how do i ship this?

[leadbutt]

i know ive seen a post on here before on how to package lead in the flat rate boxes but now that i need the info i cant find the darn post. dont want the feds to find out im shipping the bane of mankind if a box happens to split or gets dropped. any ideas or a link to the elusive post will be very helpfull.

L. Bottoms

[rtracy2001]

You can either build a small wooden frame that fits inside a medum FRB, or just tape the snot out of it. I have received boxes of lead with another slightly smaller box inside that was held together with duct tape (worked well). Haven't got any shipments with wooden boxes inside though.

If I were to sell/ship lead instead of just buying, I might consider making an ingot mold just small enough to fit inside a flat rate box, and aobut 1 inch tall. Two of those might fit in a Med FRB ("Shirt box size") and still be under 70 lbs? The larger slabs are less likely to shift in shipping.

Nothing at all illegal about shipping lead via USPS, after all if it fits it ships (up to 70 lbs) I would write "heavy" on the outside of the box just in case.

[Stick_man]

Some people double-box them and then use lots of tape. Other people (me included) have done very well with lots of duct tape on the inside, then lots more packaging tape on the outside. Other people will make a plywood box "liner" to put them in.

It seems like the one common denominator is to not have room for movement inside the box. Pack it tight and you will usually be good to go. Lots of tape reinforcement on the outside, especially on the corners.

The USPS doesn't seem to care about shipping lead. My local PO knows exactly what I have in the boxes and even what it is going to be used for. Only one time did I get hassled about the weight, but that was only the employee giving me a bad time. My box weighed in at 68.75 lbs. He told me next time to put another pound in it to take full advantage of the "if it fits it ships" policy and the 70 lb limit.

Remember also that the "Flat Rate Box" needs to be visible. Some *** won't allow duct tape on the outside of the box. Others will allow it as long as the Flat Rate is showing.

Good luck!

[leadbutt]

thanks for the replies guys. i was just joking bout the illegal lead part though. i think ill just use some empty flat rate boxes and cram them in the one im shipping to tighten it up a lil bit and tape the heck out of it with packing tape.

L. Bottoms

[Springfield]

I have shipped and bought raw wheelweights and ingots an I have found that the box within a box works best. The plywood boxes are good until they break and then you are back to relying on just the paper box. I feel it is better that the box have a little give to it als ong as it is taped up well.

[jonas302]

Don't forget you can wrap it in the tyvec bags from the post office first

[justingrosche]

I have done all the above at one time or another. Tyvex bags, with in a box, with in another box, works well. Tape the snot out of it.

[Sonnypie]

I just shipped out a small flat rate box last week with 500+ FMJ BT bullets in a canvas shot bag. (My interest is in cast boolits now)
I put about 4 full layers of strong clear packaging tape on the outside to strengthen it.
The real question is: "Will the recipient be able to open it without an axe?"
I stamped it: FRAGILE! (In the hopes somebody might actually read that)

I got a chuckle out of the little gal at my post office when I handed it to her. She didn't expect something that small to weigh at 15 pounds. She quickly brought both hands to bear the weight as it transferred from my paw to her dainty hands. :mrgreen:

I have received 30, and 40 pound shipments from Rotometals boxed inside additional cardboard without a lot of packaging tape.
Both arrived safe.

[clintsfolly]

I have shipped more then my share of lead. The way I have found that works for me is i shrink wrap the ingots to a plywood base that is just smaller then the box . Then place the shrink wrapped lead plywood down in box then fill the rest of the box with paper, packing peanut,foam, cardboard, any thing that will take up space and not crush. Tape the box like it going to be handled by a troop of monkeys for fun! Clint

[LUCKYDAWG13]

i have got a lot of raw WW packed in a sand bag then just in a box

[ReloaderFred]

Several bullet companies regularly ship their bullets in the USPS Flat Rate Boxes. They use heavy plastic bags inside and sometimes double box and then use lots of packaging tape on the outside.

