Grizzly tools and Shipping

[Clarence Martinn]

Any problems having Grizzly tools shipped to your house? looked at their shipping policies, and they are rather restrictive in where and how they will ship. I can't see ordering something as simple as a 78 pound 12 1/2 inch Planer, if I have to get it picked up at a freight terminal.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

I have 2 Grizzly tools in my shop, a jointer and a sander. They were delivered to my house and the driver helped me move them down 100' of gravel driveway to the shop. In both cases, I had 3 sheets of plywood and moved them ahead of his pallet jack while he manned the pallet jack. Different drivers, both times I tried to get them to take a $20 tip. One accepted and thanked me. The other driver politely refused saying it wasn't necessary. Legally, I think all they are expected and required to do is set the heavy tool on the ground street side.

[james manutes]

Had many deliveries from Grizzly , never had a problem . Do you live "way out in the country" ?

[glenn bradley]

Interesting that this comes up so frequently. I have received things that weigh 5 lbs and things that weight 500 lbs. No problems with any of them except the cyclone metal stand. Not sure how they thought that cardboard box was going to survive with all that angle iron in there. The stand made it fine. The box, not so much.

[Matt Day]

What are you worried about specifically?

[David Buchhauser]

All the large Grizzly equipment I have ordered in the past (probably over 15 large items) have been shipped via UPS Freight to the local UPS Freight terminal. I simply show up with my truck and they load the item using a fork lift into the bed of my truck. No extra charge for this service.
David

[Justin Rapp]

It isn't just Grizzly, it is any company shipping freight as they tend to use common freight carriers. My Laguna band saw was delivered by UPS freight and the driver pulled the pallet jack up my inclinded driveway and put it right in my garage - I had to move it to my basement shop.

Another carrier did the same for my Laguna Jointer.

[tom lucas]

For me, Grizzly has delivered to my door on 4 occasions, all weighing 400 lbs or more. If you don't have a way to get them off the truck, you may have to pay for a lift gate service. I've always been able to use my tractor to get them off the truck. However, on 2 of the 4 times, the truck had a lift gate anyway. I guess it's a crap-shoot whether you get a truck with a lift gate when you don't specifically pay for one. The trucking company does call you to arrange delivery. I think that is your opportunity to make sure you get a lift gate if you need one. If you have a steep drive, depending on the driver, they may leave the tool at the curb. Meaning you have to get it indoors whatever way you can. Generally though, the drivers will do all they can with a pallet jack to get it where you want it.

If you have the tools delivered to a freight forwarder, they'll load into your truck or trailer.

If you live where they cannot get access with a big truck, a freight forwarder might be necessary.

Only one of my machines was delivered by UPS. For that I'm glad. They are the absolute worst carrier: poor handling and slow delivery. I've paid more for some purchases just to avoid UPS shipping. My last purchase was UPS. My driveway is almost flat, and he wouldn't push it up the driveway into my garage (~75 ft). He did let me push it on his pallet truck....while he watched me struggle with a 700+ lb crate.

[Josko Catipovic]

I talked to Grizzly 2 weeks back about delivering a bandsaw, and they were not at all encouraging.. Basically, if you can't get an 18-wheeler to your curb without having to back it up, it's a no-go.

[tom lucas]

I talked to Grizzly 2 weeks back about delivering a bandsaw, and they were not at all encouraging.. Basically, if you can't get an 18-wheeler to your curb without having to back it up, it's a no-go.

Drivers will meet you somewhere close by if you paid for lift service where they can load into your truck or trailer.

[Stewart Lang]

I talked to Grizzly 2 weeks back about delivering a bandsaw, and they were not at all encouraging.. Basically, if you can't get an 18-wheeler to your curb without having to back it up, it's a no-go.

