How to Ship Reel to Reel decks (how we do it!)
So you’ve purchased a reel to reel deck, and can’t wait to get it. Or, you’ve sold a deck, and want it to arrive safely at the destination. Regardless of whether you purchased the deck from us or not, here’s some packing guidelines:
7” decks
Generally, 7” decks are small enough to be packed in a 20 x 20 x 12” box, found at any packaging place, moving supply company, or even Home Depot usually.
Materials needed:
- 20 x 20 x 12 box, double wall preferred
- 2- 2’ x 4’ sheets of 3/4” Styrofoam sheet. Styrofoam insulation sheets found at a building supply place (Home Depot) are great for this.
- Box cutter
- Large bubble wrap, about 2’ wide x 10’ long. The bubbles within the bubble wrap are usually ½ to 1’ in diameter. Do not buy the small, thin bubble wrap used to pack small items, it won’t cushion a reel to reel enough to prevent damage
- Packing tape- medium to heavy duty
- Duct tape (only really needed if you’re using light duty packing tape)
- 1 or 2” wide painters tape
(yes, as of May 2023, you’re probably into packing material costs of $40 USD. That’s what it’s going to take to safely ship the deck)
How to pack the deck
- If the deck has any tape tension levers that move, tape them in place with painter’s tape. It prevents stress on the springs under the top cover, and reduces the chance of the levers being bent in transit.
- Cut a couple of 2” wide strips of Styrofoam, and place them over the reel spindles. Two ¾” thick sections of styro will completely cover the spindles (poke holes into the styro before placing it over the reel tables), and tape to the front of the deck with painters tape so they can’t move.
- We use large bubble wrap and wrap all decks in 2-3 layers of bubble wrap. We buy the bubble wrap in bulk, buying small packs from stationary stores is exceptionally expensive, so go to a packing/shipping place, and ask to buy it by the foot if you need it. It can be bought in 2’ wide versions.
- Cut the Styrofoam sheet into sections so that you can line the box with it. Put a 20 x 20” sheet into the bottom of the box, then place the deck onto the styro sheet.
- Using more Styrofoam sheet pieces, line the sides of the box with them, so that all 5 sides of the box are now lined with Styrofoam.
- Use more bubble wrap to stuff between the bubble wrapped deck and the styro walls of the box, or cut more Styrofoam to build up the side walls of the box, to securely house the deck.
- Cut one last styro sheet that fits over top of the bubble wrapped deck, so that all 6 sides of the box are now lined with styro.
- Seal the box securely with packing tape, and if you have duct tape, put it over the packing tape for extra security that the box won’t open in transit.
- The most important thing is that the deck is packed securely enough so that it cannot move within the box. This is SUPER important! The box WILL get dropped and kicked around in transit, and if the deck is loose within the box, any shock that the box receives will be directly transferred to the deck, causing damage.
Bubble wrapped 7” Akai deck in 2 layers of bubble wrap. Reel tables protected by 2 stacked pieces of Styrofoam over each reel table. Deck is sitting on a ¾” styro sheet, and the deck is firmly held in place by more styro sheets all around the deck.
Deck is covered with more bubble wrap, pushed down into any air space around the deck and the styro sheets. Not shown is the final piece of ¾” styro sheet that will go over top of the orange bubble wrap before the box is closed.
7” Teac X series deck wrapped in bubble wrap, with a sheet of ¾” styro underneath it.
Extra sheets of ¾” styro around the outside 4 walls of the box for extra protection. Stack the styro sheets so that the deck cannot move around within the box. Add another.
Add another ¾” sheet of styro over top of the deck to protect it on all 6 sides.
Duct tape added over top of the packing tape for extra security. We also add shock stickers (optional, found at www.Uline.com) to indicate if the box has been roughly handled in transit. The middle of the sticker will turn red if the box is dropped hard enough).
Teac X series deck placed on 2 layers of crossed bubble wrap, ready to be folder over on top of the deck.
One 3/4” piece of styro placed over the reel spindles to protect them. Put a second piece over top of the first to fully protect them, then use painter’s tape to hold the styro in place.
Tension arms taped in place under the bubble wrap with painter’s tape. Bubble wrap folded over the deck. Larger styro pieces placed between the deck and the outside edges of the box to firmly hold the deck in place.
10” decks
All 10” decks require double boxing for secure shipping.
