General Forum

Nowhere near enough for a box (30) I planned on putting them in a hard plastic box in a padded envelope, that just doesn't seen to be the best idea (could get crushed???) Any recommendations are appreciated.

For something like that I would seal them in a team bag, fold cardboard around the team bag like a little box, wrap the cardboard in a sheet of bubble wrap, then a bubble mailer. ( I ship a lot of stuff)

Along the same lines would be a team bag sandwiched between two toploaders in the smaller bubble mailer.

You could also do 2 quantity PWEs for $1.10

A hinged plastic box in a BM has worked well for me. I always put blank filler cards in the box (top and bottom) in case it does get cracked. Then I put tape (with pull-tabs) on all 4 sides or wrap the box with a rubber band. I've had no issues with that method so far and am packaging one the same way as I type this.

I've completed over 1,200 trades on this site and I've never had a shipment fail to get where it needed to go.  However, I'm constantly amazed with the amount of money wasted on shipping, or should I say.. "overshipping".  The PWE (plain white envelope) is always the best way to go when shipping between 9 to 36 cards (unless your trading partner insists overwise).  Two Forever stamps ($1.10) will cover an envelope between 2-3 oz (note that less than 2oz is cheaper - invest in 1 oz stamps - $0.20).  Use a 9 pocket sheet (9x4) folded up.  No stiffening needed, just adds weight.  Mark the envelope "machine only".  Double everything for 37-72 cards.  When you get closer 100 cards, team bags, bubble mailers, and Pay Pal Shipping is the best way to.  If you plan to do alot of trading, a $7.00 digital scale from Amazon is a great investment.  Remember.... blue painters tape, no scotch tape.

This!

Been burned a few times on PWEs and have had great success with many more. All depends on what you're sending in a PWE and how it's packed. Thicker relic cards are not a good match for PWEs. 

My take with well over a thousand trades, sells and purchases across multiple sites:

PWE = burned about 10% of the time - mostly due to shipping damage and a few due to theft of the contents before it arrived.

BM with tracking = burned NEVER!!!

I'll stick with what has always worked for me over something that sometimes does not work. I'd rather pay more for what has become practically a guarantee that the cards arrive the way I sent them instead of paying less and hoping for the best situation.

Over the last year and a half i would say ive had almost 1500 PWE tranasactions with zero issues. The only "issue" i have had was on ebay where a buyer claimed he didnt receive the card (knew he was lying based on other messages from him/her). I have also had issues where the sender didnt ship it correctly using PWE but the cards were not damaged anyway. i will use bubble mailers for higher end cards or if i am sending a large amount of cards 50+. I also know how to properly ship using a bubble mailer, its not automatic. Most of my trades are lower end cards anyway and typically arent worth the $3.50-$3.75 charges on my Piratship account. The more you trade on here the better you (should) get at shipping. I think i saw that Spazmatastic uses pull tabs which is awesome... i always forget to do that but it adds a nice touch when you receive the package. 

Ultimately, if you arent really experienced in shipping PWE, maybe send those 30 cards in a bubble mailer for now and eat the extra $1.50 in shipping costs (30 cards for me is two $1 PWE). Also, check out pirateship for shipping BMWT if you havent already (discounted shipping)