Tips on packing guitars for shipping?

[bluzmn]

I don't know if this is the right forum for this post, but I was afraid it would get lost in the "Parking Lot"; anyway, I imagine you guitar techs ship a lot of guitars. I'm trying to sell a beautiful Epiphone Les Paul Standard Plus Top, Honeyburst; I've got it on the local Craigslist, but I bet it would sell faster on eBay (or even this forum). It's just that I'm terrified that I'll ship it somewhere and it will arrive broken. I'll be selling a molded hard case with it; I got the case with an Epiphone Gold Top I bought from Musician's Friend. They put the guitar in the case, then in one of those typical guitar boxes (you know, kinda shaped like a metronome); no foam peanuts, no bubble wrap, no newsprint, nothing else. I thought that was somewhat negligent; luckily, the guitar arrived in one piece. Do you guys have any tips on packing guitars safely for shipping?

[Chuck H]

Practice due diligence. Include packing peanuts, put the guitar and case into a big plastic bag, have the box marked "fragile" and "do not stack", reinforce corners with extra cardboard and buy the insurance. Don't air ship. The guys that load planes are sadists. Any box marked "fragile" makes them slaver and pant.

[nekodensha]

1. Bubble wrap.
2. More bubble wrap.
3. As much bubble wrap as you can fit.
4. Wrap each layer tight with good quality tape (such as 3M) leaving as few air gaps as possible.
You can use newsprint, packing peanuts or... yep, rolled up bubble wrap to fill gaps.

The idea is to ensure the guitar fits snugly in its case or container with no play. Bubble wrap is an excellent shock absorber. Don't leave any hard surfaces in direct contact with each other.

Once it's packed well into a hard case, another container is pretty much superfluous. Your guitar is about as well protected as can be.
Any further packaging will only serve to protect the case, not the guitar.
The guitars and basses I've shipped had no case. They've always shipped out in gig bags inside thick cardboard boxes, and have always arrived intact.

5. Use a carrier service that you can trust to deliver the guitar
and
6. Get some FRAGILE stickers or tape and use them liberally.

Hope all this helps. It's always worked for me.
And yes, I'm a strong believer in the power of bubble wrap

[Plucky]

Be sure to tune down the strings as well. About 2 whole tones should do it. The headstocks on Epis are very prone to breakage, particularly when they have the full-sized sealed Grovers on them, so you should also pack something between the peg face and the lid of the case to prevent the classic whiplash fracture. It should be snug enough to restrict movement without exerting too much pressure.