Grizzly's Lift Gate Delivery service

[Hank Keller]

I went to place an order for a 1023SLW TS and was told that it would be shipped in a tractor trailer potentially one of the 51' long rigs. I asked about the overnight transport lift gate service and was told it would only be an extra $32 but still might be a long tractor trailer.

I live in a small community that cant handle a big rig like that. Can those of you that have made a similiar purchase and used the lift gate service tell me what to expect. I'd much rather pay the $32 that travel 45 minutes each way to the closest terminal.
Thanks.

[Kelly C. Hanna]

Ask about picking it up at their terminal yourself if the truck can't make it into the neighborhood. I can't imagine that it couldn't unless they won't allow it. Semi's can negotiate most neighborhoods.

[Hank Keller]

Kelly-
It's 45 minutes one way to the terminal, and I'd need to borrow a trailer. It would cost me more to make the trip myself than to pay the $32 for lift gate service if they can navigate the neighborhood.

[Kelly C. Hanna]

What makes the neighborhood unegotiable by semi? If the lifgate service only has a big truck, you might not have a choice.

BTW..no trailer necessary, you can put the saw in any pickup. I had one delivered to me a couple of years ago and we put it in my truck for the ride up the driveway. The driver even helped us at no extra charge!

It takes three people to get it moved by hand from the truck due to shear weight and bulk.

[David Mueller]

It's not necessarly Grizzly's place to determine this issue. When the freight co. calls to arrange delivery, explain the situation. I just had my G5959z delivered, explained I live on a Cul-de-sac shorter then a full size trailer. They showed up in medium sized box truck with lift and was no problem. The freight co.'s are in the business and are generally able to assess the situation and take the proper steps.

[Hank Keller]

Constructed in the 70's, the gated community I live in has very narrow chip and tar roads, a one lane bridge that may not hold a big rig and there's no way a 51' tractor trailer will get through my u-shaped driveway. If they dropped it at the street, it would be 200' from my garage.

Maybe I should call overnight transport to see what they could do?

[John Hebert]

meet them in a large shopping center parking lot, and take delivery right off their truck onto mine. There's not much height difference to make it that worrysome. Make sure you take a buddy with you. Not all truck drivers help unload. Most will, but I had one Bozo, that simply refused to help me. Claimed he had a bad back........yeah......right. Can't tell me he had a bad back and still drive a rig..........geesh
Anyhow...... still worth the effort in my book:)

[Chris Barton]

It is the shipping co.s respopnsibility to deliver the load to your curbside address and they will find a way. So, if you have a driveway that is paved and a $20 in your pocket, I am sure that you could persuade the driver to help you move it to location with his skidder. I have had 4 similar deliveries this past year and each went without a hitch.

[Kelly C. Hanna]

Most of them who deliver in our area have no skidders on board. As far as the shipper's responsibility, that's debatable at best. Most of them are very nice to deal with, but you will need to talk with them before they attempt delivery to avoid snags. They all have guidelines to follow, but none that say they have to get it to your driveway if there are obstacles or access problems. I went through this with Grizzly and although it turned out to be effortless on my part, they told me that it would be MY responsibility if there were access issues.

[Gary Swart]

It's not "Grizzly's Liftgate Service". It is the freight company's service. Where I live, the local deliveries are all made with a short box trailer with a liftgate and there is no extra charge for it. CJ actually has Denise pick up the machines when she is doing the shopping at the supermarket, so you go by what he says! Seriously, you just have figure out what's the best for your situtation. If you have a couple of buddies and a pickup, that would be cheapest, maybe paying the man for the liftgate service would be best for you. Of course, CJ will rent Denise out if he doesn't have any logs for her to lift.:D

[Barry O'Mahony]

It's not "Grizzly's Liftgate Service". It is the freight company's service.:DGary,

You beat me to it. Yes, Grizzly's handling of the goods stops when they load it onto the shipping company's truck: at that point it becomes your property, and you deal with the shipping company to get it delivered to you (that's what "FOB" means).

This isn't like the mail, UPS, or FedEx; they won't just show up one day. The frieght company's dispatcher will call you to schedule a delivery, and you can discuss various option with her then (it always seems to be a woman ;)).

These days I usually pick things up at the freight terminal, but in the past, I've done things like specifying that they use a panel truck to make the delivery, or met them in a big parking lot with my truck and trailer, or even met the semi halfway up my driveway with my truck and trailer (I have an 800' driveway; some low-hanging tree branches stopped the driver from making it all the way up). Sometimes the freight company will want to charge extra for things like a lift gate or small truck; sometimes not. Sometimes you just need to wait an extra day or two.

