Ensuring your guitar is properly packaged before shipping is absolutely essential. Shipping a stringed instrument can be a bit daunting, but there is no need to worry; by following these basic tips and tricks you can rest assured it will arrive with its tone intact, and shine still pristine.

Packaging Time: 20 Minutes

Guitars are always best shipped in their hard cases, while sealed and protected in a larger shipping box. The best box to ship them in is guitar boxes, which are usually found free at music shops.

Tip: A set of 3 branded guitar boxes are priced anywhere up to £20.

It is really important you don’t ship your instrument just in its hard case; it could become damaged during transit and it doesn’t offer adequate protection from being stacked on.

• Scissors
• Bubble Wrap
• Tape
• P. Chips
• New Box

Step 1: Loosen the guitar strings to remove any tension from the fret board. Then place your cloth under the strings and onto the fret board: this will ensure the frets are protected from any movement from the strings.

Step 2: Take your guitar case and line the head of it with bubble wrap. This will provide your guitar with its own cushion to support the neck. Then line the main body of the case with a few layers of bubble wrap so the guitar can’t touch the inner walls of the guitar cas

Step 3: Wrap the guitar in two layers of bubble wrap and secure with tape. You can then place the wrapped guitar within the guitar case, making sure the head of the guitar in particular is placed on the head lining. Place two more layers of bubble wrap on top of the head of the guitar to ensure it is protected.

Step 4 (optional): If your guitar has a bridge or whammy bar attached, please remove them and secure them in a secured pouch to be placed within the guitar case.

Once complete, secure your case and prepare your box. Simply layer the bottom of your box with 2 inches of bubble wrap and newspaper and then place your case on top. Fill any remaining space around the case in the box with bubble wrap or newspaper.

The experts at Guitar Village, one of the UK’s premier guitar shops have given us their “must do” list when packaging a guitar:

• First off, we make sure the guitar has plenty of support around the headstock.
• The switch tips will have a small polystyrene cube placed and the guitar will be tuned down to reduce tension on the neck.
• Then we ensure that the guitars are in either a hard case or a gigbag
• When the guitar is in a hardcase, that will then be put inside a box with packaging material around the base and the headstock. That ensures the case doesn’t move around in the box and get damaged
• Lastly, once the guitar is in it box, we will then put it inside another box to give it some extra protection.

• Secure all flaps and seams with packaging tape. Make sure to line the spine of the box with plenty of tape to keep its structural integrity.
• Secure the box further by wrapping packaging tape in three directions around the box, like a union flag pattern.
• Clearly display your shipping label on the box.

How to Insure Your Guitar for Shipping

Most couriers will not insure your guitar while it is being shipped. This is due to it being classified as a fragile object. If you do wish to insure your guitar with ParcelHero, you will need to send photos of the shipment packaging before it is shipped. We can then determine if it is good enough to insure, or offer further guidance.