Shipping big speakers, who ya gonna call?

trubluluc
trubluluc Posts: 2,067
edited January 2008 in The Clubhouse
Guys I'm getting lots of inquiries about shipping the SDA 1.2's.
Although I said I wouldn't ship them personally,
are there some decent shipping companies
that I could refer these people to for quotes?

-Luc
Post edited by trubluluc on
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Comments

  • ESavinon
    ESavinon Posts: 3,066
    edited January 2008
    I had a pair of sda srs2 shipped via forward air with good results.
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  • trubluluc
    trubluluc Posts: 2,067
    edited January 2008
    The company name is "Forward Air"?
    ESAVINON wrote: »
    I had a pair of sda srs2 shipped via forward air with good results.
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  • schwarcw
    schwarcw Posts: 7,335
    edited January 2008
    Look Here
    Carl

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  • danger boy
    danger boy Posts: 15,722
    edited January 2008
    Luc, be very careful of course shipping them... make sure the buyer takes responsibility for any damage that may occur during shipping. State that very clearly.. you were not intending to ship them.. but your buyer wanted them shipped.. and it's his responsibility if any damage occurs. of course insure them for the full amount + some
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  • skipf
    skipf Posts: 694
    edited January 2008
    Your best course would be for the buyer to arrange pickup, crating, and shipping. There are several companies that do this. They could even contract a moving company to do it. This resolves you of any liability for packing or shipping damage.
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  • reeltrouble1
    reeltrouble1 Posts: 9,312
    edited January 2008
    I remember the day you got them, how proud you were, how your thumped your thumper and spanked your monkey, now they are kicked to curb, so sad Trub......so sad.

    F1 had his pair shipped to him from cali using a shipper, I would PM him and get the name as he told me they did an extreme job of crating and packing at what was a reasonable cost, but with the cost of fuel these days who knows......I shipped some 1C's with fedex and it was a nightmare.

    RT1
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  • F1nut
    F1nut Posts: 50,446
    edited January 2008
    ABF Freight is excellent, but they won't pack them, the seller did, on a pallet and picked up from his business. The cost factor rises quite a bit if it's a residential pick up or drop off. The best rates are had online, I paid $240.00 coast to coast. You should look into Freighters and Craters for a complete pack and ship service.
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  • Demiurge
    Demiurge Posts: 10,874
    edited January 2008
    If you do ship via LTL you can exercise the option to pick it up at their local facility vs having them ship them to your door. Makes it a little cheaper.

    The only main trucking carrier I would stay away from is Yellow Freight. Roadway, ABF, and FedEx Freight are the three top national carriers in my opinion, which has my 10 years experience of shipping stuff daily for my customers behind it.
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  • polksda
    polksda Posts: 716
    edited January 2008
    I wouldn't ship 1.2s on a bet. Between crating (if they do a good job) and shipping costs, I'll bet it will easily go over $500.

    Even if the speakers are packed securely, one decent shove or tipover could result in frozen drivers, and with the number of drivers, eek!

    I had to deal with FedEx ground on a pair of Polk monitors once, and it took months to resolve. In the end, both the shipper and I ended up each eating half the cost, since FedEx insisted that it wasn't their fault but the packaging.

    Better yet, a tipover might freeze drivers without any apparent damage to the crate itself, in which case the carrier will claim there is no damage done by them and the speakers were like that when shipped.

    Also remember, that you will have to eat the bill for any appraisal for repair/damage.

    It's a nightmare in the offing. No. way. in. hell.
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  • Demiurge
    Demiurge Posts: 10,874
    edited January 2008
    The one thing that needs to be realized is that all the speakers you own were probably shipped a minimum of 3 times on trucks before you got them to your home. Even more if the speakers were made overseas. Just some food for thought when there's all this hysteria about shipping speakers.

    They didn't just get teleported to your favorite audio store. :p
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  • polksda
    polksda Posts: 716
    edited January 2008
    Demiurge wrote: »
    The one thing that needs to be realized is that all the speakers you own were probably shipped a minimum of 3 times on trucks before you got them to your home. Even more if the speakers were made overseas. Just some food for thought when there's all this hysteria about shipping speakers.

