Korean Job Discussion Forums

[sapeoblast]

Hello All,

Does anyone know how I would go about shipping a guitar from Seoul to the US?!

I left Korea to go traveling last fall and have since returned to the States. Unfortunately, I had to leave my electric guitar behind! I have tried to sell her though complications with Craig's List have frustrated me to the point where I just want her back home safely.

The guitar is in a non-Korean friend's possession. Any idea as to how I can instruct him to go about shipping it back Stateside?!

General post? Specialty carrier?

Or, if anyone is interested in a Classic Series '72 Telecaster Thinline in great condition, let me know and I can get you pics and a price!

Thank you much for any and all suggestions!

[movybuf]

I would hate to ship a guitar like that and worry about it in transport. But, I would also hate to sell a guitar like that.

I would guess if you have a nice hard case for it, then you could probably ship it by Fedex or something like that. It might cost half of what the guitar is worth though.

It's a damn nice guitar and I would hate to hav to part with it.

[stephenpoi]

If you send it courier and insure it, it should be alright as long as it is in a good quality hardshell case. It may cost you about 200,000 won though.

[sapeoblast]

Thanks for the info!

What does by courier mean though? Is that the regular Korean post or by a third-party service?

Also, simply because I've never shipped anything of this size, would it need to be 'boxed' or is a hardshell case enough? Similar to checking a bag on an airline?

Thanks again everyone!

[stephenpoi]

Regular Korean air mail would do. I sent a bicycle to Canada a few years ago using 3 day air mail. Never had any problems with it.

I don't think you would need to put the guitar in a box. Just the case would be enough. Makes it easier to handle and decreases the chances of it getting damaged. They are more likely to treat it roughly if it is awkward to carry.

Good Luck!

[sapeoblast]

Great suggestion, thanks! I'll see what the PO can do!

[Salamander]

What kind of guitar is it? Fender Stratocaster?

[sapeoblast]

Thanks for asking Salamander, the guitar is a Telecaster Thinline. It's a semi-hollow body electric.

Here are some pictures of my actual guitar, available for sale still if you're interested. http://www.flickr.com/photos/40924787@N04/sets/72157623027222440/

Or, you can read more about it here http://www.fender.com/products/search.php?partno=0137402321

Feel free to pm or email me with any questions.


acsaper at gmail dot com

[Redcap]

I recently mailed an electric guitar to North America.

Korea Post charged me 70,000 won to send it by air, which was an absolute bargain when compared to the usual suspects in the courier industry. It took 5 days for completion of delivery.

Make sure that that the person doing the packing for you loosens up the strings ( so as to prevent them from snapping during pressurization changes in the cargo hold), and that the guitar is residing in a hard shell case- unless you have an affinity for using expensive kindling in your fireplace.

As added protection, I purchased about 6,000 won worth of bubble wrap from a stationary supplies outlet, and proceeded to mummify the case with several layers of the stuff.

Good luck

[sapeoblast]

Awesome information! Thank you so much!

This is the first truly helpful response I've received in two years!

Ironic timing as I just managed to sell the instrument, circumventing the shipping issue!

Thanks a ton for the response, hopefully others will find it of use!

[elninomudo]

Two years later, but definitely of use. Thanks for the great thread everyone!

[RunReilly]

[Harpeau]