Any shipper can destroy an item. Packaging is the key to your item surviving. Sometimes I think these guys aren't happy if they don't go home knowing that they destroyed something. I just shipped a Tice Power Block from the east to the west coast using UPS. I made a crate out of 2x12 lumber and 3/4 inch plywood. The crate weighed almost 40 pounds with a total packed weight of 95 pounds. I marked all of the sides "HEAVY", "FRAGILE", "ELECT INST". The item arrived in perfect shape. Even after being loaded over a dozen times as it crossed the country. You can not "overpack" an item enough if you want it to survive. Factory packing is not enough. FedEx dropped a Thiel 2 2 that I shipped and smashed the top. It was in the factory double shipping carton. I think that crating and banding a heavy item to a pallet and shipping via common carrier is a safer way to ship. Once on a pallet, the item will not be handled by "hand". Handling haevy items by "hand" is what destroys them. A person(s) tries to lift something heavy and they drop it.
Fedex Weekly Damage Report
I posted last week how the Fedex Overnight people managed to deliver me a Jadis amp 85% in the shipping box. Well, just one week later a pair of Apogee Stages were delivered, and the driver buzzes me and says "you might want to come down here cause you might not want to accept this COD". These speakers were packed in custom wooden crates and the 2 days they had them, Fedex managed to knock the corner of the crate and peeking though was the old speaker. It didnt appear the speaker had cosmetic damage. I hooked them up and lo and behold, the woofer panel does not work and the side panels are coming off the main speaker frame. To quote one of NY Finest, Fedex can kiss my Royal Irish (Chinese) ASS.