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Pinball international shipping advice

C

Cookizza

Registered
5Years
Joined
Feb 14, 2018
Messages
168
Location
London
I am wondering if people have experience shipping their machines long distances?

I am wanting to send a few WPC machines from London -> New Zealand and trying to find the safest options that don't cost the value of the machines..

There's advice online of strapping a machine to a pallet and building a box around it but that seems like decent work and not something I've done before - it also greatly increases the size and weight but i can see why it would be safest but perhaps too expensive for me.

My thought at the moment is to find a used new Stern/JJP, with all it's nice interior packaging and simply pack these machines like they are new. In my mind this must be the cheapest option and relatively safe as it's how these new sterns etc are all being shipped.

If people have advice, and especially referrals to people / companies they have used before to ship around the world I'd be very grateful.

Cheers!
 
Repacking a machine as new won't be easy due to the way they are packed initially.
If you are going to send them, spending £50ish putting them on a pallet and building a wooden frame around them is the most secure option (there's some bespoke threads on Pinside about exactly this), and £50 would be a very small percentage when compared to the value of the game and cost of shipping.

I'd even go as far as to say that unless these are premium WPC machines, extremely rare, or you have emotional attachments to them - I'd say it would be more cost effective and less hassle to sell them over here and buy again in NZ.
 
I'd suggest strapping to a pallet, then wrapping in reasonably thick blankets, then plastic pallet wrapping around the blankets. Should help protect against bumps, scrapes and keep it protected against rain

Building a box seems like hard work, and then runs the risk of people thinking they can stack stuff on top
 
I've had a chat to a few house moving companies. They are quoting around £1,000 to collect and ship to NZ. Not terrrrrible.

They can fully crate it for £165, which I would probably do as my time and resources for putting it on a pallet myself would quickly reach that cost.

If anyone has a friend of a friend, a past experience, a hot tip for packing - I'm all ears!
 
I went the other way, had a machine collected in Ohio and delivered to me in the UK.

It was easier for me as the game was NIB and still attached to the pallet, from memory it cost me just over £500 , collected on a Monday and at my door Wednesday afternoon :)
 
I shipped a paragon from USA to UK - the seller put it on a pallet and wrapped in shipping blankets and bubble wrap. It arrived fine in 30 hours door to door fedex airmail.
 
Thanks for all the advice, I think a pallet with blankets and shipping wrap is going to be the most cost effective. Insurance isn't as bad as i thought either.
 
The NZ and Australian pinball market seems to be very expensive. So it is best to ship in my opinion.

I think you have to have the pinballs sprayed as well with a chemical to make sure there is nothing alive in your pinball cab (termites etc) - or that may just be Australia. I can remember the pinballs Mr Palmer shipped to Oz had to be treated.
 
knowing new Zealand they will also want them sprayed if Aussie did. can't be too expensive though?
 
Wizcat said:
I'd suggest strapping to a pallet, then wrapping in reasonably thick blankets, then plastic pallet wrapping around the blankets. Should help protect against bumps, scrapes and keep it protected against rain

Building a box seems like hard work, and then runs the risk of people thinking they can stack stuff on top
Click to expand...
This is how I have had several games shipped to NZ and they arrived safe and sound. They were all Solid state so they weren't mint to start off with!
 
Cookizza said:
knowing new Zealand they will also want them sprayed if Aussie did. can't be too expensive though?
Click to expand...
Just been told by a mate that the pallet should be treated ( maybe to standard ISP15 ?) Then you should be ok, unless the container has had bugs found in it. You should be ok though.
 
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