Holy ship!!!

Is driving to Maine to pick it up feasible? I suspect you could drive to Maine and back for less than $750.

-- Rich, Cedar Rapids, IA - I'm a woodworker. I don't create beauty, I reveal it.

I think that’ one of those items that when you vacation in Maine, you put Warren on you list of places to stop on the way home, and you can take it with you.

-- Tim-- http://www.tmuli.com

I just had a display case delivered to my jewelry store in Tennessee from New Jersey, about the size of a work bench, about 200 lbs, cost $525.

The problem might be insurance. Some of these things get treated like furniture being moved from the perspective of insurance companies.

-- Michael :-{| Diapers and politicians both need to be changed often; and for the same reason.

I said the same thing. May be cheaper. But not really feasible. I was actually quite disappointed. That’s just a complete deal breaker.

remember that most shippers will get a discount from their preferred freight companies, usually 30-35%. Then they charge you the full stab. Could you arrange for delivery yourself, by contacting a carrier who does the eastern seaboard? Do you know someone who does shipping/receiving for a living that you could ask? Then, even cheaper, arrange to have it on the local dock so you can pick it up in your truck; usually their dockworkers will load it on for you. I’d expect to pay maybe $300 to $350, are they even using the proper classification for a disassembled workbench?

-- Einstein: "The intuitive mind is a sacred gift, and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift." I'm Poopiekat!!

For that kind of money (both workbench and shipping), I’d rather buy the lumber and a shop full of tools and build a Roubo workbench myself. (Buy I realize that that’s not always possible or desirable for everyone.)

-- More tools, fewer machines.

I was told that the huge price difference was because it was classified as furniture. I brought up the huge power tool being so much cheaper to ship.

I’d definitely try to get the attention of a dispatcher for one of the freight companies. Explain your situation, and ask what he can do for you. I’m thinking Ross Transportation (Concord NH) or New Penn Freight. Arranging your own shipping is usually a better deal price-wise, though a bit of a hassle time-wise. Oh, and… they probably tacked on a fee for “curb delivery” which means they take it off the truck and set it on the ground for you, and another charge for “residential delivery” because they hafta go beyond their normal delivery routes, where telephone wires hang low and other stuff that never gets noticed until a big truck comes through. Just sayin’. So pickup at their dock is indeed cheaper, but be prepared to bribe a forklift driver with doughnuts or Werther’s candy, hehe. Oh, and be sure the ONE carrier takes it all the way from point A to Point B, without handing it over to a different carrier!

-- Einstein: "The intuitive mind is a sacred gift, and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift." I'm Poopiekat!!

So, why is shipping furniture so much more expensive than shipping something else of similar size and weight?

-- More tools, fewer machines.

A lot of damage claims for furniture I suppose.
Sometimes it’s the shipper’s fault for not properly crating and protecting against shipping damage.
Think of the way a freight truck would throw boxes and crates in the truck compared to the way a moving company handles its loads with quilts and careful handling (at least when you are looking).

-- Michael :-{| Diapers and politicians both need to be changed often; and for the same reason.

Hmm… Seems weird to me that the carrier classifies the item not the shipper. It is a workbench after all, if it is built well enough to be used as one most anything a shipper may throw at it isnt going to hurt it one bit.

-- -Director of slipshod craftsmanship and attention deficit woodworking

Does the fact that they are coming to set it up for you have anything to do with the shipping charge? If they are sending someone to set the bench up for you I would think a big chunk of the price is right there.

-- Dan - "Collector of Hand Planes"

It is a workbench after all, if it is built well enough to be used as one most anything a shipper may throw at it isnt going to hurt it one bit.

So if they deliver the brand new wood-made workbench with scuffs and marks on it from the shipping you’d be perfectly OK with it?
...
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I wouldn’t.

-- ㊍ When in doubt - There is no doubt - Go the safer route.

Brett: There is a handbook available from the ICC, the ”National Motor Freight Classification” that all transporters use for classifying freight, in order to establish the rate at which the freight will be charged. So, a shipment of watermelons on a pallet at 500 lbs will qualify at a certain rate, generally from 01 to 100, versus a 500 lb shaper on a pallet which will qualify under a higher rate. ALL freight companies MUST charge the same amount for a given item! As dictated by some Federal law of 1938, as amended over the years. Scrap, like plastic cutoffs and raw materials, like iron ore, pound for pound will be generallycheaper to ship than finished goods like cast iron planes, for example. Assembled engines cost more to ship than engine components and both are classified somewhere in the middle. The only wiggle-room between Freight carriers and their clients is that they are allowed to offer discounts, with those with whom they wish to encourage a better relationship with. I’m not absolutely sure of this, it’s beeen more than 10 years since I was involved in freight, maybe a trucker or dispatcher can set the record straight. This is also why Rich Greer’s suggestion makes good sense, sometimes it IS better to find another way to get an item home.

-- Einstein: "The intuitive mind is a sacred gift, and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift." I'm Poopiekat!!

I saw the option for assembly on their website. He didn’t offer any other option, even when I questioned the cost. He told me that’s the best price they could find, mentioned gas, the classification etc… It’s just crazy, shipping the 760 lb jointer was $300. Adding $750 to a bench that is already $2k was a lot. I wasn’t able to justify it.