OT: Shipping/Packaging Question

atomarc · May 5, 2021

I hope this is the appropriate forum for this question

I have to ship a small wooden crate from the west coast to the east coast. I have a good truck freight quote for a crate that I will build to put the parts in. The crate is 24" x 20" X 9" high and weighs 240lbs.

I don't plan on putting it directly on a pallet but will build the crate/box with bolsters so a single fork of a pallet jack or a single fork of a forklift can lift the crate.

I am under the impression that a small crate on a standard pallet will incur the charges associated with the size of the pallet, not the size of the small crate on the pallet. Is this true?

Will I piss off the freight company if I ship it any other way than on a full pallet..will the forklift driver stab the crate, out of spite? :eek:

I called the local FedEx freight terminal and the fellow said the 'single fork' scenario was OK..but it could have been fake news.

Has anyone had any experience doing anything like this?

Stuart

Ox · May 5, 2021

Just b/c you're paranoid, doesn't mean that they aint after you!

-----------------

Think Snow Eh!
Ox

DDoug · May 5, 2021

atomarc said:
I hope this is the appropriate forum for this question

I have to ship a small wooden crate from the west coast to the east coast. I have a good truck freight quote for a crate that I will build to put the parts in. The crate is 24" x 20" X 9" high and weighs 240lbs.

I don't plan on putting it directly on a pallet but will build the crate/box with bolsters so a single fork of a pallet jack or a single fork of a forklift can lift the crate.

I am under the impression that a small crate on a standard pallet will incur the charges associated with the size of the pallet, not the size of the small crate on the pallet. Is this true?

Will I piss off the freight company if I ship it any other way than on a full pallet..will the forklift driver stab the crate, out of spite?

I called the local FedEx freight terminal and the fellow said the 'single fork' scenario was OK..but it could have been fake news.

Has anyone had any experience doing anything like this?

Stuart

That looks kinda small for that weight.
Adding 6" all around for crash protection would bring you out (on your biggest dimension) to a 36". It may not increase your freight bill much.

I would procure a 36" pallet, and build you crate on top.

Scruffy887 · May 5, 2021

Skip bolsters and pallet unless the rate is less. We get a lot of incoming less than pallet size, many with 1 bolster broken off.

Fish On · May 5, 2021

You pay based on density, so putting your crate on a pallet will be somewhat more expensive,

I ship plenty of nonstandard size stuff. They don't care that it's smaller than a standard pallet as long as they can easily get a leg of a pallet jack under it.

That's not to say that the forklift driver won't stab a fork through it out of spite, but my experience is the skid size has nothing to do with that - just depends on how good a day the forklift driver is having. They'll stab forks through standard sized pallets too.

Fish On · May 5, 2021

Fish On said:
You pay based on density, so putting your crate on a pallet will be somewhat more expensive,

I ship plenty of nonstandard size stuff. They don't care that it's smaller than a standard pallet as long as they can easily get a leg of a pallet jack under it.

That's not to say that the forklift driver won't stab a fork through it out of spite, but my experience is the skid size has nothing to do with that - just depends on how good a day the forklift driver is having. They'll stab forks through standard sized pallets too.

Just checked the density, and digger doug is right, you can go a little larger without getting past freight class 50 (the most dense), assuming your 9" height includes the height of the bolsters/pallet, etc.

Say we add an inch to the height as the pallet is taller than the bolsters you were going to use, and you could go as big as 40x20x10 and stay within class 50, if that makes you feel better.

But going up to a 48x40" pallet with the same weight, and you're up to freight class 70, which will increase by some amount, depending on what your negotiated rate is.

atomarc · May 5, 2021

Not knowing squat about it, the quote I received lists the shipment as freight class 70. What's that mean? This is how the quote reads.

Stuart

Central Transport
Transit Days:
7+
Price:
$295.00

BOOK NOW
FedEx Economy
Transit Days:
7+
Price:
$301.00

BOOK NOW
FedEx Priority
Transit Days:
4+
Price:
$342.00

BOOK NOW
R&L Carriers
Transit Days:
6+
Price:
$352.00

BOOK NOW
*Transit Times are estimated business days after the pick up occurs.
Shipment Details

Origin Zip Code: 95521
Destination Zip Code: 33838
Description of Goods: engine parts
Total Weight: 250
Freight Class: 70
Dimensions: 25 x 20 x 9
Number of Pieces: 1
Location Types: Business to Business
Special Services Added:
Notes:
Insurance Value: $500.00
Insurance Quote: Additional $25.00
TOTAL with Insurance: $320.00 Central Transport

DDoug · May 5, 2021

So go back and adjust the sizes to 36" x 36" x 18"
leave the weight the same, and see what you get.

