eBay and the hazards of self-shipping
July 22nd, 2009As crating manager, I sometimes get a self-satisfied chortle out of packages sent to me from various sources, private and professional. With the Tour de France 2009 in mind, this one was more amusing than most. And also more annoying.
The front wheel of my bicycle was recently crushed in a collision with a car on my way to work. It being a lightweight road bike c. 1986, I figured I’d maintain the vintage and save money in the same stroke by getting another set of French mid-80s wheels. I love eBay.
I guess it’s good that Mavic wheels are known to be pretty much bomb-proof, because the package in which they arrived was barely fit for a local delivery. The front wheel (the one I need right away) has damaged spokes, but they can be replaced. I hope that’s the only reason why the rim looks almost as bad as the one that got run over.
The thing is, these wheels are really strong; so what went wrong here? Let’s take a look.
1. Though made for shipping wheels, the box was recycled from an earlier use. There’s a different brand printed on the outside, and what passed for interior packing had clearly lost its shape prior to this use.
2. Even if new, this type of packaging is designed to be supported by other significant factors; like bundling them in large numbers on a shipping pallet. It was clearly not designed for overseas travel on its own.
3. Due in part to the used packaging, the three parts being shipped were not adequately secured inside the box. A small bag holding the steel skewers was tossed in loose to jump around inside the box, and the hub of each wheel was jammed into the spokes of the other.
As a result, the box got crushed. The cogs of the rear wheel arrived poking a 5″ diameter hole through the box, and three spokes had somehow snapped off of the front rim.
As a bonus, the shipper decided to use stamps to send the box to California. From France. I hate eBay.
So how would I have packed this, assuming that a crate was not an option?
…Let me stress that the following solution is not something that we would do here at Fine Art Shipping. Unless the client was renting a dedicated shipping container to be loaded by us, we would insist on a full wood crate for international shipping. But let’s just say that I wanted to ship the wheels back on my own dime, while trying to mitigate further damage. Due to their odd size, I would start with a custom box, built from a couple sheets of double-wall cardboard.
1. I would cut two panels of 3/8″ plywood to reinforce the interiors of the two large walls of the box.
2. Then I would surround the wheels with 2″ bumpers of Ethafoam. I would stack another 1″ of foam on these bumpers and slot them for the wheel rims. This would keep the wheels separated and secure in their cushioning.
3. Finally I would bag and secure the third part – the skewers (wheel axles) – well away from the wheels. They could be embedded in the bottom foam bumper, or the bag could be screwed to the plywood sides.
C‘est la vie.
Hey, lookit these pretty stamps.
-Chris
Tags: art shipper, art shipping, crate, Crating, damage, Packing, softpacking, softpacks
October 21st, 2009 at 2:13 pm
Dear Chris,
It was with great amusement I read this article. As the curator of Ironstone’s Heritage Museum and Annual Spring Obsession Art Show, I see an amazing number of boxes come in much like yours above. These however come with fragile paintings, glass and framework. Seems some artists feel enough “popcorn” and all is well. What a nightmare that material is! Especially for unpacking then repacking at the close of the exhibit! I am going to make this article manditory reading for all artists accepted into the show! Thank you for your fun insights.