[Yaesu] Yaesu repair and Fed Ex

[paul glassman]

dave,
  thanks for the detailed reply. i just bought a piece of artwork and shipping is $107 for a piece weighing about 14 ounces. It has to be shipped in a specialized custom crate and i absolutely support the fees and crate 100%. it is the only way the work will arrive intact.  
   in theory everything you say is 100% accurate. fed ex ground are independant contractors, however, fed ex backs them up 100% on damage claims. i have run into several worthless fed ex ground guys. one waited a week to deliver my item after he had it in his possesion. he claimed he went to my house and i wasnt home. a complete lie. he was fired that day. another fed ex ground guy stole all of the items in his truck and vanished. fed ex paid off on all of the claims. as you indicated, the only way to do it right is pack it yourself. 
    here is where theory runs off the track. when a person has a fed ex kinkos clerk pack their stuff, it is being done by a fed ex employee and they are on the hook if it is damaged, regardless of how badly they pack it. if you take your item directly to a ups terminal and have them pack it, you are hiring a ups employee and they are on the hook if it is damaged. now...  here is where theory falls apart. go to a ups store and chances are the boss may be out and you are having some "i dont care schlep, hourly, no benefits" clerk, wrap your rig in one layer of bullbe wrap and tossing it into a box. try to collect on that one. ups will leave you hanging out to dry. you have absolutly no recourse against ups since you were not the shipper and now you have to sue the ups franchisee in small claims court. there are a few good ups store owners out there. the vast majority of them are good for receiving mail and sending your already packed item. as for
 quality responsible packing????   dropping it in the middle of the freeway is safer than letting a ups store pack it. see qth.com feedback for the ups store.
                                                  best 73  paul w8jn

Quantum materiae materietur marmota monax 
si marmota monax materiam possit materiari?

--- On Wed, 5/12/10, David Thompson <thompson at mindspring.com> wrote:


From: David Thompson <thompson at mindspring.com>
Subject: Re: [Yaesu] Yaesu repair and Fed Ex
To: "paul glassman" <highschooldiving at yahoo.com>, yaesu at mailman.qth.net
Date: Wednesday, May 12, 2010, 4:26 PM


Paul,

I know Fed Ex owns Fed Ex Kinkos but did you know that Fed Ex Ground are not really part of Fed Ex.  They are all independent contractors.  From that vantage point I am betting the chance of getting Fed Ex to pay damage insurance is very low.

I agree that UPS Stores are independent businesses.  One owner sued UPS over lost revenue from other shippers such as Fed Ex and rapid Express.  Locally, the Post office cut off their rights to resell postage as they are deemed competitors.  As you may know Fed Ex has a major agreement with the US Postal service.  Have you noticed the Fed Ex box outside many Post Offices.

The original Mail Boxes Etc. usually selected owners very carefully.  Now that they are UPS Stores I spoke with a local store owner and the Regional UPS Store manager.  The stores are trained in what is accepted for packaging and they do not accept hazardous material which includes batteries!  However what they don't know won't hurt you.  I have shipped several Elam AF-67 and 68 transmitters which have a bias battery for the modulator.

Second, UPS Stores charge the scheduled UPS charge for shipping.  They are not allowed a mark up.  However, you can go on-line and save 10% but you must either deliver the package to UPS terminals or arrange for pick up. Where they make their money is in boxes, packing material, and supplies. The Mail Boxes are legitimate Busyness Addresses where as USPS Post Boxes are not!
The fellow who sued UPS joined a class action of hundreds of owners.  To settle they bought back many of the franchises for well above the normal return and he took advantage and sold.

I can't imagine that Fed Ex Kinko does that much better in packaging.  If you want something packaged correctly do it yourself if its heavy and bulky. Commercial shippers ship heavy computers and electronics crated.  Back in 1969 when I bought my Henry 2K from Bob Henry in Butler, MO it arrived crated and I paid a home delivery fee.  Some of the ideas quoted in this thread had excellent ideas on shipping.  What I find is that some of us just won't pay to properly ship old gear.  I saw a seller on Ebay selling two heavy items (60 to 120 pounds) and the packing and shipping costs he quoted were being commented on by viewers as outrageous.  Unfortunately shipping and packing costs are going up and are not cheap any more.

73 Dave K4JRB
----- Original Message ----- From: "paul glassman" <highschooldiving at yahoo.com>
To: <yaesu at mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Tuesday, May 11, 2010 2:04 PM
Subject: Re: [Yaesu] Yaesu repair and Fed Ex


dave
for the record, fed ex kinkos
is owned by fed ex. the ups stores are independent franchises. they (ups stores) are
the worst at packing, customer relations and raping you over shipping
prices. they double and triple ups rates. look up the ups store
feedback on qth.com and read the endless nightmares of their horrible packing jobs and their refusal to pay on insurance claims.
best 73 paul w8jn