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Post by budg on Dec 15, 2020 16:17:39 GMT -5
So I ordered some guitar string via Sweetwater on Dec 3rd. They shipped them out later that day. Last activity was the 7th. It says “ in transit, arriving late. I know mail is delayed, but being over a week with no activity , it appears to me that it’s lost somewhere. I know the postal service is behind badly, but without showing activity since the 7th this seems different. Good thing I payed with PayPal. What do you think? Delayed or lost? I don’t know why it’s frosting my cookies, but it is.
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Post by jazzguy on Dec 15, 2020 16:21:25 GMT -5
it'll show up eventually. I shipped an item only one state away almost 3 wks ago and the tracking says it's delayed.
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Post by Lefty Rev on Dec 15, 2020 16:22:38 GMT -5
I've always had a good experience with Sweetwater - I suspect it's the USPS.
Whenever a UPS or FedEx package gets handed off to the USPS, it seems to experience some kind of issue...
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Post by Mfitz804 on Dec 15, 2020 16:22:51 GMT -5
So I ordered some guitar string via Sweetwater on Dec 3rd. They shipped them out later that day. Last activity was the 7th. It says “ in transit, arriving late. I know mail is delayed, but being over a week with no activity , it appears to me that it’s lost somewhere. I know the postal service is behind badly, but without showing activity since the 7th this seems different. Good thing I payed with PayPal. What do you think? Delayed or lost? I don’t know why it’s frosting my cookies, but it is. Delayed. I've had this issue twice with eBay items this month. Both were First Class deliveries from NY to CA. They were scanned in Staten Island, scanned in Brooklyn, and then....nothing. The first one resurfaced and was delivered 2 days past the USPS Estimated Date. The buyer was completely obnoxious and after much argument, it was delivered later that same day. The other one is now 6 days past the estimated delivery date. This buyer filed an eBay case, but has otherwise been cordial. I have no issue with that. In both instances, the tracking read exactly as you described, "in transit, arriving late". If I had to guess, I would say you are in the same boat and your strings should arrive soon.
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Post by NoSoapRadio on Dec 15, 2020 16:25:50 GMT -5
I ordered an LP from Amazon on Nov 30. It made it as far as the USPS sorting facility in Cincinnati on Dec 2. That's the last I heard of it until it was delivered on 12/12. I only saw a shipping update after it was delivered.
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Post by budg on Dec 15, 2020 16:31:17 GMT -5
Thanks guys. I’ll just wait it out. I know some people haven’t received something until 2 or more weeks.
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Post by Leftee on Dec 15, 2020 16:35:25 GMT -5
I started another thread in this. Yeah, it's bad this year.
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009
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Post by 009 on Dec 15, 2020 16:52:29 GMT -5
I've always had a good experience with Sweetwater - I suspect it's the USPS. Whenever a UPS or FedEx package gets handed off to the USPS, it seems to experience some kind of issue... I ordered a harmonica, shipped initially by UPS, delivered to my local PO on Nov. 6th. I waited a week and then went to inquire about its whereabouts. Two ladies there said the UPS data was wrong; if the item were here it would be listed on the USPS Tracking history. I finally got it three weeks after UPS drop off; GC was just about to send me a new one. USPS tracking history showed only my PO ever having possession. Things have never been so bad during the 36 years I’ve lived here. The postmaster gen. has really forked things up....
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Post by Leftee on Dec 15, 2020 17:05:26 GMT -5
The problem is the unprecedented online shopping. Store traffic was way down on Black Friday. Everyone sat at home and ordered stuff.
I started noticing the issues the week after thanksgiving. Ups and usps.
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Post by budg on Dec 15, 2020 17:08:23 GMT -5
Yeah, my wife and I just ordered a bunch of stuff for family that we won’t be able to see for Christmas this year.
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Post by HeavyDuty on Dec 15, 2020 18:19:31 GMT -5
USPS has been awful for a few months now. It usually shows up - usually - but tracking is off and the times are long.
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Post by rickyguitar on Dec 15, 2020 18:23:02 GMT -5
Worst postal service I have ever seen. I eont go into details, but it is the worst ever.
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Post by funkykikuchiyo on Dec 15, 2020 18:43:37 GMT -5
I have an Amazon order that should've shown a week ago and is currently AWOL. Interesting to know this is so wide spread. The FedEx packages I sent out for Christmas are all ahead of schedule. Just sayin'.
