Antique USA Audio Equipment Vintage Altec Western Electric Peerless ADC RCA Chicago old wire tubes Sylvania General Electric Altec Langevin

Why our packing is safest.

Too often a bargain had on eBay or elsewhere arrives overseas or cross country utterly destroyed! It's tragic to imagine the waste.  Day in, day out destruction is levied on rare, desirable audio items. The culprit? Uneducated, lazy or slipshod sellers! Insurance will not protect your item. Only good packing will. Starting with boxes worthy of your interest, we take the time here to do it right!

box inventory 

Shipping items of high value should really not be left to the typical slapdash person on eBay. Buying from unskilled non-professionals is a gamble. You may lose your time, shipping costs and perhaps money.

TUBES: Contrary to popular belief, tubes are generally easy to pack. 1930s and newer are quite resistant to shock. The main enemy is sheer crushing. Thin, weak cardboard is your enemy. We use 200 & 275lb double wall cardboard, load spreading techniques and box-in-box. You can generally sustain 100's of lbs with our boxes. A paper thin "USPS Flat Rate Box" is popular, as they are free. They are terrible for large tubes - paper thin walls and easily crushed.

Thin, crushed box.Crushproof box.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SPEAKERS: Never pack like below photo (a very nearly destroyed Jensen D9)! Speakers must always be double boxed. The below EXAMPLE is NOT. The inner box can NEVER have loose stuffing, paper, foam or other material. Material lodged/pressed against cones will distort, tear or collapse it's delicate suspension (see broken foam in photo). Never can tape be applied directly to old paint - as the paint can be lifted by strong adhesive. The inner box's duty is to firmly contain, hold in place and protect cone and frame. Cast frames can crack (like RCA LC1, Jensen Electrodynamic etc), stamped are tough but can be bent. A speaker left to bounce, shift, slide or shift - will be damaged. Plywood, plastic ties, stretch wrap, bolts cone-cone, are generally techniques for the amateur with no other materials at hand. These methods are risky and sometimes result in damage.

 

Loose foam in box. No inner box for speaker cone.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

TRANSFORMERS: Are heavy, must be secured with excelsior. Always individually wrap them in plastic (cardboard can sand or paint). Depending on weight, you must double box! A 20ft drop is common height at the postal service. A loose or poorly cushioned transformer will sustain a large dent or worse.

All vintage USA audio 1930s ~ 1980s

Why our packing is safest.

Too often a bargain had on eBay or elsewhere arrives overseas or cross country utterly destroyed! It's tragic to imagine the waste.  Day in, day out destruction is levied on rare, desirable audio items. The culprit? Uneducated, lazy or slipshod sellers! Insurance will not protect your item. Only good packing will. Starting with boxes worthy of your interest, we take the time here to do it right!

box inventory 

Shipping items of high value should really not be left to the typical slapdash person on eBay. Buying from unskilled non-professionals is a gamble. You may lose your time, shipping costs and perhaps money.

TUBES: Contrary to popular belief, tubes are generally easy to pack. 1930s and newer are quite resistant to shock. The main enemy is sheer crushing. Thin, weak cardboard is your enemy. We use 200 & 275lb double wall cardboard, load spreading techniques and box-in-box. You can generally sustain 100's of lbs with our boxes. A paper thin "USPS Flat Rate Box" is popular, as they are free. They are terrible for large tubes - paper thin walls and easily crushed.

Thin, crushed box.Crushproof box.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SPEAKERS: Never pack like below photo (a very nearly destroyed Jensen D9)! Speakers must always be double boxed. The below EXAMPLE is NOT. The inner box can NEVER have loose stuffing, paper, foam or other material. Material lodged/pressed against cones will distort, tear or collapse it's delicate suspension (see broken foam in photo). Never can tape be applied directly to old paint - as the paint can be lifted by strong adhesive. The inner box's duty is to firmly contain, hold in place and protect cone and frame. Cast frames can crack (like RCA LC1, Jensen Electrodynamic etc), stamped are tough but can be bent. A speaker left to bounce, shift, slide or shift - will be damaged. Plywood, plastic ties, stretch wrap, bolts cone-cone, are generally techniques for the amateur with no other materials at hand. These methods are risky and sometimes result in damage.

 

Loose foam in box. No inner box for speaker cone.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

TRANSFORMERS: Are heavy, must be secured with excelsior. Always individually wrap them in plastic (cardboard can sand or paint). Depending on weight, you must double box! A 20ft drop is common height at the postal service. A loose or poorly cushioned transformer will sustain a large dent or worse.