Shopping Discussion

How does freight shipping work?

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  • Aug 18th, 2019 5:53 pm
[OP]
Sr. Member
Dec 27, 2008
755 posts
710 upvotes

How does freight shipping work?

I don't know if I'm posting this in the right place. So my parents, brother and I are helping my grandma move in a few weeks, it's a 6-7 hours drive from Montreal where we live and there's a big textile-working machine thing roughly the size of an upright piano and weighing maybe 75 pounds that we want to bring back to Montreal. For whatever reason, my mom wants it since grandma doesn't need it anymore. We would normally use our cars to move this stuff around but that thing is definitely too big for anything we have.

My dad was thinking of renting a U-Haul truck somewhere on the way there (as close to grandma's house as possible) for 3 days. It would have a dual purpose, first for the move from grandma's old house to her new place, and then using it to bring back the machine all the way back to Montreal. I estimate it would ride 800-1000km, which is $400-500 in mileage ($0.49 per km) plus $60 for the days, not to mention the maybe $200 in extra gas. So we'd be at nearly $1000 after taxes. It would be nice to have it for the move but definitely not a necessity.

I was wondering if there was a way to get some freight service to ship it instead for a couple hundred bucks. Is there any kind of all-inclusive service that can go to her house, box it up or load it up on a pallet, and then ship it here? The only problem I foresee is that it's a rather remote area. The city is Sainte-Marguerite-Marie, in Quebec.

Cheers, would appreciate any suggestion
8 replies
Deal Addict
Feb 18, 2016
1808 posts
530 upvotes
Can it be disassembled so it can be mostly flat packed and fit in with the rest of the stuff? I remember seeing one of these at a craft fair, looked like it's mostly straight pieces of lumber held together with bolts and nuts. Of course, if you're concerned about not being to put it back together that's a different story.
[OP]
Sr. Member
Dec 27, 2008
755 posts
710 upvotes
notfromqc wrote: Can it be disassembled so it can be mostly flat packed and fit in with the rest of the stuff? I remember seeing one of these at a craft fair, looked like it's mostly straight pieces of lumber held together with bolts and nuts. Of course, if you're concerned about not being to put it back together that's a different story.
I would be concerned, these things may have adjustments or something, and I personally have not seen it so I would be more comfortable moving it in one piece.
Deal Fanatic
Jul 4, 2004
9418 posts
2594 upvotes
You should also talk with Enterprise rentals. Not sure if they are independentally operated, a long time back we needed a van for a long haul and they worked out a deal with us that included the km's and was more than fair (if you do end up having to ship this yourself).
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[OP]
Sr. Member
Dec 27, 2008
755 posts
710 upvotes
Frankie3s wrote: You should also talk with Enterprise rentals. Not sure if they are independentally operated, a long time back we needed a van for a long haul and they worked out a deal with us that included the km's and was more than fair (if you do end up having to ship this yourself).
Looks like that would save us a solid $200 over U-Haul, just need to make sure we're allowed drop it off at a different location. Thanks for the heads up. Still, any option to ship it would be nice.
Deal Expert
Feb 7, 2017
26556 posts
26145 upvotes
Eastern Ontario
Your large textile machine ... sounds like a loom to me, and you are right it does look a bit like an upright piano
https://www.yarn.com/products/toika-eeva-loom

And yes they are both huge and probably delicate to move, cuz of all the moving parts

I don’t think you will find a shipper who can do it for less than you can DIY with a rental moving van
And it certainly wouldn’t be “a few hundred dollars” even if you could find someone to take it on

Uhaul is the way to go, cuz they are perfectly fine with the van not being returned to the place of origin

PS... if it is indeed a loom, then I suggest you also GOOGLE = Moving a Loom
I just did this and found several topics on the net where others have been faced with this challenge
Good way to learn from others experiences / mistakes
[OP]
Sr. Member
Dec 27, 2008
755 posts
710 upvotes
PointsHubby wrote: Your large textile machine ... sounds like a loom to me, and you are right it does look a bit like an upright piano
https://www.yarn.com/products/toika-eeva-loom

And yes they are both huge and probably delicate to move, cuz of all the moving parts

I don’t think you will find a shipper who can do it for less than you can DIY with a rental moving van
And it certainly wouldn’t be “a few hundred dollars” even if you could find someone to take it on

Uhaul is the way to go, cuz they are perfectly fine with the van not being returned to the place of origin

PS... if it is indeed a loom, then I suggest you also GOOGLE = Moving a Loom
I just did this and found several topics on the net where others have been faced with this challenge
Good way to learn from others experiences / mistakes
Yeah it's a loom, maybe 1ft shorter than that according to parents (I have not seen it personally). I'll definitely google how to move it, the roads are an absolute mess.

Thank you!
Deal Addict
Dec 18, 2017
1607 posts
1175 upvotes
London, On
I'm in that business and even the fees for residential pick up and residential delivery, likely with a booked appointment time, including tailgate into the truck and back out again are going to run hundreds of dollars before even talking about the shipping charges. Not to mention, freight services aren't known for gentle handling. And also where you ask about them coming in, packing it up is more a white glove service, which is also money. A company you can call is called SCI Logistics, they do specialize in white glove services.
[OP]
Sr. Member
Dec 27, 2008
755 posts
710 upvotes
djeffery wrote: I'm in that business and even the fees for residential pick up and residential delivery, likely with a booked appointment time, including tailgate into the truck and back out again are going to run hundreds of dollars before even talking about the shipping charges. Not to mention, freight services aren't known for gentle handling. And also where you ask about them coming in, packing it up is more a white glove service, which is also money. A company you can call is called SCI Logistics, they do specialize in white glove services.
It does seem like a luxury I can't afford, I suppose this narrows down my search. Thanks!

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