Our Mascot

You know what they say about boxes being shipped:  Not so much "handled" as dropped, thrown, or subject to a pickup game of soccer. I don't really believe in "F.C. UPS" but it's tempting to think so when I see what comes in sometimes.


I don't know what this thing is

Actually it's probably a Scan Coin coin counter. Great product, but heavy and fragile. Doesn't deserve this kind of treatment. All the pre-crushed packing peanuts in the world won't protect it.


Cranes are delicate birds

A long, thin mechanism that must not be bent or twisted needs special care. We recommend that it be bagged (to keep it clean) and then to be buried deep in loose fill, in a box several inches larger on all sides.


It should not be tossed into an empty box that isn't long enough to fit it and handed to the driver. Pulleys break, rods bend, frames twist, and let's not even go into how the sharp corners can cut their way right out of a box. Because, frankly, this box is in such bad shape the corner was probably open already.

A Happ gun in a flat envelope

This is my favorite package of all.

This post is dedicated to those United Parcel Service workers out there who actually delivered this package from another city, on time, with the "contents" in good condition.


Yes, this is exactly how it came to us. There is no packing material. Nor is there tape holding the "package" together.

No, I don't know how they fit a 3-dimensional object into what is plainly labeled as a Letter size document envelope.

No, I don't know how anyone thought that the hard, triangular plate that is at right angles to the rest of the gun could possibly fit into a flat anything. (If you aren't familiar with the Happ gun, see photo below.)




All I know is that I believe in miracles. That, and the patience and sense of humor of people at UPS just doing their jobs to the best of their ability.

Small pulpy boxes are just as bad as big ones

It couldn't hold its shape when it came to you, so it sure won't protect your item when it leaves your store for our shop.



Monitor board without packaging

That metal plate will only protect one side of your monitor board. The other side, with all the parts on it, are at the mercy of every conveyor belt and gloved Tom Brady wannabe.

No, wait, I see this one has a second piece of metal on the bottom (the side plate with transistor mounted to it; I think that was Virtua Racing.) So it's Transistor Salad Sandwich with the filling crushed with every drop, plus the neck board on the side being repeatedly stabbed with a sharp corner of the plate.


Monitor board broken in two

Pretty much speaks for itself. The box is big enough, but the item wasn't immobilized with packing material. It probably tumbled like a bingo ball in there. As a result, that circuit board on the right side of the photo, which is supposed to be flat, is in a "V" shape, with every connection across the middle broken in two. Ouch.


Side of veal, maybe?

When packing your delicate electronic items, don't use soft, pulpy boxes that are only good for overseas shipments of soft plush toys.



A CRT monitor packed in loose newspaper (2 photos)


Very rarely we may get an entire monitor in for repair. A 19" monitor is roughly 23-25kg or 50-55 pounds, and when it's shipped all that weight tends to slide around inside the carton. The necessity of supporting and securing the frame with solid packing material is always stressed.

How did this thing survive the journey??


Oh. It didn't. (Surprisingly, even with the neck board smashed in two, I think the glass neck itself was not damaged.)

Item sitting on a nice bed. Rest of box, empty.


Where's the packing material?

I admit, this old-fashioned dollar bill validator is built like a tank. Let's not expect it to go to war, too.


The box needs to be BIGGER than the item


It didn't take much to get this carton open. Just because it's metal, doesn't mean it's armored.

Just pick the peanuts out of it

Some things have to be bagged in shipping. This type of old bill stacker loves to fill up with packing peanuts.