Materials needed:
- 20 x 20 x 12 box, double wall preferred
- 24 x 24 x 16” box, double wall. (Home Depot sells good 24” X 24” X 24” double wall boxes, and the height can be cut down to size as required)
- 2- 2’ x 4’ sheets of 3/4” Styrofoam sheet. Styrofoam insulation sheets found at a building supply place (Home Depot) are great for this.
- 2- 2’ x 4’ sheets of 1” styro sheets. Again, Styrofoam insulation is great, found at any building supply place.
- Box cutter
- Large bubble wrap, about 2’ wide x 10’ long. The bubbles within the bubble wrap are usually ½ to 1’ in diameter. Do not buy the small, thin bubble wrap used to pack small items, it won’t cushion a reel to reel enough to prevent damage
- Packing tape- medium to heavy duty
- Duct tape (only really needed if you’re using light duty packing tape)
- 1 or 2” wide painters tape
inner box sealed, more styro sheets between the inside and outside box, to firmly hold the inner box in place.
Sheet of ¾” styro placed inside the top of the inner box to protect the deck.
Tascam BR20 being packed in the inner 20 X 20 X 12 box, with bubble wrap all around the deck
Tascam 32 sitting on 1” sheet of styro. Tape tension levers taped into place with painter’s tape. NAB adapters placed onto reel spindles for protection. Put a chunk of styro over top of the remaining portion of the spindles, held in place with painter’s tape. 2 layers of bubble wrap crossed over underneath the deck. Styro sheets on the outside of the deck, between the bubble wrap and the outside box wall to hold the deck firmly in place.
Excess bubble wrap folded over the deck, with more bubble wrap packed on top of the deck.
Outer box sealed, duct tape applied around the flaps of the box, shock sticker applied.
(yes, as of May 2023, you’re probably into packing material costs of $55 USD. That’s what it’s going to take to safely ship the deck)
How to pack the deck
- If the deck has any tape tension levers that move, tape them in place with painter’s tape. It prevents stress on the springs under the top cover, and reduces the chance of the levers being bent in transit.
- Cut a couple of 2” wide strips of Styrofoam, and place them over the reel spindles. Two ¾” thick sections of styro will completely cover the spindles (poke holes into the styro before placing it over the reel tables), and tape to the front of the deck with painters tape so they can’t move.
- We use large bubble wrap and wrap all decks in 2-3 layers of bubble wrap. We buy the bubble wrap in bulk, buying small packs from stationary stores is exceptionally expensive, so go to a packing/shipping place, and ask to buy it by the foot if you need it. It can be bought in 2’ wide versions.
- With some larger 10” decks, it may be easier to line the walls of the 20 X 20 X 12 box with bubble wrap by using two pieces of 5’ long bubble wrap, running it down one wall, across the bottom, and then up the other wall. The bottom of the deck will then have two layers of bubble wrap between it and the bottom of the box. Fold the excess bubble wrap over the top of the deck, so that the deck is now encased in bubble wrap. (see pix)
- Place the bubble wrapped deck into the middle of the 20 x 20 X 12” box. Using more bubble wrap, or sections of ¾” Styrofoam sheets, line the sides of the box so that the deck cannot move around within the inner box. Seal the 20 X 20 X 12” box.
- Put a sheet of 24” X 24” x 1” thick Styrofoam into the bottom of the 24 X 24 X 16 box.
- Place the 20 X 20 X 12 box into the larger 24 X 24 X 16 box. Line the open area all around the two boxes with more styro sheets, so that the inner box is snug in the outer box, so that it cannot move.
- Cut more styro sheets to put on top of the inner box, so that they are level with the top of the outer box.
- If the outer box is taller than 16”, cut it down to 16” so that you have a 24 X 24 X 16 outer box, that is lined with styro all around holding the inner box securely in place.
- Seal the box securely with packing tape, and if you have duct tape, put it over the packing tape for extra security that the box won’t open in transit.
- The most important thing is that the deck is packed securely enough so that it cannot move within the box, nor can the inner box be allowed to move around within the outer one. This is SUPER important! The box WILL get dropped and kicked around in transit, and if the deck is loose within the box, any shock that the box receives will be directly transferred to the deck, causing damage.
- DO NOT use those Styrofoam ‘peanuts’ to pack decks with, even if you put the deck into a large plastic garbage bag. Heavy items like reel to reel machines will crush the styro chips in transit, which will allow the deck to bounce around in the box. That’s not good! As soon as a deck can move in the box, you’re asking for problems.
