I realize this question has probably been asked and answered here before but can anyone provide any information on the best (and safest) method/carrier to ship a double shotgun to England?

I have purchased an appropriate case and registered the gun with customs here in the US.

I would like to ship the gun back to the maker for inspection and repair in the next week or so.

Any thoughts on what carrier is best would be appreciated, and what the process entails -- can you lock the case, does it clear customs anywhere, time to delivery, can you ship straight to the maker, potential costs, etc. etc.

It is my understanding that the US Mail will accept & ship the gun but one loses tracking of it as soon as it hits UK shores. If this is true, it is not acceptable. Moreover I've heard $700 is the max the gun could be insured, also not acceptable.

Does anyone know if UPS Global or Fed-Ex ships guns overseas?

With thanks ...

I can't address whether US postal is he best method for shipping to UK, or domstic, but I can advise you to check if something the size/shape/weight of a packed gun will still ship with them internationally. This I NOT whether the will handle guns but new physical size restrictions.

Lat month the US postal service dramatically overhauled it's parcel post with major restrictions on size/weight/shape and elimination of international ground service. Of course, fees have increased dramatically for what they still handle.

In any cases, they will not handle most packages much greater than 1 cubic foot and weighing somewhere around 15-20 lbs (hard to tell exactly since the new formulas are a nightmare & it is best to plug in the numbers on their website to see if they will still handle the item).

Domestic Parcels are a bit less restricted but still affected.


Some examples from my recent experience;

Prior to service revision I sent a modest size/weight package (24"x18"x18" 35 lbs) to NZ via insured Air parcel post. It cost around $60 to ship.
Last week I did an estimate for a smaller package (12"x12"x12" or 1 cubic foot, and 15lbs weight) to the same place. It would have cost around $80 via Priority mail (the "new/improved" intl air parcel service) to the same location. The larger package will not ship.

Prior to new service I shipped a package (24x18x18 and 9 lbs) to western OZ for about 35$ by surface parcel post (air service was about 65$).
After the changes, US Postal would not handle it at all since it exceeded their new size rules.

I would find out the exact size/weight/destination of your package, go to the US Postal website and plug them into the shipping calculator to see IF they would handle them at all and how much I would cost if the do.

Better check that they will take guns internationally. When I ship guns to other countries I ship only via an airlines. You can fully insure them and they get there in 1 -2 days.


John Boyd

I think air freight has some restrictions as well--may need a business account for example.

Check with the recipient and let him tell you if he has a preference based on what you are shipping.

I'm still shipping guns via USPS Registered mail, I belive you can insure up to $25K. Don't know if that goes international though.

Thanks for all the advice so far.

If I ever successfully complete this transaction I'll be sure to post what I've learned ...

If anyone has recent first-hand experiences would still like to hear about it.

Thank you.

Contact the company your doing business with and ask them the same question.