anyone ever ship a guitar to Europe via USPS from the US?

[mystixboi]

I've done it before, but I forget what options I selected when I shipped it. I went to the post office today and they said that I couldn't get insurance on the guitar if I shipped priority mail But if I shipped registered mail, it could get up to $600.

That doesn't sound right... I remember having at least $1000 insurance via USPS.

I don't feel comfortable shipping a $2000 guitar without insurance.

 

[JerEvil]

I've done it before, but I forget what options I selected when I shipped it. I went to the post office today and they said that I couldn't get insurance on the guitar if I shipped priority mail But if I shipped registered mail, it could get up to $600.

That doesn't sound right... I remember having at least $1000 insurance via USPS.

I don't feel comfortable shipping a $2000 guitar without insurance.

That sounds familiar actually. I remember shipping a USA Jackson to Sweden about 9 years ago and sent it registered mail and not Priority. It was something about the dimensions being over 108 inches or some shit like that.

 

[jkdsteve]

Years ago, shipped ESP KH20 to Germany using it...was a bit nervous because the max insurance was $5k at the time...believe I used Express Mail.

I think the regulations changed on amount of insurance allowed now, it's lower.

 

[glip22]

You can only insure for what the country allows. Everyone is different and it's usually not allot. I would definitely check your options.

 

[Racerxrated]

Yup. Sorry but so much can go wrong once the item leaves the states. I would not ship unless it was to a trusted member here or someone you know personally. Steve K ships all the time from the middle east, never has a problem. I would ask him what vendor /process he uses. I shipped one guitar to Norway 5 years ago, USPS. Fn nightmare. Wouldn't track, showed up damaged..double boxed in a hardshell case. Never again.

 

[stanbog]

I traded guitars with a forumite (Adam) about 2 years ago. No problems with the shipping on each side and i insured my shipment for a grand i believe.

 

[mooncobra]

if you cant insure it for the value of the guitar I would not do it.

 

[keennay]

Ditch USPS (seriously) and start shipping with FedEx. I wouldn't ever again risk shipping gear with USPS.

Even shipping Celestion speakers within the USA is cheaper with FedEx.

 

[FourT6and2]

The USPS has a separate service called Express Mail International. Use that.

 

[Metlupass2]

Ditch USPS (seriously) and start shipping with FedEx. I wouldn't ever again risk shipping gear with USPS.

Even shipping Celestion speakers within the USA is cheaper with FedEx.

Have you ever tried shipping a guitar overseas via FedEx? The price is outrageous.

Tell the buyer all the info and that its up to him. I've had a few people ask me to take the neck off to ship it on a smaller box.

The most it ever cost (buyer paid) was over $300 to ship a Custom Shop ESP that was neck thru to Australia.

 

[gtrwun]

if you cant insure it for the value of the guitar I would not do it.

This is pretty much the bottom line, regardless of everyone's opinions. If you cant recover what the guitar is worth, its not worth doing the deal. Steve K uses a service called EMS.....
http://www.ems.post/operators

Personally, I just don't bother with shipping a guitar that far. I tried with USPS once and got nothing but the runaround. Seriously frustrating. FedEx and UPS are both very expensive for guitars last I checked.

 

[NinjaRaf]

I did it once some years back. Shipped a guitar to Ireland. Cost me $25 lol. Took about 4 weeks, though. I also shipped a 5150 to Russia once, and that cost about $300.

 

[slyym]

I'm waiting on a VH4 being shipped via EMS from Russia. I'm looking at the tracking everyday and am nervous as hell. Not sure I'd do it again. Nothing is wrong yet but I feel like there will be.

 

[scary groove]

I just did this. Shipped a $1,000 guitar to Denmark. It was only $125. Go to the USPS website and purchase the shipping label that way. You need the measurements and the weight of the package. I did a little research and it was the best way to get it done. I was very skeptical but all went well.