That has nothing to do with Grizzly, as their hands are kind of tied with that. That's all the freight companies they're contracted with, and specifically them looking out for their drivers, and making sure they have a safe route. Usually they're single drivers that run these deliveries, and in certain spots it's difficult to back up an 18 wheeler without a spotter, especially if you add in traffic.

With that said, most truck drivers are pretty skilled and are willing to manage themselves into tight spaces to get a delivery done. Are you in the city or somewhere? Unless you're in some very tight area, I find it hard to imagine a situation where a truck driver couldn't get to your curb without backing up? But maybe I lack imagination ha!

[Brice Rogers]

I consider this to be basically a "non-problem"

I have ordered a number of crated items weighing from 120# to about 600#. All came freight (LTL = less than truck load). My driveway is 500 feet long and 12' wide and intersects the 16' wide street at an 80 degree angle. So there was no way the a semi tractor-trailer could make it to my house, let alone turn around at the end of the street. No problem. I just picked up the loads at the local UPS or Fed-X yard. They loaded the items into my pickup truck for me. If I didn't have a pick-up, I'd just rent one from Home Despot or You-all (sorry, dry sense of humor). I also had a heavy and bulky item delivered by a large box truck. I got a call from the fellow who was at the bottom of my driveway trying to figure out how to make the turn. I just drove down with my pickup, we maneuvered the two vehicles tailgate to tailgate and transferred the load (I drove backwards up my driveway because the tailgate had to be open). In all cases, I unloaded the cargo myself from my pick-up.

[Josko Catipovic]

That has nothing to do with Grizzly, as their hands are kind of tied with that. That's all the freight companies they're contracted with, and specifically them looking out for their drivers, and making sure they have a safe route. Usually they're single drivers that run these deliveries, and in certain spots it's difficult to back up an 18 wheeler without a spotter, especially if you add in traffic.

With that said, most truck drivers are pretty skilled and are willing to manage themselves into tight spaces to get a delivery done. Are you in the city or somewhere? Unless you're in some very tight area, I find it hard to imagine a situation where a truck driver couldn't get to your curb without backing up? But maybe I lack imagination ha!

Laguna said: 'if you can get into your garage, we'll get it into your garage.' My local Rockler dealer (Burns tools, Fall River, MA) said the same. Very different from Grizzly, which makes me wonder if they're somehow cutting corners on their shipping service.

FWIW, I'm in an old New England village laid out long before 18-wheelers. I can get a 30' box truck to my garage, but nothing bigger. I've also taken multiple deliveries from Grizzly before with no problem. Something's different now.

[Jim Becker]

This recent thread should be helpful to you....

https://sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?280520-Having-tools-delivered-by-freight-truck

It's not "Grizzly" as others have said...it's how truck deliveries work for items that are over a certain weight.

[John McKissick]

Any problems having Grizzly tools shipped to your house? looked at their shipping policies, and they are rather restrictive in where and how they will ship. I can't see ordering something as simple as a 78 pound 12 1/2 inch Planer, if I have to get it picked up at a freight terminal.

Might depend on your street. I live in a culdesac and they (Grizzly) said the truck wouldn't driveway deliver even though others thrucks come in on occasion. In my case I would have had to travel about 20 miles to pick up my delivery myself at the distribution center of the freight company. I haven't bought anything yet and the trucking company may deliver it?

[Jim Barstow]

I have a 1 mile long gravel driveway with a couple of sharp turns. There is no way to get a tractor trailer up let alone turn around. I have arranged to meet the lift gate truck at the bottom. In one case, I loaded the equipment into the back of my suv after positioning the height of the lift gate at the same height as the car. For heavier equipment, I had a friend meet the truck with a full sized pickup. Drivers were always accommodating for however I wanted to take delivery

[Matt Day]

We really should have a top 10 or 20 threads that pop up every 6 months stickied to the top.

