What are the best ways to ship motorcycle parts?Subscribe to this blog RSS Feed
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    1 of 4
    Sitwon
    10 years ago
    Background: I bought an 83 Kawasaki KZ440 LTD from CraigsList, and after getting it over to Yermo's we discovered it was going to be more trouble than it was worth to make it safe to ride. So I decided to cut my losses and try to recoup some value by parting it out.

    Now the question is, what is the best way to pack and ship motorcycle parts? In particular the frame and the engine.

    The engine weighs about 120 lbs., so I don't think I can ship it via USPS. I'm also not sure how best to safely package it so it won't get damage in transit. For bonus points, how do I ship it internationally? Someone on eBay asked if I would ship it to Australia.

    The frame isn't that heavy, about 40 lbs., but it's large. Should I just wrap it in cardboard & bubble wrap?
    2 of 4
    rshaug
    10 years ago
    The frame can be safely bubble/cardboard wrapped and shipped. The engine, as you guessed, is a slightly different matter. the easiest way is to partially crate it. That is, bolt it to a piece of thick plywood and then wrap it with plastic. That will make it much easier to pack and ship. You may need to build a little "subframe" with 2x4 but the concept is very straightforward. UPS ground is pretty good for that stuff. Going oversees you can look at DHL, they go anywhere.
    3 of 4
    rshaug
    10 years ago
    Depending on where it is going you may need to fully crate the engine anyway. May be best off just building a little enclosed crate for it, sit it on a piece of thick upholstery foam then fill with packing material around it. Regardless, I recommend hard fastening it to the floor of the crate.
    4 of 4
    rshaug
    10 years ago
    Here's some pics of a couple of examples:
    Photo #7597
    rshaug
    10 years ago

    Photo #7596
    rshaug
    10 years ago

    Photo #7594
    rshaug
    10 years ago