When I was shipping a lot of once fired brass, I found that heavy plastic bags really helped. The other thing is to prevent movement inside the box. Some USPS regional centers are harder on boxes than others. There seems to be one in Minnesota that uses baseball bats for moving Flat Rate Boxes, since every box I shipped through there arrived mangled.

Hope this helps.

Fred

[evan price]

I personally just use a lot of tape. You can get the USPS Priority Mail tape for free if you ask real nice. I always grab a roll when I go to the post office. I triple tape the top and bottom seams, cross-tape across the flats of the box, then tape every single seam, edge and corner.

As long as it is under 70 pounds and they can read the destination it is good to go. I've never had one lost in shipping yet. Use some old magazines to stiffen the top and bottom and to fill any gaps. Newspaper works good too or cereal boxes, or heck, those flat rate boxes are free if you can't find anything else!

[frkelly74]

My P>O> won't give out the tape. It costs money they said. I probably didn't ask nice enough. I do like to pack about 15 lbs of ingots into a small flat rate box and then can send it or put 2,3 or 4 of them in a medium FRB. Jam in grocery store bags for packing and tape liberally. If it is loose so that contents can get moving inside the box it will come apart.

[fredj338]

The med flat rate box is about as big as you can ship & stay within wt. I would suggest 66# as a max, so the heavy handed postal workers don't reject it (happened once to me w/ 69# box). I pack ingots or bullets in small FR boxes, then pack those inside the medium box so they won't move around. If they drop it, nothign spilss out. The FR envlepes work well for this too.

[t_dickinson]

The med flat rate box is about as big as you can ship & stay within wt. I would suggest 66# as a max, so the heavy handed postal workers don't reject it (happened once to me w/ 69# box). I pack ingots or bullets in small FR boxes, then pack those inside the medium box so they won't move around. If they drop it, nothign spilss out. The FR envlepes work well for this too.

+1000

This is the only way to do it. Done it alot and it works great.

6 small FR boxes fit perfectly inside a medum box with no wiggle room. You are maximizing load bearing surface by quadrupling (sp?) the layers of cardboard and minimizing movement.

Keeping the bottom from sagging and thereby concentrating the weight in the center is KEY. The small boxes act like a honeycomb of sorts and distribute the weight evenly.

Trust me. Also a plus1 for leaving at least one of the "Medium Flat Rate" stamps visible or they WILL NOT SHIP IT.

[DukeInFlorida]

I can put one medium flat rate box inside of another, and then line with more layers of flat corrugated. I add in 65 pounds of ingots, and then padding around the sides, and more corrugated on the top.

The limit at the post office is 70 pounds (including all packaging weight)

Then, I wrap the outside with CLEAR packing tape. Never had one fail that I know of.

[weedwhacker]

One of the methods I have started to use is. Great Stuff to create a home made "foam in place" method. It seems "bullet proof" as the box is just 100% solid.. Very little risk of the box ripping as the great stuff also acts as glue.

The contents are boxed/wrapped/ protected. And great stuff is applied around it. It does take some practice and if you ship the same style stuff over and over it gets easier.

The great stuff can can be used over and over, I use a common house hold straw to replace the "factory" tool. And when I'm down with it just place a drywall screw in the nozzle and when its needed again.. Shake it up pull out the screw get a new straw..

They also make clear duct tape now!

I mark the outsides of the boxes where to "cut" :)

[evan price]

I've been getting 20# of ingots in a small flat rate box, and 60# in a medium.

Double up the medium flat rate boxes by folding the corners of the inner box and slitting down the corners about an inch from the top. That way the inner flaps fold in and you can get the outer flaps to close together properly. I've had postal workers tell me that if the box is not properly closed and winds up oversize they will reject it.

Of course when I drag in a dozen 65# medium FRBs they also would PREFER to reject them.

Then tape tape tape everywhere. The small FRBs wind up totally covered in tape. Stuff lots of old newspaper, cereal boxes, magazines, other cardboard, whatever you can find- to keep the lead from moving around. If it rattles or shifts inside it's too loose.

