Shipping Large Items? Don't Go Greyhound

[tempestdude]

A word of advice from someone who learned the hard way:

When shipping large items, such as a hood, DO NOT USE GREYHOUND BUS LINES!!!!!!

I had a hood shipped from NY to AZ. The hood shipped October 29th 2005 and it is now December 14th and Greyhound has no clue where my hood is.

Their tracking system is non existent. All they can tell me is that it shows "In Transit." The Phoenix terminal does not even answer their phones or return messages.

How can you lose a 90 pound hood measuring 65" X 65"?

Lesson learned.

Kevin

[firebirdcrazy1959]

dumped along the road some were.

[Jagtec1]

Try Forward Air next time.

[Brian Baker]

With all of the competitive DEDICATED freight companies that are out there, I can't imagine why anyone would ship something via a bus line. This is 2005, not 1945. And where are they going to put a hood on a bus? Underneath with all the luggage thrown on top?

[Jack Gifford]

I'm still mad about what Greyhound did to me in 1967. Flying into NJ after my USAF tour in Germany, I was tired of lugging everything, so I put my brand new Hoefner guitar (gold hardware, the works) on a bus home, while I took care of some business in Bayonne. When I left the country in 1964 the Geneva, NY Greyhound terminal was a 24 hr. restaurant. But nobody told me about the restaurant now being gone, and freight being left on a poorly lit sidewalk in a "bad" part of the city. When I got home and discovered my loss, I then read the fine print on the freight receipt- "maximum liablility $50 across state lines". Arghhhhh........

[tempestdude]

Brian,

A so-called dedicated carrier/LTL wants the part crated in wood, delivered to a terminal where they then will charge you between $750-$1200.00. This is tough to do when your 2500 miles away. The hood has been in my dad's garage for the last 25 years. I spent quite a bit of time trying to find a way to get this hood shipped reasonably. Since I am not a business and do not have a corporate account with a carrier, I would pay top dollar. I was advised to ship it Greyhound by a person who deals with Pontiac parts. He seems to have good luck with them. Call some carriers and see what they tell you. This is not a part that goes FedEx or UPS.

The hood itself weighed 62 lbs. By the time my high school buddy shipped it, it weighed over 90 lbs, so I have no doubt he packaged it well. He was doing me a favor that I was and am appreciative of. Greyhound accepted it and it did fit in the underside of the bus. It is insured, so if it is lost, I won't be totally empty-handed. I would prefer to have the hood though.

[firebirdcrazy1959]

i sent a long block from ny to seattle wash for $225 it was 550 lbs,.50 a lb.forward air.yes i had to crate it and bring it to the terminal.it took 2 hrs to built a crate and it was made from a pallet,1x2's and heavy card board.the motor was bolted to the pallet and i built the box around it.it made it to wash state in 5 days just like they said.now a gto has its 66 389 and someone is happy.morol of the story,use a real shipper. :sorry:

[Jagtec1]

tempestdude...like I said...try Forward Air next time. $750-1200??? On what planet? I shipped an entire rear end to FL from PA for less than $85.00!! IT certainly weighed more than 92#. I'm guessing you paid close to $85 or more to send it on the bus.

Crate it up, pay the little bit of $ to ship it the right way, and it'll get there in one piece.

JMO

[firebirdcrazy1959]

for $750-$1200 i would strap it to my 96 GA and deliver it my self.

[tempestdude]

Like I said:

Lesson Learned.

A word of advice from someone who learned the hard way:

When shipping large items, such as a hood, DO NOT USE GREYHOUND BUS LINES!!!!!!

Via telephone, I couldn't find any carriers in the Binghamton area that would pick a hood up, build a crate for it and ship it to Phx for anywhere near a price of $85-$225. One carrier I did speak to said he could build a crate for it at a rate of $90.00 an hour. All of the carriers I spoke to said the crate had to be built to stand the hood up in a trailer, not lie flat and advised of an item class 250-whatever that means. The nearest major terminal is in Syracuse-about 100 miles away. Remember, I'm 2500 miles away and relying on the good graces of a buddy who does not own a truck. If I had the hood here in Phx, I would have the resources to build a crate, take it to a terminal and have it shipped.

I will definetly keep Forward Air in mind when and if I have a large part to ship.

[scott w]

I've shipped Greyhound Express many times with no problems, just insure it high and it will show up. Once even paid for the faster service and it was a day late so they refunded the money.

