Elecraft

Shipping a K3

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RLVZ

Shipping a K3

In addition to checking shipping costs from the UPS and USPS websites, I
would also check the FEDEX.com website as I've found FEDEX GROUND to be
aprx. 25% cheaper than UPS, and FEDEX often delivers 1-day faster than UPS.
FEDEX Ground will pickup your box at home for a fee just as UPS does.

73,
Dick- K9OM

In a message dated 12/31/2013 11:30:55 A.M. Eastern Standard Time,
[hidden email] writes:

Shipping anything large has gotten to be expensive. Since you used the term
"first class mail" I can tell you haven't shipped a large package for quite
a few decades. Simply put, if you have the dimensions of your box, the
weight, and the insured value the easiest way to determine shipping cost is
to go to the UPS and USPS web sites and enter the data. You'll want to
choose "Ground" for UPS and "Priority Mail" for USPS.

The Post Office will pick it up at your house for no extra charge. UPS will
charge for pickup but you can drop it at any of the many UPS shipping
stores
for free. Or you can hand it to a UPS driver when he is making a delivery
also free.

You can do the package labeling yourself directly off of your printer. You
just have to register a few details and use your credit card. Or you can
take the package to the Post Office or UPS store. The price is a little
higher if you take it to the Post Office but it is the same if you take it
to the UPS store. If you live in my town it will take 45 minutes at the
Post
Office or 1 minute at the UPS store.

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k6xt

Re: Shipping a K3

I can think of two other scenarios that lower shipping expense via UPS.

--Buy the shipping online, print and affix the label yourself, creating
a prepaid. Just drop it off at any UPS outlet or hand it to any driver.
Out here in flyover we have an Office Depot dropoff that works fine.

--Use UPS ground. 2nd day is very costly for one or two days saved.

Still, USPS beats em all on pricing. I just sold a K3 to a buyer who
wanted USPS. No problema. I prepaid via internet, just dropped the box
off at the nearest PO, got there OK.

Weighing can be an issue. I haven't had any problems using the
difference between me on a bath scale with and without the box. Any
question, I just round up.

73 Art K6XT~~
Success is going from failure to failure without a loss of enthusiasm.
ARRL, GMCC, CW OPS, SDDXC, NAQCC
ARRL TA

On 2013-12-31 09:30, [hidden email] wrote:

> Subject:
> Re: [Elecraft] Shipping a K3
> From:
> John_N1JM <[hidden email]>
> Date:
> 2013-12-31 09:30
>
> To:
> [hidden email]
>
>
> Fedex in my town at least is usually slightly cheaper than USPS. You can take
> it to a Kinkos/Fedex store and pay the same that is quoted online (unlike
> UPS).
>
> 73,
> John N1JM
>
>
> Joe Subich, W4TV-4 wrote
>>> >>The price is a little higher if you take it to the Post Office but it
>>> >>is the same if you take it to the UPS store.
>> >
>> >Unfortunately, this is incorrect with regards to the UPS store.
>> >
>> >UPS Stores are franchised. They can (and many do) charge their own
>> >rte that often exceed what is quoted on the UPS web site - unless one
>> >has a commercial account directly with UPS and merely uses the UPS
>> >Store as a drop off point.
>> >
>> >For most individuals in the US, US Postal Service Priority Mail is
>> >by far the least expensive shipping method. For example, shipping
>> >a K3-100/KRX3 from Florida to Aptos insured for $3000 is about $80
>> >(at the Post Office, less if done on-line) with USPS while UPS 2nd
>> >Day Air is at least $113 (possibly more at a US Store).
>> >
>> >Note: UPS prices may be substantially less if one has a commercial
>> >account with volume discounts.
>> >
>> >73,
>> >
>> > ... Joe, W4TV

Don Wilhelm-4

Re: Shipping a K3

USPS Priority Mail is definitely a bargain coupled with 2 to 3 day delivery.
I ship most of my repair work via USPS Priority Mail. It is just a bit
more than USP Ground, but much less than UPS 2nd day or 3 Day Select.
Delivery is dependable unless there is a local problem at the receiving
end. I have shipped over 500 completed repairs that way.

