An Alternative Shipping Tube For Pens

[DriedUpBob]

I see that there are very different parties on the subjet. I personally love the PVC tubes. First of all I ship for way less than flat rate priority (less than $2 normally). Also, I think it is a greener alternative. I recycle and reuse every PVC tubes, and I recycle and reuse every bubble wrap envelope. Of course, I deal with pens just as a hobby, therefore I do not mind wasting some time "refurbishing" bubble wrap envelopes.

Also I never had any problem shipping pens abroad, notwithstanding claims that PVC tubes could be mistaken for ....TNT???...by security.

 

I think recycling and reusing is important, especially in my hobby, that is nothing that I must do, but just something I do because I can.

Flat rate boxes are a lot of paper and normally people do not recycle them. But even if they were recycled, still PVC can be reused forever. Maybe I am wrong, but it seems to me a good way of shipping pens.

RHR

 

That's another great spin on it I didn't think of, the green effect. Actually the tubing I was originally referencing was not the white schedule 40 stuff but rather the very thin wall black plastic flexible stuff. AND it's made from recycled material. I think that's a double dip even if the recipient throws it away.

[CaptainGroovy]

I always thought the piece of PVC with the pen stuffed in was a pretty good idea as long as the sender tapes or plugs the ends off. I got a pen once that was in PVC that was broken in half because the seller/sender did not tape the ends shut. I have also received more than one pen wrapped in bubble wrap and Popsicle sticks that were damaged. I will say that in both cases the pens were shipped from oversea's so I can't put the blame on the USPS. I don't know if it is true about mail being stamped fragile only being hand sorted but I have seen a automatic mail sorting machine in action and I would not what my pen to go thought it unless it is something substantial. It not that any one action of the machine is all that brutal but mail gets bounced around like a ball in a pinball machine, I will admit that machines are much gentler than what they used to be and the machine now shutdown under the slightest jam. To the proprietor of Main Street Pens whom seems to dislike pens sent to him in pieces of PVC pipe because they are heavy and bulky be-careful what you wish for you might start getting pens in little concrete boxes or something as equally heavy and obtrusive.

[tmenyc]

Bruce, where do you get your concrete?

 

Tim

[Garageboy]

Eyeglasses case

One can hold a hand full of pens, relatively crush resistant

Doesn't look suspicious

[welch]

gopens.com sell protective shipping tubes what do you think about these Ron?

 

https://www.gopens.c...pping_Tubes.php

 

 

I ship pens in these tubes, inside a bubble-wrapped envelope. Have shipped many pens, never lost one. USPS, first class, two or three days New York to California = $1.50, plus $1 for Gary L.'s tube, plus .50 for the envelope = about $3 total.

 

(Oh, and no place in NYC carries PVC tubing.)

[jdcr]

. . . I have received some pens in a nice clear tube which screws into each other. No sure what they are called but haven't seen it in this part of the world.

 

That may be the kind of tube that large drill bits come in. I was at my first Big Apple Pen Club meeting last night (thanks for the warm welcome, ladies & gents), and somebody there had a pen in one of those tubes. Here's an ad for one that looks unreasonably expensive: http://www.worldcups...9&idcategory=14. A web search for "plastic tube" turns up lots of options. (A search for "drill bit plastic tube" turns up the link I just gave you, and then pages and pages of drill bits. Somebody must sell those screw-together tubes wholesale.)

[alc3261]

As a repair guy I HATE PVC tubing. It's heavy, it takes up space, and I have to store the blasted things while the pens are in the shop. Gift boxes are just as bad if not worse.

 

We ship world wide using bubble wrap and a cardboard box, usually a flat rate priority mail box. It's safer, lighter, and we've never had a pen damaged in transit.

 

I got a pen this week in bubble wrap, padded envelope and box and the pen was crushed flat!!

[goldiesdad]

Mine was in a padded envelope broken in two pieces from JetPens ... I use the PVC ... It gets there safe IMO ...