6 Important Tips to Safely Ship Your Musical Instruments

violin, music, fiddle

Music is part of everyone’s life. It does not need to be a labeled artist’s work. It can be the simple rhythmic sound outside of your house or apartment. It can also be the barks, meows, or other sounds your pet makes. Music is all around us. It is on us to make our music ours. 

In the current pandemic, there is a hindrance in transporting things. It is due to the limitations that people do for precautionary reasons. It is hard to ship our beloved instruments with our love for music. With its unique shape and size, there is difficulty in transporting them. Luckily for you, this is a guide for shipping your musical instruments with safety!

Here are some of the tips that you need to know:

Ready Your Basic Packaging Materials

When shipping a specific item, you need to prepare basic packaging materials. But, of course, how can you send them then? 

First, you need newspaper or scratch papers that you can crumple up. You need to put this around your instrument to protect the fragile part of your instrument from breaking. You need to wrap your instrument with papers for extra safety for safety measures.

Prepare a reliable packing tape and a box fit for your instrument. Pick an excellent packing tape since it will act as the foundation for your shipment. Box size is also crucial since an instrument has a unique dimension. Check this guide for UPS box sizes by Red Stag.

It would be best to prepare scissors, bubble wrap, rubber bands, markers, and stickers. These differ from one instrument to another. You need to know what does your instrument needs.

Get its Dimensional Weight

After preparing the items, you need to know the dimensional weight of your instrument. It is essential to know since your shipping cost depends on it. In other words, if your box is big, your price is also high. 

Know your Carrier Choice

In shipping, you always need to know your carrier choice. There are various carriers there. You need to find the suitable, cost-wise, and safe one. Since you are shipping a musical instrument, chances are you will pay more.

Pack up Your Wind Instruments

If you pack your wind instruments such as trumpets, trombones, or flutes, then you are in luck! It is due to its low cost and ease of packing. Be careful, though, since loose parts are hard to accommodate and secure. 

You need to bubble wrap them with care and avoid wrapping them too tight. Make sure to wrap them close enough for security but not too much. If you have a case, secure the latches with tape or put a shipping tape.

Cargo Your String Instruments

Let us say that you are a guitarist with an expensive guitar. You need the best shipping equipment that you can find at the least cost. Do not worry because it is easy to secure and ship your guitar with a bit of help. 

In shipping string instruments, you need more preparation compared to wind instruments. It is due to its larger pieces which need separate boxes to prevent damage. Another problem that can arise is your instrument’s large size. You need a large box to accommodate that. Then, of course, you need more cost for those.

Ship Your Drum Set

Drums are somewhat easy to ship due to their separate part structure. But, it can be a bit of a challenge since it requires a lot of boxes to send as a whole. First, you need to remove the legs and take the rack tom of the drums. Then, you also need to remove the bass drum heads and the line inside the strips. Right after then, you can start wrapping them with newspaper inside. 

Make sure to use shipping tape to secure the wrappings inside the drums to avoid damages. You also need to fill the gaps within the drum with newspapers for extra protection. You can put a few drums in the same box to reduce costs for ease. But, be careful not to put too many into one container since it can also damage your set.

Check if it is Good to Add Insurance When Shipping

Now that you know all about shipping your beloved instrument, what happens now? Well, you need to think about adding insurance to your shipments. If you believe it only helps your package be more secure, you limit its advantages. Here are some of the benefits that you will get in adding insurance to your shipping:

Helps You Be Calm

It is frustrating shipping precious items since there will always be a doubt in its journey. But, with the help of the insurance, you can be calm and not worry about it. The insurance company will cover whatever damage your item will get. Of course, your item may encounter minor damages, but your insurance will cover it. 

Be a Responsible Seller

If you are selling your preloved instrument, the instrument’s safety is a priority. You do not want your customers to feel bad when they get the item. That is why you need to add insurance to avoid these problems. You may never know what will happen to your item – you need faith. In this case, trust is hard to come by since it will cost you—another reason why you should be sure and get the insurance.

New in the business? Check out Red Stag Fulfillment! They ship instruments the most secure way from warehouse to buyers. You can also get some tips from Marketdoxa.

It is Simple and Easy

If you think that getting insurance requires much paperwork, you are wrong. Carrier companies offer insurance to their shipments more often than you think. This means that simple addition to your shipment will guarantee safety to your item.

You Are to Blame When it has Damages

If you have no insurance, the shipment is your full responsibility. If it gets damaged, the carrier company will not cover for it. When you sell or give it to someone, they will feel sad with your broken instrument. Save yourself with the blames with the insurance. 

Save Costs When Shipping Instruments

If you think about it, you are saving more in investing in insurance than you think. The original price of your instrument with its memories comprises its actual cost. Those are the real cost that exists within your instrument. You do not want to let it all to waste when shipping it. That is why you should get insurance. With a small cost, you are sure to save more.

Shipping instruments is a significant problem for those who own one. It requires tremendous effort and cost to accommodate it. Therefore, you need to follow the guideline discussed to maximize your shipments. 

New in the business? Check out Red Stag Fulfillment! They ship instruments the most secure way from warehouse to buyers. 

This is a Contributor Post. Opinions expressed here are opinions of the Contributor. Influencive does not endorse or review brands mentioned; does not and cannot investigate relationships with brands, products, and people mentioned and is up to the Contributor to disclose. Contributors, amongst other accounts and articles may be professional fee-based.