Shipping size restrictions to Australia?

[collin]

So...I recently sold a vintage Gretsch to somebody in Australia via eBay. Part of the deal included "free standard shipping worldwide." Since I have shipped guitars worldwide for many years, typically without problems at $89-$110 or so via USPS Priority or Express Mail. I never thought about different size restrictions....but when I got to the post office, the clerk denied the package stating that it is WAY oversize (Australian limit is 79" Length + Girth), far under the 109" or so of this box (big fat vintage Gretsch in case).

Any of you Aussies know of other options available? I looked at UPS/FedEx/DHL, but with quotes between $500-$800, it's just far too much to pay for shipping.

I'm open to looking for better shipping options, but at this point i'm afraid it might be a better option to politely refund his money, and hope he understands I can't pay $500 to ship a guitar.

Any thoughts?

[jps]

The Höfner I shipped to Sydney was just under the size restriction for USPS. Try a heat gun and a putty knife. With the neck removed you can place the kit in a small enough box to ship it. I did that with the ZON I shipped to Hong Kong as without removing the neck it was too large. Oh yeah, I forgot, the ZON had a bolt on neck. Check with PW, he may know a better way to do this (remove the neck, that is ).

Good luck.

Maybe you can drive and meet the buyer halfway?

I mean maybe you and the buyer can split the shipping cost.

[collin]

Heh, thanks Jeff---i'll skip the numpty technique for smaller shipping boxes.

I would split the cost if it were lower...but i'm not really motivated to contribute more than $100 or so for shipping....the guitar was priced super low (imo) to begin with. The AU restrictions and subsequent shipping rates are simply unreasonable..

[collin]

Update ---well, that solves it. Buyer and I just agreed to cancel sale and refund. What a shame, he was really stoked on the guitar.

Only bright side is that I was getting "sellers remorse" anyways, so maybe its a sign I was meant to keep the guitar!

[antipodean]

Great to hear this was resolved sensibly Collin!

This horrible situation is a good reason to shift the risk of shipping cost inflation to the bidder as a matter of policy - a simple "winning bid plus actual shipping charges" blurb, plus a clause that international bidders must contact you for a shipping cost estimate prior to bidding should work.

Even with the horrendous charges from the usual shipping suspects, US-sourced vintage guitars are generally way cheaper than onshore dealer prices in Oz. It seems that s lot of onshore dealers seem to believe the Aussie dollar is still worth around US 50 cents, or they're just extremely greedy.

BTW most serious Aussie guitar nuts are aware of the huge jump in shipping costs once USPS is out of the equation.

[jps]

Good news, Collin!

[collin]

Great to hear this was resolved sensibly Collin!

This horrible situation is a good reason to shift the risk of shipping cost inflation to the bidder as a matter of policy - a simple "winning bid plus actual shipping charges" blurb, plus a clause that international bidders must contact you for a shipping cost estimate prior to bidding should work.

Even with the horrendous charges from the usual shipping suspects, US-sourced vintage guitars are generally way cheaper than onshore dealer prices in Oz. It seems that s lot of onshore dealers seem to believe the Aussie dollar is still worth around US 50 cents, or they're just extremely greedy.

BTW most serious Aussie guitar nuts are aware of the huge jump in shipping costs once USPS is out of the equation.

Yep, thanks Evan! It's odd, I typically never offer free shipping, always state they must pay full shipping charges etc...but the one time I do, I learn why I shouldn't! The buyer might have well know this anyways, and found a "great" deal with my listing because of this.

I'd imagine that vintage dealers in Oz calculate this expense into their prices, which accounts for the large figure. Quite a shame....I bet there are lots of small solid-body vintage guitars in Australia....plenty of 325s and other 3/4 scale guitars.