jdangel38
Pocket Aces
So I am guessing that many AK users have had bad experiences
with the turntables bought on that auction site, or through various other venues. If you have been fortunate enough not to have a bad experience, you have heard the horror stories about it.
This guide is a bit long, but it's necessary to explain TT shipping properly.
If you want it to get there intact, it takes some time and care.
Needing to ship some turntables myself earlier this year, I got some advice from others,
and then came up with my own method, which has now shipped 6 turntables perfectly intact this year.
You will need Heavy Duty Packaging tape, a measuring tape, and a Razor Knife.
I prefer the type with the slide out break-off blades for this method,but any will work.
You will also need Bubble wrap, Large heavy duty Cardboard box(es),
And the main material, 1.5" thick styrofoam. The kind I get is sold as home insulation. It's usually sold in 4x8 foot wide sheets, but some stores sell it in 2x4 sheets too. It's a bit more expensive in the smaller sizes though.
You can purchase all of this at Any major home improvement store.
Dont go thinner to save money,
you need foam that is strong and wont break from heavy weight being placed on top of it, which always happens in shipping. I see it happen most of the time at pack and mail places right behind the counter, so the box has to be able to withstand that.I use boxes that are 24x18x18, and these almost always work.
(Also available at the major Home Imp. stores.) Occasionally, you will need a box that is higher or wider.
Many pack and mail type stores as well as storage units sell boxes that are 24x24x24, and I've seen them 30x30x30 and bigger, so you can probably get any size box you need.
You will probably spend at least 2 hours to pack each TT, since they are a little different each time. My packing costs arent too bad since I buy everything in large quantities, but it could easily cost $20-30 to do just one.
It's worth it though, to get a nice turntable shipped in one piece.
If you are selling a turntable, figure out the material cost beforehand so you can account for it in your sale price.
Before you do anything else, Remove the dustcover, platter, and belt.
You should just be able to wrap the belt around the metal underside of the platter, and that way it wont be under tension and possibly break during shipping. Set these aside till a bit later. If the Platter is not removeable,
slip cardboard shims under all edges of it to keep it from destroying the deck.
Then, lay bubble wrap down on the bottom of the box, one layer covering the bottom if using large bubble, or several layers if using small bubble.
This way the turntable's weight cant break the bubbles easily, and it's more cushioning than just foam.
Now measure and cut a piece of Styrofoam to fit the bottom of the box.
Try to make it an exact fit so it cant slide around.
Prior to cutting the foam sides, you need to pre-pack the turntable and measure how high the end result is.
To pre-pack it;
First, tie down the tone arm with one or two twist ties to the rest.
Dont go too tight and break the rest, but make sure the tone arm cant go off the rest.
Edit: Next, I remove the counterweight and the headshell.
For the headshell/cartridge, sandwich it sideways between two pieces of foam to protect it, then tape it together around the edges of the foam, to immobilize it. Then put this all in a ziplock bag. It's worked for me in the past. Bubble wrap the counterwight and make sure it's taped down securely somewhere.
(When I first wrote this guide, I had not removed either, but at the advice of many others i realized it would probably be wise. Better safe than sorry!)
Next put the entire turntable inside a large trash bag, taking care not to damage the tone arm in the process. Tie off the end. This protects the inside of the turntable from getting anything inside which doesnt belong, and allows you to tape around it.
Then, get a small and strong cardboard box, generally something in the 7x7x6 size range. Poke a small hole in the underside of the box, Then slip it over the bag and the spindle.
IMPORTANT :Take care not to put pressure on the tone arm by inadvertantly pulling the bag tightly across it while taping the box down in the next step.
Now use a lot of tape and secure the box down to the bag very firmly. Since you cant generally tape across the tonearm side, the other three sides will need a lot of taping around from front to back, and on the end, to ensure that nothing can move. Wrap tape from the front to back of the deck and underneath, giving you a tightly wrapped band all around, as well as to the non tonearm side.
You do not want the box to spin slightly left or right on the spindle, and if the turntable has a internally suspended platter, tightly tape the box down until nothing can move.
If everything is shaking around inside during shipping, you could damage the motor, suspension, or other internal parts.
