shipping speakers

[graham_myhre]

So I am home for the summer from college and I got a rediculous deal on a pair of RF-5s ($500!!!). But my issue now is I am home in Seattle but i go to school in New York. And although they were a great deal they didnt come with there original boxes, so now I am stuck trying to move them from here to new york with no boxes. I wentdown to the UPS store and they said they could package them and ship them and do everything for $350 and thats a no go. So I am left to package them myself. So question is what is a good safe way to package them and what do you recommend courier wise. I could freight them ups them, whatever, but the cheaper the better and time isnt an issue. Also if anyone has a set of boxes for rf-5s lieing around I would be very interested in them (: Thanks for the help!

[greg928gts]

You may be able to get boxes from Klipsch.

Sometimes I'll buy boxes that are for wardrobe moving, they seem to work good for a lot of different speakers. You'll want at least 2" of space on all sides of the speaker, if not more.

Wrap the speakers in plastic garbage bags. Tape cardboard pieces to the front of the speaker, perhaps wrapping around the sides to protect and cover the grills. You might also just wrap the whole speaker in a layer of cardboard.

Use 2" foam insulation and double up pieces at the bottom of the box so there is 4" of foam at the bottom. Set the speaker in the box on the foam and cut smaller pieces and place them on all 4 sides of the speaker at the bottom to keep it centered tightly in the box. Then use foam popcorn packing material to fill all 4 sides around the speaker and cram it in very tight. Fill up close to the top of the speaker and tightly fit in 4 more cut pieces around the top of the speaker to keep the top centered in the box. These 4 pieces should cram the packing material down in and end up being flush with the top of the speaker. Put two more layers of foam insulation at the top, cut to fit tightly into the box. Cut the top cardboard down on the box and tape all seams carefully.

Good luck.

Greg

[garymd]

Use so much bubblewrap that a drop from the top of a 2 story building wouldn't hurt them. That's how I ship everything. So far I haven't found a good courier. FedEx is the best I've used which isn't saying much.

Greg has a lot of experience so I'd read his post carefully.

[jephdood]

I think you should sell the 5's to me for $600, pocket that extra hun, and go buy some speakers in NY.

[graham_myhre]

750 + shipping for the pair and you have yourself a deal.

[jerohm]

Rule of thumb... If one person can not comfortably handle the shipping container - weight and size, you are asking for trouble. The original boxes were NEVER meant for shipping using standard carrier services - they provide reasonable protection at best.

[jephdood]

Well, I wouldn't require shipping as I am in the Seattle area as well. But at $750 I don't think the upgrade from RF-3's to RF-5's would be worth the effort.

I think if you get a VERY sturdy box(or double-box even) oversized with LOTS of extra room inside, use TONS of bubble and foam, and take your time packing them, they would survive the trip unharmed.

[greg928gts]

jerohm is right, the original boxes were not meant for UPS shipments. But if you fill the voids in the original boxes tightly with packing material and then use another box around the original, you'll have no problems.

I've made my own boxes a few times by using large flat pieces of cardboard and glueing them together with contact cement. If you pay close attention to how boxes are cut, you can copy it and get a professional looking result.

I've actually had really good luck shipping speakers. The one problem I had was sending a tower speaker in the original box without any extra packing. I learned my lesson there. Insurance still covered it. The buyer and I both made out good on that one.

Greg

[Colin]

The only safe way to ensure your loudspeakers arrive without a blemish is to make sure that all edges and corners have at least two to three inches of Styrofoam protection. I shipped my super-sensitive walnut-oiled Cornwall 1, with B2 crossovers, with sheets of Styrofoam, obtained at Home Depot in the housing insulation department, taped to all of the sides. Then I wrapped and taped them in sheets of cardboard, to form a box.

I shipped those 2x3x1 100-pound Cornwalls, COD from Florida to Minnesota, residence to residence, with UPS pick-up, for about $57 each, with $900 of insurance. The shipping took only a week, but the COD check took another two weeks.

The other safe way is move them yourself, seat belted in the back seat of your car.

