I’ve been shipping projectors
worldwide for years now, and have found
the hard way how to and how NOT to ship
them.
Sending a projector via courier (UPS,
FedEx) is usually not a good idea unless
they are sent in a foam lined road case.
These courier companies are hard to deal
with if something gets damaged, and most
are not gentle with these relatively
fragile projectors. We've heard so
many horror stories of smaller
projectors put in cardboard boxes and
shipped by FedEx who upon delivery drop
the box out of the back of a truck and
roll it end over end to the front door
(I have example pictures of this farther
below). Yikes!
I used to get custom crates made to
house projectors in, but found out that
the crates get tossed around, and any
external shock to the crate gets
transferred right to the projector,
smashing tubes and bouncing things
around. I therefore ship projectors like
this now:
I wrap the projector in two layers of
bubble wrap and strap it to a pallet.
Using a pallet is key as it ensures that
the shipping company will use a forklift
to move the projector around and not try
to do it with a dolly or (heaven forbid)
by hand. By forcing the shippers
to always use a forklift you're ensuring
that the projector will always stay
upright and is less likely to be
dropped/bumped/etc.
To
ensure safe transit of projectors with
heavier CRT sockets or thinner CRT necks
(ex: Sony G70 and the NEC XG series) I
take the lenses and/or CRT sockets and
put them in a separate box. The bubble
wrap protects the set from damage and
I’ve had excellent success shipping in
this manner.
Sometimes I get in shipments of
projectors in road cases (see image
below), and I give these road cases away
if I have one that fits the projector
you buy. The cases are free, but the
weight can add up to $100 to the cost of
shipping, so keep that in mind if you
want one. The cases do make great gear
cases for bands and many other uses...
:)
See the images below for what happened
to one Sony 12XX series projector sent
to me for repair. Packaged in bubble
wrap and Styrofoam chips in a cardboard
box and sent FedEx
ground. The customer ended up buying a
new set for obvious reasons! ‘Nuff said!
Here's what the shipping "box" looked
like when it arrived at my door (box
demolished, peanuts everywhere):
The projector that was inside was a
write-off as it had been bounced end
over end:
Estimated shipping prices on
projectors (updated January 2013)
Canada
I ship via Canadian Freight/Epic
Express. Shipping for a typical 140 lb
projector to Alberta/Saskatchewan is
$150-225 CDN, a bit more for heavier 9”
sets.
Shipping to Ontario/Quebec is
$300-340 CDN, maybe a bit less if you
pick up at the Epic depot in
Mississauga, right by the airport.
Shipping to the Maritimes is usually
around $375.00 CDN.
USA
I usually ship via
www.freightquote.com which is a trucking
brokerage website. I’ve had great
success with them over the last 6 years.
Shipping for pickup at a nearby truck
dock is always the cheapest, or shipping
to a commercial (work) address is also
about $150 cheaper than shipping to a
residential address. Customs clearance
into Wa state is about $45.00 per set,
and is included in the shipping prices
that I quote you. You treat the
projector as a domestic shipment from
Blaine, Wa, zip 98230. Pricing below
assumes that you pick up the set at a
local truck dock, a home delivery adds
approximately $150 to the pricing
outlined below.
West Coast area- shipping to Oregon
and California ranges from $180-240 USD
or so for an 8” set.
Shipping to central states runs $225
to $300 USD.
Shipping to the East Coast runs $260
to $375 USD or so.
Overseas shipping
I have been using Eagle Global
Logistics for a few years, and they have
been excellent. I normally ship airport
to airport, which means you need to pick
up the set at an airport near you and
clear the paperwork that I email you and
send with the projector through customs.
No one has had any problems with the
paperwork in the last 5 years. I can
also ship door to door, but that
literally doubles the cost, as Eagle now
takes care of the paperwork and customs
clearance.
Shipping for a typical 100Kg shipment
(including the pallet weight that I send
the sets on) ranges from $375-525 USD
depending on your location. Some remote
areas might be a bit more, 7” sets costs
a bit less, 9” sets cost a bit more. As
stated, a door to door delivery will
cost almost double,
Pricing does not include any taxes or
duty incurred on these sets, these rates
will vary from country to country.
Some very important points when you
receive a projector
(1) Before the truck driver leaves,
CHECK FOR
SHIPPING DAMAGE. If the
bubble wrap is punctured, make sure it’s
just a scrape, and that something wasn’t
dropped onto the set. If the set looks
badly damaged, REFUSE the shipment or
have a supervisor check it and sign
acknowledgement that there is damage to
the projector. A smashed lens isn’t a
big deal, a smashed tube or printed
circuit board is.
(2) Bring the projector indoors, unpack
it and DO NOT
PLUG IT IN FOR 24 HOURS. This
will allow any moisture in the set to
evaporate and let the set warm up to
room temperature.
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