Some turntables have transit screws, but not all. If your has them, make sure to tighten them down prior to anything else.
When you are done, it should look like this;
Next, meaure how high the top of the small center box is from the table or Bench the turntable is on. Then, Cut four sides of Foam to this exact height. Make sure the are snugly fit. ( If you make the sides too high on accident,
just cut a small piece of foam and tape it securely to the top of the small box.)
You can also put some bubble wrap under the turntable,
and put some on all four sides between the foam and the base of the TT.
It should look like this;
Now cut a Lid for this half of the interior. You will need one more at the end,
so just cut two and save some time later.
Next, wrap the dustcover in bubble wrap. Use a lot if you are using the small bubble wrap to give a good cushion.
Then measure how high the wrapped Dustcover is, and cut 4 foam sides which go at least one inch higher on all sides than the dustcover. The dustcover should fit in with room to spare on all sides. Use packing peanuts or newspaper around all four edges to keep the dustcover immobile, but make sure the dustcover can move just slightly in any direction, that way it cannot get cracked easily from pressure on the side of the box.
Make sure that you also lay it in the box upside down, so that if something large were to punch through the top of the box in shipping, the dustcover would still have a chance at survival.
Finally, put the final foam piece over all this and seal the top of the box.
If you have to make the box taller ( I usually have to) it will probably look like the first picture. Also, lay some more bubble wrap across the top before putting the final foam piece on. You can make it nicer, as in the second pic, if you prefer.
The final step: "Write this side up" and "Top" at least two times each on the top in different spots. Otherwise the UPS guy has no idea and may set this on its side. Make sure the shipping label goes on top too.
Here is a tip for estimating shipping costs quite accurately if you want to wait to pack it until it needs to be done.
Measure your box size, then weigh your turntable. Add 7 pounds to the weight of the TT, and then use that number along with the dimensions in any shipping calculator you use. You should be right on.
If I missed anything, I will come back and edit this. I really hope this is a helpful guide for those of you unsure how to go about shipping turntables. It has worked very well for me, and If you follow my instructions carefully it should help you too.
Thanks!
with the turntables bought on that auction site, or through various other venues. If you have been fortunate enough not to have a bad experience, you have heard the horror stories about it.
This guide is a bit long, but it's necessary to explain TT shipping properly.
If you want it to get there intact, it takes some time and care.
Needing to ship some turntables myself earlier this year, I got some advice from others,
and then came up with my own method, which has now shipped 6 turntables perfectly intact this year.
You will need Heavy Duty Packaging tape, a measuring tape, and a Razor Knife.
I prefer the type with the slide out break-off blades for this method,but any will work.
You will also need Bubble wrap, Large heavy duty Cardboard box(es),
And the main material, 1.5" thick styrofoam. The kind I get is sold as home insulation. It's usually sold in 4x8 foot wide sheets, but some stores sell it in 2x4 sheets too. It's a bit more expensive in the smaller sizes though.
You can purchase all of this at Any major home improvement store.
Dont go thinner to save money,
you need foam that is strong and wont break from heavy weight being placed on top of it, which always happens in shipping. I see it happen most of the time at pack and mail places right behind the counter, so the box has to be able to withstand that.I use boxes that are 24x18x18, and these almost always work.
(Also available at the major Home Imp. stores.) Occasionally, you will need a box that is higher or wider.
Many pack and mail type stores as well as storage units sell boxes that are 24x24x24, and I've seen them 30x30x30 and bigger, so you can probably get any size box you need.
You will probably spend at least 2 hours to pack each TT, since they are a little different each time. My packing costs arent too bad since I buy everything in large quantities, but it could easily cost $20-30 to do just one.
It's worth it though, to get a nice turntable shipped in one piece.
If you are selling a turntable, figure out the material cost beforehand so you can account for it in your sale price.
Before you do anything else, Remove the dustcover, platter, and belt.
You should just be able to wrap the belt around the metal underside of the platter, and that way it wont be under tension and possibly break during shipping. Set these aside till a bit later. If the Platter is not removeable,
slip cardboard shims under all edges of it to keep it from destroying the deck.
