DB specific shipping service?

[Bass Barrister]

I may be delusional, but I thought that at some point, I had read something here about a company, based out East, that specialised in shipping DBs from point to point. It might have been limited to the NYC area but I just don't remember. Any recollections here?

If I have just dreamt about this, it may nonetheless be a business opportunity for some individual who likes to drive from place to place. Get a box truck, fix it up with padding, some means of restraining basses, and, of course, some temp/humidity controls.

Don't all thank me at one for the idea, just cut me on the profit.

[MollyKay]

I have been very successful using this service, U-Ship.

Every courier I have booked has come through, the prices range from $200 -$400 depending on distance and level of service. I have been getting door to door service…it is wonderful.

No more Greyhound Bus service for me.

[Bass Barrister]

So Molly . . .

Do I click on the tab that reads "How to Move a Hot Tub"

When use this outfit, do you have to crate the bass yourself?

[Hqubed]

Believe they guy you are speaking of is Shlomo Ben-Yaacov. I have spoken to him a few times, and may perhaps have him pick up a bass for me. Drives a box truck east to west and back once a month with high end art, furniture, and the like. Shlomo seems on the up and up and has been prompt in replying to email or voice mail. I have found his quotes to be "competitive", not the lowest but not the highest. His web site is www.shlomobenyaacov.com

Molly, I've not had much luck on UShip. How have you classified the post to get a response?

[fdeck]

Sounds like a good situation: Someone with space on a truck who knows how to handle delicate objects. I also wondered if a company like Modern Piano Movers would be willing to branch into basses. We had a piano moved by them, and they did a nice job.

[MollyKay]

Originally Posted by Bass Barrister

So Molly . . .

When use this outfit, do you have to crate the bass yourself?

The U-ship service is a huge network of couriers both professional and private Mom & Pop couriers. I have used this service with great success. I have not used the same courier twice because every courier specializes in different region of the country. I had used Shlomo when I had a bass stuck in California. His route is east to west and back again once a month.

I used a new courier this week that runs the I-95 east coast north/south corridor. All the couriers have been great to work with and I think their prices are fair for door to door delivery. I have not had to pack any of the basses. There are different levels of bid from white glove to LTL. I have had success with white glove and blanket wrap service. The beauty with this service is you work with one courier, they are reachable during transport and the bass is not being moved from truck terminal to truck terminal (by a fork truck). The other nice thing for me is I buy old plywood basses that don’t have a huge value but many times the seller has no idea how to pack and ship a bass. The door to door service is much more user friendly for a seller.

This week I had a bass shipped from Florida, the courier stopped at my house, picked up my flight case and a cash payment for the bass. With in two days he was in Florida, met the seller, paid him in cash (the seller was very obstinate about his selling terms), pack the bass in my hard shell case and delivered it to me two days later…all for $250. I think this is very reasonable for this level of service. The guy was super nice to boot. He and his wife are a team, he is an x-truck driver and she was his dispatch coordinator. They run a real tight family business…the kind I like to support and patronize.

As far as how to use the U-ship site it is some what like EBay except there is no charge unless you accept a bid and use their service. Most often the U-ship booking fee is $10-$15. You can request bids for free. I always select the “special care” category and give VERY clear instructions in my posting as to size and fragility of the bass.

So far this service has been much better then using Greyhound…which was a whole other TB thread. I found the U-ship service after Greyhound lost my flight case for 21 days and zero customer service or compassion.

Give it a try if you want to move anything (well almost anything) across the good ole USA. It is American ingenuity and internet at its best.

Good Luck!

[drurb]

This seems like a great find! Just one question. What is "LTL?" Less than truck load?

[MollyKay]

Originally Posted by drurb

This seems like a great find! Just one question. What is "LTL?" Less than truck load?

Yep…There are trucking services that participate on this site so some bids are sub-contracted to trucker…hence the LTL service…but you will know this upfront as it must be disclosed. U-Ship is for shipping most anything…antiques, family pets, horses, cars, motorcycles, boats, RV’s, eBay purchases and a whole lot more. We had a snow blower shipped to us during a snow storm in the middle of the night fours after we purchased it…what a life saver.

I am not promoting or endorsing U-ship, but it has worked for us!

[drurb]

Originally Posted by MollyKay

Yep…There are trucking services that participate on this site so some bids are sub-contracted to trucker…hence the LTL service…but you will know this upfront as it must be disclosed. U-Ship is for shipping most anything…antiques, family pets, horses, cars, motorcycles, boats, RV’s, eBay purchases and a whole lot more. We had a snow blower shipped to us during a snow storm in the middle of the night fours after we purchased it…what a life saver.

I am not promoting or endorsing U-ship, but it has worked for us!

Thanks-- go ahead and promote! It's how we all learn about such finds. Got any similar sources for international shipping of basses?

[MollyKay]

Originally Posted by drurb

Got any similar sources for international shipping of basses?

Ahhh…actually yes. Craters & Freighter

Paul King from Rock-a-Billy Bass used this service through Shanks Strings when he bought his King Moretone bass. I think it was $700 door to door to the UK including the crate, duty and taxes...I think.

[drurb]

Thanks. I have a friend looking to ship overseas and that's essentially the price he found. Maybe Shlomo will consider running his own ferry.