How NOT to package a cymbal for shipping!!

Nictarine

Silver Member
I ordered a Zildjian 21" Z Custom Mega Bell Ride off Reverb last month and it was packed HORRIBLY, I've bought cymbals off eBay, Guitar Center Used, Reverb, etc and this is by far the worst cymbal packing job I've ever seen!

The box was 23 x 23 x 6 so the cymbal has all kinds of room to move around, there was ONE small piece of styrofoam in the box and the cymbal was in a plastic cymbal bag/sleeve.
Luckily it's a heavy duty cymbal and it didn't get damaged in shipping as far as I can tell.

If you're going to package a cymbal for shipping use bubble wrap or SOMETHING to protect it and prevent it from moving around inside the box during transit, get a sturdy box to ship it in don't use a pizza box or bass drum head box.
 

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I got one packed the same way except that the small circle cut from the triangle was under the cymbal. My box was tighter but other than that the same job.
 
I got a 16" AAX in a box that was flattened and taped on all sides; zero protection for the cymbal. Mine was off ebay too. Somehow the cymbal wasn't damaged so I didn't complain.
 
When I ship I put a magazine on all four sides like a sandwich. and use a box that fits
 
I once special ordered a 20" "Brilliant" finish Swish directly from the Zildjian factory. All they did was place the cymbal in the plastic cymbal bag and seal it up in a loose box. No padding, popcorn or anything. It's a wonder there wasn't any damage!
 
It looks fine......................
 
I once special ordered a 20" "Brilliant" finish Swish directly from the Zildjian factory. All they did was place the cymbal in the plastic cymbal bag and seal it up in a loose box. No padding, popcorn or anything. It's a wonder there wasn't any damage!

It can be surprising how little packaging the manufacturers use (including drums). But, they just produced a few thousand of whatever it is, so if one or two get damaged in shipment, they send a replacement out. The cost of doing business. OTOH, when making a private sale and you are selling ***ONE*** item, you don't have that luxury.
 
I bought a Giant Beat from Larry a months or so back and he packed that thing to withstand a bomb. Rigid plastic tubing around the edge and chipboard on both sides with plenty of tape and bubble wrap. Now that's how you pack a cymbal.
 
I received a set of hats nested in one another, and 2 squares of cardboard taped around them. ZERO protection for the edges. I ripped the jerk on EvilBay feedback, which I almost never do.

People are just morons.
 
I have a friend, whose cousin, has a girl friend that works at the Zildjian factory, and he said that she said, that they use a special Zildjian gas in the boxes to prevent damage to the cymbals. I did not believe this either at first but then I saw it on a web page that has since been pulled down. Unfortunately, I lost the link to that page.
 
I have a friend, whose cousin, has a girl friend that works at the Zildjian factory, and he said that she said, that they use a special Zildjian gas in the boxes to prevent damage to the cymbals. I did not believe this either at first but then I saw it on a web page that has since been pulled down. Unfortunately, I lost the link to that page.

That was convincing....lol
 
About a month ago bought a 17" Zildjian fast crash and a Tama road pro stand from MF. They were both just thrown into an extremely oversize box and shipped without any filler material.

The heavy cymbal stand box was apparently banging into the cymbal along the way as the cymbal had scuff marks from the box. The plastic Zildjian bag wasn't enough to protect it from getting marked. Was about to complain, but after inspecting the cymbal, there was no real damage or bending, just the scuff marks which I was able to mostly remove after 10 minutes of buffing with a soft microfiber rag.

Overall, I've found SW to pack drum gear more securely although I tend to get discount coupons from MF. Both double box guitars so never an issue with those.
 
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