Only one caveat - if the package is large (more than 12 inches in any
one dimension), there is a large parcel surcharge, and it varies by
size. If the package is more than 14 inches in any dimension, I usually
opt for UPS Ground which is usually a lower cost.

73,
Don W3FPR

On 12/31/2013 12:51 PM, k6xt wrote:
> Still, USPS beats em all on pricing. I just sold a K3 to a buyer who
> wanted USPS. No problema. I prepaid via internet, just dropped the box
> off at the nearest PO, got there OK.

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Alan Bloom

Re: Shipping a K3

I've had a lot of trouble with the postal service. They now refuse to
deliver packages to my house. They apparently found a rule that says if
your house is more than 1/2 mile from the public roadway, they don't
have to deliver parcels. So to save the driver 5 minutes delivering to
my house I have to make a 1-1/2 hour round trip to the post office to
pick up my package.

FedEx, UPS, OnTrack and all other delivery companies do deliver to my
house. But not the postal service.

My experience is that USPS is a big, bureaucratic, semi-governmental
organization that doesn't care about its customers.

Alan N1AL

On 12/31/2013 10:12 AM, Don Wilhelm wrote:

> USPS Priority Mail is definitely a bargain coupled with 2 to 3 day
> delivery.
> I ship most of my repair work via USPS Priority Mail. It is just a bit
> more than USP Ground, but much less than UPS 2nd day or 3 Day Select.
> Delivery is dependable unless there is a local problem at the receiving
> end. I have shipped over 500 completed repairs that way.
>
> Only one caveat - if the package is large (more than 12 inches in any
> one dimension), there is a large parcel surcharge, and it varies by
> size. If the package is more than 14 inches in any dimension, I usually
> opt for UPS Ground which is usually a lower cost.
>
> 73,
> Don W3FPR
>
> On 12/31/2013 12:51 PM, k6xt wrote:
>> Still, USPS beats em all on pricing. I just sold a K3 to a buyer who
>> wanted USPS. No problema. I prepaid via internet, just dropped the box
>> off at the nearest PO, got there OK.
>
> ______________________________________________________________
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>
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>
>

Don Wilhelm-4

Re: Shipping a K3

Alan,

Don't spread that news to my post office! My carrier has to travel 3/4
mile on a private road to get to the mailbox, and then if parcels will
not fit in my large mailbox, he comes up my 1/4 mile driveway to deliver
them to the front door. I have always had great service from the postal
carriers.
At least my local postal carrier does seem to care!

Of course, UPS and FedEx also deliver to the door too - we have a
sufficiently large area for them to turn even a large truck around with
ease.

73,
Don W3FPR

On 12/31/2013 2:55 PM, Alan Bloom wrote:

> I've had a lot of trouble with the postal service. They now refuse to
> deliver packages to my house. They apparently found a rule that says
> if your house is more than 1/2 mile from the public roadway, they
> don't have to deliver parcels. So to save the driver 5 minutes
> delivering to my house I have to make a 1-1/2 hour round trip to the
> post office to pick up my package.
>
> FedEx, UPS, OnTrack and all other delivery companies do deliver to my
> house. But not the postal service.
>
> My experience is that USPS is a big, bureaucratic, semi-governmental
> organization that doesn't care about its customers.

Joe Subich, W4TV-4

Re: Shipping a K3

> Of course, UPS and FedEx also deliver to the door too -

You are lucky ... I have had no end of trouble with UPS dumping packages
in the bushes at the end of my drive.