[Good2BHome]

Colin,

It was my understanding an UNPACKED Cornwall was just barely within UPS size restrictions. When packed they exceed the size limits (+K+L+W).

I'm I mistaken or is there a way around the limits?

[RichardP]

I once planned to ship some Heresys via UPS, but sold them locally instead. Before that, however, I asked a moving company what type of boxes would they sell/recommend for UPS shipping of that speaker. I learned that probably all major moving companies sell a box called a "dishpack" (for obvious reasons), about 20x20x30" and less than $10. It is a three-walled box just like my own Forte boxes (flat layer/corrugated layer/flat/corrugated/flat). I see that the RF-5s are 41x8x14.5, which is too tall for the dishpack, but maybe two boxes could fit together as top and bottom halves, with sufficient foam, etc., or maybe there are larger 3-wall boxes that would fit. In any case, I found the moving co very helpful in offering advice on how to pack a large heavy speaker, as well as selling the materials that one might need, even they were not actually doing the shipping themselves.

[graham_myhre]

So im hearing foam and bubblewrap and cardboard is the way to go. Would shipping them in a wood frame be overkill?

[greg928gts]

Yes, wood frame would be overkill.

I'm currently packing up a Belle in foam and cardboard to send through UPS. The total package size that can be sent through UPS is 165". That's figured by taking the longest measurement and adding it to the sum of the other 4 sides. A Belle will be well packed in a 24" x 35" x 41" box, or 159" total. 41+24+24+35+35

UPS will move up to 150 lbs.

Cornwalls can certainly be shipped via UPS.

Greg

[Jay481985]

here's a good tip, get some of that blue painter's masking tape and tape the corners up with it so the corners won't get messed up

[Sheik Yerbouti]

I've shipped a lot of speakers through UPS without any problems.

We wrap the speakers in plastic (bags or sheets). Then cut cardboard boxes and wrap them around the entire speaker. I lay the speaker on the cardboard and roll it across the floor, wrapping it around the speaker as I go. Then cut, fold and tape the "flaps" on each end, just like wrapping a gift. You can use multiple smaller boxes on this "inner layer" if large boxes aren't available.

Then we get 4x8 sheets of styrofoam insulation from Lowes or Home Depot. We normally get the 1" or 1.5" thickness that sells for about $12 to $16 each. Just cut pieces of foam to fit each side and end of your speaker and tape the foam pieces firmly around it. Heavy speakers should get another layer of cardboard and foam. Then wrap another piece of cardboard tightly around the whole thing and you're done. Just be sure to use lots of good quality packing tape on everything as you go.

Also, be sure to put your name and address inside the box and insure the package for the speakers full retail value. Good luck.

[graham_myhre]

So its done. What i did was cut out holes in cardboard to go around the cones. So i did two layers of that to build it up a third of an inch or so. Than I put cardboard around the ends. Than i wrapped this blue foam around the cardboard in the ends, so it was about half in inch thick. Everything between the two ends was than bubble wrapped. Tn i put a even bigger piece of cardboard over the ends that covered the foam. Than i wrapped a piece of cardboard around the entire speaker. And finally i put in in a box (really really tight fit). The boxes i used were these broom boxes i stol of the floor of lowes hardware, they worked quit nice i think. I am still worried about the cones. I would hate to have them dented or anything like that when they get to NY. Another thing i am a little word about is the rubber around the outide of the cones. It sticks out past the wood a bit and I didnt want it being pushed on to much. So one question would be have bad is it for the box to be pushing on the rubber edge on the cone (sorry for using such technical terms. Im no expert to say the least). But we shall see how they are in a week when they show up. Cross your fingers.

[radiob]

I would think if you put the speakers in a trash bag, sealed it and then slide it in an oversize box and then filled the box with expandable foam insulation would be safe.When My Chorus2s were shipped to me from California, I live in Florida, the guy shipped them in the original boxes with original foam. Needless to say, I have 1 broken Chorus. THe shipment shatterd the base of the chorus, when I helped the Fed Ex guy lift them out of his truck, they were between the 2 front seats on their side. He said " thanks, I had a heck of a time throwing those things up there. Whats u got in there, books?"