Suitable packaging when posting

[Hopey]

Ahoy. I'm not sure if this is the right forum for this, but here goes.

I've started the process of attempting to fund my Lego habit by importing cheap sets from various overseas sources and (hopefully) selling them at a profit down under. Not yet sure whether eBay, bricklink, or some other avenue is the best way to go, but however I do it I'll need to post them out.

One thing I didn't fully take into account is the cost of proper packaging. I don't think I can afford to buy new cardboard boxes for every set I post, especially since Australia post charges by volume rather than weight.

So my current plan is to wrap the set in a layer or two of bubble-wrap, then cover that in brown paper, and mail it like that. I've never received anything in the mail that was so badly beaten around that this wouldn't be sufficient, but I'm not sure what experiences others have had.

Is this an appropriate way to package sets to be mailed? Will it sufficiently protect the boxes? If you were to buy a set and receive it in the mail packaged like this, would it likely affect the feedback you'd leave?

Cheers.

[Ludzik]

When I ship lego sets I make my own boxes ;) I first wrap in bubble wrap the original lego box and then I cut and fold cardboard to size. OH yeah, and cardboard is easy to get if you keep a sharp eye out.... We bought a piece of furniture and it came in a big box which I saved, neighbours bought a tv and didn't need the box... etc....

The brown paper over bubble wrap is a hit and miss... if they don't mistreat the package when shipping then you're good if it gets tossed the wrong way, it can get impaled on another box..... I know... someone sent me a package wrapped that way.... thankfully I didn't care about the box....

[Alcarin]

Well to me the only appropriate way to pack LEGO set (MISB) is to pack it inside cardboard box and put enough paper/bubbles inside so the set does not move much if at all.

[Str0ngbad]

For things that are already unpackaged, I ship in individual baggies stuffed into a bubble mailer. For boxed sets, Ludzik's suggestion sounds like the best approach; cheap supplies and the box wouldn't be any larger than necessary. I'm afraid wrapping it in paper might cause you some grief eventually.

[Covi]

How you package greatly depends how your buyer wants to receive it.

If the box is very important to him then I would suggest putting a box into a box. It's very sturdy and if somehow the outer box gets damaged, your inner box will still have protected the set from any harm.

if the box isn't of any importance..then you can also package only the pieces which can be far more easily send well protected in a bubble wrapped envelop.

So my advice would be : communication with your buyers is key. My experience is also that if the secure shipping is that important for the buyer he's in most cases also willing to pay something extra.