ibrokeitagain

I recently bought a small frame road bike for it's components, to use on a larger framed model I already owned.
I have a buyer for the frame on the opposite coast.
I went to a bike shop here and got hold of an bike box which apparently was from a new mountain bike. I had measured the frame's length and height stripped, with the forks removed, and found it needs no less than a 41"x24"x7" box. The one I found, which was the biggest they had on hand measures 47x21x8". I can cut the box down length wise to save on size and weight. I took two boxes so I could combine them for the added height.
My surprise came when I went to figure shipping. The finished packed up bike frame and fork which is now packed in a box measuring 42x25x8", well padded with the dropouts reinforced with wood blocks, and all tubes wrapped in cardboard with several heavy cardboard tubes hot glued in place to prevent crush damage, and the bike frame padded and secured so that it can't move and poke out of the box. The total weight is 14lb 8oz. I tried Fed Ex and UPS, both want over $60, and the PO wants more $107.
I had planned to ship via Parcel Post, since going by their calculator online gives me under $26. When I went to the PO, they measured it by wrapping a tape around the box and weighing it and told me $107, the lady told me that it would have to be half it's size to go at the $26 rate.

Now, this is a small road bike frame, a 21" bike frame, what on earth do people do to ship a large frame or even a whole bike? For one I doubt you could find a box large enough, and second you would need four boxes to make a single box large enough these days. I have a bike frame that I was thinking about selling but the cost of shipping would far exceed the value. It's a 64cm road frame that on a good day would only bring $90 on eBay, the amount of work involved in packing it and the cost of shipping just isn't worth it from what I see.

Does anyone have any better shipping solutions for bikes or bike frames?

I know there has to be some better way because I've won large frames on eBay and had them shipped here with only $18 or $20 postage on them. Are some Post Offices just looking the other way or is there some trick to get those rates?

I just won and received a 63cm frame and fork, it was shipped from Seattle to NJ for $25.67 postage. The guy took it to the PO and shipped it last Monday, it arrived here yesterday. His box was done almost the same as what I've done with the bike I have to ship, only much larger. How do others get these cheaper rates?
Someone told me that I could get cheaper shipping if I used one of the various shipping stores but those that I called were all more than double the prices I got shipping it myself. They may get a cheaper rate but they don't pass it on to the customer from what I see. I even went to a local bike shop who I deal with all the time, he offered to ship it for me under his UPS account but the cost was only a few dollars less, and to be honest, I'd rather not use UPS due to past damage issues.

Mr. Embrey

I just shipped two entire bikes, packed similarly, for $53 and $59 through FedEx. It was only $45 for just a frame & fork once. FedEx is the cheapest most of the time.

ibrokeitagain

How big were the frames?
If I were to ship a 64cm frame road bike, the frame alone would need a box 47x30, and that's with no rear wheel or crankset. I'd have to ship the wheels separate. I just checked and even a 42x25x8" bike box is $69 at FedEx via ground Home Delivery. More if they come get it at your door. Keep in mind that size is a 21" road bike frame tightly packed.
I've got a 69cm Raleigh I'd like to list and sell too, but the box would be 35" tall and 52" long by 8" thick. FedEx says that'll be $136.11. USPS won't take it at all.
At those dimensions the bike is packed much like a new bike comes today, bars off, seat off, fork reversed, wheel along side the frame, and pedals off. It just makes it in two bike boxes joined to fit that bike.
What gets me is how others get the lower prices? What am I doing wrong?
I did buy one frameset on eBay which got shipped to me with just two sheets of cardboard cut to fit each side, all taped together but that frame had its forks and rear triangle squashed a bit. That was post marked at $18, and was a 62cm bare frame. I'd never risk shipping anything like that. The seller was lucky it made it here at all.

randyjawa 

I just packed two frame set, in different boxes, of course. One is a 48cm, on its way from Canada to Texas, and it fit into a cut down bicycle box, that measured 38"x21"x8" and weight about 16lb - International Expedited shipping will be about $75.00 USD. The second box measures 36"x24"x9" and weighs 17lb. That one is going to New York at a cost of about $63.00. I also add on a $15.00 handling fee to cover selling and packing expenses.

