Question on knife shipping etiquette

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josemartinlopez

josemartinlopez

我會買所有的獨角獸
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How would you react if a BST seller sent you a knife by putting the knife back in the knife box, putting the box in a polybag, then sending the polybag USPS?
 
Gotta put the box in a box, or it's a pass from me, dawg. Although I did just receive a $600 camera lens from Amazon that was shipped in the box in a polybag. Wasn't super excited about that, but it made it here just fine.
 
One of my 1st BST transactions here, purchase was >$700 and the knife alone (no box) was wrapped & taped in many layers bubble/plastic. I was confounded but the knife was undamaged. The packing job was very neatly and thoroughly done, and well-protected. I imagine it took more time and $material than cardboard. Needless to say, cardboard boxes are my preference.

Item was delivered in the expected condition = no legitimate gripe, since no part of the agreement defined acceptable method of packaging.
 
SilverSwarfer said:
One of my 1st BST transactions here, purchase was >$700 and the knife alone (no box) was wrapped & taped in many layers bubble/plastic. I was confounded but the knife was undamaged. The packing job was very neatly and thoroughly done, and well-protected. I imagine it took more time and $material than cardboard. Needless to say, cardboard boxes are my preference.

Item was delivered in the expected condition = no legitimate gripe, since no part of the agreement defined acceptable method of packaging.
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So there was no box involved at all? What was on the outside? Just a label attached to some plastic?
 
ian said:
So there was no box involved at all? What was on the outside?
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a veritable (exaggerated) metric tonne of plastic + bubble wrap. The knife was effectively suspended within a pillow of plastic + air. I will say this setup had significant potential for disaster if compressed/bent as many boxes are. There was enough plastic to obscure the contents but the shape was pretty suggestive. I was not at all pleased when I first received the delivery, and especially not when unpeeling and cutting all that plastic.
 
I've gotten one knife delivered in a cardboard saya, wrapped in bubble wrap, inside two tyvek bags taped together. There was no damage or anything and it wasn't a particularly expensive knife to begin with, so no harm no foul... but I wouldn't be stoked on that method for higher-dollar shipments.
 
SilverSwarfer said:
There was enough plastic to obscure the contents but the shape was pretty suggestive.
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How did you know about my vinyl jumpsuit?

I agree overall with the sentiment of 'no harm, no foul,' but one thing missing from the responses so far is m*********ing consequence. First off, I wouldn't buy from that seller again, but my buying habits and the nature of BST make that unlikely in the first place.

More importantly, I would take a photo of the package as it arrived and post it on the BST thread to warn those of us who do our research. With a snarky "thanks for the secure shipment!" It's not much but it could help someone avoid a bad outcome.
 
josemartinlopez said:
How would you react if a BST seller sent you a knife by putting the knife back in the knife box, putting the box in a polybag, then sending the polybag USPS?
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Contact the seller and as Ian said, warn the seller or ask for a refund. For example, here in Japan, that would be perfectly ok and many vendors send the knives like that. However, it seems like that's not good enough in other countries, so perhaps it seems careless even though it was sent with good intentions. Actually, I'm wondering now if I've been careful enough in the past. In any case, I think you should find a good solution by talking to the seller!
 
As long as knife came with no damages, it’s acceptable. Some people just don’t know how to packaged properly, I made some mistakes too when I first selling knives. We learned from mistakes along the way.

The way shipping carrier handles the package also important. I had a knife from a well known vendor before, it’s was really well packaged(there’s even Fragile sign on the package). But when I received the package, it looks liked it got ran over by a truck or something. The knife was bent unfortunately. I’m guessing the shipping carrier just throw very heavy package on top of it, that’s what causes the bent I guess.
 
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when you say poly bag, you don't mean padded envelope? just a plastic bag around the knife box? lol

also, shipped internationally? i agree that it's not the ideal way, but here are my experiences with less than ideal knife packaging:

1) one time i shipped a victorinox fibrox chef's knife domestically. usps first class package service. all i did was slide the blade into a 'cardboard saya' (folded and taped cardboard), loosely rolled the whole thing in a couple layers of bubble wrap, and then put that into a padded (bubble) envelope. it arrived fine.

