$HIPPING HAT$

[HarpPlayerGene]

So's I had an idea to ship one of my hats to a fellow member in Europe as just a sort of good karma, surprise sort of thing. Then, at the Post Office they told me it'd be $86.00! Granted, the hat is in a hat box inside a carton, but it's still not like it's a heavy parcel. I went over to UPS thinking I might do better on the cost and they told me, "The cheapest way you can send it with us will be $222.76!!

Their stated reason was, "There's no more 'ship'ping, only air to (this city/country)." I said, "What do you do, fly one box at a time, on the Concorde, in First Class, with Champagne!?"

Now, it seems I've heard of/seen Ebayers and fellow Loungers ship similar parcels overseas for $25 - $35. Am I imagining this? Any advice?

 

[David Conwill]

Right after I joined, I sent Paddy a Size 7 Pilgrim via USPS. It was just in your average cardboard box, stuffed with plastic bags and with a little newsprint on top (away from the hat, thank you very much), wrapped in a cut-up grocery bag. I think it cost maybe $20 to ship to the UK. I know, because I was terrified by the potential cost, but it wasn't bad at all. Maybe it's your destination, or maybe it's the unusual bulk of the package?

-Dave

 

[Lefty]

I just sent the Cervo that I sold to Bantam Man from Akron, OH to the Netherlands. It was not in a hat box, so it was much smaller. I don't remember the exact cost, but it was just under $15.

With another hat that I've sold, switching from sending it in a hat box within a shipping box, to just in a shipping box (slightly larger that the box the Cervo was in) reduced the cost from something like $36 to around $15 to Denver.

At a certain point, the services charge by volume. If you don't get under that threshold, you're going to pay the big bucks. Of course, as Dave said, it might just be the location of the buyer that's hurting you.

 

[majormoore]

Gene, try DHL I ship by them all the time way cheaper than USPS, FEd X and UPS. What you have to do is keep the box under a 20x20x12 size, when I ship that size box here by USPS it cost me $39.00 almost anywhere in the US, when I started shipping same box by DHL, cost me $16.00 any where most the time, and still gets there just as fast.

Try DHL for a quote, but keep the box size as small as you can. I also use a 275 LB box , meaning that it will not bend with 275 lbs setting on it, they cost a little more, but worth every penny, I buy them in all sizes.

Major Moore

 

[AlanC]

Gene, it shouldn't be that much for First Class International (Priority is much more). Very important: Make sure you have the smallest possible box for the hat. They penalize you heavily these days for big boxes. It sounds like shipping the hat box with it is what's killing you.

 

[HarpPlayerGene]

OK, great advice folks, and thanks. I'll try the smaller carton and forego the hat box and see how that $hakes out. I'll also try DHL. I appreciate the advice and the comparisons/examples.

G

 

[carter]

Gene, I just shipped a modern Stetson Pinnacle in a modern Knox hatbox (not double boxed) to the UK for About $20.00 First Class International. The hat was in protective bagging inside the form that protects the crown, I filled around the hat with styrofoam peanuts, and placed heavy paper on top of the hat and peanuts beneath the lid of the box. It's best to mark the package "FRAGILE - DO NOT STACK".

Shipping in the identical packing to US destinations with Confirmation required is slightly more than half that cost.

 

[duggap]

Gene, after the latest rate hike, I believe the USPS is now charging by size and not by weight.

 

[Nigel]

View from the UK

I usually pay around $30 to have hats shipped over here, I might pay a little more if the hat is in the hatbox. $40 is the most I ever paid but that included handling also.