Who do I call to ship a pinball machine?

ArcadeMonitor

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I have never shipped an arcade or pinball machine before and I don't want to get over charged, I am in Bakersfield CA. Does anyone know who I should call to ship a pinball machine? Thanks!
 
I have never shipped an arcade or pinball machine before and I don't want to get over charged, I am in Bakersfield CA. Does anyone know who I should call to ship a pinball machine? Thanks!

You might could call NAVL (www.northamerican.com) and they might be able to quote you, but it might also be high. You could also check to see if you have a Forward Air depot around you. Also, you could check the site uship.com. UShip is sort of like the ebay of shipping. You post an 'auction' saying you want Item A shipped to Location X, and shippers bid on it. You can get great results, but also bad ones.
 
There are many shippers, but I have had the most success with North American Van Lines. Other companies like UShip can be cheaper, but they take up to two weeks longer.

For the quality, peace of mind, and quickness, I recommend NAVL. 1-800-959-8880 Ext 2.
 
There are many shippers, but I have had the most success with North American Van Lines. Other companies like UShip can be cheaper, but they take up to two weeks longer.

For the quality, peace of mind, and quickness, I recommend NAVL. 1-800-959-8880 Ext 2.

+1 for NAVL. Awesome service and they blanket wrap your stuff prior to its departure.
 
I've had great luck with uship. I purchased an old em twin rifle game just this week, put up a bid request with my target price, and received a bid close to my target within a couple of days. Game was picked up this morning, blanket wrapped, and on it's way to me now. Probably paid close to half of what I would have paid elsewhere. Just make sure you screen the shipper first and get one with good feedback before booking. Make sure to ask the right questions regarding packing, handling, etc. and, if possible, have the seller to take it apart and shrink wrap prior to pickup.

Good Luck!
 
Shipping

I have never personally used them, but I have heard that Fastenal will ship to any of there locations pretty cheap. You have to bring the game to any Fastenal location. They will ship it to another Fastenal location in the US. Personally, I use NAVL. It runs about 400-500 to ship a machine in the US. If you ship 2 games it is about the same, so if you have more than one machine going to the same location, it is definitely more cost effective. If you do have a problem, your stuff is insured for $1500 per game with NAVL. Getting paid from them is another story, but they are usually pretty good.
 
Try sending jk2171 a PM. He bought a GnR pin and had it shipped from Broken Arrow to Chicagoland area and from what i remember it was a relatively good price. One thing that he did was have the seller pack the machine so that the shipping company only had to pick up in the driveway and load to the truck. The less you have the shipping company do the less it cost.... of course. :)
 
Thanks everybody! I have a friend that had a friend that ships stuff all the time and ship the pinball for me and gave me his deal! All I had to do was put it on a palette. The guy has a shipping broker and was able to send the pinball to Seattle Washington a 1000 miles from me in two days for $180! To there door step! The company that shipped the pinball was http://www.rlcarriers.com/ and it made it to its destination in perfect working order!


Here are some pics of how I packaged the pinball!

bride-of-pinbot-being-shipped.JPG

bride-of-pinbot-being-shipped-pic2.JPG
 
Nice job on the pinball packing!

Just had my first bad expirence with NAVL :(

Shipped a Stern IJ pinball out to a customer and member here.. Spent 3 hours packing it up with lots of foam, cardboard, and wrap.. Pin was delivered with a smashed playfield glass, head glass, and other damage.. Seemes as they stacked heavy stuff ontop of the pin. Even when I specifically showed them the top and bottom and pointed out that there was glass.. Plus had them write it down.. Totally sucks as it took the dude hours to vacuum up all the broken glass.. Damn pin was HUO I think, or the cleanest route game I've ever seen..

Haven't heard back if NAVL is paying up.. Hope they do!
 
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