Why do people use toilet paper to ship with?

[GMMStudios]

I use TP to ship everything, with peanuts to take up extra space if needed. I think Ive had two breakages in the past two years and i ship about four boxes a week. TP is great, but you cant just wrap it a couple times, you have to make it something like a baseball for foot minis.

Ive always wanted to prank someone and dash a little red ink on the paper Never have, and I dont think it would go over too well hehe.

[AdamSouza]

Memorable Mishaps in Trade packaging

* Recieved an entire CCG collection, some in a binder, 2000+ cards in the bottom of the box under the binder. Too bad the box had about 3 times as much empty space as it did full. By time I recieved the package it looked like they had been though a paint shaker.

* Received a Necron army in much the same state. Plastic warriors layered on the bottom, metals on top of them, and a Monolith sitting on top with about 6 inches of empty space left in the box. Everything but the monolith was destroyed. Oh yeah, there was a gorcery store bag inbetween layers. It didn't do anything to protect the models, but it did keep the smashed layers of bits from mixing much.

* Received a poorly painted army, that I assured the person I was going to strip and repaint, where each model was individually and lovingly wrapped in a full sheet of newspaper. The Newspaper easily weighed more than the models, reaked of smoke, and had cat hairs liberally mixed into it. The models were fine, but I needed a shower after seperating them from teir packing materials

[Rhaalidor]

I use TP to ship everything, with peanuts to take up extra space if needed.

Walmart (Albertson's, Walgreen's, CVS, Kroger, Whatever) bags work better, and you don't have to pay for them, And, if the freakin' box gets wet, you don't have to worry about biodegradabilty. Plastic is da' bomb.

[GMMStudios]

Let's just say I don't pay for the TP either Just don't tell the building maintenance.

[Rhaalidor]

You so funny.

[GMMStudios]

Oh I try

Seriously though, I can pack twenty armies with that stuff and only use 1/4 of the roll. Its that stuff that comes on a steel hard cardboard tube and is the size of a tire. It's not Charmin but it packs minis just fine.

[peejmode]

DAMN SON FREE TP plus models. What else can a gamer ask for?

[Soulbinder]

I am pretty much a newbie but even I know never use TP to pack with...Bubble wrap is the way to go and maybe some newspaper as filler...Just my 2 cents

[Gorblitz-Morkve]

I dont under stand why people complain when I pack minis in sandpaper, with broken glass and rock for filler. Bunch of limp wristed pansies. I know a guy named Bill Brasky who smashes miniatures with a hammer before packing them with a pair of rabid weasels in an old shoe box he finds on the side of the road.

[David Phillips]

Well, I do use TP often to wrap miniatures with (depending on the miniature of course). Individually wrapped with packing peanuts for the rest of the box has worked well for me many times. The secret I've found is that you put metal figures in a box of their own so that they are separated from the plastic. This decreased the chance of breakage greatly.

Absolute worst trade experience. Fellow sent me over 2K worth of painted Tomb Kings to make up for a really bad trade with him before hand. He placed the whole army in a box and placed a bath towel on top. Put tape on the box and shipped.

When I received the box at the Post Office I felt physically sick from the sound emanating from the box. All I can say is that a loose Casket of Souls does not mix well with with a plastic skeleton army. Good thing I've taken so many forensic anthropology/archeology classes in the past. Only way I was even able to figure out what I actually had.

David

[peacemystic]

Well, I do use TP often to wrap miniatures with (depending on the miniature of course). Individually wrapped with packing peanuts for the rest of the box has worked well for me many times. The secret I've found is that you put metal figures in a box of their own so that they are separated from the plastic. This decreased the chance of breakage greatly.

I agree,there is nothing wrong with using TP to wrap miniatures in aslong as you also use bubble wrap,packing peanuts ect,just make sure the packing doesn't allow movement and your fine,only ever had one problem when i was a noob and i didn't pack it right.

what ticks me off is getting a box with the figures in a plastic bag,and no packing at all,Hell i got on once without even the plastic bag!

Cheers
Peace

[kturock]

tp is just as bad as newspaper. it's tells me that the person is either too cheap or too ignorant to do it correctly. if you use this, expect either a neutral or bad ref from me.
step on the box of minis, or put your figure box on top after you've used tp or newspaper. that's what can happen during shipment.

the best filler is peanuts or pieces of styrofoam.
bubble warp should encase each mini.
soft foam, can also be used for large minis, but wrap it tight. it's better to keep paint from being scratched.
ziplock bags of air or wadded up supermarket/walmart/kmart bags can fill space, but don't protect as well as bubble wrap or foam.

what protects items, is something that will absorb force. put a wad of newspaper, or tp on your head and hit it with a hammer. then after you wake up, try it again with 1-2" of foam, or stryofoam. try a bag full of stryofoam peanuts.


i work for usps. i know what machines handle what items.

take note:
YOUR BOXES ARE NOT CARRIED ON SATIN PILLOWS BUT SANTAS ELVES IN THE OFF SEASON.

your boxes are put on a machine that moves at 20+ mph, faster if the plant manager is stupid, and sets the machine on it's highest setting.

then the boxes drop 4 feet into a cage, then other boxes, phonebooks, stacks of magazines or anything else up to 40 pounds drops on them. DROPS, WITH CRUSHING FORCE.

if the box you ship can't survive a kick across the room, then it's not packed right.

the larger boxes, anything bigger than 12x12x12, slide down a slide, and can have other items; sacks of mail or other boxes, weighing up to 70 pounds dropped on them. DROPPED.

put your box on the ground under a childrens slide. then have a bunch of 6-8 year olds slide down on top of it. when your'e done, thwo the mess away.

the term for sorting the mail is throwing it.. there's a reason. all mail is thrown [or dropped] during some point. all of it, goes through rollers, on converyors and down ramps.
letters get sorted in 32 feet per second. anything not flat, like 2-3 sheets of paper, will be crushed when it's in an envelope. i just pulled the remains of a diamond ring, out of a sorting machine friday feb 15th. it was crushed almost flat. someone i guess sent it in a card. the card was shredded. no happy valentines for them.

here's a small science lesson: FORCE, IT WHAT CAUSES DAMAGE.
it killed dale earnhart, it'll kill you minis.


ups and fed ex don't use as many machines, but the do use slides, rollers and ramps.

.

[GMMStudios]

what protects items, is something that will absorb force. put a wad of newspaper, or tp on your head and hit it with a hammer. then after you wake up, try it again with 1-2" of foam, or stryofoam. try a bag full of stryofoam peanuts.

.

Some people might, but what I use isn't a wad like you would blow your nose with, more like something tight and the size of a grapfruit/football. It works very well.

[kturock]

what protects items, is something that will absorb force. put a wad of newspaper, or tp on your head and hit it with a hammer. then after you wake up, try it again with 1-2" of foam, or stryofoam. try a bag full of stryofoam peanuts.

.

and it still packs down, loses all it's air pockets and becomes a solid mass.
and becomes worthless.

try this at home. take what you normally use as padding. wad it up. put it in an empty box. seal it up. then put some other box on top. or even a couple books.
come back in a week and look at the results.




Some people might, but what I use isn't a wad like you would blow your nose with, more like something tight and the size of a grapfruit/football. It works very well.

[GMMStudios]

As tight as I pack it *IS* a solid mass when it goes int he box. I don't want painted minis moving around whatsoever. Imagine casting a mini into the middle of a ball of styro, it's basically the same effect. It can't go anywhere, and couple that with a ton of them in a box, filled in and packed tight with peanuts, the minis aren't going to break, I know from experience, but enough arguing over such a trivial thing. If you don't want to use it don't.