Anybody ship a motor cross country??

Has any of you guys done it? I am looking into having a motor shipped from CA to the East coast. Would a private carrier be more economical then say UPS or FedEx? Who to use and who to avoid?

 

Try asking BenD, here on the hamb. used him a few times, all went well.

 

Is he a long haul trucker?

 

I just had a nailhead shipped from Michigan to San Diego. Was $350, arrived here in perfect condition in 4 days. The carrier was "Central Transport", but you want to go through Engineshipping.com (they do the business part). Friendly and knowledgeable staff, talk to Mark.

As far as shipping goes: I would recommend having it shipped via pallet (wooden) with a wooden crate/plywood made around it (keeps stuff from getting hit, easier on the shipper /forklift driver as I was told). Also, try to have it dropped off at a fedex frieght terminal, and shipped to a business if possible (saved alotta dough that way).

Best of luck! What engine?

PC

 

2x on ben-d shipped a nailhead from Mississippi to Bobby Green in California. and several cars from here and to here. always a good experience.

 

I shipped an eng to minnesota, on a pallet and covered it with shrink wrap. When I del it to the trucking place,they said you didn't have to do anything. They would have put it on a pallet and wrapped it. They wrapped it even more than I had. It arrived on schedule .Truck is the way I would go.

 

I have used Central Transport several times, fast, and for a good price.

http://www.centraltransportint.com

 

I have shipped engines personally and for work via trucking companies. Different companies serve different areas. Because of that it's not uncommon for the shipment to be consigned to one or more other carriers to get it as far as your engine needs to go.

Even if you have a means for loading it, some/many trucking companies won't pick up an item like this from a residence. That means delivering it to the trucking company's depot where they will unload it from whatever you used to get it there.

Covered by taped or tied plastic and banded or bolted to a pallet is ok. To protect the engine the pallet needs to be as big or bigger than the engine itself. An enclosed container is better for something special. The pallet/container needs to have footprint big enough to keep it from being too top heavy. The pallet/container should be made so a fork lift can pick it up easily. Label it so the destination and other info can't be accidentally ripped off the item.

The cost of shipping, and the shippers liability, will depend on how the item is described. For example, parts have a different rate than engines.

 

Fastenal has a 3rd party logistics service. You deliver it to a store near you, they haul it to a store near it's destination. I ship complete rear axle ***ys in a 16x16x65 200lb crate, from WA to FL is about $145. You can fill out a form on their website (under services) for a "3PL" quote. The only hangup i've had is that not all of their stores have a forklift, so a heavy item can only be shipped from/to stores with forklifts.

 

It's o problem, be darn sure you strap down to a decent pallet with steel strapping, build a block or two around sump so it can't roll over no mater what. Input like four layers of thick cardboard on all five sides then shrink wrap the piss out of it, other posters are right, about 3-350. You WiILL pay more if there is not a loading dock and forklift at each end!

 

shipped a 392 block from missouri to so-cal with fed-ex. no problem. also a 727 trans from florida to so-cal also with fed-ex. they really tried to up the price on me that time though, don't know why.

 

Central Freight rolled my engine all over their docks and busted the pallet to splinters. Since it was a "used" engine (Cobra R 5.0L) they generously offered $75 max for the damage!! Better insure the **** out of it no matter what it is. And do your own crating.

 

I shipped an engine from NM to FL by Fed-Ex express. Was the cheapest rate I could find. About $400.

 

Is it crated to survive mutiple transfers ?

