Bridgeport Jhead (complete head only)

I need to see if I can get a Bridgeport J head about 200 lbs from Vernon Mi. 48476 to Murfreesboro, Tn 37129 even help finding reasonable shipping would be appreciated.

Thanks Charley

Charley,

Unless you break it up into several boxes, you are beyond UPS ground weight limits, and I found that UPS freight is not competitive on the several things I got quotes on.

Normal freight is probably the best option. You can use freightquote.com or any of the other internet-based services -- I have not used them myself. They will get a bit of profit, but they will help you with a lot of little details that can be a pain to figure out. I have heard both good and bad about these services.

I have had several very good experiences sending and receiving freight, but there are gotcha's. If you have pickup or delivery to a residence the additional fee is $50 to $100 or more. On the other hand, I once got a delivery for free because "the truck is coming your way anyhow. I strongly recommend putting the article on a pallet, covering it with plastic, and strapping it down yourself (or an individual acting in your behalf). A crate on a pallet is a more expensive, but more secure option. Then deliver it to a freight company terminal yourself (or your agent). Then pick it up yourself at a freight terminal (of the same company, if possible). I am lucky quite a few major companies have terminals near me where two interstates cross.

It used to be that freight companies absolutely did not want to deal with a non-business amateur at all. In the last few years some companies have decided that it is in their interest to work with individuals. YRT & Roadway have been quite co-operative locally, but I cannot say that they will be that way everywhere. I assume you are at the receiving end -- it is probably best to make arrangements in person at the sending end. If you can get someone to act as your agent to do this you can avoid misunderstandings. I once had a buyer arrange for freight because he had a business relationship with a company at his end. He made the arrangements and sent me a copy of the pre-paid way-bill. I took the way-bill & the pallet to the freight terminal and dropped it off -- no fuss at all.

The main advice I can give you is to "do your homework" -- if you know what the freight company expects, they will work with you. There are a lot of "gut feel" things like finding out what time they are least busy so that they will be more interested in working with you. I cannot do this for you and every case will be a bit different.

Do some investigating about what freight terminals are near the two ends of your freight's journey. Using one company only and avoiding any extra handling for pickup & delivery has always worked best for me.

Feel free to ask some questions in this thread after you do a little research on this project,

Archie

P.S.: One of the things you will need to deal with is the archaic way the freight industry tries compensate for the weight to volume ratios of different things. The more experience I have with this, the less I understand. My bottom line is that if you get something reasonable (even if erroneous) the freight will go through. This is almost certain to work out if you can connect with one person at the freight company that will help you.

Remember -- I am NOT an expert. I would be happy for someone that is to add to this thread, even if it contradicts what I have experienced.

Shipping "smaller" items

Charley, if you go the freight option, as Archie has said above, there are several factors to consider. Is the party you bought the head from a business or can they deliver to a terminal? Do they have the ability to secure to a small pallet? Can you pickup at a local terminal? If the answer to all of the above is "yes", then you can get it shipped relatively inexpensively. As Archie has stated, there are some mystifying aspects of scheduling freight on-line so I would recommend calling Freightquote and having a rep walk you through it. Freightquote is an agent; their system references a whole bunch of freight companies and finds the most competitive prices This is what I've done for items I've shipped.

Bottom line is you will cut a lot of cost out if you do terminal to terminal or if the ship from location is a business with ability to load. Assuming you can handle it from your local terminal they will load you out for free. One caution I would throw you (as Archie mentioned above) is if you don't do the shipping prep yourself you want to be sure the seller "over-secures" your item. I have found that when a seller or rigger does a poor job of securing the freight I've ended up with shipping damage. It's worth a few extra dollars IMHO to have the seller or agent do a really good job of securing the freight. Also, last time I checked, it is expensive to insure this type of freight and difficult to recover any claims even if the freight is insured. So again, take every precaution to ensure you don't end up with damage in transit.

Outside of the above, I have found Freightquote and the shipping companies really easy to deal with and usually very reliable.

Steve Kadisak

The seller ships a lot of diesel engines so he's checking with the freight co. he uses. I'm assuming he knows how to get it ready for shipping (I hope) and I can either pick up at terminal or offload with a fork lift. He had no way to weigh the head but from what I've researched on the net the head weighs 200lbs so he's stating 250lbs for shipping weight. In a heat of rage I smashed my phone in a Wal-Mart store cause neither Straight Talk nor Wal-Mart would replace the non working one so I'm out of a phone to physically speak to the seller about details.