Materials guide for LEGO selling & shipping

Many members have asked for a centralized place where they can go for shipping box information. I'm going to pin this post and update it as new information is provided. I just want to take a few minutes and thank those who wrote the following articles. They are still very good reference materials for the LEGO storage and shipping process. I may develop this into a blog article eventually.

Fcbarcelona101's : Selling LEGO : Basic Materials Guide
Mos Eisley 's : LEGO Storage Wars

Incompetech's Catalog of Amazon.com Box Sizes - (thanks No More Monkeys)

Amazon Boxes Sorted list by length - courtesy of pstebbing

I've scoured the forums and here is a list of box sizes with basic set information:

Boxes:
24x20x8 : Super Star Destroyer; Death Star, Roller Coaster, UCS Sandcrawler, Assembly Square
24x20x6 : Thicker sets like Town Hall, Tower Bridge
24x16x6 - 60052 Cargo Train, R2-D2, Maersk Line Triple-E, 7939 Cargo Train
24x16x4 - Helm's Deep, Vampyre Castle, Black Pearl, Friends Riding Camp, Parisian Restaurant, High Speed Passenger Train, Jabba's Palace, Downtown Diner
24x20x4 : Grand Emporium, Pet Shop, Imperial Shuttle, Haunted House, Palace Cinema, Fire Brigade
24x14x4 : Dolphin Cruiser, Coast Guard Patrol
24x4x12 - Dolphin Cruiser, Coast Guard Patrol
20x16x4 - Volkswagen Camper Van, Olivia's House, Sonic Raider, Sopwith, Creator Bike Shop, Batcave, Quinjet, Moria & Ambush
20x16x6 : Thicker sets like the Republic Gunship; City Cargo Plane
20x14x4 : Attack on Weathertop, Hulk 's Helicarrier Breakout, X-Wing 9493, Black Gate
16x16x4 : Gungan Sub, Pre Viszla, Tie Fighter
16x10x4 : Council of Elrond, Desert Skiff, City Grand Prix Truck
16x10x6 : Thicker sets like Creator Family House, Hillside House
15x12x4 : Funhouse, Orc Forge, Tumbler Chase, Daily Bugle Showdown, Hulk Lab Smash
12x12x4 : Uruk Hai Army, City Cargo Truck, Creator Treehouse, City Fire Emergency
11-3/4x8-3/4x4-3/4 : Wolverine Chopper, Arctic Batman, Power Armor Lex, Droid Escape, Cloud Cuckoo Palace
12x8x3 - Battle Packs, CA Avenging Cycle, Catwoman, Gandalf Arrives, Holiday sets
10x8x4 : Battle Packs, CA Avenging Cycle, Catwoman, Gandalf Arrives, Holiday sets

Envelopes:
4x8 : Minifigs & small polybags
6x9 : Polybags small & larger
10.5 x 16 : Larger shipments of 3 x polybags or more

Packing Tape : buy in bulk or on sale : you can throw some in during a Staples coupon promotion to get up to free shipping
Walmart.com Duck Brand Packaging Tape
http://www.staples.com/Staples-Standard-Grade-Packaging-Tape-Clear-189-x-110-yds-6-Rolls/product_380107

Retailers:
Uline.com : holiday sale starts first part of November (usually 30% off)
Staples.com : use coupon promotions - $10 off $30, $20 off $75, free shipping over $60
Walmart.com
USPS Priority Mail (free boxes at USPS.com)

 

Michigan Box Company:

Flat Boxes 18"-23" L  (thanks pstebbing)

GBE Packaging (thanks pstebbing)
 

PackingSupplies.com

http://www.packaging...ated_boxes.html     (thanks pstebbing)

 

Bubble Wrap:
3/16" thick x 350' ft x 12" wide - eBay

 

Sams Club

3/16" - 12"x240' $12.98 (In store) ($.05/LF) (thanks pstebbing)

I like to use large and small retailer plastic bags to wrap items in, even after I bubble wrap it.

For battle packs and even small sets, I sometimes use Wal-Mart, Target, or plastic bags from any store. Additional packing isn 't really needed. Usually like 2 bags on bottom, one to wrap the item, and two bags on top. Make sure to cover the corners of the item real nice to provide extra padding.

Rule of thumb : ship & pack all of your items the same way you 'd like to receive items you've purchased.

Shipping Paper:
Collect it when you receive shipments.
http://www.amazon.com/Pratt-Multipurpose-Packaging-KPR30241200R-Length/dp/B00AI652CM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1408061459&sr=8-1&keywords=pratt+kraft+paper+1200?

Shipping Labels & Printers:
Dymo 450 & Dymo 400
Brother QL-700

DoNotInsertIntoMouth's : How to setup your label printer for shipping on eBay


Feel free to post a follow-up or point out anything I missed. I 'll update it with what everyone wants added. I hope this is helpful.

I made a mistake on an order, missed an item, and need to ship it internationally. I already bought shipping through PayPal. How can I buy a new label for the same address, and get the same USPS discount?

Www.paypal.com/shipnow

I made a mistake on an order, missed an item, and need to ship it internationally. I already bought shipping through PayPal. How can I buy a new label for the same address, and get the same USPS discount?

I made a mistake on an order, missed an item, and need to ship it internationally. I already bought shipping through PayPal. How can I buy a new label for the same address, and get the same USPS discount?

Do you need me to answer this Q again?

@philb
lol my mobile posted it twice. Thank you for the answer. If I could LIKE it twice more, I would =)

Any UK recommendations for a source of cheap, small boxes (as close to 45x35x16 cm)? Exhausted my free supply.

I guess this could be a relevant thread.

I received this email from PayPal this morning. 1:30am

 

.75 lbs is 12oz. So .78 lbs is .... 12.48oz

 

I was off buy less than 1/2 an oz.