1) are Grizzly tools any good?
2) is there money to be make in woodworking?
3) is a sawstop worth it?
4) Grizzly (or any LTL Freight) shipping
6) pricing used machinery
Etc etc

[Gary Petersen]

I live a bit out in the sticks and have had two Grizzly tools delivered. I had lift-gate service on each and in both cases, the UPS Freight driver helped me move the tools into my shop using his pallet jack. Both experiences were as good as I could have expected.

[Andrew Seemann]

When I lived in the city and had a house with an alley (the shop was next to the alley), I intentionally decided to pick up my 15" Grizzly planer at the freight depot. They loaded it into the pickup for free. That way I could back it into the shop and unload it with a come-along hooked to a 6 x 6 across the attic floor. The alley way was much too rough for a pallet jack and too hard to get a delivery truck through.

[Jim Dwight]

Other than the cost, I don't see a lot of difference between Grizzly and other ways to get heavy tools. I bought my SawStop PCS locally and they loaded it onto my trailer with a forklift. I was responsible to get it home and unloaded. I am looking at a bandsaw now and will probably pick it up but am considering Grizzly. Cost will end up deciding it but I like the Laguna 14 12 and the Rikon 326 but if the Grizzly is less, delivered, I would get one of their extreme 14 inch models, possibly the anniversary 17 inch. Delivery on the Grizzly might get it to my house but it also might just get it onto my pickup. If it is the latter, it is the same as picking it up. But if they dropped it at the top of my steep driveway it could be worse than picking it up with my truck. But any way you get a heavy tool into the shop will be at least a bit of a hassle. I just wrestled the SawStop but am planning on borrowing my son's engine lift to help with whatever band saw I get.

[Terry Therneau]

My SCM jointer/planer only made it as far as a freight yard in Minneapolis, other side of MSP from me of course = 2 hours. They loaded it with a forklift onto my trailer, which I can back into my shop, directly beneath a lift point in the ceiling (tripled a joist when I built the building). That last part really makes things easier.

[Alex Zeller]

Last I knew Grizzly had two different carriers they use, UPS freight is one of them. I can't remember the other but they didn't have any depots near me so UPS is the only choice. Most of these companies just sign a contract with a carrier so they can include the cost of shipping vs calculating it based on where it's going. These carriers like businesses with forklifts or loading docks. I'm sure every driver has a horror story about some guy who has a driveway from hell and thinks that a semi can just back up it across a 100' bridge made out of scrap pallets and is so rough only a monster truck could make it. Some companies might be more understanding but I would expect that most are going to say "we will not do that" even though they will. I haven't asked Grizzly but maybe you could hire your own carrier to pick it up. You'll most likely pay more but they would be working for you, not Grizzly, so they would probably be more willing to make you happy.

[Josko Catipovic]

This thread speaks pretty strongly for buying from your local dealer.

[Ron Selzer]

This thread speaks pretty strongly for buying from your local dealer.
Why?
Local dealers I have to pickup in the crate at their store at their hours.
Grizzly I pickup at UPS freight 7 days a week, 24 hours a day. In the crate loaded in my truck without me touching it.
And UPS is much closer to me

[Jim Becker]

This thread speaks pretty strongly for buying from your local dealer.

For many folks, there is no "local dealer", at least for anything beyond box stores. The world has changed and where we used to have multiple brick and mortar options for buying higher capability tools, that's no longer the case. The economy just doesn't support it anymore. It doesn't matter if one is buying from a direct mass marketer like Grizzly, a dealer for Jet/PM/Delta/Sawstop (also mass market) or a higher end manufacturer like Felder or SCM, the majority of order fulfillment requires shipping and due to weight, that means in many cases, LTL trucks. Many folks live in places that cannot support direct delivery by tractor trailer even with a lift gate. I can get a 25' box truck in with material delivery (barely...) but not a tractor trailer and that even includes out on the road which is a busy highway. For me, it's either meeting the truck in a parking lot somewhere with a roll-back like I did for my CNC machine or terminal pickup like I did with my sliding table saw with my trailer.