73,

... Joe, W4TV

On 12/31/2013 3:16 PM, Don Wilhelm wrote:

> Alan,
>
> Don't spread that news to my post office! My carrier has to travel 3/4
> mile on a private road to get to the mailbox, and then if parcels will
> not fit in my large mailbox, he comes up my 1/4 mile driveway to deliver
> them to the front door. I have always had great service from the postal
> carriers.
> At least my local postal carrier does seem to care!
>
> Of course, UPS and FedEx also deliver to the door too - we have a
> sufficiently large area for them to turn even a large truck around with
> ease.
>
> 73,
> Don W3FPR
>
> On 12/31/2013 2:55 PM, Alan Bloom wrote:
>> I've had a lot of trouble with the postal service. They now refuse to
>> deliver packages to my house. They apparently found a rule that says
>> if your house is more than 1/2 mile from the public roadway, they
>> don't have to deliver parcels. So to save the driver 5 minutes
>> delivering to my house I have to make a 1-1/2 hour round trip to the
>> post office to pick up my package.
>>
>> FedEx, UPS, OnTrack and all other delivery companies do deliver to my
>> house. But not the postal service.
>>
>> My experience is that USPS is a big, bureaucratic, semi-governmental
>> organization that doesn't care about its customers.
>
> ______________________________________________________________
> Elecraft mailing list
> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
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> Post: mailto:[hidden email]
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Phil Kane-2

Re: Shipping a K3

On 12/31/2013 12:29 PM, Joe Subich, W4TV wrote:

>> Of course, UPS and FedEx also deliver to the door too -
>
> You are lucky ... I have had no end of trouble with UPS dumping packages
> in the bushes at the end of my drive.

At my former house (we now live in an apartment complex) it used to be a
game of my wife getting to the door to pick up the parcel and call out
"thank you" before the driver gets to the truck and drives off.

At this place is it more fun because our apartment is not on the street
of the address. The experienced drivers know that - the newbies drive
around for a while before they learn! In addition, I've had to put up a
sign on the door "DELIVERY - RING BELL AND WAIT FOR RESPONSE" to avoid
them leaving an "unable to deliver" tag when I expect a delivery.

Don't have any problem with USPS - we have a P O Box downtown that we
check every day!

Happy New Year Everybody. May 2014 be good to you all.
----

73 de K2ASP - Phil Kane
Elecraft K2/100 s/n 5402

From a Clearing in the Silicon Forest
Beaverton (Washington County) Oregon
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Lynn W. Taylor, WB6UUT

Re: Shipping a K3

Give your letter carrier cookies. They'll deliver everything flawlessly.

On 12/31/2013 2:00 PM, Phil Kane wrote:
> Don't have any problem with USPS - we have a P O Box downtown that we
> check every day!

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Don Wilhelm-4

Re: Shipping a K3

I get enough parcels that it is worth a $20 bill along with a jar of the
XYL's Fig jam tied with a holiday ribbon. Not only the USPS carrier,
but also the UPS man - both of whom deliver a lot of parcels - 176 in
2013. It is great to have good people doing the deliveries - treat them
right and they will do you favors if necessary. Both carriers know
where to put the parcels in a safe place and if I am temporarily away,
and if it will be a longer absence, I will put a delivery hold in place.

I get great service from both USPS and UPS, and I credit it to the
delivery person at the end of the line.

73,
Don W3FPR

On 12/31/2013 5:59 PM, Lynn W. Taylor, WB6UUT wrote:
> Give your letter carrier cookies. They'll deliver everything flawlessly.
>
> On 12/31/2013 2:00 PM, Phil Kane wrote:
>> Don't have any problem with USPS - we have a P O Box downtown that we
>> check every day!
>

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Phil Kane-2

Re: Shipping a K3

In reply to this post by Alan Bloom

On 12/31/2013 3:02 PM, Ron D'Eau Claire wrote:

> In our rural neighborhood my mailbox is several hundred yards from the
> house. Whenever I get a package too big for the mailbox, the mail carrier
> makes a side trip to my front door to deliver it in person.
>
> I don't know if that's according to the USPS rules, but what matters to me
> is that service is what our mail carrier, Karen, chooses to provide.

