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#1
10-13-2007, 05:20 AM
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preferred method of shipping from the US ?
I am just curious what the preferred method of shipping is from the US .
who's rates are the best , who charges the lowest brokerage fees , fastest service and best tracking ? 
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#2
10-13-2007, 05:31 AM
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I'm not sure, but I can tell you that UPS is the worst shipper around. I am a pretty calm, level headed guy, but I HATE UPS. I've had things shipped to me 5 times (never my choice) and EVERY time it has been a nightmare. Including the time they put my live rock from Vancover on a train (of all things??!?) to Winnipeg... I'm in Edmonton.... WFT?!?!?!
__________________
_______________________________________ Have a good one!
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#3
10-13-2007, 05:39 AM
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USPS is the most economical by an order of magnitude. You might pay about $5 in brokerage fees.
UPS charges a flat rate of $50. It might have gone up since I used UPS last, as it's been a while. Flat rate means it might be a good deal if you have several hundred dollars worth of stuff coming, but under $100 or thereabouts it becomes a horrible deal. I learned this the (very) hard way when I ordered a $20 fogger for a terrarium some years ago, thinking I got such a great deal because they were $40 locally, and then I had to pay $50 in brokerage when it arrived. Lesson learned. Fedex, I think it might also be a flat rate, not sure, been a while. Either Fedex or Purolator uses Peace Bridge Brokerage, who bills you separately. Again something I learned the hard way. Package arrived C.O.D., so I thought when I paid that fee, that I was done. Nope. Something like 3 months later I got an invoice for $80. Of course I had forgotten by that point that I had ordered something, and the invoice just said for "customs brokerage" so I had no clue what they billing me for. So naturally I ignored it, thinking it was a scam or something. Then I got another letter from PBB and this time the tone was somewhat nasty. But at least in their angry threatening tones they did mention what the brokerage was for. So I paid them and said in MY letter with the cheque "next time put some more details down about what you brokered." (I mean sheesh, come on, really.) Anyhow I always ask for places to send me things (it doesn't matter what it is - aquarium stuff - books - camera stuff - bike stuff - whatever) via USPS whenever feasible. But not all places will - if they offer a discounted rate on Fedex or UPS or whatever, it's usually because they have a deal to single-source their logistics with that company - so they're obliged to not offer any other methods. Something to watch out for. Again, sometimes it's not a big deal but when ordering smaller, less expensive things, that brokerage can really turn a good deal into a not-so-good deal.
__________________
-- Tony My next hobby will be flooding my basement while repeatedly banging my head against a brick wall and tearing up $100 bills. Whee!
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#5
10-13-2007, 07:08 AM
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Lucky for me I am close to the border so I get it sent to a place near the border and pick it up
 Sometime free shipping within the US But if I have to have it shipped up here...... USPS all the way. Cheers, Vic [veng68]
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#6
10-13-2007, 07:20 AM
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Getting Live stuff shipped from the states, I prefer Fedex, however you're looking at 95US for overnight + customs on it. If your just looking at rates on shipping equipment, USPS is the cheapest but also the slowest, looking at 6-10, sometimes you can get a decent rate on Fedex ground and sometimes its around 4 days shipping
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#7
10-13-2007, 07:43 AM
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UPS does not charge a flat rate. Here is their rate scale. Fedex is roughly the same.
http://www.ups.com/content/ca/en/shi...ration+Charges
__________________
-=Bryan=-
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Hybrid Mode