[Judge Smails]

Jagtec1,
An ENTIRE REAR END for $85!?!?! Now I'VE gotta ask, on what planet!?! I have 2 complete disc rears I'd like to ship but I can't even find a rate under $189 for a piddly HOOD, even halfway across the country, never mind a rear end all the way across. Have their number/website? Can't seem to get an estimate from the Fwd Air website. Thanks. Southwest Airlines has what seems to be a VERY reasonable rate on freight, but one has to be a "known shipper" to use them (for a pkg over a pound, at least) & I get differing answers as to the max dimensions of what they can ship. Anyone out there know?

[Jagtec1]

Forward Air is about $30.00 per 100 # as I recall. You'll need to crate it up, and take it to their depot...fill out an Airbill, and off it goes. Call them to find out where the nearest location is.

[carcrazy]

Used forward air for a gto hood a few years ago. Very reasonable-less than $100. That being said I have shipped and recieved large items via Greyhound (Raleigh NC) on many times with no problem. The price was right and delivery quick. I will say they do have a very primative system and the help wasn't exactly the brightest bulb!!

[al6389]

I shipped a '64 gto hood via UPS from my home in South Texas to a fella in Indiana for roughly $175. picked up a cardboard box for a hood at a GM dealer, no problem, UPS picked it up. they called it some other name, and interlined it through another carrier, but tracked it and said when it would be delivered. Beware of buses. so many stations are barely open, in questionable areas, and put freight outside the building, as the buses stop at any hour, depending on their schedule. that driver was probably pi**ed at having to handle such a bulky item.

[stags]

My only experience with Greyhound was last year when Bill Morgan shipped me a fender from Texas. When he first suggested it I thought he'd been smokin' tumbleweed but he claims he uses them all the time. Anyway the part arrived ok but the "depot" where I picked it up looked like an abandoned news stand. Darin, you probably know the place - it's around the corner from G.B. Good thing I got there right away. Still, I would have used them to ship a bulky, but not too expensive item. Now that I know about Forward Air I think I'd try them if the need comes up. I've often turned down stuff for sale here because I didn't think it could be shipped reasonably. Thanks.

[joegio]

Used FWD Air also about $30/100# in 2004, distance didn't seem to be a factor in cost.

I guess Greyhound just drops packages off at the bus stop assuming it belongs passenger.

Hope it wasn't a rare hood.

[Glenn]

I had a custom 3000 lbs sandstone fireplace-hearth shipped from Dallas Tx. to Southern California...the cost was $750 but that included the cost of putting it on a wood pallet and packing it in a wood crate/box. The materials in the crating probably ran $100 alone.

[Steve Barcak]

I am sorry about your shipment Kevin. As I told you....I have used Greyhound to ship larger items like fenders, deck lids, doors and bumpers for years. 100s of shipments and never a problem. Never a complaint from the recieving end either. I will continue to use and to recommended them.
It is a resonably priced and reletively fast means of transport (with the exception of your order) for items too big for the PO and ups. I will be curious as to know if the labels were attached and filled out correctly. There must be a reason for the delay.
I hope you get your hood and in good condition.
One bad example without all known facts as to proper labeling, etc is no reason to bad mouth an entire company. Steve www. pontiacheaven.org

[Bill Morgan]

I hear many good things about Forward Air, but, although I live in a city of 225,000 people, with an international airport, the nearest Forward Air depot is 340 miles away at Dallas-Ft. Worth International Airport.

Also surprising is the fact that Fedex Freight is the only national less-than-truckload shipper serving this major city.

I did not, however, know that some bus terminals are hole-in-the-wall enterprises. Obviously, I'm spoiled by the fact our bus terminal is a large place, open 24/7, with a well-run, efficient freight department.

That said, I've never had the bus line fail to deliver a package within their specified window of transit.

[Scarebird]

I used the Big Grey Dog a few times for crated fenders, but they said unh-uh to a 81 TA hood. Tried Amtrak- lazy bastards said it was too heavy (90 pounds?) Send a Ford diff with spindles (295#)to Oakland via F/A- $92. Only beef there was they don't take anything but MO's- how the hell do you know what is weighs/cost?

[1970cat]

had a bonneville door (70 pounds) shipped from texas to utica ,n.y. with no problems. the woman wasn't too happy about having a heavy cardboard covered object that size in her 8x10 office, but otherwise all was fine. you just need to find a terminal that accepts freight. i believe i was even given a tracking number , because i remember it going through several stops in about 4 states,while tracking it online. i wouldn't hesitate to use them again.

