USPS…….HOW MUCH?

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Mr. Sinister

Mr. Sinister

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Over the weekend @AlaskaJeff posted a wanted ad, I have exactly what he’s looking for, I reply with price, Jeff is good for the deal, BUT I have to check what the shipping cost is. Jeff suggested a flat rate large box I countered with the box they came in was perfect for the job and I would go to the post office and get a quote.

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This is the quote. I contacted Jeff and offered to split the shipping cost to make it a better deal. Jeff agreed and the deal was finalized. I seal the box and label and take it to the post office today. I hand the exact same box over the counter, it gets scaled, I am told the price,
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I explained that is not what I was quoted the day before and showed the previous quote. The lady explained that the box was not measured and I told her it was measured, she then explained that the measurements were not added so it was not done properly.
So I asked her how much for ground delivery,
image.jpg
I told her the part inside didn’t cost that much and a deal had already been made and I wasn’t shipping it for either of those amounts. So I contacted Jeff and told him because I can’t send pictures in a PM or run a discussion on his wanted ad was going to post in the general.
Shipping cost is gotten worse than ever and making it hard to get things out.
Jeff and I will discuss this and I have already told him if he wants a refund I have no problem with it.
USPS Sucks.
 
USPS does suck! Price wise and delivery bet you can send that through UPS and it will be cheaper. Go on UPS online put the weight and dimensions in and see bet it’s less.You can buy the label right there and print it tape it on the box and give it to a UPS driver.
 
I put one dash screwin at taped baggy in an envelope and it was returned for insufficient postage. My wife sends an envelope with a talking birthday card twice as heavy and it goes through. I just don't understand the postal service anymore. They must have scanned the envelope and saw the screw. That makes it an item not a letter.
 
Fwiw
I took a 4.7 lb box to UPS last Friday to ship headliner bows to TX. From Phila suburbs.
I was quoted $122 and change.
The buyer went on the usps site and punched in the specs and $155 was the quote to ship. I live a half mile from my local post office and while the buyer was checking the usps for a quote online I took the package to my local post office for a quote . The quote was $76 w/o insurance.
I didn’t check Fedx but technically they should be less expensive than ups since they are non union. However, it doesn’t seem to work out that way in my experience. Shipping cost have become painful!!
 
Drivers for fedex are stupid, if you want your package to get where its going, ship usps. You can get an exact price on their website. For the larger stuff, Fastenal 3rd party shipping but your going to have to build a crate with a pallet like base cause they load the truck with a forklift and nothing else.
 
Indeed if the dimensions on the slip were not included in the first quote, that is why the price went up.

Anything that has a single dimension over 12" drives the price up.

Go to the USPS site and punch it into the calculator, there is a choice for your box and it has the 12" limitation for one of the selections.

That package may only weigh 4 pounds, dimension weight is closer to 16 on FE if I had to guess. What does an 16# package cost to ship to that location? I see that it says 13# on the receipt.
 
Last edited:
crackedback said:
Indeed if the dimensions on the slip were not included in the first quote, that is why the price went up.

Anything that has a single dimension over 12" drives the price up.

Go to the USPS site and punch it into the calculator, there is a choice for your box and it has the 12" limitation for one of the selections.

That package may only weigh 4 pounds, dimension weight is closer to 16 on FE if I had to guess. What does an 16# package cost to ship to that location? I see that it says 13# on the receipt.
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I get this but now the shipping cost is $29.00 more than it was originally quoted and the deal was fair on both sides with the first quote given the inflated price is no longer a workable situation as I would end up with .35 cents for a set of new items.
 
Main reason I no longer sale parts on line.
If I have something I'll try local. Or back to swap meet once a year.
 
Mr. Sinister said:
Over the weekend @AlaskaJeff posted a wanted ad, I have exactly what he’s looking for, I reply with price, Jeff is good for the deal, BUT I have to check what the shipping cost is. Jeff suggested a flat rate large box I countered with the box they came in was perfect for the job and I would go to the post office and get a quote.

