Freightquote.com - a good service

[Le Chuck]

Recently I bought some furniture in Canada and Jabba was a huge help in shipping it to me in Alabama.  I set up the shipping through freightquote.com and was really pleased.  I spent a lot of time on the phone going over the details of the shipment and their associates really worked with me to get a great rate.

A lot of your shipping rate is based on the freight class as much as on the distance.  Fer instance if you can classify a non working arcade machine much differently than an unboxed minty machine.  Ditto pinballs.  Another trick to saving $$$ is terminal drop off and delivery.  Freight quote doesn't have awesome prices right out of the box but they are very patient and willing to build the shipment around your needs.  The rest of the shipping class seems to be based on whether or not the shipper has to come and get the item.

For my furniture I was able to get it classed as 75 for one box and 100 for the other.  Total weight was over 300 lbs.  Items were not palatalized (you can do this with arcades but I wouldn't recommend it for pins).  Jabba is an awesome individual and was willing to drop off at the carrier terminal that was in his town.  I was willing to pick up at the carrier terminal a town away.  Shipping from ON to AL cost me $200.  Now bonding and import duties raped me but that has nothing to do with the shipper and if you're doing international it's the nature of the beast. 

I almost bought a forum member's SEGA Hang On that was for sale up in Chicago.  Shipping to AL was going to run neighborhood of $130 with terminal drop off and pickup.  Unfortunately drop off wasn't feasible for the seller and residential pickup ballooned the price to over $300 so I couldn't bite.

I wanted to post this for any users intimated by shipping machines.  If you can find a seller willing to go to a terminal and you are willing to do the same you can get some really amazing rates.  Not everybody can do that I understand but it really is worth the hassle IMO. The reason I'd recommend freightquote is that they have a good network and can hook you up with the shipper that has a route to where you need, which saves you even more dough on a less than a truckload shipment.  That's all.  Thanks.

[paigeoliver]

Always try and put your games on pallets. I worked in a shipping warehouse for a while in my early 20s and every once in a while unpalleted arcade games would come through and we would still pick them up with the forklift anyway.

[hypernova]

Freightquote is decent, but if you have any connections with people who work a warehouse, they should be able to easily beat freightquote's pricing.  We used that website for a few months, then went with dealing with carriers ourselves.  Much better service.

Freightquote used to use Central Transport.  It was always their lowest rate.  Of course, there was a reason for that.

[Le Chuck]

Freightquote is decent, but if you have any connections with people who work a warehouse, they should be able to easily beat freightquote's pricing.  We used that website for a few months, then went with dealing with carriers ourselves.  Much better service.

Freightquote used to use Central Transport.  It was always their lowest rate.  Of course, there was a reason for that.

Providing that the particular warehouse you're friendly with has routes and drivers that are routinely heading where you're shipping I can see that being the case. For a once in a while shipper (like myself) it is much easier to use their service to help me find the proper carrier. 

Always try and put your games on pallets. I worked in a shipping warehouse for a while in my early 20s and every once in a while unpalleted arcade games would come through and we would still pick them up with the forklift anyway.

Fair enough, good advice.  Most of these places have stacks of pallets lying around and the dock workers are usually pretty cool about hooking you up I've noticed.   

[pinballjim]

I've had two games shipped and both times I've asked if they could help me cut the straps and lift it off the pallet after we got it into my truck.

Both times I was told, 'I don't have a knife'.  A warehouse worker without a knife.  Sure.  Pretty cool dudes.

The second time I was able to say, "that's okay, I brought one!" 

 

[Le Chuck]

I've had two games shipped and both times I've asked if they could help me cut the straps and lift it off the pallet after we got it into my truck.

Both times I was told, 'I don't have a knife'.  A warehouse worker without a knife.  Sure.  Pretty cool dudes.

The second time I was able to say, "that's okay, I brought one!" 

 

You live in the armpit of the universe.  What do you expect? 

[Le Chuck]

Yeah, MO is pretty much the shipping hub of the US.  Still, St. Louis is not one of my ideal places to live.  My carrier choice is more limited being where I am but I'm close enough to Atlanta that I can get to the major shippers if I need to.