Got my steering box box today!

[garion]

Personally, I love the fact that they took the time to re-tape the box together, just so their letter wouldn't fall out.

[mscafide]

They were more honest than UPS.

UPS delivered a small (about 45 lbs) paper folding machine in a cardboard box that looked like an accordion when they were finished with it. It was just put on my doorstep and the driver quickly left without a signature. I called UPS and refused delivery. It was picked up the next business day.

The next day I had another UPS delivery with a new box of the same size. It even had a new label identical to the old one. I had pictures. I got a refund for the product but not for shipping.

[bradartigue]

Brad, if you had ever received a part from juvius you would not question the packaging. It is always tight and fortified. Just looking at a pic of a banged up box does not tell of how it was packed, only how it was abused.

I know how much a steering box weighs, and I know what a single-walled cardboard box looks like. I'm not saying it was handled correctly by the USPS, I'm saying that's an awfully thin box for a heavy part.

[timspider]

I've gotten both heavy (exhaust manifold and downpipe) and light stuff (trunk lock and linkage) from juvius, plus a few things in between.
Got everything in fine shape, never an issue. Always packed well.

[garion]

For the record, I received the second steering box from juvius today, and its exactly what I was looking for.

[So Cal Mark]

since I ship and receive lots of packages, the comments here have been interesting and somewhat relevant. So I'd like to relate my story from yesterday. I had 2 packages I needed to get to the post office before their last pickup of the day. I got there just before 5pm and drove around back to the bulk drop off dock. The semi trailer was there for pickup and of course the dock was stacked with packages and bins that had been dropped off. There were 3 employees and one large rolling container. The 3 employees were picking up boxes and chucking them towards the container. It looked like a shoot-around before a basketball game. One employee greeted me as she tossed a box about 8 feet into the container. I asked if she ever missed. She laughed and said, "all of the time". When I left I was hoping the 4" of bubblewrap was adequate for the headlamps I shipped

[johndemar]

since I ship and receive lots of packages, the comments here have been interesting and somewhat relevant. So I'd like to relate my story from yesterday. I had 2 packages I needed to get to the post office before their last pickup of the day. I got there just before 5pm and drove around back to the bulk drop off dock. The semi trailer was there for pickup and of course the dock was stacked with packages and bins that had been dropped off. There were 3 employees and one large rolling container. The 3 employees were picking up boxes and chucking them towards the container. It looked like a shoot-around before a basketball game. One employee greeted me as she tossed a box about 8 feet into the container. I asked if she ever missed. She laughed and said, "all of the time". When I left I was hoping the 4" of bubblewrap was adequate for the headlamps I shipped

Brought back memories of the Samsonite commercial in the gorilla cage from years ago.

[supplyguy]

I ran CIA's world wide distribution center for two years. Inbound freight from vendors nationwide arrived in packaging ranging from excellent to third world. I've seen my share of "This End Up" arrows pointing horizontally (we called them "Direction of Travel" arrows), hand grenades loose in a shoe box, antennae sawed in half to fit a prefab carton, fluorescent light tubes at the bottom of a box of tools, and much more.

We employed the finest packing and crating professionals in the US government, and repacked/overpacked EVERYTHING before it left our facility for destinations around the globe. It was expensive and delayed processing a bit, but our end users knew when gear arrived overseas it would not be damaged. I enjoyed sending my team to far flung places to survey unusual pieces and provide custom packing instructions and containers to bring home special cargo. They were artists to me.

Of course, as the (now retired) executive running all of this, the packages I send when I've sold a few parts here look nothing like what my team produced. The best I can so is lots of padding, no internal movement, and tape the hell out of the box. I hope they never see my work!

[djape1977]

sorry to say this, but over in my neck of the woods, if something gets broken or lost in transport, somebody looses the job. i've shipped windshields wrapped in just a couple layers of stretch foil, just so it doesn't get dusty, and they all reached their destination unharmed

[SeattleRaines]

Off topic but what was wrong with your steering box, if I may ask? Thanks, Jeanne R.

[bradartigue]

sorry to say this, but over in my neck of the woods, if something gets broken or lost in transport, somebody looses the job. i've shipped windshields wrapped in just a couple layers of stretch foil, just so it doesn't get dusty, and they all reached their destination unharmed

Correct me if I'm wrong but in your neck of the woods if you lose your job you probably starve to death. No sure worry here in wacky land, if you do a crappy job and get fired you can come out just fine.

[garion]

Off topic but what was wrong with your steering box, if I may ask? Thanks, Jeanne R.

The steering box that came with the car was dry of any grease, and basically grinding rust. I could turn the wheel nearly a quarter of the way around before the steering would do anything, and when it did, it was difficult to turn.

I ended up replacing the steering box and the steering idler, which was in a similar state.

[djape1977]

Correct me if I'm wrong but in your neck of the woods if you lose your job you probably starve to death. No sure worry here in wacky land, if you do a crappy job and get fired you can come out just fine.

no, not really. unemployed get goverment help that's just about enough to keep you from starving and universal helthcare for all, employed or not, although it's far from what one would hope for in 21st century europe.

[76was124]

I ran CIA's world wide distribution center for two years.

First I want to sincerely thank everyone who commits their life to protecting and serving this great country!! But since we all have stories I 'll share one too.

Back in the 1990's I worked for a company that made water pump controls systems. We had a request from someone in Nigeria who stated they were with the US State Department and need a small pump control for an Embessay(or outpost, I forget which). It was a small 120volt/240 volt system worth about $800 back then (so probably with inflation $12 trillion today) and was not much bigger than a toaster. Being Nigeria, we required pre-payment, which the poor guy was bewildered about, him being with the US government and all, but he did prepay.

We shipped it to the US general services depot, and about a month later the guy calls me up, cussing and swearing.....yelling,"what the #]%& did I send him?. He had no idea how he would get it in the building or use it. ". I said describe to me what it looked like. He said it was 6 feet high, 18" deep and about 4 feet long and required 480 volt, three phase power to operate. I asked him to check the label and packing information, as there was no way it came from us. He confirmed our packing slip but the shipping label was from the US parts depot.

I don't know if he ever got that straightened out, but image the poor guy who got our little pump panel and was trying to wire it into a hydrogen-electric dam or something like that!

Bottom line.....we all make mistakes, (especially me)