View attachment 1716076374This is the quote. I contacted Jeff and offered to split the shipping cost to make it a better deal. Jeff agreed and the deal was finalized. I seal the box and label and take it to the post office today. I hand the exact same box over the counter, it gets scaled, I am told the price,

View attachment 1716076377 I explained that is not what I was quoted the day before and showed the previous quote. The lady explained that the box was not measured and I told her it was measured, she then explained that the measurements were not added so it was not done properly.
So I asked her how much for ground delivery,View attachment 1716076379 I told her the part inside didn’t cost that much and a deal had already been made and I wasn’t shipping it for either of those amounts. So I contacted Jeff and told him because I can’t send pictures in a PM or run a discussion on his wanted ad was going to post in the general.
Shipping cost is gotten worse than ever and making it hard to get things out.
Jeff and I will discuss this and I have already told him if he wants a refund I have no problem with it.
USPS Sucks.
Click to expand...
Will the parts fit in any of the flat rate boxes?
 
if it was in a flat rate box why did it even cross the scales?

go into the PO, grab a box, go to the kiosk punch in your shipping, pay there, get your label, slap it on and put it on the counter. done.

you can also do all of that at home with a USPS account. they'll deliver boxes to you no charge even! print off the shipping label from your printer and schedule it as "click & ship" and the carrier will pick it up from your house on their rounds.

ETA: never mind, i see that you didn't ship in a flat rate. my mistake.
 
A good post office would have honored the first quote and "retrained" the employee who gave the quote.
 
446acuda said:
Even the "board game" large flat rate box at approximately 24 x 12 x 3? You have to order them but they are free and get delivered to your house.
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22” = good
12” = too small
3” = NO WAY!
 
I tried to buy 2 coupler nuts today, $6 each, total was almost $40 due to $24 in shipping. Guess what I didn't buy.

At the same time, sent a part back to Brewer today using the same small flat rate box they sent it to me, but I wrapped it so I didn't have to pay the flat rate cost and it was almost half the cost the small flat rate would have been, $5.75 vs. $10.xx. So a small flat rate USPS box isn't always the cheap route.

But I did learn a lesson in that the other box I tried to ship was actually too small and wasn't accepted. Makes sense, guy said sometimes a small box can jamb up the machine, or it goes in and never comes out. Rather not have that so the buyer will get a box in a box. Just hope it doesn't add much to the total shipping cost.
 
Only way I will ship through USPS is by thier website
I qoute, pay for, and print my label at the same time, and the next time they come to drop off my mail, they pick up the box
 
Mr. Sinister said:
22” = good
12” = too small
3” = NO WAY!
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with USPS, once you're out of flat rate sizing it's time to look at UPS or FedEx their rates are much more competitive in those areas.

sometimes, with something small you can get a deal thru USPS but it's really regional specific. but the flat rate boxes are the best bang for the buck if what you are shipping fits. remember it always pays to check other quotes.

every carrier has its downsides, but that's just the world we live in. cheap, good or fast. pick two.
 
So to clear the air a bit. Frank has gone out of his way to make this deal work for us. :thumbsup:
Living in Alaska I have delt with shipping woes and all that for a long time. While USPS sucks for many it IS the best option for shipping to and from Alaska. UPS Ground is a JOKE and forget 2nd Day Air. That 20X20 Box would probably $100 or more UPS Ground. I've tried it all, over the 35+ years living in AK. The Flat Rate Boxes are by far the best. Due to the fact that they cost the same price to AK and HI as they do the any of the Lesser 48 states. So if the item can fit it's great. If not, yeah dimensional weight calculations do suck. This package weighs a little shy of 3 lbs, not much at all. BUT as stated before it has dimensions over 12". That is where they get ya. It is what it is, if i want parts I pay to price in shipping to get them here. And I AM OK WITH IT to some extent. PM incoming to ya Frank. We CAN make this work.
 
446acuda said:
Even the "board game" large flat rate box at approximately 24 x 12 x 3? You have to order them but they are free and get delivered to your house.
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Do they still have those available? Last time I checked, they weren't. Maybe it was just in my region??
 
Mr. Sinister said:
I get this but now the shipping cost is $29.00 more than it was originally quoted and the deal was fair on both sides with the first quote given the inflated price is no longer a workable situation as I would end up with .35 cents for a set of new items.
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Had plenty of things not get sold because of shipping cost. Unfortunate part of the biz/hobby.

My favorite was a buyer thinking a complete floor pan from a duster should be able to ship cross country for $20. You try your best to accommodate... sometimes it just isn't possible.
 
mopowers said:
Do they still have those available? Last time I checked, they weren't. Maybe it was just in my region??
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Disco'd and if you have one they will ship them, once stock is gone they are finished. I have about 10 of them left.
 
Almost 2 months to get a box from Colorado to Canada. It spent almost 6 weeks going around in circles between 3 cities in California.

Just ordered some wire terminals today.......$24 shipping from the US, and free from China.

I can hardly wait to get this damn car finished.
 
mopowers said:
Do they still have those available? Last time I checked, they weren't. Maybe it was just in my region??
Click to expand...
They don't have them available at the post office. You have to order them online and they get delivered at no charge. I don't recall ever seeing them at any post office anywhere.
 
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