Timely thread - I just won the Ohio Westinghouse Cylinder wi
I always immediately shoot off an email to the seller before paying the invoice, outlining - so there be no misunderstanding - how I expect the vacuum and its accessories to be packed, for our mutual satisfaction. I repeat the salient points nicely when I do the PayPal thing within a day or less.
I want everything, especially the vacuum itself, fully swaddled in bubblewrap - two layers - to prevent further scuffs or scratches. I want the tools bubblewrapped as well - even within their box or carry caddy - to keep them from scuffing each other. I warn against wrapping in newspaper as any paper has an abrasive quality in contact with painted, plastic and metal surfaces. Use newspaper for stuffing spacial voids and stuff it TIGHT. Then I want everything sensibly arranged in the shipping carton (hoses coiled on the bottom, please) and ALL box voids liberally stuffed with crumpled newspaper, bubble packs, styro peanuts or somesuch wadding with the vac body centrally located so it doesn't directly contact the box sides and heavy load shifting in transit is eliminated. Most important last step...tape ALL box seams as well as around the middle of long boxes to prevent 'box burst' in case of droppage and to seal out moisture.
The seller now knows what I expect so that the item arrives in the same condition it was purchased and excellent feedback is assured. If the seller should want extra for packing materials I input their Zip code and my Postal code and compare calculations. Usually you'll find such persons have already factored that in.
and I tell them so.
Most often I receive a grateful & pleasant reply thanking me for my concerns and solutions. After all we are talking about vintage items with lots of inertia in a cardboard box passing through many disinterested hands on a long overland journey. Yes, for weight savings I also ask that the bag be emptied and if a full paper bag, discarded.
Only once has this advice been ignored, to the seller's chagrin, with a damage refund when the tub canister loose in a box with the tools and hose arrived dented & broken beyond redemption. I'm a tenacious bugger when wronged and cannot abide willful stupidity.
As a pack rat type I sort, bundle and save all the shipping materials I get in case I have to ship something out, as I'm sure all these sellers do as well. Packing materials are cheap, plentiful and re-usable, if not freely obtained. I will not charge for such materials nor my time in packing up. If you are a seller and don't have a supply of good packing tape, shame on you. Nor do I expect a seller to do that either...they just made money on the sale, dammit. If they did not, then that's the luck of the draw...or perhaps the item offered for sale was shown in such bad condition or so commonly to be had that the item should not have been put up for bid in the first place.
Anyway, I know what I see and extract from photos and will ignore the item or bid accordingly.
Dave, always an informed and happy bidder, win or lose.
