[Va68goat]

I'm having a motor built in Tuscon, Arizona and I live in Manassas, Virginia. It should be ready for delivery around a month from now. I need some suggestions on how to get it delivered safely and cost effectively. I have never done this before and any suggestions would be appreciated. What should I expect to pay? What companies should I reach out to and any suggestions on crates?

[1968GTO421]

Have you talked with your engine builder? It's probable he has been involved in the shipping of his engines and can give you some ideas on shippers. Also he may have a staff member who can crate the engine for you. Just my thoughts not knowing the whole story.

[ponyakr]

Get a quote from Fastenal. They quoted me a price of $175 to ship from AZ to North Louisiana. Obviously, it will cost more for the longer trip to your location.

Fastenal ships from one Fastenal store to another. Not all stores do the shipping. My local store does not. My closest shipping store is about 25 miles from me. You can find out your closest store that ships.

They require that the engine be securely attached to a good pallet, for handling with a fork lift. Must have a wooden box built around it to get insurance on it.

https://www.google.com/search?q=engi...hrome&ie=UTF-8

[pancho400cid]

My two cents would be "somebody" with moderate carpentry skills needs to build a crate with a pallet base that allows lifting with a forklift and a pallet jack.

Strong 2x and/or 4x lumber and bolts/lag bolts needs to tie the engine to the base via motor mount bolt holes and bellhousing holes.

I would put a crate (OSB, plywood etc with 2x framing) over the engine once it's affixed to the base for protection and to keep somebody from taking carb, valve covers etc.

Or was that too obvious...?

PS - The Fastenal deal is very good to know!

[77 TRASHCAN]

Well, my thoughts and experiences...
There's a guy here that sells Pontiac specific engine cradles, has an ad in performance parts, and possibly other areas. I could not find his thread, I think his user name is Compeute...I think...
You might be able get him to make you shipping cradle. I'm against a wooden crate. The wooden crate is good, but useless if tipped on it's side. Building a cage around the engine is the only way to go. Then just attach some plywood on the sides to cover it!
The shipping crate needs to be strong enough to hold the engine in place regardless of position of the cradle (or container).
Sounds a little paranoid...? I used to be a parts manager for a truck dealer. I hate trucking companies!!! I've seen every shipping screwup, to be had!
Old Dominion as one of the only companies I never had a problem with. I highly recommend them!

[tom s]

I have shipped about 4-5 engines on his engine dolly.I pull the casters,bolt it to a small pallet.I attach a chain to the engine.I then get a big cardborad box and build a box around the engine and top.I cut a "hatch" that the chain can go through to lift the engine.I then use shrink wrap around the complete box.I ship the carb separate.Has not failed me or the customer. When it arrives they open it,unbolt it from the pallet and reattach the casters and can roll it anywhere he wants.I charge the cost of the dolly but will refund it if he sends it back.Tom

[grivera]

Free use of a shipping crate: http://forums.maxperformanceinc.com/...shipping+crate

[grivera]

And here is the engine cradle if you want to do like Tom mentioned: http://forums.maxperformanceinc.com/...d.php?t=770428

[pontibeast]

Originally Posted by grivera

And here is the engine cradle if you want to do like Tom mentioned: http://forums.maxperformanceinc.com/...d.php?t=770428

His stand is really nice. Very tight tolerances, I had to do some wiggling to get the bolts in it was such close tolerances but it is very well made and the casters are very smooth. Nice piece for a good price.

[Va68goat]

Thank you all for the suggestions. This helps me a lot. Can't wait to get this motor.

[HWYSTR455]

Butler also has 2 different engine cradles that can be used for shipping:

http://butlerperformance.com/c-12348...es-stands.html

I called Butler, and they said they reinforce a wooden pallet, bolt the cradle to it, and shrink wrap it. For overseas customers, they use a container, and source them at the time of shipping, they've used several different ones.

Endural has shipping containers for engines that they rent as a service, haven't checked pricing, but here's the URL:

http://endural.com/engine-cases/

Scribner Plastics has engine crates for sale, believe that's the one VidGuy has:

http://www.scribnerplastics.com/engcase.htm

Believe he got it from a parts distributor, but amazon has them for like $180.

Old Dominion Freight Line has excellent freight services, does business and residential pick up and delivery, as well as lift gate services. You can plug in your zip code here and find the nearest location to start a freight bill:

http://www.odfl.com/ServiceCenterLocator/

I've seen some bad press when it comes to Fastenal Freight, not sure I personally would use them. The bad press may come from poor shipping prep, I didn't dig that deep, but just about every place I looked, all had good to say about Old Dominion.

I'll dig some more and post what I find if it's relevant, and still considering buying a crate so folks on the East coast have a borrow source too.

.

[vidguy]

I did offer my Scribner crate to borrow.
However, after checking shipping when someone wanted to borrow it, I could not find a way to ship it that didn't cost half as much as much as a new one so it did not make much sense.

I dont know how the sellers shipped to make it profitable for them but there ya have it. If you were local to me it'd make sense.

I used Freightquote.com <Briana.Hudson@freightquote.com> to ship my engine back and forth from SF Bay Area Ca to Tucson AZ. They offered options and a variety of prices depending on what you had and how fast you wanted to go. helpful folks.
Everything was great except the drivers ' lack of warning that the truck was arriving on pick-up here. But it wasn't a big deal

[mgarblik]

We have been using Freight Buddy for the past year or two. They are an expediter and arrange very good shipping rates. You might want to check them out. Valuable items like engines and transmissions I like in a fully enclosed plywood box on a pallet. I would not feel confident shipping an engine in shrink wrap, although they are sent that way all the time.

[Va68goat]

This is getting crazy!! Here is what I've discovered so far in my search for having the motor delivered. I've had quotes from $2,800 to $600. The $600 quote is most likely going to increase because I don't know the exact weight of the motor that gtofreek is building. (Another $70.00 for insurance) It's going to be a complete motor since he will be doing the dyno as well. I'm guessing at around 550 pounds. I imagine I will buy the engine cradle from the guy on the forum or the one from Butlers. The cradle will be secured to a pallet and shrink wrapped. I can't imagine buying a crate for this since I'm positive I will never use it again. I don't want to build some sort of crate and send it to Arizona because that just wouldn't make sense.

I've never done this so any suggestions would be appreciated

[PAUL K]

Have you asked the shop building the engine for any suggestions?

[Va68goat]

Yeah...apparently most of their customers work out the shipping on there own. I've been told that the average shipping cost should be anywhere between $300-$500 but cant find that anywhere. I'm a little concerned about shipping a complete motor with only shrink wrap to protect it!

[tom s]

I used uship.com a couple times.You will need the weight,h-w-d dimensions and what you want to insure it for.You will need to have it dropped off at a loading dock and picked up the same way.Tom

[Va68goat]

Thanks Tom S,

I was just looking at their website. I don't think the builder can take it to a loading dock. On the uship website it does have a pickup location and a drop off location. Once the motor goes through the dyno, I'll have a better time frame. I think uship is the best option at this point!!!

[poncho447]

http://engineshipping.com/

I haven't used these guys in a few years but they were always way cheaper then anyone else.

[68azbird]

Take a week's vacation with a buddy and a pickup truck. You can make it in 2 day's from VA. It's great to get out and see the USA. Plus you can visit the plane graveyard right by Paul. A sight that must be seen in person to take in the awesomeness