Best Ways To Ship Pms

USPS is gonna quote you the service that makes them the most money.

600 ounces of silver is around 45#, so you can ship it in one medium flat rate box for $10.95. Registered mail for $20,000 is $41.25 and signature confirmation is $2.45. That's $54.65. I like chocolate chip cookies.

I'm assuming this silver is in a compact form, like coins or bars. Get a couple of the boxes. Assemble one, leaving the top open. Repeat with the other, then cram it into the first. Put the silver in a canvas bag (the bank should have a spare or two), into the double box, including addresses in the box. Shut it with fiberglass reinforced tape, then wide brown tape. I always put HEAVY on every side near the top, so someone doesn't think it's five pounds and slip it off on their foot.

Registered mail is signed by everyone who handles it. All seams are postmarked (which is why the brown tape) to prevent tampering.

In answer to your other questions, typical loss rates at the PO is under 1 in 1000, lower yet on OOPS or Fed-Up. Both OOPS and Fed-Up have negotiated rates for volume shippers. For example, I shipped stuff to Amazon using their account, the shipping was 35% cheaper than book rate.

Similarly, bulk shippers buy insurance on their corporate policy, or self-insure. USPS insurance is the most expensive out there.

600 troy ounces is over 40 pounds. Yes, that is going to be expensive to ship. Also, you want to make sure that whatever carrier you use, their insurance policy actually includes loss of bullion (if that's what you are shipping). Regular USPS insurance, for example, does not -- though they will gladly sell you the insurance anyway.

Take a look at USPS Priority Mail flat rate shipping. For insurance, ship it Registered Mail and be sure to declare the full value. You need to ship it Registered as regular USPS insurance does not include bullion. Sure, they'll sell it to you, but your claim will be denied in case of loss. A large flat rate box costs about $15 anywhere in the US. Registered mail starts at $10.75 if you are shipping something of no value and tops off at $48.25 if your declared value is $25,000. Figuring you need to insure about $20,000 worth of silver the total cost should be $15 + $42.65 (pulled from the fee schedule on the Domestic Mail Manual page 44) for a total of $57.65.

Registered mail is about as secure of a service as one can use. It's treated separately from the regular mail stream. Throughout the shipping process, packages are stored in locked containers and employees have to sign for each parcel they transfer. Unless a building burns down, there is no loss, which is why they can offer such reasonably priced insurance.

You'll need to tape all of the corners of your package with fiber reinforced paper packing tape -- the stuff that was commonly used 20 years ago and had to be wetted manually. Last roll I bought was at Staples for $8. It's for security purposes. They'll put ink seals all over your package to deter tampering.

Oh, Registered mail is also SLOW. Add 5 days at least to a cross country delivery.

When I worked for the USPS years ago, the local banks would send all of their bags of coins via registered mail. I am talking sealed canvas bags full of coins with no outer wrapper. There was never a problem.

EVERY USPS employee that handles the bags MUST SIGN FOR EACH AND EVERY ONE OF THEM. If they get lost, the USPS knows exactly who had them in his possession when they got lost. Needless to say, I never heard of one getting lost.

So, I would have no problem using Registered Flat Rate Priority Mail for sending large quantities of PMs. As noted above, the rates are very cheap.

I just used Registered US Mail to send a package containing 50 oz. of silver bars from WA to IN. The shipping was $15.90 and the insurance was $16.05. That came to a total of $31.95. Yes, that seems expensive for this package but it's worth it to have the package properly cared for and secure along the way. I would expect to pay quite a bit more for a package 12x as large and 12x as expensive.

With all the care given to the registered mail packages, it seems a little odd that the insurance is so expensive. It's a bit more than the shipping itself. Maybe that's where the USPO is really making their money on this?

As to how APMEX, Provident, and SilverTowne can ship for much less... it is likely that they have shipping contracts for their large volume of packages that cuts the unit price by quite a bit.

hummm I think I will just seal the bags myself somehow. Then put them in a bigger canvas bag and seal that, then put that bag in a box and seal that, then put that box in a bigger box and seal that. If they gonna tamper with all those seals itll be pretty darn obvious I would say lol.

Chris-

You're overthinking this.

When "loose" canvas bags are shipped, they're like a canvas pillowcase. Some have attached ties, others are closed with rope that goes through a metal clamp with a lead seal. A clamping tool bends the lead seal to prevent the rope from coming loose, and at the same time puts the seller's logo on the seal.

When shipping inside a double box as I outline above, using the attached ties will be fine. If it's a plain bag, wrap a shoelace around the open end and tie it, then wrap again and tie again, then again and knot the end. No way it will come loose.

Use the double box as I explained. Using different size boxes allows for shifting of contents, and that can cause the boxes to tear open. You also quickly run out of space in the flat rate box, which is where the shipping savings comes in.

And no, you don't need one canvas bag inside another. Every seam will be postmarked, so there's no way to get in without it being obvious.

Well this bundle is actually not one I sold. Its one I bought and am sending it away for long term storage. So I suppose I will declare the value I bought it for.

Thanks for all the help fellas :)