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Post by Taildragger on Dec 15, 2020 18:50:27 GMT -5
Employee morale is rock-bottom while volume is through the roof (COVID-boredom-inspired shopping + Xmas) at USPS right now.
Not a combination conducive to producing good service.
Our carrier says they are completely buried.
He's worked there for decades and says it's the worst Xmas he's experienced.
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Post by Leftee on Dec 15, 2020 19:22:36 GMT -5
A couple days ago my ups guy told me things are “scary.”
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Post by Larry Madsen on Dec 15, 2020 19:43:58 GMT -5
I shipped a small eBay item out on the 9th.
As of today is shows "Las Vegas" as the last entry and "in transit".
The item is Priority Mail ... under normal circumstances should have arrive at it's destination by last Saturday in a worst case scenario.
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moose0130
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Post by moose0130 on Dec 15, 2020 20:10:56 GMT -5
I work in the online/retail industry and we work closely with the major carriers UPS - FedEx - USPS. They are beyond capacity and have been since at least early November. The private carriers have instituted peak season surcharges (just increasing our costs regardless of contracts) and daily (daily!) package count limits which is.... impossible to manage at that level. Those constraints from the private carriers means if i am only allotted 100 units to ship and I get 200 orders, then 100 order have to wait for the next day... which isn’t an acceptable solution. So, the only alternative is to go with USPS which has a large number of challenges, not the least of which is that every business in the country is being limited by the big carriers so we are all dumping unprecedented units on the post office. They have generally done ok (we have detailed tracking of delivery performance) but in the last 14 days things have been grinding to, well if not a halt then very very slow. They are simply overwhelmed and unlike the private firms don’t have the option of simply saying ‘no’. As of tomorrow, the likelihood of ordering something and having it delivered via USPS before Xmas is probably very low.
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Post by Vibroluxer on Dec 15, 2020 20:31:56 GMT -5
That was a good explanation, thanks!
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Post by funkykikuchiyo on Dec 15, 2020 21:28:00 GMT -5
Yes, very helpful, Moose.
Also interesting is that so much of the Amazon stuff has been going through USPS. I thought the stuff from my last order would come via the Amazon guys since they were regular stock Amazon items, not third party. I have no idea what to make of that.
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Post by Peegoo 🏁 on Dec 15, 2020 21:39:18 GMT -5
Employee morale is rock-bottom while volume is through the roof (COVID-boredom-inspired shopping + Xmas) at USPS right now. Not a combination conducive to producing good service. Our carrier says they are completely buried. He's worked there for decades and says it's the worst Xmas he's experienced. Same here. Our carrier is maintaining his happy disposition, but he says the workload is crushing.
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Post by Mfitz804 on Dec 15, 2020 21:42:06 GMT -5
Yes, very helpful, Moose. Also interesting is that so much of the Amazon stuff has been going through USPS. I thought the stuff from my last order would come via the Amazon guys since they were regular stock Amazon items, not third party. I have no idea what to make of that. We get most of our Amazon from Amazon delivery people, as we have a major warehouse nearby. They are awful too. In addition to wanting to leave everything outside (both during and after business hours), they are constantly late.
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Post by K4 on Dec 16, 2020 2:23:45 GMT -5
I ordered something from a company in Pa. I watched the tracking. It went from Pa to Cincinnati Oh, to lexington Ky to Indianapolis In, back to Cin then finally to Florence Ky and me.
4 days late.
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Post by funkykikuchiyo on Dec 16, 2020 9:53:48 GMT -5
In addition to wanting to leave everything outside (both during and after business hours), they are constantly late. That would kinda be a perk to me. In the complex I live in, if a package won't fit in a tiny box, it gets hauled back to the post office, where they won't open until a time I'd rather be at work, and they often can't find it. Pre-covid they'd leave it with out rental office, but that isn't a thing anymore. Amazon leaves stuff at the door, which is fine since I know my neighbors and package swiping doesn't seem to be as much of a thing anymore (people are ordering mundane things with no resale value). We live in very different places, though. A little local adaptation would make sense, wouldn't it?