Fish On · May 5, 2021

atomarc said:
Description of Goods: engine parts

That's what's changing it to class 70. Many commodities are density based, but there are also many that fall into specific classifications due to what they are. Don't ask me to explain it, I don't know the history behind it, but it's still a real thing.

Spud · May 5, 2021

Fish On said:
Just checked the density, and digger doug is right, you can go a little larger without getting past freight class 50 (the most dense), assuming your 9" height includes the height of the bolsters/pallet, etc.

Say we add an inch to the height as the pallet is taller than the bolsters you were going to use, and you could go as big as 40x20x10 and stay within class 50, if that makes you feel better.

But going up to a 48x40" pallet with the same weight, and you're up to freight class 70, which will increase by some amount, depending on what your negotiated rate is.

I was under the impression that freight class was based on what sort of item was being shipped, because over the years when I got quotes from Freightquote and Freightcenter, sometimes the agents adjusted the class based on the item being shipped and not the weight + dimensions.

Modelman · May 5, 2021

atomarc said:
Will I piss off the freight company if I ship it any other way than on a full pallet..will the forklift driver stab the crate, out of spite?

The solution for that is double or even triple 3/4" plywood on the ends above the fork slot. It doesn't add much weight.Then if the fork misses, it just slides your crate along without damage to the contents.

Dennis

Fish On · May 5, 2021

Spud said:
I was under the impression that freight class was based on what sort of item was being shipped, because over the years when I got quotes from Freightquote and Freightcenter, sometimes the agents adjusted the class based on the item being shipped and not the weight + dimensions.

Only on certain categories. Virtually nothing I ship has a classification, so my stuff always is dimension based, but we saw with the OPs engine parts, it does exist on other stuff.

atomarc · May 5, 2021

I found a site to input shipping parameters, changed the name of the item being shipped from engine parts to 'metal & wood material' and it dropped it from a class 70 to a class 60, which I assume means a better rate.

Seems like there is a lot of voodoo in the freight shipping world.

This has been a very enlightening thread.

Stuart

Bobw · May 5, 2021

In my limited experience. It doesn't matter what they quote you. They will
send you a bill later saying that something wasn't correct and try to
charge you double.

EPAIII · May 6, 2021

You say partS, PLURAL. I wonder if it might be better to break it up into several smaller and LIGHTER parcels. Pack them in foam in heavy cardboard boxes. Wrap them in plastic and then spray Great Stuff in the bottom of the box. Drop the plastic bag in as it hardens, keeping at least an inch above the bottom. Then put another plastic bag over them and fill it with Great Stuff until it is full. Then get outer cardboard boxes with one full inch of clearance on ALL sides, including the BOTTOM for more foam packing. Use a lot of fiberglass tape to seal both boxes. Don't use pieces of tape, go round and round.

You may come out better with four 50 pound boxes as opposed to one 250 pound.

As for insurance, you can probably get that cheaper from your own insurance company. That's what my employers always did.

deltap · May 6, 2021

Everyone should visit a common carrier freight terminal to see what goes on there. Total bedlam. I believe they could easily destroy any kind of pallet or crating unless it is armor plated. And your LTL shipment will pass through a number of these on its way across country.

atomarc · May 6, 2021

Just to update this thread, I resubmitted the shipping info using a 38X36 pallet and changed the freight class to 60. The quote came back with a freight class of 65 (?) and the cost was somewhat lower than the initial quote. The important aspect to me is I can now utilize a pallet that can protect my shipping crate AND can be shuffled around with any old forklift or pallet jack..I think.

Stuart

triumph406 · May 6, 2021

Modelman said:
The solution for that is double or even triple 3/4" plywood on the ends above the fork slot. It doesn't add much weight.Then if the fork misses, it just slides your crate along without damage to the contents.

Dennis

Somebody hasn't seen the price of plywood recently, soon the plywood box will cost more than the contents are worth...................

atomarc · May 6, 2021

Wow..as was noted in #18, just priced 3/4" CDX at $82.72 a 4x8 sheet...yikes. The contents are worth much more, but that price is still mind blowing for the unprepared..me!

Stuart

Ray Behner · May 6, 2021

Stuart,
You ought to use 7/16 OSB. That junk is only 43 bucks a sheet. In 1989 I paid 3.43 a sheet for my shop roof.

OT: Shipping/Packaging Question

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