    They didn't just get teleported to your favorite audio store. :p

    Yeah, well most speakers that get shipped don't weigh 185 pounds each and aren't 20 years old. Furthermore, the party doing the shipping has the wherewithall to fix/replace any damaged components much cheaper than your average consumer, i.e., inhouse.
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  • SCompRacer
    SCompRacer Posts: 8,480
    edited January 2008
    I recently shipped/received three pairs of large speakers. The best way is strapping them to a pallet so they have to be moved with a forklift. That doesn’t guarantee you wont have a problem, but it gives you better odds. EDIT: You will pay more if the pallet is larger than the freight attached to it as it takes up more floor space. It also adds height to your shipment.

    When I called Team Air and BAX Global, they informed me any freight that will travel on an airplane must originate from a commercial business. They would not pick up at my house as they have done in the past, nor would they allow me to drop off. They said it was due to FAA/Homeland Security rules. Fortunately I have a friend with a business who shipped them via BAX for me, fully insured.

    Some ground freight companies only insure used items for a nickel on the pound, no matter how well they are packed. That is what Yellow Freight told me anyway.
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  • danger boy
    danger boy Posts: 15,722
    edited January 2008
    wow... i will never ship SRS's ever. not that I ever plan on it.. just thinking out loud how many different things could go wrong. a lot of things shipped on pallets and moved with a forklift aren't as easily damaged as two 20+ yr old speakers, nearly 400 pouds of speakers.

    I have always shied away from shipping speakers.. except small bookshelf across the state.

    I delivered mine to Wolfiepaws earlier this year.. he was kind enough to pick up the cost of that. but in the end no damage or fear of possible damage even went thru my mind in the 300 mile trip across the state.
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  • halo
    halo Posts: 5,616
    edited January 2008
    I've shipped pretty big speakers before but times have changed. The freight companies are less accomodating than they used to be.

    Makes it difficult but not impossible.

    You could always remove the drivers from the cabinet. Contact Polk on how they ship replacement drivers. Having ordered replacement drivers from Polk, I see now how easy it is to ship them securely on their own. The huge cabinets are the problem here.
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  • HiPerf360
    HiPerf360 Posts: 436
    edited January 2008
    Fu**ing Ghost Busters!!!!
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  • BaggedLancer
    BaggedLancer Posts: 6,371
    edited January 2008
    Last 2 times I shipped freight I used Old Dominion Freight Line and Yellow. No complaints with either, relatively comparable prices(at the time).

    Shop around, get the best price, and go with it. I suggest doing the packing yourself, as I assume you're smart enough to determine what is acceptable and what is not.
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  • HiPerf360
    HiPerf360 Posts: 436
    edited January 2008
    Seriously, I always preferred Beaver Express!
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  • tonyb
    tonyb Posts: 32,951
    edited January 2008
    Globax......shipped my focus with no even a scratch on the friggin' box.And the dude helped me hand load it off.
    HT SYSTEM-
    Sony 850c 4k
    Pioneer elite vhx 21
    Sony 4k BRP
    SVS SB-2000
    Polk Sig. 20's
    Polk FX500 surrounds

    Cables-
    Acoustic zen Satori speaker cables
    Acoustic zen Matrix 2 IC's
    Wireworld eclipse 7 ic's
    Audio metallurgy ga-o digital cable

    Kitchen

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  • HiPerf360
    HiPerf360 Posts: 436
    edited January 2008
    tonyb wrote: »
    Globax......shipped my focus with no even a scratch on the friggin' box.And the dude helped me hand load it off.

    Actually that is rare...

    Usually the truck driver just watches as you unload it by yourself.
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  • tonyb
    tonyb Posts: 32,951
    edited January 2008
    HiPerf360 wrote: »
    Actually that is rare...

    Usually the truck driver just watches as you unload it by yourself.

    Your right.......liability issues......surprised the crap outta me though.

    I knew I had to unload myself,but when my help didn't show up,this dude stepped up and helped so I would not damage the speaks.Would not hesitate to use these dudes again.Plus,when I looked in the truck,they where strapped down to avoid shifting while in transport.Bax global is the name,quality is the game,5 star in my book.
    HT SYSTEM-
    Sony 850c 4k
    Pioneer elite vhx 21
    Sony 4k BRP
    SVS SB-2000
    Polk Sig. 20's
    Polk FX500 surrounds

    Cables-
    Acoustic zen Satori speaker cables
    Acoustic zen Matrix 2 IC's
    Wireworld eclipse 7 ic's
    Audio metallurgy ga-o digital cable

    Kitchen

    Sonos zp90
    Grant Fidelity tube dac
    B&k 1420
    lsi 9's
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  • HiPerf360
    HiPerf360 Posts: 436
    edited January 2008
    tonyb wrote: »
    Your right.......liability issues......surprised the crap outta me though.

