Now, get out the stencils and black spray paint and start spraying. Thanks to Michael Glavin for his post on the IMAC board regarding what should be stenciled on the crate. If you can't read it on the picture, the two messages that should be applied to all sides are "Fragile Aircraft Parts" and "Top Load Only". I also added an "Up" and arrow, and on the bottom I added "Other Side Up", but I built the crate to be safe in any position, and I think that's the way you should approach it too.

You also need to write the "From" and "To" addresses on the crate too, though the shipper will also add their own labels.

(c) Copyright 2001 Bill Pryor All Rights Reserved - Republishing is welcome as long as the article stays intact and unmodified, including copyright info. bpryor@interprisenow.com .

Shipping:

As far as shippers go, here are the two I considered. First, Forward Air is pretty much the best there is for cost.  This crate going from San Jose, CA to Tucson, AZ would cost $68 including $2500 insurance. You need to take the crate to a major airport served by Forward Air, and the crate will have to be picked up at an airport served by Forward Air.  This is also true of the second carrier I considered, Southwest Airlines Cargo. I considered them because they are extremely reasonable for fast delivery.  The cost was $158. There is at least one concern with them, this crate was right at the maximum that would fit on the plane. The maximum weight of any one crate is 150lbs,  but you can ship multiple crates for one total freight charge.  Southwest has three levels of service. Same day, 24 hour guarantee and standard freight. Standard means it gets on the next flight space permitting.  My experience? I used standard freight and I dropped the crate off with Southwest at 11 a.m. and it arrived in Tucson the same day at 4:40 p.m. Shipping by truck lines would have been over $200 and would have taken about a week. A pretty good deal if you as me. Oh, and I suppose you want to know what shape it arrived in? Perfect. Exactly as when I packed it. No damage.

One more note. Forward Air requires room under the crate for a fork lift to pick it up, while Southwest doesn't want anything on the bottom. If you're shipping Forward, just screw on a couple of 4X4s to the bottom. 

I hope this article is helpful for you and now there are no more excuses! Good luck shipping. Bill

Important Note: One thing Southwest didn't tell me before I took the crate in is that you have to open it for inspection before they'll take it. Oops. I ended up taking an extra half hour (thankfully with one of Southwestern's employees helping me) manually unscrewing 40 screws to let them take a look. They liked the plane. :-)