Problem with FedEx Ground Shipping?

LAST YEAR FEDEX DAMAGED A 150 POUND TUBE RESEARCH PREAMP, IN A VERY WELL BUILT WOODEN CRATE "3 TIMES" BEFORE THEY GOT IT TO ME UNDAMAGED. THIS HAPPENED OVER A 6 MONTH PERIOD. LUCKILY I KNOW THE MAKER/OWNER AND WE STUCK THEM WITH OVER $7000 IN DAMAGES, BUT IT WAS NOT A FUN EXPERIENCE BECAUSE I WAS WITHOUT A PREAMP FOR ABOUT 7-8 MONTHS AND MADE A LITTLE MONEY TO BOOT> I THINK THEY SUCK AND I WILL NEVER USE THEM AGAIN AND YES THEY WERE DIFFICULT TO DEAL WITH. GOOD LUCK!

Ekl sorry to hear about this problem. I've been using FedX Ground almost exclusively due to all the bad reports about UPS; no problems here over many shipmments. However a repair center that I recently spoke with via phone was dead set against any FedX shipments. Said that they damaged a component & then refused to pay the repairs, while UPS has been cooperative regarding any claims. Sounds like now there is no choice but to hand carry!

I play hockey with a guy who works for FedEx, interesting from an insiders viewpoint. Although you and I see no difference between overnight delivery of an envelope and shipping a box using their ground service, they operate as two seperate companies. I tried to get a quote to ship some Apogee speakers and their website was down; I called customer service and they told me they get their info from the website so I'd have to wait until the site was up and running again. I waited two days and gave up. According to my buddy If you can afford to use the cheapest Fed EX service I suspect you'll be satisfied with the condition of your shipment and reliable delivery, as opposed to Fed EX Ground. As an alternative suggestion, find a transportation broker in your area. I found one who got my Apogees to me by truck...the speakers were loaded in the truck (strapped to a a pallet)and got to me in four days. $140 for 2000 miles, shipment fully insured (the shipment was 55" x 24" x 33" and weighed 160lbs). The nice thing about this arrangement is once it's on the truck it stays there til it gets to you, as opposed to being transferred through sorting stations (the infamous three-foot drop from conveyor belt to conveyor belt) and various planes/trucks along the way. Jeff