Our apartment mailbox is in a "street box complex" all the way on the
other side of the complex. The only thing that we get there is junk
mail and the quarterly utility bill (which is another variety of same).
In the few cases where a parcel is delivered, a different carrier
brings it to the apartment door.
----
73 de K2ASP - Phil Kane
Elecraft K2/100 s/n 5402

From a Clearing in the Silicon Forest
Beaverton (Washington County) Oregon
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Alan Bloom

Re: Shipping a K3

In reply to this post by Don Wilhelm-4

Don,

On 12/31/2013 12:16 PM, Don Wilhelm wrote:
> Alan,
>
> Don't spread that news to my post office! My carrier has to travel 3/4
> mile on a private road to get to the mailbox,

They used to deliver to my house up to a year or so ago. I assume the
postal service, like a lot of businesses these days, has reduced staff
but not the workload so employees no longer have time for frivolous
activities like literally going the extra mile for customers.

> Of course, UPS and FedEx also deliver to the door too - we have a
> sufficiently large area for them to turn even a large truck around with
> ease.

I also have a large paved area to turn around in.

Alan N1AL

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Pete Smith N4ZR

Re: Shipping a K3

Hah! Our mailbox is on a well-traveled road about 200 yards from the
house and not in line of sight. When we first moved here, I had one or
two packages just left on top of the mailbox, and I complained
vigorously to the post office. Since then, our carrier has delivered
any packages too big for our mailbox to our front porch. I understand
that rural route carriers operate under different rules and a different
contract than regular letter carriers - personal vehicles and no
uniforms. Perhaps that's why?

73, Pete N4ZR
Check out the Reverse Beacon Network at
http://reversebeacon.net,
blog at reversebeacon.blogspot.com.
For spots, please go to your favorite
ARC V6 or VE7CC DX cluster node.

On 12/31/2013 10:26 PM, Alan Bloom wrote:

> Don,
>
> On 12/31/2013 12:16 PM, Don Wilhelm wrote:
>> Alan,
>>
>> Don't spread that news to my post office! My carrier has to travel 3/4
>> mile on a private road to get to the mailbox,
>
> They used to deliver to my house up to a year or so ago. I assume the
> postal service, like a lot of businesses these days, has reduced staff
> but not the workload so employees no longer have time for frivolous
> activities like literally going the extra mile for customers.
>
>> Of course, UPS and FedEx also deliver to the door too - we have a
>> sufficiently large area for them to turn even a large truck around with
>> ease.
>
> I also have a large paved area to turn around in.
>
> Alan N1AL
>
> ______________________________________________________________
> Elecraft mailing list
> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
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> Post: mailto:[hidden email]
>
> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net
> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
>

Chester Alderman

Re: Shipping a K3

Yes! My mailbox is a half mile from my house. When I checked with the Post
Office I was told rural route carriers are only paid to deliver to the mail
box. If they bring packages too large for the mail box, to my house, they
are doing it on their own. Fortunately, most carriers will bring large
parcels to my house. Both UPS and FedX will drive to my house because I also
have a large turn-around area. Most of the carriers are always curious about
my tower/yagi when they come out.
73,
Tom - W4BQF

-----Original Message-----
From: [hidden email]
[mailto:[hidden email]] On Behalf Of Pete Smith N4ZR
Sent: Wednesday, January 1, 2014 9:06 AM
To: [hidden email]
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Shipping a K3

Hah! Our mailbox is on a well-traveled road about 200 yards from the house
and not in line of sight. When we first moved here, I had one or two
packages just left on top of the mailbox, and I complained vigorously to the
post office. Since then, our carrier has delivered any packages too big for
our mailbox to our front porch. I understand that rural route carriers
operate under different rules and a different contract than regular letter
carriers - personal vehicles and no uniforms. Perhaps that's why?

