Anyone deal with Card Kingdom?

[EVIL INC]

The entire thing was indeed wrapped in wrapping tape. this prevented any tearing or moisture from getting in. The solid/thick cardboard provided sturdiness and the extra inside plastic/foil wraps were just extras in case by some miracle something were to get through the layers of wrapping tape and corrugated cardboard.
I just used the online yellow pages to look up their # as I did before. It is mysteriously not listed now.

[MagickalMemories]

Now, I don't know how you custom cut your box, so this isn't directly aimed at you, EI. it's just a general comment on custom making boxes.
Try not to do that.

Don't get me wrong... I've done it before (sort of). I've taken boxes that were too tall & cut the sides down so that they folded up to have a smaller overall footprint. In all honesty, that isn't the best way to do things. If you di any more "customizing," you're really looking for trouble.

As a basic rule. The more you alter a box from the way it was originally manufactured, the less structurally sound it is. It really messes with the integrity.

Eric

[JohnHwangBT]

Now, I don't know how you custom cut your box, so this isn't directly aimed at you, EI. it's just a general comment on custom making boxes.

Try not to do that.

Don't get me wrong... I've done it before (sort of). I've taken boxes that were too tall & cut the sides down so that they folded up to have a smaller overall footprint. In all honesty, that isn't the best way to do things. If you di any more "customizing," you're really looking for trouble.

As a basic rule. The more you alter a box from the way it was originally manufactured, the less structurally sound it is. It really messes with the integrity.

Eric

Eric, I ship 80+%, probably 90-95% of my stuff in custom-made boxes, and I've *never* had an issue with box integrity. I like use a minimum-size box template that is 7/8" tall and 1/4" larger than a slap-and-ship label. These custom boxes are cut from leftover corrugated cardboard, and keeping the weight (and therefore postage) down to the absolute minimum required.

My custom boxes extremely rigid and strong for their size. Of course, that is because I glue and tape all seams and edges before I tape the labels on. You'd be surprised just how strong a little cardboard gets with a bit of glue and packing tape.

The last package I shipped was just under 3 lbs of metal in a small flat rate box. *Extremely* heavy package for its size. I double-boxed that thing to give it the additional strength and rigidity to protect it from it's own weight, in case one of kutrock's monkeys dropped it from too high up or gorillas threw it too hard.

[MagickalMemories]

My custom boxes extremely rigid and strong for their size. Of course, that is because I glue and tape all seams and edges before I tape the labels on. You'd be surprised just how strong a little cardboard gets with a bit of glue and packing tape.

Emphasis mine.

You seem not to realize, John, that you are NOT the norm here.
In all my trades, I've received ONE box that was glued... and it was recyled from God knows HOW many trades.

Any advice I offer is general advice and not meant to be specific to every possible situation that scomes up, John.
You're smart enough & know enough about me and people in general that it should be apparent to you that my advice re: customizing boxes was not specifically geared towards people who go through extra lengths to ship the way you do.

Heck, if that was the case, ALL advice would be moot, because all kinds of people can find a way to show how THEY could make themselves an exception to that particular piece of advice.

Eric

[kturock]

John.. a small note.. the monkeys don't hardly touch the mail anymore.. the robots have the jobs now. and they're alot stronger than people.

Machines are loaded from pallets, cages [9 cubic yards] or hampers/gurneys. Dumped onto conveyor belts, by machines. The newest machine, is called an automated, small parcel and bundle sorter. It reads the address, scans a barcode and flings it down another conveyor...fork lifts drive UNDER it..it's two stories tall.

The small ones have hydraulic conveyor lifts like dump trucks use. The big sorters are even larger.

The only packages handled by people are the oversize ones, that's why there is a 'non-machineable/oversize surcharge'.

[JohnHwangBT]

@Eric: my point is that there nothing wrong with custom boxes, provided the box cutter exercises due care. I'm well aware that I'm in the minority, because I just don't throw stuff in a padded mailer and wish for the best...
____

@kutrock: since when can't a gorilla be a robot?

[Ironhide]

John.. a small note.. the monkeys don't hardly touch the mail anymore.. the robots have the jobs now. and they're alot stronger than people.

Machines are loaded from pallets, cages [9 cubic yards] or hampers/gurneys. Dumped onto conveyor belts, by machines. The newest machine, is called an automated, small parcel and bundle sorter. It reads the address, scans a barcode and flings it down another conveyor...fork lifts drive UNDER it..it's two stories tall.

The small ones have hydraulic conveyor lifts like dump trucks use. The big sorters are even larger.

The only packages handled by people are the oversize ones, that's why there is a 'non-machineable/oversize surcharge'.

So what you're really saying, is that marking a box fragile really doesn't count for anything.