- DO NOT use crumpled newspaper anywhere in the packing process. It’s worse than the styro chips, and will crush in transit, allowing the deck to bounce around in the box.
- We use USPS in the US, and Canada Post for shipment totals under 70 LBS rather than the couriers, and here’s why: The postal services won’t treat the package any better than the couriers, but in the rare case that there’s shipping damage, USPS will pay up. UPS and FedEx are a nightmare to deal with for insurance claims, and we’ve never gotten paid by either over the years.
- Here’s another important point: We use only newly purchased boxes to ship reel to reels in. If you receive a box with clearly visible damage, as in a corner that is smashed in, or a hole in the box, DO NOT sign for the receipt of the box! Either insist on opening the box in front of the postal worker to ensure there’s no internal damage, or if the box is badly damaged, refuse it completely. As soon as you sign for the receipt of the unit, the post office and couriers assume you ‘received it in good order’. All insurance claims are then null and void. We do the same at this end before accepting any decks in for repair.
- On larger reel to reel decks and any units over 70 lbs total, we use freight companies (trucking) to ship the decks. For any deck that isn’t in a rollaround cart, we use the above boxing methods, but we strap the box to a 48 X 40 pallet. Shipping by truck is very safe, unless a forklift tine goes through the box (it’s happened to us twice in 18 years). It’s cheaper for you to pick the deck up at the truck dock, which is about $100-150 less than if the trucking company does a residential delivery. It also goes through less hands that way. Again, inspect the box for visible damage before signing the trucking waybill.
- If we are sending to the US, we clear customs at this end, so you see the deck as a domestic shipment from Washington State. No customs charges for you!
Shipping decks to us for repair
Whether you’re sending a deck in for repair, or we’ve purchased a deck from you, follow the above packing guidelines to ensure safe travels. Our website shows our Canadian address, but to prevent customs charges, we also have a Washington State ship-to address to make things easier and cheaper.
We clear customs when the deck gets here, and customs agents at the border crossing that we go through with decks know that I’m this crazy Canadian that repairs vintage electronics stuff
Email us at curt@reeltoreeltech.com to get that Washington State ship-to address
VERY IMPORTANT! If you are sending a deck in for repair, make sure that your name, phone number and address (and email address) are in the box on top of the deck. Send us an email as well with your contact information, as we can send you reports and estimates via email. We get everything in writing from our clients.
Please put a short description of the problem(s) with the deck into the box as well please. With 40+ emails and phone calls a day regarding reel to reels, they do all become a blur, and we may not remember all the details of the phone call or email that we had 10 days earlier. Also put a copy of the email exchange that we’ve had into the box, so we know at this end what we had discussed.
Repair Pricing
To save everyone time, and to speed up the repair process, a general cleaning testing and setup of any 2 channel/stereo reel to reel ranges from $300-350, either in Canadian or USD. (see our ‘mandatory service to tape decks elsewhere on the site for a better explanation), but in point form, this covers:
- Testing all machine functions
- Cleaning all controls and switches
- Cleaning of the tape path
- Cleaning of the pinch roller and capstan
- Replacement of the pinch roller
- Replacement of the main drive belt, as applicable
- Checking frequency response of record and playback, and an email of the frequency response
- Setting the bias and eq curves for one tape type (typically Maxell UDXL/Quantegy 456/RMGi911, etc.)
- Test running the deck for at least 6 hours in play and record to make sure the deck is fully functional over the long term.
Phone calls, etc.
We are on the West Coast, so we’re on Pacific Time, the same as Seattle or Los Angeles. We work long hours, and have no problems with early evening and weekend calls. As most of you might have guessed, I am a one man show (I hide it nicely by saying ‘we’ on the website!), and will admit that I am absolutely TERRIBLE with names and faces, but stellar with phone numbers. If you call and say ‘I talked to you last week about reel to reels’, then you’ll be about the 20th person that has done that in the past week! If you say ‘Hi, I’m Ron, I’ve got that Teac 2300 that doesn’t go into play mode, and I was going to drop it off today’, then I will most likely know exactly who you are.
Note also that Canada uses the same AC voltage as the US, so we can repair your US tape deck. We also have our shop wired for 220 volts, so we can even repair decks that are set up for European voltages!
