HOW TO PACK AND SHIP YOUR CARDS TO A GRADING COMPANY

Before following these instructions, enter your cards in the grading company’s submittal system, and/or fill out any required forms, before packaging your cards. You’d be surprised how many times people forget this step and have to rip apart their carefully-packaged boxes so they can go back and list out their cards.

· Keep your cards in order – the same order in which you entered them in the grading company’s submission system. When you start bundling your cards into “bricks,” label each brick on the outside with the submission line numbers of the cards inside. This will help keep the cards in order when your box is opened at the grading company, and will prevent any unnecessary delays from the receiving clerk not being able to find a card on the list.

· Bundle your cards in “bricks” – for large orders, I like to pack cards in wrapped stacks of 25 or fewer. There’s some strength in numbers (a single card, for example, is more likely to get destroyed in transit), but too many cards per brick makes for an inflexible packing process. Wrap the cards snugly in small-bubble wrap, then put two cardboard slabs on the top and bottom. The cardboard pieces should be slightly oversized but not too much larger than the card brick. Tape the pieces together in four places – top, bottom, left, and right – so that the card brick is snugly secured in a cardboard sandwich. Then, give it an outer wrap of large-bubble wrap. Tape the bubble wrap closed, and label the outside to indicate which cards are inside (see above). Now you’re ready to box it up.

· Load the box – it’s not quite as simple as it sounds. Please, don’t just drop a bundle of cards in a box, seal it, and ship it out. There are so many ways that a package can be damaged, we really have to be careful in packing boxes. Here’s how I do it: First, I pick a box size that gives me some room (but not an excessive amount) for packing material, like more large-bubble wrap. Then, I take two, two-square sheets of large-bubble wrap, put them in a cross formation, and drop them in the bottom of the box. This covers the bottom with two layers so I don’t have to go back and add more later, and it also covers the sides. Next, I drop in the wrapped card brick, and check to see that I’ll be able to close the box – if I can’t, then I know I chose the wrong size box, and I have to start over with a larger box.

· Fill, seal, and label the box – as mentioned before, fill all empty space in the box with large-bubble wrap (it protects against impact far better than the small-bubble wrap). Don’t overstuff it – even if you can force the box closed, it compromises the structural integrity of the box and also risks a surcharge from the shipping carrier. Instead, make sure the box closes firmly on level – not inward, but also not bowed outward. Then tape the hell out of it, sealing up any exposed edges to ensure that it won’t pop open under the weight of other boxes in a truck. Add the shipping label yourself if you can – there are online postage services like PayPal and Pirate Ship that let you print labels at home, so you can save money and schedule your packages to be picked up. If you can’t do online labels for whatever reason, just take the box to your local shipper – it’ll cost a bit more, but the difference is not too dramatic. Some observations: I ship almost exclusively with USPS, and most of that with Priority Mail. While first-class mail has slowed down and increased in price, Priority Mail is still fairly quick and cost effective. I’ve seen more use of UPS Ground recently – costs are competitive and timelines now rival first-class mail. And from past experience, I won’t ship on any FedEx service.

Please, please, please don’t be cheap when shipping valuable cards. Leave room in the box for extra packing material, even if it means you pay for a larger box. Poorly packed boxes – and overstuffed boxes – are at higher risk for damage. Most importantly – insure your shipment! I’ve seen carriers lose shipments worth thousands of dollars – yes, it’s even happened to me! – and without insurance, you’re completely out of luck. A few more dollars for extra bubble wrap and carrier insurance will provide tremendous peace of mind.