Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Thomas Nichols, a new Club member shares his packaging experiences

Dear Alan,
Thanks for opening this can of worms. I have enjoyed, cried over your photographs, stories, comments on eBay packing rules and packing advice.
Still, I don’t think any of your readers will be able to top this story. A couple of years ago I bought a great Steuben compote on eBay. The package arrived, suitably boxed. Much to my horror when I finally got to the compote, it was encased in what seemed like a thick coat of plaster of Paris. When I complained to the seller, he explained that it was only “papier-mâché” and that he had never received any complaints about broken items. It took me a month of careful soaking, chipping, and scraping (as you know Steuben glass is very soft and easily scratched) before I finally freed the compote. Scratch that seller!
I normally try to block out of my mind the broken shipped items I have received. Just don’t like to think about such sins against history; four unique Flora Danica plates loosely wrapped in a box, unique Minton plates packed in a box the same size as the plates from a major and very respected eBay seller, four unique Steuben glasses ignorantly thrown in a box by a poor elderly couple selling their treasure, a great 17th Century Delft Charger from a major respected dealer….. It seems to me that there are four deadly packing sins:
1. Not packing the item (s) snuggly. This is obviously what happened to your goblet. It is a major error thinking that the object needs to be able to move around in the box so that it will not be damaged. Quite the opposite is of course true, especially when there are multiple objects.
2. Placing the object in a inner box which is the same size as or only slightly larger than the object. Boxes will of course receive sharp blows when shipped, and even when double boxed, a blow can break an object if it is right up against the edge of the inner box.
3. Shipping a heavy object (such as a metal lamp base) in the same box as a fragile object(such as the glass lamp shade). Two boxes are sometimes definitely better than one.
4. Not allowing enough space between the inner and outer box, and not placing plenty of material between the two. Double boxing alone will not save the world. It has to be done correctly.
Personally I much prefer shredded paper, or even crumpled paper to Styrofoam, as the late is so horrible for the environment, but still I admit Styrofoam peanuts do the job well.
Of course we are talking about time and money. Whenever I buy an especially important item I always try to remember to offer to send more to have it properly packed. The truth is, however, that professionally packed frequently does not equate with properly packed.
Best regards,
Tom Nichols in Houston

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Then Tommy Dreiling of Brooklyn addresses the cost of shipping

HI – To Alison and Jo Ann – I agree that people who don’t ship are not aware of the real cost. I just sent my nephew two Libbey Amberina vases for a wedding present. I packed them both in separate buckets and put the buckets in a box large enough to give five inches all around with peanuts, the cost = $72.00 + what I spent on packing materials. I don’t see how E-Bay sellers do it on $10.00 or $15.00 – Tommy

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