[TJH]

There are other options. R&L Carriers is expanding their routes, and may be into California by now. They had sereved the southeast and midwest, but had locations as far west as Las Vegas last time I checked.
Through R&L, I had a 12-bolt axle assembly shipped from Alabama to Detroit for around $80.
Also, there are online freight brokers out there, who will act as a middleman between you and the big freight carriers. THEY can get the lower, negotiated rates, whereas YOU can not. They charge a minimal amount for this, but I had two 1970 GTO full quarter panels shipped from Montana to Detroit for $150 using one of these brokers. For me, as an individual, the best quote had been closer to $500 (no nearby Forward Air terminals, or R&L locations in Montana).
I have had sellers use Greyhound, and I have not had any problems. A friend of mine had several large body parts for a Saturn Vue shipped via Greyhound, and the worst thing that happened, was that he STILL is getting calls from those idiots, telling him he owes money for storage (which was never disclosed or detailed, making such charges illegal), about TWO MONTHS after he picked the parts up. The last time, he started laughing hysterically, called the guy an F-ing moron, and asked if he REALLY beleived that he would get any money for stuff that had long since been picked up, as payment for charges that were never disclosed nor agreed upon.
Greyhound personnel- not the sharpest tacks in the box...

['ol Pinion head]

Over the last 19 years, I've successfully shipped dozens of straight rustfree GM decklids & 2 door hardtop A-body door shells through Greyhound. Post car doors have always gone freight company (too bulky). Never, not once, a problem in a door getting damaged or lost by Greyhound! No Greyhound doesn't have the tracking system like UPS does, but they do have something else... oldtimers that know how to propperly load a small cargo area! Have mentioned it before, but UPS long ago lost all of my shipout business due to the way they slam well packed items around at their distribution centers.

Shipping expensive sheetmetal, one has to take the propper effort to make sure it gets to wherever w/o damage. I seldom ship heavy loaded doors. The majority of my customers have their own door hardware & easily spend a dozen hours prepping a door before they install their glass or new date code matching glass. The big problem in shipping a bare door is gutting it out, & prepping it for shipping. Even set-up with every shipping material avail, it can easily take one person close to two hours to pull from the racks, propperly prep, & pack such a door for shipment. All corners have to be protected with styrofoam bumpers, & the entire door has to double wrapped in cardboard & rein shipping tape. Basically the entire bare door has to be "idiot proofed". Shipped at UPS or FedEx, such a packed bare door "might" get through undamaged... but one does need to ponder... there's a lot less room in the belly of a bus, than in a the back of a semi. Who uses more care, busybee parttime college kids slamming parcels around the sort isle & into the back of a parcel shipper semis (UPS or FedEx), or a pair of oldtimers loading the belly of a bus around mainly softsider luggage???

Back to original post, on really large bulky items like original hoods, it makes no sense at all to ship through Greyhound. Spliced together bodyshop boxs don't provide much protection (we used to use 'em). To propperly prepare a hood for shipment, it usually takes me 3 sheets of plywood to screw together a propper crate. Add in the over 50 mile roundtrip trip to Forward Air, & yes, I charge a crating/handling fee. Don't want to pay a hood crating fee, my customers can always arrange for a pick-up, or if lucky, I might be able to make a dropoff while on the road.

Last, another tip. Try and not ship expensive, near impossible to replace items through UPS & FedEx in the month before Christmas. Their systems are maxed out & more items get damaged, even when propperly packed.

[BOB VIDAN]

I just shipped a 64 - 65 post door to New York with no problems, over Christmas. Arrived in perfect shape.

[judge_jury_executioner_69]

i bought a set of doors off ebay for my 69 GTO and i paid $500 for the doors with shipping with greyhound. they arrived in good shape and it was cheap.

[crazy ray]

With all of the competitive DEDICATED freight companies that are out there, I can't imagine why anyone would ship something via a bus line. This is 2005, not 1945. And where are they going to put a hood on a bus? Underneath with all the luggage thrown on top?

Not really the have buses called freighters. stripped no seats. Dad was a greyhound employe for 30 plus years . There rates are fair and service is better then most trucking companys.

[baron_]

look at DHL
they've got a website too, for easy price quotations, and they even pick the stuff up


just shipped a '67 GTO trunk lid for $70 from Ohio to California
they picked up at my apartment and delivered to their door in california

i didn't put any packing on it (just taped the address to it) and it arrived fine

very impressed, door to door service for that price