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Post by Mfitz804 on Dec 16, 2020 11:36:12 GMT -5
In addition to wanting to leave everything outside (both during and after business hours), they are constantly late. That would kinda be a perk to me. In the complex I live in, if a package won't fit in a tiny box, it gets hauled back to the post office, where they won't open until a time I'd rather be at work, and they often can't find it. Pre-covid they'd leave it with out rental office, but that isn't a thing anymore. Amazon leaves stuff at the door, which is fine since I know my neighbors and package swiping doesn't seem to be as much of a thing anymore (people are ordering mundane things with no resale value). We live in very different places, though. A little local adaptation would make sense, wouldn't it? My office is on a busy road, lots of foot traffic, and the building is very close to the street. It’s guaranteed that anything left outside will be visible and will be stolen. If I sent things to home it wouldn’t be so bad, but the alternative is when they deliver during the day, nobody is home for hours, exposing the packages to possible theft (though not as much of a risk as the office) and the elements (no porch).
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Post by Taildragger on Dec 16, 2020 12:17:07 GMT -5
I work in the online/retail industry and we work closely with the major carriers UPS - FedEx - USPS. They are beyond capacity and have been since at least early November. The private carriers have instituted peak season surcharges (just increasing our costs regardless of contracts) and daily (daily!) package count limits which is.... impossible to manage at that level. Those constraints from the private carriers means if i am only allotted 100 units to ship and I get 200 orders, then 100 order have to wait for the next day... which isn’t an acceptable solution. So, the only alternative is to go with USPS which has a large number of challenges, not the least of which is that every business in the country is being limited by the big carriers so we are all dumping unprecedented units on the post office. They have generally done ok (we have detailed tracking of delivery performance) but in the last 14 days things have been grinding to, well if not a halt then very very slow. They are simply overwhelmed and unlike the private firms don’t have the option of simply saying ‘no’. As of tomorrow, the likelihood of ordering something and having it delivered via USPS before Xmas is probably very low. One of several reasons why USPS is at a distinct competitive disadvantage.
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Post by slacker 🐨 on Dec 16, 2020 13:42:15 GMT -5
I was able to get a package left at my door that was signature only. My ring doorbell notified my of the doorbell being rung. When I looked at the live stream, the delivery guy was just standing there, so I asked him if he needed a signature. When he said yes, I asked if he could leave it and he asked if he should sign for me. I said yes, he signed and left the package. It was time sensitive, so that worked out great.
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Post by Auf Kiltre on Dec 17, 2020 9:45:17 GMT -5
I came across a whole set of used gold hardware for a Strat on Ebay and snagged it up. It's showing scheduled delivery today but "arriving late". Scanned several days ago at a regional facility in Greensboro NC and no further activity. The weird thing is that when I try tracking via the usual link I get nothing. Before I could copy and paste the tracking number right into Google and get a return. I had to navigate to the USPS tracking site and paste the tracking info there to get the specifics.
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Post by budg on Dec 17, 2020 10:03:39 GMT -5
I checked the usps website and it just says “ status not available” . Good thing it was just some guitar strings. It appears UPS and Amazon are functioning ok. I received my guitar from Dave’s and the Amazon things are coming ontime.
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Post by Auf Kiltre on Dec 17, 2020 14:42:30 GMT -5
Its amazing how all these failures just turn to gold for Mr. Bezos.
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moose0130
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Post by moose0130 on Dec 17, 2020 16:01:03 GMT -5
More inside baseball on USPS: They are averaging about 2-3 days late right now - that is a HUGE figure, unheard of. Remember that is an average so there is stuff taking much, much, longer their it should (as you are experiencing).
Some of the large regional hubs have put embargos on any inbound mail. Meaning they are not accepting shipments at all. Phoenix AZ, Detroit, New Jersey, Philly, Cincinnati. Embargos in place from the 14th-18th and I think Cincinnati is through Xmas day. Pretty wild.
20 Major facilities across the country as delivering 'on time' at less than 20% rate which is... almost unheard of. They should be at 85%+ and maybe 1 or 2 facilities struggling at 25%. 20 locations below 20% is a disaster. Not a lot of consistency across those 20 except they all seem to be MidWest-East Cost. (plus Dallas and Houston)
Would expect this will take months to ultimately unwind. Funny, USPS (from our own internal tracking) really held up well until about 7-10 days ago and then the whole thing seemed to cascade into a heap. My sympathy to the front line workers and career civil servants trying to make all this work. Politics (for decades - not looking to start any arguments here) have made running the USPS very challenging.
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