But the important thing to remember this is all out of Grizzly's hands. I wouldn't trust anything their Order Dep't tells you about freight company policies or charges; it may or may not be accurate.

[Steve Clardy]

I had my 1023 and 1033 planer delivered to my local lumber yard.
They unloaded the semi, and called me when they were there. Then they loaded them into my trailer for me. No charge as I buy materials there.

[Rob Blaustein]

You've hit upon one of the few drawbacks in purchasing from Grizzly if you are someone who doesn't have easy access to a pickup truck, strong friends, and a house that is readily accessible. This is not meant as a criticism--my table saw, band saw, and jointer are all from them--rather as a comment to reassure you that you're not the only one who's had to be creative about these things. If picking it up, or the other creative suggestions aren't an option I would call the delivery company and see what they can do. I always pay extra for lift gate delivery and the drivers have always driven a really big rig and used a pallet jack to bring the tools into my garage. But I know from speaking to them that they do have one or more smaller trucks with lift gates. BTW, I have that saw and it's great! Good luck--keep us posted.

[fRED mCnEILL]

"You've hit upon one of the few drawbacks in purchasing from Grizzly "

Why would this problem apply to Grizzly and NOT other suppliers. No matter who you buy a big tool from it will have to be delivered, perhaps even by the same freight company. Unless of course you pick it up.

Fred Mc.

[Barry O'Mahony]

Why would this problem apply to Grizzly and NOT other suppliers.It doesn't apply if you buy from a brick and mortor store. They usually will deliver for you, although it often is an extra charge. Plus you pay retail prices for the tool, and you are limited to the selection tools the retailer is willing to stock, or order for you.

[Rob Blaustein]

"You've hit upon one of the few drawbacks in purchasing from Grizzly "

Why would this problem apply to Grizzly and NOT other suppliers. No matter who you buy a big tool from it will have to be delivered, perhaps even by the same freight company. Unless of course you pick it up.

Fred Mc.
Hmm, I see your point there Fred. I hadn't thought about that because Grizzly is the only company I've ordered big heavy tools from so I don't know what sort of delivery service others provide. But I suspect you're right, and that the same issues apply to other manufacturers as well. So I'm sorry Grizzly if I unfairly singled you out.

[Wayne Ashing]

Just received 458# Jet cab saw from Amazon. They specified delivery to the ground. ABF called a head of time, Showed up early, and backed up the drive to my shop (about 400' +/-), through an 8'3" gate and set it in the shop right where I wanted it. The other 8 boxes with the 52"fence/rails, mobile base/extensions, table/leggs and FREE 1100 dust collector with filter were tail gate only(on Eagle), I had to open the shrink wrapped pallet and unload myself but allowed me to examine all the packages before signing for them. Not sure who your trucking co would be but, I was totally satisfied with ABF and Eagle though their tracking system leaves alooot to be desired!

[Howard Norman]

I went to place an order for a 1023SLW TS and was told that it would be shipped in a tractor trailer potentially one of the 51' long rigs. I asked about the overnight transport lift gate service and was told it would only be an extra $32 but still might be a long tractor trailer.

I live in a small community that cant handle a big rig like that. Can those of you that have made a similiar purchase and used the lift gate service tell me what to expect. I'd much rather pay the $32 that travel 45 minutes each way to the closest terminal.
Thanks.
My experience has been that different freight companies have different policies. I have had three deliveries in the last nine months with three different policies. The first was a load of IPE for a deck. Don't remember the original shipping company but they transferred the shipment to a smaller truck that was able to get to my property. That caused about a two week delay after the shipment hit Phoenix. The second and third shipments were from Grizzly. Both werr associated with a G0490 jointer. The first shipment was by FexEx freight. I live in a rugged mountain community were it is impossibile to get a semi to my house. With FedEx they met me about 2 miles from the house at the firestation and we moved the jointer from the semi to a trailer. Paid for liftgate service and the FedEx didn't provide it. I had a friend with me and we were able to move the jointer's two boxes with some difficulty from the semi to the trailer. The third shipment was again from Grizzly and was the replacement stand for the jointer which was damaged in the original shipment. That shipment was by Overnight and their policy was that they would not come to this communitee at all. I had to meet them about 8 miles away and transfer the box from the semi to my truck.

So in my opinion you need to be talking directly to the shipper that Grizzly would use in your case.

Howard