A Victrola in Des Moines needs to be in New Jersey

[Eve]

This Victrola (well, it’s a talking machine, dunno if it’s an actual Victrola) probably is worth at least $1000, at least in NY. It’s a floor model, perfect working order, refinished by my friend. The reason he’s letting me have it is he has ten more in his house (!) and wants it to go to a good home rather than sit in his garage.

I know he has no way of packing it or getting it downtown (he’s retired and on a fixed income), and while I’d love to have it, I’m also on a fixed income and wouldn’t actually think of buying one for myself—this one just happened to be offered.

But if it’s going to cost me too much or won’t arrive unbroken, it would be silly of me to say, “yes, please.”

[Kalhoun]

@Little Nemo

My mother once had a rocking chair shipped to my sister via a Greyhound bus. Your friend delivers it (already packaged) to the bus station in Des Moines, they stick it in the luggage compartment of a bus, and then you pick it up at the bus station in New Jersey. I don’t know the details but it was the cheapest way she found to ship it across country.

I did this with a ton of crap when I picked up and moved to Colorado. It’s a great way to do it. The weight is a very important part of the equation, however.

[ioioio]

(1) Make sure it’s packed well enough to survive a nuclear blast without damage. Marking something “fragile” is basically a waste of time.
(2) Insure it! Something is much more likely to arrive intact if it’s insured (I think of it more as protection money).
(3) I personally would trust FedEx or UPS a thousand times more than I’d trust Greyhound (who smashed to smithereens a typewriter I shipped).

Laina (who works for a shipping company)

[fluiddruid]

If this can wait a few weeks, I am getting a Honda Element, and could possibly transport it within DM, schedule permitting, should it be necessary. My e-mail is in my profile. I would consider also being a medium for buying/delivering package materials to him so UPS could pick it up, if you PayPaled me.

I will say that with a $100 limit, look into UPS and even possibly Eagle Courier – I bought a huge TV on Amazon.com and paid less than $100 shipping with Eagle, and it was so heavy I can’t physically lift it an inch off the ground without help.

[Stan_Doubt]

With the popularity of eBay, there are all kinds of “full service” listing/shipping/packing places popping up that’ll take care of just about every aspect of a transaction for a fee. Your friend might be able to take advantage of a local business of this type for the packing. For example, if UPS will deliver for $65, an eBay service store might be able to securely pack and insure the item for under $65.

[rfgdxm]

@Eve

This Victrola (well, it’s a talking machine, dunno if it’s an actual Victrola) probably is worth at least $1000, at least in NY. It’s a floor model, perfect working order, refinished by my friend. The reason he’s letting me have it is he has ten more in his house (!) and wants it to go to a good home rather than sit in his garage.

I know he has no way of packing it or getting it downtown (he’s retired and on a fixed income), and while I’d love to have it, I’m also on a fixed income and wouldn’t actually think of buying one for myself—this one just happened to be offered.

But if it’s going to cost me too much or won’t arrive unbroken, it would be silly of me to say, “yes, please.”

If you don’t know if it is an actual Victrola, then you are just making a wild guess as to its value. With this sort of thing, exact model number and such makes a big difference. You’d really need to check with experts on this sort of thing. However, the fact that it is in perfect working order, and been refinished by someone who knows about these devices (otherwise he wouldn’t have 10), likely is a major plus. It is quite reasonable it is worth at least $100.

You need to get the thing packed as dropzone mentioned. Since your friend can’t do this himself, you would have to pay someone to do the work. After that, it is just a matter of having UPS pick it up from your friends home, and ship it to where you live. The main issue would be getting someone to pack it at a cost that, with UPS shipping included, would be in your budget.

[Stan_Doubt]

For example, if UPS will deliver for $65, an eBay service store might be able to securely pack and insure the item for under $65.

Of course, that first $65 should’ve been “$35” :smack:

[Doug_Bowe]

This is where it helps to have a friend in the business.

Several years ago I moved a 1904 floor model Victrola from Brownsville to El Paso by finding a mover that was already making that particular trip. It turned out to be a Mayflower driver.
He loaded up his truck with the regular stuff for the regular move…made a quick second stop at the Victrola house and put it in back with the other stuff. Then when he arrived in El Paso he stopped off at my place first and unloaded the Victrola after I crossed his palm with 3 $20 bills.

[rfgdxm]

@laina_f

(1) Make sure it’s packed well enough to survive a nuclear blast without damage. Marking something “fragile” is basically a waste of time.
(2) Insure it! Something is much more likely to arrive intact if it’s insured (I think of it more as protection money).

I’m not sure it doesn’t help to slap the crate with lots of big “FRAGILE” stickers if you also insure it. It occurs to me that sloppy employees might not pay close attention to what parcels are insured. A crate with “FRAGILE” all over broadcasts the message “This thing is probably insured.” People don’t tend to insure parcels with contents that are virtually indestructable. However, they do tend to insure parcels that contain items that could easily be damaged in transit. When an employee sees “FRAGILE”, they’ll be more likely to double check if it is insured.