73, Pete N4ZR
Check out the Reverse Beacon Network at
http://reversebeacon.net,
blog at reversebeacon.blogspot.com.
For spots, please go to your favorite
ARC V6 or VE7CC DX cluster node.

On 12/31/2013 10:26 PM, Alan Bloom wrote:

> Don,
>
> On 12/31/2013 12:16 PM, Don Wilhelm wrote:
>> Alan,
>>
>> Don't spread that news to my post office! My carrier has to travel
>> 3/4 mile on a private road to get to the mailbox,
>
> They used to deliver to my house up to a year or so ago. I assume the
> postal service, like a lot of businesses these days, has reduced staff
> but not the workload so employees no longer have time for frivolous
> activities like literally going the extra mile for customers.
>
>> Of course, UPS and FedEx also deliver to the door too - we have a
>> sufficiently large area for them to turn even a large truck around
>> with ease.
>
> I also have a large paved area to turn around in.
>
> Alan N1AL
>
> ______________________________________________________________
> Elecraft mailing list
> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm
> Post: mailto:[hidden email]
>
> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email
> list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
>

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Pete Smith N4ZR

Re: Shipping a K3

Well, there *is* something to be said for a little something in the
Christmas card... and the same guy has been delivering our mail since we
got here 19 years ago! That might have something to do with it.

73, Pete N4ZR
Check out the Reverse Beacon Network at
http://reversebeacon.net,
blog at reversebeacon.blogspot.com.
For spots, please go to your favorite
ARC V6 or VE7CC DX cluster node.

On 1/1/2014 9:47 AM, Chester Alderman wrote:

> Yes! My mailbox is a half mile from my house. When I checked with the Post
> Office I was told rural route carriers are only paid to deliver to the mail
> box. If they bring packages too large for the mail box, to my house, they
> are doing it on their own. Fortunately, most carriers will bring large
> parcels to my house. Both UPS and FedX will drive to my house because I also
> have a large turn-around area. Most of the carriers are always curious about
> my tower/yagi when they come out.
> 73,
> Tom - W4BQF
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: [hidden email]
> [mailto:[hidden email]] On Behalf Of Pete Smith N4ZR
> Sent: Wednesday, January 1, 2014 9:06 AM
> To: [hidden email]
> Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Shipping a K3
>
> Hah! Our mailbox is on a well-traveled road about 200 yards from the house
> and not in line of sight. When we first moved here, I had one or two
> packages just left on top of the mailbox, and I complained vigorously to the
> post office. Since then, our carrier has delivered any packages too big for
> our mailbox to our front porch. I understand that rural route carriers
> operate under different rules and a different contract than regular letter
> carriers - personal vehicles and no uniforms. Perhaps that's why?
>
> 73, Pete N4ZR
> Check out the Reverse Beacon Network at
> http://reversebeacon.net,
> blog at reversebeacon.blogspot.com.
> For spots, please go to your favorite
> ARC V6 or VE7CC DX cluster node.
>
> On 12/31/2013 10:26 PM, Alan Bloom wrote:
>> Don,
>>
>> On 12/31/2013 12:16 PM, Don Wilhelm wrote:
>>> Alan,
>>>
>>> Don't spread that news to my post office! My carrier has to travel
>>> 3/4 mile on a private road to get to the mailbox,
>> They used to deliver to my house up to a year or so ago. I assume the
>> postal service, like a lot of businesses these days, has reduced staff
>> but not the workload so employees no longer have time for frivolous
>> activities like literally going the extra mile for customers.
>>
>>> Of course, UPS and FedEx also deliver to the door too - we have a
>>> sufficiently large area for them to turn even a large truck around
>>> with ease.
>> I also have a large paved area to turn around in.
>>
>> Alan N1AL
>>
>> ______________________________________________________________
>> Elecraft mailing list
>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm
>> Post: mailto:[hidden email]
>>
>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email
>> list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
>>
> ______________________________________________________________
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>
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>
>