If so, commercially ship it

If not, ship direct enclosed with one hauler on one trailer

I just dropped a Studebaker cylinder head in Los Angeles
a few days ago that the Seller refused to ship commercially
because of the rarity


Jim

 

I have used a discount shipper that is part of Engines Direct. Just got a quote from Mark there for a 750 lb engine from VT to IN and with full insurance to cover the engine, the frieght and the insurance cost. It ran $250. They use tailgate lift trucks, usually R&L Carriers. More if picked in a resi area. I was going comm to comm.
Watch the normal insurance **** with the carriers as they only insure it for so much per pound or something like that and you will get boned badly if it is lost or damaged. Best to seek out carrier insurance quotes or use Mark as he has his own insurance provider for full coverage but the engine will have to be completely covered with some form of a box as light as 1/4 plywood.
The last engine I shipped to IN actually went Fastenal. Fork lift at each end so no problem. Went for $125. Benefit here is that they insure it and they carry it from end to end on their trucks so it never gets transferred to other carriers. Pallet required and strapping. I chose to set the oil pan rail on 2x4's that were screwed to the deck and then built a quick bracket for each motor mount and the rear housing to bolt to the deck. Covered it with opaque wrapping and then shrink wrapped it. Individual rolls of shrink wrap can be purchased at Fastenal. May be overkill but I wanted to be sure that it was protected from "shifty eyes".
Mark can be reached at Engine Direct at 8009982100. He is in Phoenix.
Hope this helps you out.

 

I used them for a motor. Very reasonable.

 

Ive shipped a few engines through a company called Forward Air. Always very reasonable and great service.
You have to drop it off at a major airport terminal and pick it up the same way. Google their name.

 

I've used Engines Direct a couple of times. Reasonable pricing, got the job done.

 

My first consern would be the sellers ability to box/pack it. Bob

 

I need to piggyback off the OP question, in that I'm looking to ship an engine and transmission to Sweden. I intend to fully crate the ***embly. Any ideas on overseas shipping???

 

I shipped an engine from Sac. to Michigan by Forward Air. $350.00 I believe.
Strapped to a pallet and boxed with OSB. The engine went into a container and was shipped to Sweden.

 

I used engins direct shiped from Chi to LA they are good 250 bucks used motorcycle tie downs from farm fleet on a pallet

 

Engines Direct four Times over the last three years 3 YEARS Cali to Maine was the longest still at $250.

 

Something you need to be aware of, I have seen parts badly rusted ocean freight shipping. Unfortunately I can't give you any details on those instances. I do know those would have been sent the cheapest possible way, so that might have had something to do with it.

 

The buyer should arrange it.

Ask Klaus from Sweden (kuztomklaus); he works for DHL.

 

Well as me being the original poster if figured i give you guys an update. I just got off the phone with engineshipping .com I talked to Mark, he quoted me a price based on the motor and pallet weighing 525 lbs. He said because the location is in such a rural area (Northern CA) it was going to cost $650.

That was if the package was picked up and delivered door to door. If we could get the engine to and pick up at their terminals on each end it would be $550. He also said that was with no surcharge that the trucking company may add on if there were any issues with the pickup or delivery.

Seeing as how the seller is asking $3000, I'm not to sure its worth the money or the h***les involved with all the logistics. I guess I'll look around some more.

 

i just used engines direct out of pheonix good prices i was kept up on the where abouts from begining no problems by the way my engine weighted 2400 lbs Dennis

 

Shipping a tank?

 

Sweden is an EU country. All wood products need to be certified "BUG FREE". That can only be done by a certified crate manufacturer. Who will stamp the crate for export.
If you use OSB and no LUMBER you might not have a problem.
Lumber includes the skids under the crate. If they do not like your crate and it has to be fumigated or quarentined you PAY THE BILL for that.
Using ocean freight pack the engine trans in plastic and buy dessicant to absorb water. Dessicant is available at GRAINGERS. Don't forget to add the weight of the crate to the engine for the total weight. And measure the crate to get the ocean charges correct. Don't forget the skids under the crate.
Remember you have to build the crate to withstand the weight of the other 6 engines that may be stacked on top.
My local certified crate builder would charge about $300 for a crate to hold the engine and trans. Usually they build them out of lumber to not run afoul of the regulations in different countries.
We ship to many foreign countries by ocean freight.

Nick Leone

 

This is why I love these forums. I learn something every day.