Beer Trade Etiquette

Alewatcher blog is good, but it is not gospel, just use some common sense and do what works for you.

 

I usually put mine in ziplock freezer bags, then cellophane, then bubble wrap. Nothing is leaking out of that. Id rather over pack and have someone alil inconvienced with a difficult unwrap than have a box of 80 dollars worth of beer confiscated if one leaks. I throw extras when there is room. Sometimes there is not and I don't want to ship 2 boxes.

 

Brvn makes the solid point that more protection is better. $10 extra of packing material is better than broken bottles or returned/lost box. Packing materials are reusable, so your trading partner will put what you send to good use (we hope). If you're doing a staggered send then receive (A to B, then B to A), then B might send back his or her part of the deal in the same material A sent (if box size, bubble wrap pieces, etc. are good). That's what I did, plus or minus some material.

 

Lots of good stuff has already been said. As far as extras, they are...extras. Not part of the trade. I always give extras just cause I want to send some stuff the other person would not expect to find, but I don't ever expect to get extras in return. Again, I almost always have. Which is great, but not part of the trade. When I first started it was kind of an unwritten rule to not discuss extras. Maybe that has changed lately.

In addition to the links posted already I will try and dig up Golioths blog. That was the first trading etiquette blog I read, you can't go wrong with. Though it is about 7 years old now, and might not be available anymore.

 

This, extras are a courtesy but lately, it seems like they are expected.

 

Here is the blog I mentioned above. Not as old as I thought.

http://bagoliathsnewtradertips.blogspot.com/2008/06/trading-101-fill-out-your-wants-and.html?m=1

 

Makes me feel old, but I remember when this was the most linked trader tip blog. I was going to post it earlier and point out my old fartedness.

 

Spec's has 6 bottle shippers, It's what I use mostly. Perfect for Bombers but 12oz bottles will need some bubble wrap.

 

My wife uses these(but it doesnt say wineskin on the bag, if i can get the one she uses ill post it up) when she travels. We used them for beer that i got from florida and packed in my suitcase and it worked great.

 

Extras are my favorite part

 

You mean these?
http://www.amazon.com/Reusable-Padd...e=UTF8&qid=1385656318&sr=8-1&keywords=jet+bag

A company makes jet bags and wine diapers (same product). They are absorbent for breaks but don't do much for padding. You can get one layer of bubble wrap on a bomber or two 12 oz then stuff them in these leak-stopping bags. They're faster, but bubble wrap and stretch wrap make me more confident when I fly with something special.

 

I belive those are them but i think hers have bubble wrap in them. I suppose it wasnt a big test as it was also wrapped in my clothes

 

I received a box last week in which a capped bottle leaked. The cap was on tight as far as I could tell but the bottle was half full. Luckily the shipper bubble wrapped and plastic bagged everything...most separately. The entire shippment was inside of two plastic trash bags, tied and taped so the box was completely dry and stable. No damage to anything not even the leaked bottle. Just had to deal with one less Tank 7....oh and the trade was for four (4) bottles...he shipped twelve (12)...and five (5) cigars.

 

Sounds like a solidly packed box!
Was Tank 7 an extra? That's available in CA.

 

Electrical tape over the bottle cap is so the sharp edges on the cap doesn't damage other stuff in the box. Plastic air pouches are easily burst by caps.

More importantly, it keeps the cap from shredding the styrofoam in your shipper. Can't tell you how many boxes I've received with thousands of styrofoam *********s inside due to un-taped bottle caps. It's annoying, messy, and reduces the life of your shipper.

 

Didn't read through all posts, but if you use bubble wrap, don't tape it. Use rubber bands so the person you traded with can re-use the bubble wrap.

 

I make sure the top of bottle is fully covered by multiple layers of bubble wrap, no need to tape cap.

 

That works too, although you can't use much bubble wrap in most styro shippers.

 

I'm also a new trader, I personally am trying to be very generous with my extras so I can build a reputation for myself and help establish long-term trading relationships. There's a surprise Pumpkinator being sent off tomorrow, for example.

 

My 2 cents.

- Better to overpack than underpack. General rule of thumb is that you're box isn't ready unless you feel comfortable dropping it from waist height. Because at some point in the process, it will probably be dropped from waist height.

- To that end, I am obsessive about packing, as most of my trade partners note, but they also appreciate this. I wax all of my bottles (which WILL prevent a cap from blowing off), then put them individually into zippered plastic bags, then bubble wrap them, then shrink wrap. I also typically only use styro shippers. Is this overkill? Quite possibly. But I've also never had a bottle break.

- Rule of thumb is that new traders ship first. But if you're both new, this is trickier. A big part of this is trust - you're sending expensive beer to someone you don't know, and trusting they'll do the same. You have to go into it knowing you might get burned, so do everything you can to make sure that doesn't happen. Just use common sense - if something feels weird, it probably is, and there is no shame in backing out of a trade if you don't feel good about it.

- I always include extras, but this is something you should work out beforehand. There have been times I've included extras and the other person hasn't, and they've felt bad about it after. So I either outright say "no extras on this one; just the agreed on bottles" or "you should expect a few surprises in your box!" in our conversations. That way there's no hurt feelings.

- NEVER NEVER NEVER send someone something that's available on the shelf in their area. It shows a lack of attention to the trade, and is generally a waste of money as well. Use seekabrew.com to compare distribution in different states, so you can see what you have that they don't.

- Unfortunately the Bad Trader list doesnt exist any longer, but you should go into the trade forum and do a search for the person's user name, just to see if any threads about them pop up. Do your homework.

tl:dr - trading is fun, but also expensive, and you need to be smart about it. Common sense goes a long way. Feel free to message me if you have any other questions.

Ken