[kturock]

Pretty much...it didn't mean alot before because there were some people who took that as a sign to see how far it could fly.

The large machines are only regional, there are about a dozen nation wide. Then the packages get sorted by people. It also gets handled by people before they go to the machines.

If you look online at d/c and you see it got sorted at a facility, that meant it was sorted on the automated machine.

[Ironhide]

@kturock: Then why do they even ask if a package is fragile? Seems stupid to ask and stupid to mark; if they are just going to handle your package in the same way as the others.

OT: Does anyone know of ways to see if a package was delivered if the user did not get DC or insurance? Can the package be traced by the receipt? If the business did do as EVIL thinks, are there other options to prove it?

[EVIL INC]

That is a very good question Ironhide and very much on topic.
Note, I already posted what I think happened and that it is supported by their subsequent actions when I tried to speak with them about it or contact them. Even so, I would not say that if my suspicions are correct would be the choice of the company itself. If my suspicions are true, I think it would most likely be an act of individual employees faced with an opportunity to make extra $ on the side and get away with it rather then representative of the company itself.
Who knows, it may turn up there yet even though it has been 22 days and should have taken 10 day at most to arrive.

[blackspade]

That is a very good question Ironhide and very much on topic.
Note, I already posted what I think happened and that it is supported by their subsequent actions when I tried to speak with them about it or contact them. Even so, I would not say that if my suspicions are correct would be the choice of the company itself. If my suspicions are true, I think it would most likely be an act of individual employees faced with an opportunity to make extra $ on the side and get away with it rather then representative of the company itself.
Who knows, it may turn up there yet even though it has been 22 days and should have taken 10 day at most to arrive.

I would try calling them daily until you get a live person on the phone.
You might try calling from different phones in case they recognise the #.
I would also ask to talk to the owner or manager.
Do you still have the USPS reciept? That might help, especially if you talk to someone at the card place since you have some proof that something was sent.
You might also suggest that you might be making a call to the BBB with a complaint.

Unfortunately, if it was lost/crushed in the mail your SOL.

[kturock]

@kturock: Then why do they even ask if a package is fragile? Seems stupid to ask and stupid to mark; if they are just going to handle your package in the same way as the others.

OT: Does anyone know of ways to see if a package was delivered if the user did not get DC or insurance? Can the package be traced by the receipt? If the business did do as EVIL thinks, are there other options to prove it?

The 'fragile, liquid, perishable or potentionable hazardous' is like 'do you want fries and apple pie?, a forced series of questions.

It's part of the airline security questions asked. If it's fragile, you supposed to be asked if it's properly packaged. Some ask details, others don't.

There is NO WAY to know if it was delivered WITHOUT d/c or insurance.

[JohnHwangBT]

Do you still have the USPS reciept? That might help, especially if you talk to someone at the card place since you have some proof that something was sent.

Exactly. Proof of mailing.

[EVIL INC]

Got word from them today. THey said they just got the package. Dont know why woulda took so long but glad they have it. I would have preferred better customer service but as someone pointed out already, it could be they have people try to put stuff over on them.
Here is the reply I got...

Hi Murphy,

Just to let you know that the order came in today’s mail. Not sure what took it so long, but it finally arrived.

That being said it appears that the editions for all the white bordered cards are incorrect and it will take a day or two to adjust them to the correct editions.

We’ll let you know once it’s been graded and we can either pay you for the order or return them.

Best regards,

Brig

Card Kingdom


I replied with an apology on mislabeling the cards without icons and asking them to take everything they can. I am blind as a bat and have trouble telling the difference (even with a guide). Hopefully they will get them graded soon and give me somewhere near the worth of the cards. I got bad news today when I got my unemployment $ for my last claim before starting my current job. I was short over $600 what we had planned for. I was told I was getting an extension at what I was getting and they suddenly changed it to a new claim with a MUCH lower pay without telling me. Now I need to come up with $600 from somewhere.

Edit: Checked my account on their site and it showed that they had gotten the cards, graded them and written my check. When I saw the value, I called them to double check because it was about $50 more then I was expecting it to be (likely because some of my mislabeled cards were actually older then I had thought but who knows. I know they were all in great shape). The guy I spoke to said yes, the amount of 197+ change was correct and the actual amount I was getting because he had my check in his hand about to put it into an envelope to put into the mail. Heres hoping it gets to me faster then my cards got to them. If anyone from there is reading this, I sincerely apologize for the misjudgment of them I had in my thoughts. That was borne of desperation on my part, the post for taking so ungodly long to deliver the cards to them. I would only suggest slightly better customer service but at this point in time, I am just so relieved, I would not have cared if the guy I spoke to called me every four letter word he could think of.

[blackspade]

Glad it worked out!

I hope your job and financial situation improves!