[lwknight]

You can line the box with thick folds of old newspaper wrapped around the inside of the corners especially.
I used several layers of cardboard in some boxes. The receivers said that they arrived intact.
Also , tape the fool out of it!

[splashout101]

I recently purchased 60 lbs, It arrived in a if it ships box, wrapped in news paper and placed in a larger if it fits it ships box, postal lady was not to happy with it.

[I'll Make Mine]

If the USPS doesn't want to handle 60 lb packages the size of a dictionary or two VHS tapes, they shouldn't advertise "if it fits, it ships" so effectively. :kidding: I suppose it would be a courtsy to write "Heavy" on the outside in a high contrast color...

[Harter66]

Shipped 1 to Ak last week w/1/4" plywood liners on all 6 sides packed w/news print and well taped. The fellow at the counter retaped it w/the priority tape 68lbs 11.6 oz.

[Harter66]

Shipped 1 to Ak last week w/1/4" plywood liners on all 6 sides packed w/news print and well taped. The fellow at the counter retaped it w/the priority tape 68lbs 11.6 oz.

[DukeInFlorida]

WHen I do the double box, I make the inner box up very tight, and the outer box very loose. Then, I "bump" the four lower corners of the inner box so that they get pushed inwards. That helps with getting the inner box to slide inside the outer box more easily.

From there it's a matter of adding some additional sliced pieces of flat rate box to add 3-4 layers of corrugated on all sides, and some newspaper cushioning to keep ingots from moving around.

I've never had to buy or cut plywood to make inner parts.
Have shipped a couple of tons (literally) that way, and never had an ingot fall out.

Tape the heck out of the outside of the final box.

Get a free on-line USPS.com account, and save money by printing your own shipping labels with flat rate postage. You also get free tracking number, which you otherwise have to pay extra for at the counter.

[Lead Waster]

I recently purchased 60 lbs, It arrived in a if it ships box, wrapped in news paper and placed in a larger if it fits it ships box, postal lady was not to happy with it.

I just bought 50 lbs from eBay, when I got it, the box was ripped and it was full of 12 pieces of cardboard. I thought I was scammed, but I realized that the carboard was packing ABOVE the ingots, then the box ripped and all the ingots escaped. USPS didn't even mark it as damaged, even though three corners were ripped. My wife, not knowing what was supposed to be in it, signed for it anyway.

Luckily, the seller resent new lead, but in the same manner.

I think a good heavy plastic bag is a bare minimum.

since it's lead, you could probably even drill each ingot and bolt it to a piece of wood, right?

[Freightman]

Got a box from a member in a trade and he put a plastic container in the MFRB and stacked the lead in then filled it with foam and taped the MFRB, think you could have dropped it from the back of a truck and it would have survived.

[Arkansas Paul]

Glad I stumbled onto this post. I'm looking to sell some ingots and was wondering how to package. It sounds like just tape the dickens out of it and make sure it's packed tightly enough to not get any movement. With 50 ingots in a medium flat rate box, there's plenty of room left, that's for sure.

Good to know.

[midnight]

I noticed that Richard Corbin puts 2- 25 lb reels of lead wire in a plastic bag, puts the bag in a flat rate box, and then squirts expandable foam insulation to completely fill the box.. Tape the box up good and it arrives in great condition.

Bob

[I'll Make Mine]

I noticed that Richard Corbin puts 2- 25 lb reels of lead wire in a plastic bag, puts the bag in a flat rate box, and then squirts expandable foam insulation to completely fill the box.. Tape the box up good and it arrives in great condition.

Bob

If you ship in significant quantity, this is probably the best practice -- making sure the foam forms a layer on all sides of the lead bag, and leaving the bag unsealed so the expanding foam can push the air out, you'd tie off the bag and cut excess foam back to the box after the foam sets, then close the box and off it goes.

It'll be a little more work for the recipient to unpack, but that beats having it sling all over the inside of a postal facility and the box arrive empty...