Best way to ship expensive parts?

[sushihaus]

If you are selling an expensive part and someone wants to buy, what is the best way to accept payment and pack and ship?

On expensive items, Paypal takes too much.... Checks work for US buyers but also takes awhile...what about wire transfer? I'm staying away from an moneygram or Western Union, etc.

As for shipping the item, whats the thought of UPS vs USPS vs Fedex? I know maximum that USPS has for insurance is $5k. Experience with others or preferences?

As for packaging the item, is there a good way to document that I am sending what I say I am sending? I dont want the buyer to say otherwise.

I've double boxed and padded with foam, air bags, and newspaper so there is no shaking of the contents....

Any advice appreciated....

Thanks!

[Harvey Weidman]

Depending on what is shipped and the value.....and where to?
For expensive I like bank transfers. Or escrow type accounts.
I would not use USPS for many reasons.
UPS has different handling at 5k and another at 10k.
I never have shipped expensive FedEx...except to Canada. Don't use UPS for Canada.
The USPS is actually better than UPS going to Canada.
I still like FedEx the best for all overseas shipping.
Remember you are insuring for loss and packing for damage. Damage is always harder to claim.
For very high price I have used auto courier or private air courier on customer's request.
(They are less than you think)
I would ask the buyer for their preference and that will take some of the burden off of you.
HTH
H

[Fuchs]

As a buyer I have had bad experiences with UPS.

[72targa]

I shipped a nice bike to my son via Greyhound...cheap...and without incident...

[Harvey Weidman]

As a buyer I have had bad experiences with UPS.

That is why I ask for the buyer for their preference.
Some areas don't tend to do well with some some shippers.......
I have had equally bad luck with them all but high value is a different story.
H

[Unobtanium-inc]

USPS is risky because it is hard to collect on insurance because most of their tracking is spotty at best, and sometimes isn't even real. UPS is easy and you can put an insurance value at what you want. I've shipped FEDEX Ground but never had to make a claim so I don't know.
UPS is the best alternative because they provide real shipping and the insurance is good. Their website is also very user friendly so your customer can actually track the stuff himself.
In case your wondering what I mean by fake USPS tracking, I always suspected their tracking was wonky and then I proved it. I had a piece I really needed and I tracked it to my local post office, when it didn't arrive I went to see the Postmaster, he and me and the guy who works in the back looked for it, the guy in the back confirmed to me that he scans the manifest of what should be on the truck, not what is actually on the truck, so when something gets lost they really don't know at what point it stopped being shipped. Fake shipping is worthless shipping.

---Adam

[pu911rsr]

I've used fedex hundreds of times w/o issue, they do make mistakes but rare. I've had pretty poor luck with USPS- the only reasonable way to ship overseas but I always hold my breath until stuff arrives.

Phil

[Olivier]

What expensive means? and where do you ship to?

If you're selling for several 1000's or several 10000's it may be worth doing the trip, to be discussed with your buyer...

I've sold twice parts for 3000€ and 4000€

In one occasion, the buyer chose his shipment method, and sent TNT for home picking, and took care of everything. In the other occasion I made the trip to Germany to deliver the parts. For a main reason: I wanted to make sure I'd receive the money... Back and forth trip cost me about 400€ so 10% of the total value, and took me 2 days, but was worth it in terms of peace of mind.

One thing to take into consideration is that depending on where you ship to, and if insured, the customs can be a problem with delayed delivery, and sometimes (here in France for exemple...) you can pay a huge amount in taxes (here I pay about 30% of the declared value!)

As Harvey told you, you should also look for a person making the trip for you. But of course, it all depends on the value of your parts.

Olivier.

[ESully]

When I shipped a carb, linkage, air filter setup from NY to Australia, USPS was the best option. I had the buyer do a wire transfer.
I photographed everything before I sealed the box showing the parts condition and packing material.

[sushihaus]

Thanks for everyone's input! May have a solution to my current situation... With Austin, Texas turning more into an auto enthusiast destination, the buyer is going fly over (overseas) to come pick it up while checking out the upcoming events!