2) i received a myojin sg2 240mm gyuto from K&S AU. the knife box was wrapped in a layer of cardboard (not a real outer box, just folded piece of cardboard), and i think that was wrapped in an opaque plastic bag. the knife arrived fine, but the knife box had its seams split.
 
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Box with padding, even if it's just crumpled newspaper. Also good to see when then sender has put something put into the knife box (cardboard, bubble wrap, tip protector) to stop the knife moving around.

Knife box straight into an unpadded bag... no. But those are my expectations for an experienced seller.
 
SilverSwarfer said:
One of my 1st BST transactions here, purchase was >$700 and the knife alone (no box) was wrapped & taped in many layers bubble/plastic. I was confounded but the knife was undamaged. The packing job was very neatly and thoroughly done, and well-protected. I imagine it took more time and $material than cardboard. Needless to say, cardboard boxes are my preference.
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Most regulars here and knife maker are so conscientious about packing I forget to mention shipping to someone I buy from.

I'd trust no box in Japan, but not USPS shipped CONUS!
 
When I buy used knives from Japan, some of them don't even have the knife box, just some newspaper bubble warp or using cardboard to make a saya to fit the knife, I don't have any problem with that, as long as the knife arrive as the picture shown.

When I sell knives to buyer, I usually use tonne of plastic + bubble wrap + newspaper+ post office bag. For the high end knives I use cardboard to make a box myself, outside of the cardboard using tons of plastic to make sure is waterproof.
IMG_4646.jpg
 
I have received numerous knives from vendors, shipped without box, in poly bag, from U.S., Japan, Australia. All have been received in perfect condition, well wrapped and padded. I don't see the benefit of a box (that I HAVE received crushed or damaged) over a well protected/padded poly bag.
 
I don't consider it an etiquette issue, it's the seller's responsibility to make sure the knife arrives undamaged during shipment. If there's damage, that's on the seller, and they should offer a partial refund to cover the damages or accept a return for full refund.
So, poor packing is a risky move for a seller.
I've had a few mishaps over the years, as both a buyer and seller, all solved with relatively small partial refunds. I've learned from my less than adequate packing jobs and now do a better job. Maybe rough handling was contributed to the damage, but now I pack knives with the expectation that will happen.
Carbon knives get a coating of mineral oil and are wrapped in plastic wrap.
Cardboard is cheap and adds little weight. It's easy to make a protective cardboard saya. Sometimes I make a double saya.
Expensive knives also get an extra piece or two of thin wood to give some extra protection.
 
Cliffkol said:
I have received numerous knives from vendors, shipped without box, in poly bag, from U.S., Japan, Australia. All have been received in perfect condition, well wrapped and padded. I don't see the benefit of a box (that I HAVE received crushed or damaged) over a well protected/padded poly bag.
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Maybe the package handlers at the shipper and the delivery guys are a little more careful with plastic bags and don’t bury them under heavy boxes. While heavy boxes get thrown on top of anything else in a box. So perhaps using a plastic bag is its own safety measure in a weird way?
 
As others have said, depends on how the knife arrived, though would still mention something to the seller.

I've had a range of experiences with packaging but, the condition the knife arrives in sometimes seems almost independent.

I've gotten a suji from Russia that just had the blade tape to one side of a triangle box, no packaging at all and was just fine. I've also gotten a gyuto that was double boxed, bubble wrapped and wiped with oil. Still came with a bent/chipped tip and some light rust.

Regardless everything should be done to avoid mishaps and people can only improve if they know!
 
how do you calculate wastefulness? what's the total energy and resource loss of a ruined knife (factored for the probability of damage) compared to some paper? I honestly don't know, but it seems worth it considering where I live
 
the wastefulness i'm personally concerned with is how annoying it is to unpack. endless layers of bubblewrap and little pieces of tape everywhere are pretty annoying.

it should be packaged securely enough to make it there, but no need for overkill or getting too creative.
 
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