Mailing 1 or 2 chips safely with one stamp (1 Viewer)

[k9dr]

I thought I would share my method for mailing one or two chips safely in a regular envelope. This method is safe and economical. It saves the expense of a bubble envelope and only requires one stamp instead of a few dollars in postage. I have used this successfully to mail hundreds of chips one or two at a time. All you need is one envelope, two sheets of paper, two index cards, and some tape.



First you fold the index card in half and seal the edges with tape enclosing one chip inside. Repeat this with the second chip.



Next, trifold one sheet of paper and tape the index card/chips to the paper.



Next, cut the second sheet of paper in half and fold each half to approximate the thickness of a chip in a way that it will fit in the space adjacent to the index cards.



Next, tape these folded up pieces of paper next to the index cards to act as padding for the chips.



Finally, fold the paper and insert it into the envelope. I usually also tape the seams on the envelope. The resulting envelope is smooth and passes easily through postal machines with no damage to the chips inside.



One or two chips usually only require one first class stamp. You might wish to weigh your envelope to confirm the required postage. I have shipped up to three chips using this method but then add a second stamp.

 

[Quicksilver-75]

Cool. Nice to see a vendor out there that tries to ship at reasonable prices. I've had to give feebay a giant middle finger as of late. Between eBay's "Global Bullshipping Program which requires Canadian buyers to pay $18 USD + $8 import charges for one chip or the .99c + $36 shipping charged by dickhead sellers, I have all but stopped chipping.

 

[liftapint]

Top notch info, right here. Thanks!

 

[ovo]

If the envelope is less than an ounce and more than a 1/4 inch thick, you need another 22 cents. This is a non-standard size surcharge.

 

[k9dr]

AKAIK, I have never had one returned or delivered with postage due, YMMV.

 

[Tommy]

I'll have to give it a try once I run out of #0000 padded envelopes. I normally ship 1 to 2 chips in them for 98 cents.

 

[Forty4]

This would have been nice to know prior to me mailing you the chip you won in the NHL Brackets. I thought about trying something like this but was too worried it might break or get nicked up. I see how members react when they receive a broken chip.

I know you don't know me and things can come across wrong in text so just to clarify this post is in total jest.

 

[sleepypiggly]

10 years ago, I used to sell single casino chips on eBay and ship them first class mail as per the OP above. Out of over a hundred transactions, I had maybe 1 that got lost in the mail (or so the buyer claimed).

But no more. The issue here is that eBay had gotten pretty unreasonable over the years.

- eBay wants a tracking number with EVERY transaction - if you don't provide a tracking # and an unscrupulous buyer claims they didn't receive the item, it is automatic 100% refund. Minimum postage nowadays is $2.04 for up to 3oz of package.

- eBay now charges the seller flat 10% fee from the listing AND the shipping, so the old game of $0.99 item and $50 shipping is done for. If a seller is charging $2.35 and providing a valid tracking number, he/she is breaking even on the shipping (10% eBay fee + 2.9% paypal fee), and that's not even counting the packaging cost.

And BTW, bubble envelopes do not have to cost a lot if you're buying in volume. Retailers will charge you $1-2 for a bubble envelope, but heck, you can get small 4x7.5" mailers for about $0.06 each (including shipping). You can mail 1 - 30 chips in that bubble envelope. Very much worth it if you're mailing a lot of individual chips.
http://sunuku.com/

 

[BGinGA]

Warning: Ben sent out sample chips using the instructions in the OP and the chips have suffered nearly a 100% fatality rate.

The potential savings just aren't worth it, imo. Bubble mailers are the safest way to go.

 

[k9dr]

My chips shipped by this method arrived safely, but I agree it is safer to ship in a bubble mailer. It seems the $500 chips are more fragile as none of the nickels have been broken yet.

 

[BGinGA]

Maybe the Florida postal workers are just a kinder gentler type than those found in middle Tennessee.

 

[sleepypiggly]

I think maybe it depends on what USPS sorting facility the envelopes wind up in. The reason why standard machine processed envelopes can’t be rigid is because sometimes they travel around a bend where the envelope can go almost at a 90 degree angle in processing (see below video starting at the 1:25 mark).

I’ve had a number of single, double chips sent to me in envelopes and they turned out fine. I have only heard of others being broken.

Might be a crapshoot. Lesson here is that if it’s a good chip, bubble envelope is the way to go. It’s $2.04 minimum (3oz or less) if you print out the label via paypal. The bubble envelope itself is pretty cheap as per my post above.

 

[Ben]

Warning: Ben sent out sample chips using the instructions in the OP and the chips have suffered nearly a 100% fatality rate.

The potential savings just aren't worth it, imo. Bubble mailers are the safest way to go.

Fatalities are at 50% thus far, but yes, must disrecommend (especially as it was a giant PITA to prepare all the envelopes that way as well.)

 

[atomiktoaster]

I think the machine in the clip at 1:10 is called the chip snapper:

http://www.click2houston.com/news/residents-claim-slow-mail-delivery