 

First UPS steals my office chair.

Then Kmart sends me a mystery box of shoes.

Lego might not send me multiple freebies.

And usps is warning me about .48 oz.

 

So this is what it's like to be reseller scum.

 

 

Anyway, be careful. They're watching us.

I think I've done worse. [emoji56]

Not sure if this is the right place to put this, but I need some advise.

I got a email from a pissed off BL buyer who was buying some Bionicle for resale. His package was completely MANGLED by USPS.

Of course all of the boxes are smashed, and he was pissed. I refunded him for the three unsellable ones and gave him $10.00 in store credit to hopefully get him back in the door someday (~$30 total)

Then I went to file a claim with USPS, as the package had $50.00 of insurance attached to it. According to the instuctions, I had to give a statement of the items value from a credible retailer. As it was 70792 Skull Slicer, I attached screenshots of Kmart.com ($11.20) and Toys R Us.com ($14.99). I claimed $11.20 for each item for a total of $33.60.

I attached 12 pictures the buyer sent with me of the extensive box damage, and several of the crushed Lego boxes. I filled each as "collectables" as there was no other suitable category. Looking over it it looked just like the example from the tutorial video. I then submitted the claim.

 

This morning I check and see that it had been denied. No explanation and no email. Only note was that they had sent me a letter explaining the denial.

 

What should I do to get my money back? Appeal the decision? Wait for the letter? Talk to my postmaster?

I getting near my 400th order and I have never had problems like this before. I would appreciate any advise.

Edited February 16, 20178 yr by MinifigW

23 minutes ago, MinifigW said:

)

 

23 minutes ago, MinifigW said:

Not sure if this is the right place to put this, but I need some advise.

I got a email from a pissed off BL buyer who was buying some Bionicle for resale. His package was completely MANGLED by USPS.

Of course all of the boxes are smashed, and he was pissed. I refunded him for the three unsellable ones and gave him $10.00 in store credit to hopefully get him back in the door someday (~$30 total)

Then I went to file a claim with USPS, as the package had $50.00 of insurance attached to it. According to the instuctions, I had to give a statement of the items value from a credible retailer. As it was 70792 Skull Slicer, I attached screenshots of Kmart.com ($11.20) and Toys R Us.com ($14.99). I claimed $11.20 for each item for a total of $33.60.

I attached 12 pictures the buyer sent with me of the extensive box damage, and several of the crushed Lego boxes. I filled each as "collectables" as there was no other suitable category. Looking over it it looked just like the example from the tutorial video. I then submitted the claim.

 

This morning I check and see that it had been denied. No explanation and no email. Only note was that they had sent me a letter explaining the denial.

 

What should I do to get my money back? Appeal the decision? Wait for the letter? Talk to my postmaster?

I getting near my 400th order and I have never had problems like this before. I would appreciate any advise.

I recommend that you contact USPS Consumer Affairs. Here is link to get you started to locate the nearest office.  Be polite and explain your situation.  Their job and duty is to ensure that your needs are met and satisfied. Furthermore, they are able to determine who to contact and what to get through in a chain of command.

Personal story, I was checking an eBay sale one day and I noticed that the package had yet to be delivered.  After talking with my local post office manager and calling the potential USPS office at the destination went nowhere, I got in contact with a Consumer Affairs office. Now the number I found was in Virginia but the Virginia people were kind enough to direct me to the right people in Florida and also give me names to contact. Within the same day, they managed to determine when my package was delivered, where it was delivered, and to whom it was given to.  So they were able to verify that the package was delivered to an agent and formally out of both our hands.  We were not liable for any of it.

As an aside, the buyer claimed that he had no idea who the person it was delivered to was and no one at the address knew said person, despite a paper trail showing it was delivered to someone.  But that's another story.

Give it a shot.

15 minutes ago, brickolodon said:

What's the price? Staples had these on sale in my store as well, I believe $15.99 for 8 rolls. EDIT: Nope, 6 rolls. Doesn't show as sale price online (8 rolls are on sale for $25.29).

Edited February 16, 20178 yr by Phil B

i have no idea just noticed coupon on my cell...i can tell you over weekend.

The Costco sale for 8 rolls is about $16 with tax, Costco usually has this sale twice a year, I will be buying 10 Bundles of them, 80 rolls.

Are there any other deals for packing tape for us non Costco members? Finally ran out.

For those in the US: Staples is closing a boatload of stores, as they lost over half a billion usd last year: http://money.cnn.com/2017/03/09/news/companies/staples-store-closings/index.html

9 minutes ago, Phil B said:

For those in the US: Staples is closing a boatload of stores, as they lost over half a billion usd last year: http://money.cnn.com/2017/03/09/news/companies/staples-store-closings/index.html

That explains the lack of coupons

I just wish they would adopt the Kmart/Sears business practice of making better offers to customers when they are facing difficult times financially.

Yea, eBay got 36 rolls for 29.99...have no idea about quality.

 

 

1 minute ago, brickolodon said:

Yea, eBay got 36 rolls for 29.99...have no idea about quality.

 

 

?

3 minutes ago, pstebbing said:

?

TP.

7 minutes ago, Phil B said:

TaPe.

Funny. I scrolled up. (thanks lazy index finger).

Edited March 9, 20178 yr by pstebbing

I only ever use 3M brown packing tape. Last time I paid £45 for 100 rolls and shared them with mates. Cheap/crap tape is a false economy and gets unstuck too easily. Find others to share materials with and the price drops significantly.

any new staples coupons? need to refill on boxes

6 minutes ago, jerryherb said:

any new staples coupons? need to refill on boxes

only see this one:

$5 off $30 mail & ship products at regular price

Code: 16616.

I'm guessing Staples loses money on their big box sales. They haven't had a good one in over a year.