    I knew I had to unload myself,but when my help didn't show up,this dude stepped up and helped so I would not damage the speaks.Would not hesitate to use these dudes again.Plus,when I looked in the truck,they where strapped down to avoid shifting while in transport.Bax global is the name,quality is the game,5 star in my book.

    I will remember that when you ship thoes 20/20's to me.

    That will be the first building block of my next rig.
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  • tonyb
    tonyb Posts: 32,951
    edited January 2008
    Those puppy's will never leave,well,If I die,the wife will surely sell them for a sawbuck and stick with her Bose crap.Want to get an ear on the new HD Focus but hey,pretty damned pleased the way they are.
    HT SYSTEM-
    Sony 850c 4k
    Pioneer elite vhx 21
    Sony 4k BRP
    SVS SB-2000
    Polk Sig. 20's
    Polk FX500 surrounds

    Cables-
    Acoustic zen Satori speaker cables
    Acoustic zen Matrix 2 IC's
    Wireworld eclipse 7 ic's
    Audio metallurgy ga-o digital cable

    Kitchen

    Sonos zp90
    Grant Fidelity tube dac
    B&k 1420
    lsi 9's
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  • trubluluc
    trubluluc Posts: 2,067
    edited January 2008
    Cheer up buddy. I'm selling the second pair, I'll still have a pair lol.
    Last year was just one of those years...rain...and then more raindrops falling on my head. So I'm turning unnecessary stuff back into cash.
    1 pair of 1.2's is all anyone needs...Shhhh....but don't tell Lasareath.
    Monkey still getting spanked regular like.

    -Luc


    reeltrouble1 wrote: »
    I remember the day you got them, how proud you were, how your thumped your thumper and spanked your monkey, now they are kicked to curb, so sad Trub......so sad.

    F1 had his pair shipped to him from cali using a shipper, I would PM him and get the name as he told me they did an extreme job of crating and packing at what was a reasonable cost, but with the cost of fuel these days who knows......I shipped some 1C's with fedex and it was a nightmare.

    RT1
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  • trubluluc
    trubluluc Posts: 2,067
    edited January 2008
    I firmly stated in my auction that I will not ship these speakers. And I'm still firm on that, I want no part of it.
    I did the drive to go get them to make sure they made the journey safely.
    As I said in the original posting...I'm just looking for the names of shipping companies that people have used and were satisfied with so I could pass the information along.
    Thank you for all the suggestions


    -Luc



    skipf wrote: »
    Your best course would be for the buyer to arrange pickup, crating, and shipping. There are several companies that do this. They could even contract a moving company to do it. This resolves you of any liability for packing or shipping damage.
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  • ben62670
    ben62670 Posts: 15,969
    edited January 2008
    These older speakers need to be shipped on their backs.
    Please. Please contact me a ben62670 @ yahoo.com. Make sure to include who you are, and you are from Polk so I don't delete your email. Also I am now physically unable to work on any projects. If you need help let these guys know. There are many people who will help if you let them know where you are.
    Thanks
    Ben
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  • reeltrouble1
    reeltrouble1 Posts: 9,312
    edited January 2008
    trubluluc wrote: »
    Cheer up buddy. I'm selling the second pair, I'll still have a pair lol.
    Last year was just one of those years...rain...and then more raindrops falling on my head. So I'm turning unnecessary stuff back into cash.
    1 pair of 1.2's is all anyone needs...Shhhh....but don't tell Lasareath.
    Monkey still getting spanked regular like.

    -Luc

    Yea, I hear ya, sometimes they just gotta go.

    RT1
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  • Sherardp
    Sherardp Posts: 8,038
    edited January 2008
    Bax Global who is I used to ship my Rti12s to Japan. Excellent rates also
    Shoot the jumper.....................BALLIN.............!!!!!

    Home Theater Pics in the Showcase :cool:

    http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showcase/view.php?userid=73580
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