I make my own shipping boxes. I describe my procedure below which in reality is much easier and faster than it reads. I have employed this to ship by post office quite a few radios and power supplies (i.e. Collins and Drake gear) and have not had any damage. I have found the Styrofoam used here to be very 'forgiving'.
You need to 'float' the item in a single shipping box. Select a box that is at least 2" wider on each side, top and bottom and 3-4" wider front and back. Get some solid Styrofoam insulation, preferably 2" thick; 1" thick will work. Make a template of the rig's front or back for size. Measure the inside of the box's front and back for height and width. With this measurement cut two pieces of the Styrofoam board using utility knife. Center the template from above on the Styrofoam board, mark and cut out the opening. Slide the two Styrofoam boards onto the rig, say 1", one front and one back. You may have to partially notch the board to accept the rigs feet. It should be a firm fit. Place the rig into the box. It should be a firm fit and the two Styrofoam board supports will 'float' the rig in the box. The Styrofoam board support boards and rig need to be secured in place. Once the rig is floating in the box, it will become obvious where additional blocking needs to take place. Take other pieces of Styrofoam, cut to size to go between the rigs front (2) and back (2), glued to the box, and resting on the outside edges of the rig away from any knobs. This will prevent the rig from sliding forward or rearward. Now take other pieces of Styrofoam, cut to size and glue inside to the box sides (3 per side) to hold the Styrofoam board supporting the rig in place. You can add bubble wrap, crumbled paper, peanuts, foam to fill the openings, front, back, sides, top and bottom. I also try to place the rig inside a plastic bag to reduce any chances of scratching. Doug/VA5DX -----Original Message----- From: Elecraft [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of W1GO (Joe) Sent: February-18-17 7:19 PM To: James Setzler Cc: Elecraft Reflector Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K3 Shipping Box James I had to send my KPA500 (including transformer) back to Elecraft from NY. My KPA500 was a kit so, like you, I had to figure out the best packaging. The KPA500 is much heavier than the K3s, so if you package as has been recommended (i.e. 2 inches peanuts or bubble pack on all sides and no movement), you should be fine. And, be sure to get the correct amount of insurance. By the way, the packaging sent back from Elecraft had absolutely no peanuts or bubble wrap; it wasn't needed. The two big foam end pieces held the KPA500 rock solid in the box; There's no way I'm throwing that box and foam pieces away. Good luck, Joe W1GO --- This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software. https://www.avast.com/antivirus ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:[email protected] This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to [email protected]
