular). Always ship with adequate insurance (which will more than double the cost of shipping the rifle most of the time).
Pulling a rifle out of a box and peanuts (and bits of peanuts) sticking to everything and falling over the floor is really unnecessary, because peanuts will not protect the rifle to begin with.....and should not be used....imho..
Telling a customer his stock is cracked starts a another headache.....when he finds out the damaged rifle is between him and the carrier/insurance, not the person who shipped it. If the insurance pays for the firearm and it becomes their property. Or worse yet the individual they bought the firearm from didn't insure it before shipping.....
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Saltyag2010
TGT Addict
I used to work in a shipping dept. we didn't use packing peanuts. Now when I want to be a dick I use packing peanuts, but still carefully wrap the goods in bubble wrap. The packing peanuts are just for fun and to take up space.
Saltyag2010
TGT Addict
True story. I only use big bubble bubble wrap. I'm a grown man.
Sometimes shipping something awkward in a big box with 10 lbs of bubble wrap sure makes me happy. At first you know whats in the box, then when you're done you have no idea.
Who makes packing peanuts anyway? Vlad Putin, Saddams kids, the Castro bros, random terrorists and Rachael Maddow? They have to be one of the worst inventions ever. DMV workers think that packing peanuts suck at their job. They should know. I trust strangers with my cash more than I trust packing peanuts, well maybe they're about the same.
SloppyShooter
Certifiable
9v eh? NOW you tell me!!!! 120v didn't work.
Lunyfringe
Well-Known
we had other names for them things... spook poop, low calorie breakfast cereal... you get the idea
SloppyShooter
Certifiable
Those things are not eco-friendly. I say we all write our Congressman and demand only roasted, salted ,organic peanuts!
Lunyfringe
Well-Known
There was a... "movement" (I'll let you decide what kind of movement) a while back to make them eco friendly, so they are available in starch, or in recycled varieties (green ones are supposedly at least partially recycled)
https://www.biopeanuts.com/
They're fun to dare the kids to eat them... better than Tide pods!
SloppyShooter
Certifiable
Bio? ....or Just Bi?
Me too.. I remember one of those jobs we were absolutely forbidden by the owner to order or even reuse them if they came in something inbound. He would flip if he seen one or two on the bench or floor.
They don't even taste like peanuts and an hour later you're hungry again.
Lunyfringe
Well-Known
Dare we say that V-Tach has a peanut allergy, but a very specific type?
I can attest that getting guns shipped to the house by some a-hole that uses packing peanuts is the worst. The stuff spreads like rabbits and cant be cleaned up. There is a outfit that will ship an item like 1 pmag in a box that measures 20x20x20 and stuff it with 75 yards of brown paper. That's what I re-use to ship.
AdamT
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AdamT
Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk
I filled a friends 78 olds cutlass with packing peanuts when he got married. He said they stopped at 3 car washes and plugged up every vacuum at each one when they left, and that's after scooping as much out as they could before they left the reception.
5 years later when he sold the car he said that if he drove down the freeway with the windows down, he'd still get a stray peanut floating around inside the car.
His poor wife, who had no idea I was so cruel, is the one who slipped me a key to the car so I could get in. She thought it was funny, but refused to clean any of it.
5 years later when he sold the car he said that if he drove down the freeway with the windows down, he'd still get a stray peanut floating around inside the car.
His poor wife, who had no idea I was so cruel, is the one who slipped me a key to the car so I could get in. She thought it was funny, but refused to clean any of it.
