I've had customers go overboard on packaging their parts, but this one takes the cake

[alloy]

In 14 years of modifying customer transmission housings I've had customers go overboard on packaging the parts they send me, but never like this.

The housing is held down with four 3/8" bolts and box is is waterproofed. You can see where he sealed the sides up, and put sealer under the plastic liner on the top.

The box weights 22 lbs for a 12 lb part. And it goes back to Canada. Gonna cost a fortune to ship it back.

Funny thing is, he waterproofed the box, and the first thing I'll do is put the housing in my hot parts washer that uses water with a detergent.

 

[silence dogood]

I'd give the guy a break, He must have had some bad experiences with shipping companies. My wife once received a special sewing machine in a flimsy cardboard box with maybe a dozen peanuts. It was in bent and broken. Fortunately, she got her money back.

 

[mattthemuppet2]

I bet the shipping will be cheaper than a replacement housing + the modifications you're doing to it. That's similar to how I ship machine tool parts - wooden crate with the part bolted to one side of it. So far I haven't had any complaints about broken or missing parts!

 

[extropic]

Yea, it's overboard, but better that than getting an empty cardboard box.
I assume the customer pays return shipping. Yes?

It looks like there were only 4 fasteners (plus sealant) holding the cover on.
If there had been twenty eleven 3" deck screws holding the cover . . .

 

[francist]

It wasn’t coming from Edmonton, was it? I once sent a small package to my sister there that arrived at her door soaked through and through. She had to dry it out for half a day before she could even risk opening it…

 

[matthewsx]

These are the irreplaceable parts you work on, right?

I always shipped my race engines in heavy duty plastic crates with lots of cardboard and newspaper. Going the extra mile to make sure it arrives in one piece works for me.

John

 

[RJSakowski]

I had to ship an 11 lb. chunk of steel to @WobblyHand in a USPS regional flat rate box. There was no way that the package would have arrived undamaged. I made a plywood box to just fit inside the flat rate box a secured the steel inside with wood blocking. The flat rate box just served as a skin to attach the label. The box arrived intact.

 

[Larry$]

Shipping common carrier (LTL) is a risk. They are experts at trashing most anything. If you are shipping UPS they require a carboard box on the outside but you can put a wooden box inside of the cardboard.

 

[matthewsx]

Shipping common carrier (LTL) is a risk. They are experts at trashing most anything. If you are shipping UPS they require a carboard box on the outside but you can put a wooden box inside of the cardboard.

At least when I was building kart engines ~15 years ago UPS and FedEx would take my plastic crates. They sometimes complained but never failed to get them to my customers.

John

 

[Martin W]

I can't apologize for over packaging. I shipped a Antique metal lathe to Nova Scotia last month. I took a lot of care crating it up. Everything was wrapped in sheet foam and plastic wrap. I bolted everything down in the crate, even the small parts. Then a 2x4 frame and 5/8" plywood glued and screwed. I shipped it by LTL tractor trailer. Cost was $330.86 Canadian funds for a $1800 lathe from Niagara Falls.
Yeah , it was overkill but it never got damaged and arrived with no issues.
In my business we have things shipped in all the time. Nothing worse than having just in time inventory and it arrives damaged because it wasn't packaged properly.
Martin