30 years at UPS and I have never had a box damaged from UPS, FedEX, or USPS. Seems that if you work with the gorillas you have an inkling of how to pack something and not have it damaged. I bought a rifle from a member here and it arrived in two ratty, been used 100 times boxes, no packing at all, not a Kleenex, and it made it fine. Miracles do happen. The only thing you have to know about shipping a rifle is it's long and skinny, and fragile. UPS puts packages up to 70 pounds in the general load.. If your long skinny rifle is in a nice cardboard box, wrapped in bubble rap, it has no structural integrity. If the muzzle is resting on a nice solid box, and the butt is on another nice solid box, but the middle is resting on a lamp shade with no stiff packing, and the gorilla puts a 70 pound John Deere wheel weight right in the middle, good chances it will snap in half. I asked my LGS owner how many rifles were damaged in factory boxes per year? He looked at me like I was nuts, and said in his almost 50 years he has NEVER had a factory boxed rifle damaged. I don't know how many people have told me THEY should not have to go through all that trouble to make sure the box doesn't get damaged. Once they give it to UPS, it's UPS's responsibility, to see that their terrible packing makes it safe, because they took it like that. That is the most asinine, stupid, stupid stupid response I've ever heard. I fretted over my 1928 K with the Noske side mount for weeks. I can't afford a real, unmolested K. This is one of my Crown Jewels. The seller couldn't get the barrel off to break it down. He finally put it in a hard case and no problems. I've had people tell me flat out, "there is no way I'm buying a hard case, over the cost of shipping, as insurance". Stupid, stupid, stupid.
I know Roy's luck, and the last time this subject came up, I believe I asked him how many of his outgoing guns were damaged. As of several years ago, I believe it was ZERO. But, he has received something like 6-7 snapped in half. One run over by a forklift. Bet none of them were in hard cases. If you got a gun shipped by me, it would not be damaged, because it's my responsibility to get it there. End of story, and rant.
Last edited by JoeMartin; 10/07/21.
