75th Anniversary shindig?

jnbass · Post by **jnbass** » Sat Jun 24, 2006 11:30 pm

ahhhhh FedEx...

Took this;

add one footprint to the middle of the shipping box,

take 6 months to pay

jnbass · Post by **jnbass** » Sat Jun 24, 2006 11:34 pm

or

definitely not hi-fi

ozover50 · Post by **ozover50** » Sat Jun 24, 2006 11:48 pm

Holy..... !!

studiotwosession · Post by **studiotwosession** » Sun Jun 25, 2006 4:06 am

I have a Rick coming my way via Fed Ex this week. I'm worried.

jnbass · Post by **jnbass** » Sun Jun 25, 2006 7:38 am

no worries-the odds are nothing will happen.

but then;

I know nut-thing!

dale_fortune · Post by **dale_fortune** » Sun Jun 25, 2006 12:31 pm

I've always used UPS. Never had a problem as long as I packaged it properly. Had 1 claim once that was insured, it took 2 weeks for a payment. I have always considered UPS a good thing and reliable..just make sure if it has a value over $100.00 that you put insurance on it, otherwise they won't honor a payment.

ken_j · Post by **ken_j** » Sun Jun 25, 2006 12:39 pm

"Never had a problem as long as I packaged it properly. "

That is the key. If it is not packaged properly in UPS' opinion they don't pay.

jnbass · Post by **jnbass** » Sun Jun 25, 2006 1:35 pm

"If it is not packaged properly in UPS' opinion they don't pay"

The opinion part is the problem.

I rec'd a LeCreuset french oven that was shipped/wrapped from a UPS store. The damage was 'determained" to be a result of improper packing. Even when they discovered that one of their employees had packed it!

Took 3 months for that refund. Imagine a 4005 F-hole...

Morons

jingle_jangle · Post by **jingle_jangle** » Sun Jun 25, 2006 1:37 pm

Six experiences with FedEx (packages) last year; six bad experiences. Nothing damaged, but late deliveries, stuff wandering all over the country, etc.

However, I've never had an envelope go astray or get delivered late in 10 years.

A couple of hundred parcels of all sizes shipped UPS, nary a problem.

This year, I have shipped or received four parcels through FedEx. It is not my shipper of choice, obviously. Three were received, one shipped. The one shipped got there OK. Two of the three which I received were terribly damaged. One, a new twelve string acoustic (an impossible-to-find Washburn Cumberland Jumbo) was destroyed beyond recognition in late April, although it had been double boxed (?!?!) The body was in pieces, and the neck was attached by the strings only. The box arrived quite crushed. I am still waiting for claims money.

The other, a '68 Elka Panther Duo combo organ, ex-Strawberry Alarm Clock, was mint when it left Texas, but it arrived in SF with the bottom Tolex completely ground away. It looked like someone had dragged it behind the FedEx truck all the way. The double box had been completely ground away on the bottom side!

On the other hand, the Rick Factory ships FedEx, so they must trust them!

byu · Post by **byu** » Sun Jun 25, 2006 1:55 pm

Paul,
The Cumberland shouldn't be hard to find. It's a current model & has been in the line up for years. Was there something special about the one that was damaged?

ozover50 · Post by **ozover50** » Sun Jun 25, 2006 3:42 pm

Anybody flying up from San Diego..... watch out!!

johnhall · Post by **johnhall** » Sun Jun 25, 2006 5:49 pm

I guess this is one of those "your mileage may vary" things. After a huge run of damage and unresolved loss claims with UPS, we relegated them to the same place we put GC, and have used FedEx ever since with very little loss or damage, and excellent claims service.

scott381 · Post by **scott381** » Sun Jun 25, 2006 10:27 pm

I'm going! Easy for me. I live close. I'll be bringing my 381 and my 330/12.

jingle_jangle · Post by **jingle_jangle** » Mon Jun 26, 2006 2:11 am

Bill, try to find a Cumberland 12. Although it's been in the lineup for awhile, it is in high demand. I, too was puzzled that I was told "none in stock till August" by the Washburn dealers who I called. I logged into Washburn's own Forum to see if I could get some info.

It seems that the demand for the C 12s has never been sated.

Everyone has been giving it excellent reviews. Washburn way underestimated demand, and have been struggling to fill the pipeline. The destroyed one came from a dealer in Maine who had one only on the 'Bay with a BIN slightly above street price. He replaced it a couple of weeks later with another that I believe was a return--it had a warped top and a 2-year-old serial number, and action like a $10.00 Harmony. I returned it, too. Still waiting for the refund on the first. Meanwhile a "slightly used" one came up on eBay from Warp Drive in Milwaukee, for a very good price. It arrived with the plastic still on the pickguard. It had been set up so badly by someone that it was unplayable above the 5th fret, so I spent a half-hour adjusting the truss rod. It plays deliciously now.

Availability on eBay and on line are indicators to me re: supply and demand, at least on current items. I haven't checked this month, but in Spring there were only those two. I did locate a third in Portland, which I would have bought if the Milwaukee guitar hadn't surfaced when it did.

Maybe things are better now...

studiotwosession · Post by **studiotwosession** » Mon Jun 26, 2006 1:34 pm

I have a package coming from Fed Ex this week. The shipper sent me this note:

"Your shipment is going this morning with FedEx tracking number xxxx . This will show up a bit later today when the box is scanned at their sorting facility.

When you track this package, it will show up a message by the first or second day "improper or missing paperwork".

This is apparently (a very annoying and time consuming) idiosyncrasy of the Canadian FedEx system. They are apparently 'pre customs clearing' at the Oshawa facility and have no other designation to post the delay while this happens (ridiculous but apparently true).

The paperwork is neither missing nor improper. Expect this to happen and for the box to be stuck for a day or so, while they pre-clear it."

So much for Fed Ex being a well-oiled machine.