[Rick Potter]

Before we get too carried away with moving big iron here, the original post mentions a 78 pound, 12 1/2" planer, which sounds to me like a lunchbox planer.

[Justin Rapp]

This thread speaks pretty strongly for buying from your local dealer.

In my area, I have a few options for local supplier - I can drive ~80 miles one way to a woodcraft store in Delaware for a 'pick up in store' machine or drive about 40 miles each way to a dealer in Northern NJ.

However, I don't have a vehicle that I can put a large machine in - no pickup truck. So, I can either rent a pickup truck or rent a trailer and use my Jeep. With the cost of driving down to Delaware gas and tolls, it's maybe $80. Depending on the crate weight, getting it off the trailer would be a fun event. Or, like my last 2 machines from Laguna, they charged me flat rate of $75, the freight drive put the machine in my garage.

So, where is the benefit of buying local for large machinery?

[Josko Catipovic]

Well, Grizzly told me no way since I live on a dead-end street, and my local dealer said if I can get up my driveway, so can they, and they'll drop a machine in my garage. It seem they deliver with a small box truck. I don't own a truck, and don't feel like renting and driving hours to pick up a machine that I paid to have delivered.

[Clarence Martinn]

Had many deliveries from Grizzly , never had a problem . Do you live "way out in the country" ?

80 miles round trip from the nearest shipping terminal.

[Ron Selzer]

Well, Grizzly told me no way since I live on a dead-end street, and my local dealer said if I can get up my driveway, so can they, and they'll drop a machine in my garage. It seem they deliver with a small box truck. I don't own a truck, and don't feel like renting and driving hours to pick up a machine that I paid to have delivered.
glad you have a dealer that is willing to support you like that. When i bought my SawStop a few years back the best the local store would do was to take my money like they were doing me a favor. Charged me for delivery to their store. Then i had to pickup the saw in numerous boxes at their store with my pickup to take home and assemble myself. I paid full price for this saw for crappy service from a local vendor. Could have paid the same price and had a truck deliver to my house and saved 2 trips of 80 miles each. Stayed away until I heard someone else had bought the franchise then went back to see about a 12" jointer or a combo planer/jointer. Was there over 15 minutes while no one offered to talk to me or help me. Two guys working there talked to each other the whole time by the cash register while I was there. The other local place would not sell me a 12" jointer/planer claiming no one working there that day knew anything about it, it was the only one they had and had just been put on the floor.
SO WHY SHOULD I BUY LOCALLY AFTER ALL OF THIS

[glenn bradley]

This thread is a good demonstration of how our circumstances differ. I live where major sea ports and massive freeway systems are readily available. The truckers have no qualms about driving into cul-de-sac neighborhoods; they're professionals. I have friends that live in a very rural area. When you go to visit you take the truck, not the car ;-) Many of us live in between these two points and delivery will vary with that.

[Mike Kees]

About 5 years ago I purchased a cyclone dust collector from Grizzly. I shipped it to Montana and drove down to the border to pick it up myself. This is about 200 km round trip. I could have shipped it to Alberta but it would have nearly doubled the cost. They go through a broker (fees),then there is duty ,GST and the shipping rates are far higher to Canada. Far simpler and cheaper to use Grizzly's US shipping service and then only end up paying GST at the border.

[Darcy Warner]

This thread speaks pretty strongly for buying from your local dealer.

I always buy from my local.....hold it, wrong dealer. Lol

[Christopher Herzog]

I have always had them meet me at our Wal-Mart parking lot. CDL traffic is not an issue for the driver and I can back a pickup truck right to it. Furniture cart for the heavier items and Mr Newton's apple/gravity is a boost if you know what you are doing. Drivers have always appreciated it and no extra fee. Some of the bigger items come in multiple boxes so it might be reassuring to know what you are getting into by asking instead of the sticker shock of the overall listed weight.

I would not hesitate to order.....