Then, lay bubble wrap down on the bottom of the box, one layer covering the bottom if using large bubble, or several layers if using small bubble.
This way the turntable's weight cant break the bubbles easily, and it's more cushioning than just foam.
Now measure and cut a piece of Styrofoam to fit the bottom of the box.
Try to make it an exact fit so it cant slide around.
Prior to cutting the foam sides, you need to pre-pack the turntable and measure how high the end result is.
To pre-pack it;
First, tie down the tone arm with one or two twist ties to the rest.
Dont go too tight and break the rest, but make sure the tone arm cant go off the rest.
Edit: Next, I remove the counterweight and the headshell.
For the headshell/cartridge, sandwich it sideways between two pieces of foam to protect it, then tape it together around the edges of the foam, to immobilize it. Then put this all in a ziplock bag. It's worked for me in the past. Bubble wrap the counterwight and make sure it's taped down securely somewhere.
(When I first wrote this guide, I had not removed either, but at the advice of many others i realized it would probably be wise. Better safe than sorry!)
Next put the entire turntable inside a large trash bag, taking care not to damage the tone arm in the process. Tie off the end. This protects the inside of the turntable from getting anything inside which doesnt belong, and allows you to tape around it.
Then, get a small and strong cardboard box, generally something in the 7x7x6 size range. Poke a small hole in the underside of the box, Then slip it over the bag and the spindle.
IMPORTANT :Take care not to put pressure on the tone arm by inadvertantly pulling the bag tightly across it while taping the box down in the next step.
Now use a lot of tape and secure the box down to the bag very firmly. Since you cant generally tape across the tonearm side, the other three sides will need a lot of taping around from front to back, and on the end, to ensure that nothing can move. Wrap tape from the front to back of the deck and underneath, giving you a tightly wrapped band all around, as well as to the non tonearm side.
You do not want the box to spin slightly left or right on the spindle, and if the turntable has a internally suspended platter, tightly tape the box down until nothing can move.
If everything is shaking around inside during shipping, you could damage the motor, suspension, or other internal parts.
Some turntables have transit screws, but not all. If your has them, make sure to tighten them down prior to anything else.
When you are done, it should look like this;
Next, meaure how high the top of the small center box is from the table or Bench the turntable is on. Then, Cut four sides of Foam to this exact height. Make sure the are snugly fit. ( If you make the sides too high on accident,
just cut a small piece of foam and tape it securely to the top of the small box.)
You can also put some bubble wrap under the turntable,
and put some on all four sides between the foam and the base of the TT.
It should look like this;
Now cut a Lid for this half of the interior. You will need one more at the end,
so just cut two and save some time later.
Next, wrap the dustcover in bubble wrap. Use a lot if you are using the small bubble wrap to give a good cushion.
Then measure how high the wrapped Dustcover is, and cut 4 foam sides which go at least one inch higher on all sides than the dustcover. The dustcover should fit in with room to spare on all sides. Use packing peanuts or newspaper around all four edges to keep the dustcover immobile, but make sure the dustcover can move just slightly in any direction, that way it cannot get cracked easily from pressure on the side of the box.
Make sure that you also lay it in the box upside down, so that if something large were to punch through the top of the box in shipping, the dustcover would still have a chance at survival.
Finally, put the final foam piece over all this and seal the top of the box.
If you have to make the box taller ( I usually have to) it will probably look like the first picture. Also, lay some more bubble wrap across the top before putting the final foam piece on. You can make it nicer, as in the second pic, if you prefer.
The final step: "Write this side up" and "Top" at least two times each on the top in different spots. Otherwise the UPS guy has no idea and may set this on its side. Make sure the shipping label goes on top too.
Here is a tip for estimating shipping costs quite accurately if you want to wait to pack it until it needs to be done.
Measure your box size, then weigh your turntable. Add 7 pounds to the weight of the TT, and then use that number along with the dimensions in any shipping calculator you use. You should be right on.
If I missed anything, I will come back and edit this. I really hope this is a helpful guide for those of you unsure how to go about shipping turntables. It has worked very well for me, and If you follow my instructions carefully it should help you too.
Thanks!
Last edited: