TOW shipping policies...

[MacRob46]

One reason Amazon has low shipping rates is their fulfillment centers all over the US. If they have one in your neighborhood it is going to cost less to ship from there than clear across the country. Very few small businesses, which is what most ML suppliers are, have that luxury.

 

[Rod Lassey]

Everything about shipping sucks. The costs have increased steadily over the past ten years and they will get worse. As the P.O. shuts down distribution centers shipping times will stretch out too. We've already had some issues with this. Some things within the state of Montana have been shipped to distribution in Denver first making it 5 days to go 200 miles. There is no one accountable and so no one to complain to. Might as well just go scream at the dark in the back yard.

Same here, Minot's shut down, only Bismarck left in North Dakota. My wife drives rural mail for the USPS, nobody's screaming louder than she is, but to no avail. What makes it even worse is that because ND is in the middle of an oil boom, UPS & FedEx are tacking on what they call a "Bakken surcharge" to the regular rate to get stuff here around Williston. They claim it's because of the higher wages, traffic, and package load, but there's a strong suspicion that they are simply gouging because of the boom.

Rod

 

[dikman]

I understand what you're saying, MacRob, but I'm talking overseas shipping here and I don't know if it would make that much difference in that case. I would assume that all o/s is handled by one particular location?

Price gouging, Rod? Surely not, that would never happen...... :stir: .

 

[F.G. Ford]

I enjoy building BP rifles, but shipping charges are putting a crimp on things.
I can no longer order parts & pieces from suppliers ( with inflated shipping charges ) make the gun, then sell and ship the gun at a reasonable price.
If I see a vendor of a product that ships UPS, I drop interest immediately.
I say this "loudly" UPS are gougers!
USPS is a great service, especially to me way up here in Canada. ff
Fred

 

[Rifleman1776]

There is no one accountable and so no one to complain to.

I blame Jimmy Carter. :cursing:
In the 1970s I noticed a growing interest in shooting steel silhouette targets. The sport started in Mexico and caught on in the U.S. as Melltalica Silhouetticas. I started a manufacturing business, called 'Bars and Buffs'. It did well initially. Then the big fuel crunch hit and shipping charges skyrocketed. My products, being heavy steel, cost a fortune to ship. At the time we had a big house and I even offered a free overnight stay and Italian dinner to anyone who would drive to our town to pick up their set of targets. But saving the business was hopeless. I believe, to this day, most silhouette targets are locally made and often not to any real standards. Oh, well.

 

[ohio ramrod]

It doesn't have to be heavy metal for shipping charges to put you out of the market. I build custom built furniture and sell locally, but only toys and gun parts get shipped.It costs more to ship a piece of furniture than it does to make it. I know because I am in the process of shipping a chair to Finland for a friend and it is costing far more to ship than to make.

 

[MacRob46]

I understand what you're saying, MacRob, but I'm talking overseas shipping here and I don't know if it would make that much difference in that case. I would assume that all o/s is handled by one particular location?

Price gouging, Rod? Surely not, that would never happen...... :stir: .

Putting Amazon aside, did you notice my earlier post on shipping to Australia, which is where I believe you are? It is costly, period, to ship overseas. I am not trying to make money on the shipping, that is for the shipper who has to make a profit to stay in business. Obviously the US Postal service is not making a profit on anything they do, although for reasons other than their costs to provide the service. I have also noted that mail coming to me from overseas generally costs a lot more than my outgoing mail to the same locations. As long as fuel costs are what they are, it is going to be a fact of life that shipping costs are going to be higher than ever. I think we had better be prepared because they are not going down.

 

[dikman]

The problem is that there is no rhyme or reason to how some companies "calculate" shipping costs. As an example, I wanted a pair of Grip Puppies (soft handlebar grips) for my motorbike. Not available here in Oz, only $10 over there. Unfortunately, the only place I could find on the 'net that would ship them here wanted $40 shipping!! For something that weighed almost nothing and could be scrunched up pretty small!

Sending something to the 'States from Oz costs more than getting it from there (excluding the afore-mentioned example). And shipping costs within this country can cost more than sending it overseas!

Yep, shipping costs are a bit of a minefield :cursing: .