Missing Tuba and Greyhound package service

[stufarris]

Hello folks,

I purchased a 1932 King BBb bell front tuba from a fellow TubeNeter, which was carefully packed and sent via Greyhound on the 13th of March form North Carolina to Decatur, Illinois. It never arrived, and Greyhound hasn't a clue. It was insured, but hopefully it will turn up. I am posting pictures of it in the hopes that maybe somebody may come across it. Serial number is 152446.

Thanks

Stu Farris

[bloke]

It's probably sitting over in the corner of some room in some Greyhound Station in Kentucky...??

It's always best to ship "Priority" GPX, rather than "Standard".

Some phone calls to all of the stations along the way (and/or the GPX headquarters in Chicago) might be in order.

The other thing that happens with them is that things are put on wrong buses to the wrong cities...and (again) they sit in the corner of some room.

[imperialbari]

Schleppy could tell a story about the patience needed. Apparently Greyhound likes the bell front stuff and keeps just for the joy of it.

[imperialbari]

I am not a techie, but isn’t there some GPS transponding stuff that for a reasonable sum could be put into shipments like this one? As the GPS device could be used again and again, the costs of buying and returning it would possibly come out as a cheap way to peace of mind.

Klaus

[TubaTinker]

I know that horn and know the seller. In fact... I just met with the previous owner last Friday on my way to NABBA. I'll keep an eye open for it.

Greyhound has always been reliable for me but I once had a shipment take two weeks to arrive here and also had an outbound one delayed for about the same length of time.

Sometimes things get side-tracked but they will eventually end up in Dallas for disposition. It's always good to put complete contact information inside and out in case the bus bills get lost.

Be patient.

[bloke]

yes (sorry!)

DALLAS, and not Chicago.

thanks, Dan.

[jonesmj]

Greyhound = Patience.....

Mark

[schlepporello]

Greyhound does have tracking numbers which they can allegedly use to find out how far along your horn is. However, Greyhound isn't the proud employer it once may have been and this is often reflected in the caliber of employees it maintains. These employees won't always try to be very helpfull in helping you find your horn.

As Bloke mentioned, if using Greyhound, you should use their priority service. If you use their standard service, it will not get on a bus unless there is room for it to fit in the cargo area. Passenger luggage takes priority over standard packages. It took Geyhound 27 days to get my Helicon from Pennsylvania to Amarillo, TX. I started calling the various terminals between here and there and found that it had cleared St. Louis and was headed to Tulsa, OK. But on calling Tulsa, they said they didn't have it. So I sent an e-mail to the Tulsa police department alerting them to my situation. Funny thing, within two days my horn showed up here. I probably should have called them 20 days earlier.

[schlepporello]

Greyhound does have tracking numbers which they can allegedly use to find out how far along your horn is. However, Greyhound isn't the proud employer it once may have been and this is often reflected in the caliber of employees it maintains. These employees won't always try to be very helpfull in helping you find your horn.

As Bloke mentioned, if using Greyhound, you should use their priority service. If you use their standard service, it will not get on a bus unless there is room for it to fit in the cargo area. Passenger luggage takes priority over standard packages. It took Geyhound 27 days to get my Helicon from Pennsylvania to Amarillo, TX. I started calling the various terminals between here and there and found that it had cleared St. Louis and was headed to Tulsa, OK. But on calling Tulsa, they said they didn't have it. So I sent an e-mail to the Tulsa police department alerting them to my situation. Funny thing, within two days my horn showed up here. I probably should have called them 20 days earlier.

[roughrider]

I was saddened to see what has happened to your horn. Best of luck to you in having it returned to you!

[russiantuba]

.

[TubaTinker]

I just noticed that the Greyhound destination is Decatur, Il. That's a part-time agent that is only open limited hours. Your horn may have passed by there several times already and since there was no one there to receive it... it simply goes for another 'ride'.

This is the location listed on Greyhound's website as the agent:
SANDYS MOTEL
1675 E PERSHING RD
Decatur, IL 62526
Hours of Operation:
Station
Monday 9:30 am-11:59 am; 3:00 pm-7:00 pm
Tuesday 9:30 am-11:59 am; 3:00 pm-7:00 pm
Wednesday 9:30 am-11:59 am; 3:00 pm-7:00 pm
Thursday 9:30 am-11:59 am; 3:00 pm-7:00 pm
Friday 9:30 am-11:59 am; 3:00 pm-7:00 pm
Saturday 9:30 am-11:59 am
Sunday Closed
Holiday Closed
Telephone Numbers:
Main: (217) 877-6262
Paging: (214) 655-7049
Baggage:
Greyhound PackageXpress:
Customer Service:
Prepaid Ticket Orders: (214) 655-7085
Travelers Aid: N/A
Charter: (800) 454-2487