Shorten the box as much as you can. Lower the height, as much as you can. Leave the width alone, it is too much work to reduce width, height and length, just height and length will do the job.

Hope this is a help.

JunkYardBike

Your estimates sound about right to me. Coast to coast is always the most expensive in the CONUS. USPS has a 108" total girth limit before bumping to oversize. FedEx and UPS is 130" I think. Not sure how you were shipped a 64cm frame via USPS for $25. Does the seller work for the post office? USPS is the cheapest if you can keep the box smaller than 108", but that only happens with very small frames, as you mention.

triathloner

Some sellers eat some shipping to make their auctions more attractive, I've done this in the past. The only way to ship bikes cheaper via ups or fedex is to open up an account with ups and fedex, but you need to be doing some volume to do this, not just one bike here or there. If you know anyone who owns a business and ships regularly you could to ask them to ship it for you and pay them.

Bianchigirll 

I ran into this late last summer. for some reason since a box containing a frame only is much lighter than a larger bix with a full bike it cost more. it has something to do with weight X the volume of the box.

I guess beacause the heavier boxes fill the truck to gross weight and the large light boxes would cause it to 'bulk out' before reaching gross weight

Wogster

It's called volumetric weights, here is how it works you multiple the height x weight x length in inches, then divide by 1728 this gives you cubic feet, they make the assumption that a 1 cubic foot box weighs so many pounds, say 10.

So for the OP it would work like this 41x24x7 is 6,888 divide by 1728 leaves you with 3.986 cubic feet, they always round up, so the assumption is that the box has a volumetric weight of 40lbs. This is compared to the actual weight, and you get charged based on whichever is greater. If there is a size limit, then going over by even 1/16th of an inch can mean a lot of money.

ibrokeitagain

I boxed up the frame I had to ship, I downsized the box to 40x22x7, and the weight came to 14lbs. The USPS online calculator gives me $25.51 via Parcel Post. So I went Friday to the PO, they tell me $107.16? The woman measured the box around both directions, then told me it measures 156" total, she added both circumference measurements together to get 156". When I complained, a manager came out and made some comment about the rates being double over 80". She apparently knew nothing about the 108" limit to ship anything via USPS. I left pretty upset, and went to another PO, the guy there measured the box the same way and came up with a total of $107.16 again. I just left with the package figuring that it's cheaper by FedEx.
I decided to call a larger PO for a rate first, I was told $25.51 going on the measurements and weight I gave above. I then called both Post Offices that I had been too and got the same $25.51 price on the phone. I went back to the first PO, and again was told $107.16 and no one had any idea who would have quoted me the lower rate.

To make a long story short,
I finally drove all the way to the main depot about an hour away and shipped the thing for the $25.51.
They couldn't understand why I had any issues at the smaller PO, the guy told me the box was no where's near the next price break, he said he could tell that by just looking at it, but after I told him about the other two PO's wanting $107.16, he took out a tape and measured it just to prove a point.
It seems the PO hires idiots here. The correct measurement is maximum length plus 'girth' or the circumference of the box in the shorter direction. In this case this box measures 100" total. Putting it in the $25.51 price bracket. Its just too bad I had to burn a half tank of gas to ship something that should have been able to be sent right from here.

That still doesn't explain how a seller can ship a box that measures 154" in true measurement for $25.67.
Do PO employees get that kind of discount?

blaise_f

Greyhound does incredibly cheap shipping. Their maximum insurance is 1k or 2k (I can't remember which). I shipped a 60lb penny farthing (box was 56 x 60 x 14) for ~70$ insured for the max value from PHX to Las Vegas or Reno.

fas2c

I've shipped some crazy stuff via Greyhound. I once had a rear seat to a Jeep Wagoneer shipped from Idaho for 100.00. Another time I shipped a roll-around dishwasher to outside Raleigh, Nc for cheap too. I spoke to the dispatcher when I shipped the Dishwasher and he stated he shipped lots of loaded toolboxes so the dishwasher wasn't a problem.

blaise_f

I checked emails, and it was Reno (1600 miles round trip if you were to drive).