How to ship things that are awkward in size

[loco_treasures]

Hey everyone, I am fairly new to ebay, and I have tried to not deviate from shipping first class mail (under 1 pound) or flat rate boxes...but it's time for me to spread my wings!

I have 2 items that I have questions on...

1) I am trying to ship a backpack that I would like to ship in a large poly bag. It's over 1 pound. what are my options and do I need to get dimensions of it? It doesn't have defined edges to measure so I don't know if that's matters.

2) I am trying to ship a board game board (only the board). It's also over a pound and is pretty much flat. I wanted to sandwich it between cardboard for protection and also put in a large poly bag. What are my options there?

thank you all!

[gwzcomps]

For the backpack I would put in the rough dimensions of the polybag. Otherwise you might see if one of the free priority boxes would be big enough to stuff it in without causing damage.

Depending on the size of the board I would be careful about shipping it in a poly bag. I imagine the buyer will be very unhappy if it gets bent or dinged. If you do go that route I would use several layers of cardboard (3 layers each side?) Make sure the corrugation lines alternate different directions for extra strength. Be sure to have the cardboard go a little bit beyond the board to protect the edges. When you tape the layers together make sure the tape can't come into contact with the board which may cause damage.

[dtexley3]

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@loco_treasures wrote:

Hey everyone, I am fairly new to ebay, and I have tried to not deviate from shipping first class mail (under 1 pound) or flat rate boxes...but it's time for me to spread my wings!

I have 2 items that I have questions on...

1) I am trying to ship a backpack that I would like to ship in a large poly bag. It's over 1 pound. what are my options and do I need to get dimensions of it? It doesn't have defined edges to measure so I don't know if that's matters.

2) I am trying to ship a board game board (only the board). It's also over a pound and is pretty much flat. I wanted to sandwich it between cardboard for protection and also put in a large poly bag. What are my options there?

thank you all!

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as suggested, you can ship  the backpack in the poly bag.  You have to do estimate the dimensions a bit, but then you ship it Priority.  Just use calculated shipping and put in the dimensions and weight.

The game should not be shipped in a poly or padded bag under any circumstances.  UPSP has an FRE large game  box, check into getting some from their website.  Otherwise try to find a box about the right size and again put in the dimensions and weight, use calculated shipping.

[nobody*s_perfect]

You really should have planned the shipping before you listed the items.

Since the backpack is over 1 pound, the online postage will cost you at least $7.42, whereas you charged the buyer only $3.99 for shipping.  And if the package is over 1 cubic foot (1728 cubic inches), then it will ship at a "dimensional weight" which starts at $11.32.

Shipping the board game in a poly bag is OK only if the interior cardboard is sufficient protection against bending.   Use at least 4 layers of corrugated, and have the "grain" of 2 pieces going crosswise to the others for added strength.  Tape around the outside of the poly bag to prevent shifting.  Priority Mail is priced per full pound, so saving a few ounces by avoiding a box might not save you any postage.