Bow Shipping container input

[Terry Green]

Guys, been shipping bows for a long time and receiving bows.... mostly longbows.

My dilemma now is I need to get this Little Delta bow shipped and I cannot find a box or tube to ship it in.

I mostly use 4 inch PVC(which I have a few here), and on occasion 6 inch PVC.  No one around here carries 6 inch any longer including Home Depot, and they want $78 to order one and that plush the shipping is going to be outrageous for the new owner to pay. 

I have also been to Home Depot 3 times and been allowed in the back to sort through the boxes they discard (break down and compress) and no luck there either.

Any other suggestions, I sure want and need to get the winner this bow.

Thanks,

T

[woodchucker]

Terry,

Years ago, I sent a member Liz (Lady Frost) a 64" Bear Patriot recurve as a gift...
(It was left handed, I'm right handed, she was just starting out, and I couldn't shoot it)

I took it up to UPS, had them pack it, and ship it...
I also put $1,000 insurance on it, after sending a '56 Kodiak to "Shell" in a PVC tube that arrived with a broken tip.
She received it in quickly, and in perfect shape!!

Might be a little pricey, but if they pack it, and it's insured, it's their problem!!!

[Ray Lyon]

Terry,
I’ve used two smaller boxes joined together in the middle with contact cement and then over rapping the seam with shipping tape. Just take your time shaping the boxes and bending the seams. Use plenty of tape.  Wrap the bow limbs with bubble wrap.  This has worked for me on approximately ten bows over the years. 

Some people used to get carpet tubing from carpet dealers but I don’t remember how wide diameter is.

[1/4 away]

The UPS store in my town sells adjustable shipping boxes to accommodate skis. Might be worth checking one in your area.

[Terry Green]

Thanks also Ray, I was in the carpet buiziness for 35 years and I knew where to get tubes for sure, most are no where near durable enough.  We called them 'one way tubes' because most got destroyed.  We used 'heavy' cores that were re usable over and over.  Most weren't 6 inches either, but we new where to get them.  I shipped many a bows in those cores we cut down with a sawzaw.

Tons of carpet cores around me, but not 6 inchers nor heavy duty.

[Terry Green]

Thanks Fred, no UPS store here either. I'll chack out PacMail and see how many fingers they want for a box. 

[M60gunner]

Definitely use a box not a tube. I have read war stories about how the tubes fall off conveyor belt and become targets for forklift drivers.

[Mike Bolin]

Terry, I'd bet that you could get in touch with one of TradGang's sponsors, say Black Widow and they would send you a shipping box. Probably have to pay for the mailing cost of the box but it might be well worth it.

[Terry Green]

Definitely use a box not a tube. I have read war stories about how the tubes fall off conveyor belt and become targets for forklift drivers.

Yeah, I combat by making a rope handle that inter loops itself and tape it with duck tape, and that keeps it from rolling.

[MnFn]

Terry,
I go to a local furniture store and they will let go thru all their cardboard boxes. They are heavy duty constructed boxes and then I just draw out the dimension I want and cut it out and tape it up I also make cardboard “pillars” and strategically tape them in for more structural support. Onetime I had to splice more length in by taping an extension in.

I have shipped a LOT of bows, (one was 68”) and to date have never had to file an insurance claim. In fact one recipient commented he was going to keep the box I made for a future shipment.
Good luck, Gary

[Rob DiStefano]

Shipping large and reasonably fragile goods is a daunting gamble, particularly these days with the lowered ethics of some shipping vendors.

I once shipped a Howard Hill longbow in a schedule 40 PVC tube using USPS and the mail person handed over the cracked and bent tube to my customer.  How in the heck that heavy duty tube got broken is beyond me.  It was well insured and took over a month for the PO to fork out the money to me.  Grrr.

No matter what, insure Insure INSURE - and make SURE you can back up the value of the bow with an invoice stating its cost.

The bottom line to me is, I don't trust any shippers.

[wood carver 2]

This won’t work for recurves or extreme deflex/reflex bows, but I had good results shipping a mildly r/d longbow in a 2” by 3” vinyl downspout tube. I made wood end caps that I screwed in and I duct taped over. Inside, the bow was wrapped with bubble wrap and I added foam to each end. It fit fairly tight in the tube so it couldn’t rattle around.
Dave.

[Rob DiStefano]

ALWAYS add lots of "DON'T CONVEY" labels, too.

[streamguy]

I go to an appliance store and ask for a refrigerator box.  They're heavy cardboard and you can score one side where you want to make the folds.  I also use pieces of a foam "pool noodle to protect the tips and wrap it in bubble wrap.  You can also cut some spacers to support the inside of the box, but I've found the cardboard to be plenty stiff without it.  I've shipped about 6 or 8 60" to 64" recurve this way with no problems.

[Terry Green]

I go to an appliance store and ask for a refrigerator box.  They're heavy cardboard and you can score one side where you want to make the folds.  I also use pieces of a foam "pool noodle to protect the tips and wrap it in bubble wrap.  You can also cut some spacers to support the inside of the box, but I've found the cardboard to be plenty stiff without it.  I've shipped about 6 or 8 60" to 64" recurve this way with no problems.

Fridge boxes no problem.... I can get them all day long.  Thanks.

[Sam McMichael]

Just a thought. To strengthen the tube or box, along with the foam packing, include a 3/4" or 1" dowel that is the length of the bow. It doesn't cost much, but it will take a lot of pressure to break it.

[Tim Finley]

Uline has 5" by 5" boxes good for recurves they are white in color they also have 4"x4" great for longbows .

[Walt Francis]

Terry,
When shipping an expensive bow, I build a crate out of 1-1/2” to 2” wood, sheeted with mason lite, and custom fitted to the bows length and width (with room for padding). 
Cost is about $10 in material. 
Never had an issue with a bow being damaged shipped like this.

[Terry Green]

Thanks guys, been shipping bows for years in tubes and no issues.  I make them 'roll proof'.

I did aquire some heavy duty cardboard and will double the thickness.

Thanks for all the suggestions guys. 

[goobersan]

I could check for some 6" pvc & ship it to you.