Can anyone recommend a reliable engine shipper ?

[Jim Nelson]

Sending a gearbox and some other fairly rare bits to the East Coast for assembly....and it’s in a box constructed on a pallet.

[Doug McDonnell]

Ask Vic he ships his transmissions all the time on a pallet. I am pretty sure he doesn't build a box as then there is the possibility shipper will stack another, of unknown weight, on top of it.

[Adam Wright]

We use

http://www.enginesdirectfreight.com/

I always build a crate, it's not worth the risk strapping it to a pallet.

You can use my crate building technique, it's tried and true.

https://porsche356registry.org/article/26

[Jim Nelson]

Thanks, Adam and Doug--I've got a bunch of things I can't lose that I need to send. I like the crate construction, pretty much along the lines of what I was going to do.

[Joris Koning]

Hey Jim,

I believe these are the guys I used for the engine you were referring to

http://engineshipping.com/contact/

J.

[David Jones]

Jim, I just shipped an engine from KY to AZ and used YRC. I built my own crate on a 3 ft square pallet scourged from my local NAPA store. I used 2 x 4's and 1/2" particle board. I could have launched an ICBM off it. Took a lot of screws and thankful I am for a cordless drill.
I put 4 eye bolts through the base and reinforced them with large fender washers and strapped the engine down. I also drilled holes in another piece of particle board to line up with those holes so they did not get hit by a fork lift fork.

[Adam Wright]

I agree with David, lots of screws, you can never have too many screws!

We use the 3 inch ones and just put them everywhere, it tightens the whole thing up.
That's the only complaint I've ever had about one of my crates, it takes too long to take apart.

[Jim Nelson]

Inquiring minds want to know...
It's the gearbox for the car in the picture. The best man for the job is an ex-BAR/Stewart/Jaguar F1 gearbox designer. My bad luck, he was in San Diego, but moved to the East Coast. And, I'm going to have him put the hub assemblies together. Neither of these is a job for tourists, so I want to make sure the proper expertise gets applied. I could do it here, but putting the rest of this together when all the bits are scattered about the workshop is taking some time, just to organize everything. (My crew chief/chief fabricator passed about 3 months ago, and I found the wheel bearings for the rear hubs last week).

So this is a 1989 Tyrrell 018. It's Jean Alesi's first GP ride (France 1989), and was driven by Alesi/Herbert/Alboreto, and Nakajima. Podium at Mexico. Most points of any chassis of the last 20 or 25 years or Tyrrell, a real workhorse. The same chassis shown here, though Nakajima finished 6th in this particular one.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YdmiprP ... dmiprP97BA

[Leo Dreisilker]

Jim, make sure you have it valued and insured for the correct amount and then it should be declared on all the paperwork. I had a Speedster door shipped in an extremely solid crate and UPS Freight(not parcel) still broke a 4 x 4 and damaged the door. I had it insured for a high amount but it was not on the shipper paperwork and UPS Freight refused to pay the higher amount. The Terms and Conditions are onerous. My company ships printing press electric motors all over and the are always on a sturdy base, bolted down solid and in a strong crate. I call commercial carriers "Shipping and damaging companies".

[Eric Wills]

We usually use YRC Freight, the company David mentioned. We just sent a 4cyl Polo engine back to Dean in Temecula for some upgrades.....I will always build a crate, just don't trust an open pallet....I like to use thick plywood all the way around just in case a forklift blade ends up in the wrong place. It is very important to be sure whatever you build can be moved by a pallet jack. Not only for loading on the truck using a lift gate, but to allow the driver to move your item around in the truck. If you are able to weigh the crate, and use the correct description for what you are shipping, you will not likely incur "extra" charges later. We use a set of corner balance scales to weigh our crates before we setup the shipment. I have never had much luck trying to recover insurance money from damages. Building a solid crate, even if you pay more due to the extra weight seems to work.

Jim--Super cool Tyrrell! Would love to see a couple more photos of that. The early 6 wheel racers are especially amazing pieces of machinery. I think Canepa had one in the upstairs showroom/museum when I visited in 2015.

[Adam Wright]

To 2nd some of what Eric said, we build out crates to only be picked up from the front and back, not the sides. Have your freight moved on your terms. From years of working docks and driving a forklift, I've seen it all happen to freight, including by me. My 2nd week on the dock I was driving a forktruck, and took a corner too fast, this was about a month before Christmas, the shrinkwrap breaks on the pallet and and whole stack of new Dell computers go spilling. My boss is behind me and says in his best falsetto voice, "Mommy, Mommy, the computer Santa brought me doesn't work."

Also, there is no insurance in the trucking business, you are lucky to collect ten cents on the dollar for the amount insured.

[Jim Nelson]

Thanks for the tips, guys. Now I'm ready to put it in the back of the F150 and drive it there....Not a replaceable item....

[Adam Wright]

Thanks for the tips, guys. Now I'm ready to put it in the back of the F150 and drive it there....Not a replaceable item....

If it can be driven in a day or two, that's what I would do. My crates have never failed, and I've shipped them all over the world, but never say never.

[Jim Nelson]

Other coast.
But seriously, I 've gotten a lot of tips. It may be the strongest, heaviest box around.
Thanks all for the good advice.

[Adam Wright]

Other coast.
But seriously, I 've gotten a lot of tips. It may be the strongest, heaviest box around.
Thanks all for the good advice.

My truckers used to make it from Atlanta to LA in 48 hours, but pretty sure they were jacked up on who's know's what, and ate, slept, and pooped in the truck.