Shipping a guitar can be a nerve-wracking experience for any musician. The thought of your prized instrument being tossed around in transit is enough to make anyone anxious. Whether you’re selling a guitar online, sending it for repairs, or moving to a new location, proper packing is crucial to ensure it arrives safely at its destination. While some might consider using readily available materials like Guitar Newspaper for packing, understanding the best practices and materials is essential for maximum protection. This guide will walk you through the steps to pack your guitar like a pro, ensuring peace of mind and safe travels for your instrument.
Securing your guitar within its case is the first line of defense. Start by using appropriate paper to fill any empty spaces inside the case.
Alt text: Close-up of a guitar case interior, showing kraft paper wadded up and strategically placed in the neck pocket and around the headstock to immobilize the guitar.
Butcher’s paper or Kraft paper, free of inks, are excellent choices for this purpose. Clean newsprint, available from packing supply stores, is another option. Kraft paper offers superior structural strength compared to newsprint. Focus on the neck pocket area first. Fill the entire neck pocket in the case with wads of paper, ensuring the guitar’s headstock rests slightly elevated when placed inside. Then, pack more wads of paper over the headstock to further secure it. You should feel a slight resistance when closing the guitar case lid, indicating a snug fit.
If there’s any empty space beneath the guitar neck between the neck supports, fill this area with wads of paper as well. For guitars with an endpin, it’s advisable to remove it. Wrap the endpin separately in paper and store it safely in the case’s string compartment or accessory area. If the guitar doesn’t fit snugly within the case itself, use clean newsprint to pack around the guitar body until it achieves a snug fit. The goal is to make the guitar as secure as “a pug within the case,” minimizing any movement during transit. Finally, place a small wad of paper over the bridge, saddle, and pins for added protection.
After securing the guitar within its case, place a clean, flat sheet of paper between the strings and the fretboard, extending over the guitar’s top. This prevents string marks or potential damage to the fretboard and top during shipping. To prevent accidental opening during transit, tape the case latches securely shut.
Alt text: A close-up of a guitar case latch, showing strong packing tape securely fastening it closed to prevent accidental opening during shipping.
While some shippers might suggest filling the shipping box with wads of newspaper around the case, it’s crucial to understand the limitations of newspaper as a primary cushioning material. While readily available, newspaper lacks significant impact and crush resistance. Imagine a shipping box, potentially weighing 20-25 pounds, being dropped or heavily handled. Wads of newspaper will simply compress and offer minimal protection against the G-forces generated by sudden impacts.
For optimal protection, utilize a combination of soft and semi-dense packing materials. Large bubble-wrap provides a soft layer of cushioning around the hard shell case. For more robust support, incorporate semi-dense materials like rolled-up tubes of cut-up shipping box cardboard or even empty, rinsed, and dried plastic bottles (sealed with their caps and tape). Pack these firmer materials around the guitar case within the shipping box.
Foam peanuts are another effective option, despite their environmental drawbacks and tendency to create mess. When packed tightly, foam peanuts excel at preventing the guitar case from shifting within the shipping box. For easier handling and cleanup, consider packing foam peanuts into grocery bags, sealing the bags, and then using these bags as cushions around the guitar case.
Ensuring the structural integrity of the shipping box is paramount. Once packed and sealed, the sides of the shipping box should not flex or cave in when pressed. The box should feel sturdy and capable of supporting pressure, indicating sufficient packing material.
Shipping carriers often calculate billing based on the larger of either the dimensional/volumetric weight or the actual weight of the package. A 48″x20″x8″ box, for instance, has a dimensional weight of approximately 55.375 pounds. This means you’ll be charged for this weight even if the actual weight is less, unless the actual weight is higher. Therefore, economizing on packing materials to reduce weight is often counterproductive. The formula for dimensional/volumetric weight calculation is: (Length x Height x Width / 5000) x 36.0515. Carriers use the longest dimension of an irregularly shaped box, treating it as a rectangular box for calculation purposes. Using a rectangular box is therefore recommended as there are no cost savings in using trapezoidal boxes.
Relying solely on bubble-wrap directly around the guitar case inside a shipping box is insufficient. Air bubbles in bubble-wrap compress significantly, especially in cold temperatures, such as those encountered at high altitudes (e.g., 35,000 feet in air cargo). While air expands upon descent to sea level, the transit time from air cargo to delivery truck can be critical. During this period, minimal protection against case shifting is provided. Ground delivery, in warmer conditions, doesn’t present the same issue with bubble-wrap compression.
One anecdote illustrates the inadequacy of excessive bubble-wrap alone. A guitar shipped from Japan, encased in a 2.5″ thick cocoon of bubble-wrap within a trapezoidal box, arrived with no external box damage except for accordion pleats at the neck end. However, upon unwrapping, the guitar case had a sheared hinge, an askew lid, and a broken headstock due to insufficient internal support, particularly around the headstock. This highlights that massive amounts of bubble-wrap alone are ineffective against the forces of moving mass during shipping.
Double-boxing or lining the inner walls of the shipping box with cut-up cardboard significantly strengthens the packaging. Standard shipping boxes often utilize single-ply corrugated cardboard, which is often inadequate for individual parcel shipping through freight services. Guitar manufacturers typically ship in bulk to retailers using contracted carriers, making single-ply boxes suitable for their controlled shipping environments. Individual shipments, however, are mixed with diverse packages and require enhanced protection.
Utilizing end-caps, like those used by Ibanez or Taylor Guitars, provides substantial reinforcement to the shipping box corners, offering added protection against impacts.
Even with robust packing, extreme events can occur. A Gibson ES-175, shipped in a double-lined box with foam peanuts, once sustained a 4″ gash from a forklift. The double-lined box and foam peanuts provided enough resistance to alert the forklift driver before catastrophic damage occurred, resulting in only a dimple on the hard shell case. Without these measures, the forklift blade would have likely penetrated completely before detection. While no packing method is forklift-proof, robust packing significantly improves the chances of damage mitigation by providing early warning.
Shipping insurance through carriers like UPS and FedEx is often unreliable, with claims frequently denied. Consider insuring your parcel through your home insurer instead. Carrier-provided insurance can be perceived as “free money for the carriers” due to the difficulty in claim approvals.
By following these comprehensive packing guidelines, you can significantly increase the safety of your guitar during shipping, going beyond basic measures like using guitar newspaper. Prioritizing robust materials, secure internal packing, and a sturdy shipping box are key to ensuring your instrument arrives at its destination in perfect playing condition. Good luck, and ship with confidence!
