I just spent the last 15 minutes tranferring a box of packing peanuts from a cardboard box into plastic garbage bags. Not only do I now have repetitive stress on my left arm, my kitchen looks like a snowstorm just hit. I put the rest out pack and now some rebel peanuts have joined the other ones in my front yard from last month. ...then the last of them have caught on with the built up static electricity and now won't stay in the plastic bag...
in all seriousness, packing peanuts are great when packing, say..a coffee cup....but are utterly useless when packing an amp over 30lbs. I don't know why people use them for shipping highend gear. There are several other better, cheaper, less cumbersome materials one can use which are more appropriate.
I could not agree more. When I got my Klyne pre-amp from the factory it was packed like that and right away I had a bad impression of the company. Peanuts are useless and cheap, why would anyone put anything other than junk gear in a box with them!
I never thought I would agree with anything Anarchy ever said. This time I do. Just goes to show. When you double box cartridges, peanuts are actually quite good around the cartridge's own box. Anything heavy and all they provide is a false sense of security.
When ordering high-end gear from your favorite dealer or Audiogon seller, always request the FLAVORED styrofoam peanuts if you plan on making a meal of them like my pal Gunbei. My personal favorite flavors are Chocolate, Strawberry and Poon-tang. Accept no substitutes! Lay down some harsh words in those feedback files for lack of compliance! Open up your windows, lean out there and yell at top of your lungs, "I'm as mad as hell, and I want my Poon-tang flavored peanuts!!!!" Go on, do it now!!!
My peanut story, revolves around a John Coltrane issue of Sunship. For some reason, this guy tought that peanuts were the way to go. He packed the album(which had seam splits) in peanuts, didn't even protect the jacket or vinyl with an outer sleeve. The peanuts started right away on embedding their dust in the vinyl grooves along with charging the vinyl statically. I tried brushing the peanut dust off, only for it to cling back to the vinyl, sum' of a b*tch!
Another cool use for Gruv Glide. Just a bit on your hands and you can let those little buggers go. Hell, spray it all over the mess and they aren't charged no more!
UPS states" "Due to the shifting and settling properties of peanuts, it is recommended that a minimum of three inches of cushioning be used around the contents" "not recommended for use with flat, narrow, or dense products that may migrate to the edge or bottom of carton during transit"
UPS recommends: - inflatable packing (air bags) - Bubble pack - engineered (Solid) foam - Spray in place foam
R-Tech solid foam sheeting available @ Home Depot (approx. $8 for 1" x 4' 8' sheet) is a good material to use for heavier gear.
I use peanuts for tubes (much prefer them to bubble wrap) and to fill package voids on delicate items (both light/heavy), such as vintage drivers. The peanuts (filling voids) absorb energy from drops/shocks which might otherwise cause damage (for example: whacking/jolting a vintage alnico speaker magnet can reduce its strength).
Styro peanuts are expensive in my area ($3/cubic foot seems to be the going rate, with perhaps a 10%-15% discount for larger/bulk purchases).
Forget the exact solvent (maybe lacquer thinner), but have read that Styro peanuts can be dissolved in the proper solvent to make a protective paint/spray on finish.
I recently shipped a preamp (did not have the original packaging) and figured out a simple method to protect the front/back controls and inputs. I wrapped the unit in a plastic lawn/leaf bag and then taped/strapped it down to a thick piece of flat cardboard (the cardboard piece extended beyond the footprint of the preamp and it was sized to snugly fit the bottom of an over sized inner box). This way the front/back of the unit had an air barrier with nothing to push against them while in transit. I also double boxed the unit with 2-3" of foam sheeting on all sides.
Next time I'm on the receiving end (having a used item packaged/shipped) I'll request this packaging method. It's easy and cheap (a piece of decent sturdy cardbard, an oversized box and a bit of extra tape are all that's needed).
Here's the solution. Wish I could patent it. Buy the zippered large baggies. Actual zippers on there - not the squeeze type. Put the peanuts into the baggies. Zip shut.
Pack the baggies around your gear. No mess. Great strength. Reusable. No mess. Especially good when double boxing!
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