Priority Mail Flat Rate - Any weight is sometimes less than I thought

Pete Simmons

Member
Messages
546
Location
Melbourne, FL
So yesterday I buy a Priority stamp so smart guy here can drop package off late in the day and not need the Post Office open.

Shipped in a Flat Rate Priority mail large envelope. Place anything in here it says. No need to weigh it says ----Bull!!

I am aware of the 70 lb limit on flat rate boxes (I buy bullets for reloading that is why they send 3750 in a box - just under 70 lbs. Postal Carrier loves those boxes.) I was not aware of a new low weight limit.

I get the package back today.

Since it weighs over 13 oz it needs to be accepted by a Post Office person so they can ask if it contains any banned substance like batteries or perfume, says Homeland Security.
I had used the last of my perfume yesterday so I was good there.

So I take it back to PO today, interact with a real person and get it shipped.

Person at PO today was real nice and made it easy to get the package back into the system. I did not need to pay postage again.

So remember sometimes any weight is OK as long as it is less than 13 oz!!!
 
I hate going to the post office, but since we moved to a smaller town, it's not been so bad. We've got a shipping department at my work, they help me setup an account, showed me the scales and when I drop things off, they do many of the same checks the PO does, so works out pretty well.
 
Because the Missus sends out so many ETSY packages via USPS and I happen to be her "mail fairy" (have fun with that), I know most of the gals at our Post Office. I used to beat them to the punch by saying "Hi, there's nothing liquid, fragile, perishable or hazardous, no lithium batteries and definitely no perfume in this package". They loved that. So did the rest of the people in line. Now they just have a computer screen that you touch to declare. Sometimes, when you deal with the public on a daily basis you get kind of indifferent. Not these gals. They are a hard working bunch and a pleasure to do business with.
 
Well one thing you guys have going for you is US Mail service. Dont laugh. There is a printer made by Dymo that allows you to print your own stamps . Dont know how many are aware of this but i would love to be able to use something like this. I wrote to our Canada post about this but they could not even be bothered to reply. Dont see why a system that is already proven and working in the US could not be adopted by Canada post.

http://www.dymo.com/en-US/dymo-labe.../desktop-mailing-solution-label-printer-scale

http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/934857/DYMO-LabelWriter-450-Turbo-Labeler/

I have a dymo printer connected to my outlook but would love to be able to have the stamp feature as well. They great printers for this application.

Maybe someday before they close down Canada post will get with the program.
 
There are companies who offer fairly complex mail managment solutions. Back in the mid 90's I worked for a consulting company/isp that wrote some software for pitney bowes to manage the distribution of sales districts for who could sell their postage printers (talk about specialized code!!). Looks like they still sell a lot of the same stuff but made more complicated :)
 
We do have Pitney-Bowes machines in Canada, Rob. I admit though, that Canada Post could take a few lessons from USPS. I don't understand why it costs less to send a package to California than to Vancouver. Must be because the package to CA travels most of its route through USPS. Given a choice between USPS and any courier coming into Canada, I'll take USPS every time.
 
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