Suggestions on shipping a big set of comics

[Alberto1975]

Hey guys,

Can you guys offer any suggestions on shipping a big set of comics (about 200)?

I was thinking of possibly just shipping a long box via UPS ground. I have added some fillers to both ends of the box for protection and to make sure the comics are fairly tight within the long box. All the comics are bagged and boarded.

 

My only concern is making sure that obviously the comics make it to their destination safely and in good condition. I was going to do media mail, but with the comics packed this way, I was scared that they would get tossed around more than using UPS ground.

 

Or maybe I should just go ahead and break them into smaller sets, with more padding, and put them in a bigger box with more padding than the long box.

 

Any ideas? Please let me know!

[swordsandrockets]

Here's my two cents.....

 

Go to your local comic shop and see if they have two of the smaller diamond shipping boxes and one of the larger ones - the two small ones will nest in the larger. Put eqaul amounts in each small box with some extra padding, styrofoam peanuts work well, and then put them both in the larger box. This should give them plenty of cushion and keep the weight balanced.

 

Shipping is up to how much you want to spend, but keep in mind that with Media Mail you always have the risk of an inspector being a jerk and opening and disqualifying them since comics have ads in them, in which case it can be very hard to get them back from the PO. I have never had this happen to me but know it has happened to others, numerous threads on other boards about it. USPS Parcel Post or UPS ground are the two most economical and there is little to no risk of inspection questions.

 

Good luck!

 

Jerry

[Zanarkand]

Media rate in a longbox is probably the last thing I would do. I recently sold a lot of 230+ bronze mid-grades & readers, and I packed them up in a regular cardboard box. The comics themselves were protected by putting as many as could snugly fit into a magazine size bag, forming bundles which were then taped up and padded. Stack the bundles like bricks, and pad further around all edges (don't forget the bottom!) with whatever is handy. Leftover peanuts, newspaper. I sent it media and the buyer was very pleased.

[Sharkey]

Pack them in multiple boxes and put that within another larger box and ship UPS or FEDEX ground.

 

I shipped an entire Hulk collection (400+ books) to Texas (from Chicago) that way and it arrived in perfect condition. I also bought a near-complete ASM collection from a guy in New York who shipped it that way and it arrived to me in perfect condition.

 

Just use plenty of padding and packing materials to cushion them during the trip and you can't go wrong (barring a weird snafu like someone running a forklift fork into it!).

 

Good luck!

[ComicSupply]

Alberto,

 

Doing it UPS Ground will work fine. The ones you sent me got here in perfect conditions.

[eccomic]

I STRONGLY recommend UPS Ground, as I have shipped probably over 100 Large Collections of 1000+ Vintage Comic books in this fashion and have never had any complaints, except for one fellow who embellished about non-existent damage via UPS in order to get a partial refund. UPS has never let me down and appears to be cheaper than Fed Ex

[ft88]

Use your original suggestion with the long box. The handlers will use the holes as handles which means less likelyhood of dropping the box. I assume the 200 comics are worth less than $100 so a long box via media is less than $20. I expect UPS ground is in the $30 to $40 range which seems high for low value books.

[Smokinghawk]

I just shipped about 230 comics by media mail yesterday. I boxed them tightly in a sturdy cardboard box, topped off with peanuts, then loaded THAT box into another sturdy box with a 2" layer of peanuts surrounding on all sides. You can toss it around plenty and the inner box of book will be fine. With $200 insurance it cost under $17 and came in at about 38 pounds.

[Comcasthawk]

I am a driver at UPS and what I would do is put a box within a box!!! Also, I would make a duplicate address label(use a copy machine) and place it inside the the first box. That way if somehow the outer box label gets torn or peels, UPS will open the box and see the other label and then will forward the box to that address.

 

I also recommend that you take pictures of the box(or boxes) so in case something happens, you will have visual proof. Also, don't forget to keep all UPS paperwork.

 

Insurance is .40 cents per $100, and the first $100 is always included in your initial shipping costs, so keep that in mind.

 

Oh yeah, NEVER, NEVER, and I mean, NEVER label a box concerning contents(i.e. "Comic Books Enclosed"). This invites theft.

 

Make sure that you tape your boxes using the "360 methond". That is, pretend your box is a mummy and tape the box all the way around like 1 big circle.