Justgotohm
Super Member
The speakers arrived A ok, the buyer is very satisfied. I haven't had any feed back from Australia, I check everyday.
FYI packing peanuts from UPS
- Thread starter Justgotohm
- Start date
pete_mac
Super Member
Absolutely! Pool noodles are fantastic for corners and edges. Highly recommended!
How is it they sell peanuts for packing but I was just denied insurance claim and 1 reason was peanuts. Said peanuts was not sufficient.
They completely disregarded their abuse of all 3 of my packages that contained electro voice indoor outdoor speakers made of abs type plastic. Totally passed the blame on me like the thieves they are. Insurance pointless. I’ve received plenty of boxes that would have failed thier bs regulations.
They completely disregarded their abuse of all 3 of my packages that contained electro voice indoor outdoor speakers made of abs type plastic. Totally passed the blame on me like the thieves they are. Insurance pointless. I’ve received plenty of boxes that would have failed thier bs regulations.
toxcrusadr
Omelette au Fromage
I feel your pain gentlejax but peanuts are crushable and objects can also shift around within them if not tight enough. They are fine for light objects but if you try to put a receiver or speaker in peanuts and it gets dropped, they are going to crush and then the next drop has less protection. We never use peanuts for heavy audio gear. Double boxing with rigid foam in between the boxes is the best way.
The fact that some inadequately packed packages make it through without damage and the senders are not punished is lamentable.
People speed, too, and not all of them get caught. 
The fact that some inadequately packed packages make it through without damage and the senders are not punished is lamentable.
People speed, too, and not all of them get caught.
Justgotohm
Super Member
I recently shipped a pair of small but heavy back loaded horn speakers to California. I covered the drivers with the ridged plastic cups that they came with, used lots of soft foam on the cabs then made cardboard corners for all 16 corners. I cut holes in hard foam to cover the binding post then wrapped it all in a large amount of bubble wrap. This was before using any packing material in the boxes themselves. The speakers are extremely dence being made of multiple layers of high density partical board. I took them to UPS to be packed in house to their specs. The coast was $120 for packing, $110 for the $1000 of insurance and $130 for shipping. Needless to say I choose another shipping option. I did ask UPS why the cost of insurance was $110 on $1000 after they packed the items. I came to the conclusion that UPS does not have a lot of faith in their system.
toxcrusadr
Omelette au Fromage
That's pretty bad.
Under 10 pounds it probably does not make a difference - but when you get to heavy gear (I have learned the hard way buying 19 McIntosh pieces), spend the extra $100 and call Audio Classics for a good shipping box. Theirs are much better than factory McIntosh boxes. I will only buy McIntosh gear if the seller will let me send an Audio Classics shipping crate!!!!!!!!
There is a catch to it. Peanuts work only if double-boxed. Misuse and misunderstanding of peanuts is why they get a bad rap. I hate getting them too, but don't mind the cornstarch peanuts since they degrade easily. And there are other ways to properly pad shipments...but peanuts work very effectively if used with some common sense.
The key is that the inner box should float inside a bed of peanuts in the outer box. The box also needs to be overfilled so the peanuts compress slightly, so there is no movement of the inner box. The same could be done with the large bubble wrap but it is less convenient. I don't trust those plastic air-filled pillows as they pop too easily, and are too large to pack effectively. (Smaller air-filled pillows IMHO would be ideal.) Small items also can not be shipped by surrounding with peanuts--they will just knock around between them. Peanuts work best on larger boxes inside of an even larger outer box. They need those flat surfaces so they can compress properly, and the flat surfaces provide the needed support.
Used properly, peanuts are a perfect means of padding a shipment. I received many brand new undamaged stereo components that were properly double-boxed that way, the inner boxes undamaged and factory fresh. But they are something I would only use in special cases. When I ship something where I need to keep contents from shifting around, but do not need the shock protection, I will simply use old newspaper, wadded up tightly to fit the empty spaces.
Would I use hard styrofoam? Depends on the item. If I were packing an inner box tightly, sure, yes. But I would then suspend that inner box inside of a bed of peanuts or other suitable inflatables within a strong outer box.
Hate trying to dispose of those little buggers, though...that's my big complaint about peanuts. I don't ship often enough to keep a stash on hand for shipping. I always feel like I'm littering when I toss them out.
