Shipping and Insurance Fees

For all items, I charge the estimated actual postage. That is, I estimate how much the post office is going to charge me, and that's the amount I charge you.

I do not charge handling fees.

I will combine multiple purchases for shipment when feasible.

I try to offer a priority rate and an economy rate when it's practical. Economy rate varies depending on the item:

· Books, records, and sheet music go media rate

· Postcards, brochures, small catalogs, slim books, and miscellaneous ephemera go first class

· Bound items that contain advertising must be sent as parcel post. This includes yearbooks, catalogs, phone books, city directories, playbills, and magazines. This regulation applies to all printed matter containing advertising, regardless of age (the post office does not recognize a distinction between an 1850 city directory and the latest issue of Newsweek). Please note that bound printed matter rates are no longer available.

Material that isn’t printed and isn’t light enough for first class must be mailed priority or parcel post. This includes postcard albums, photo albums, scrapbooks, autograph books, diaries, other types of handwritten volumes (for example, business ledgers and collections of family recipes), and quantities of paper items (for example, a stack of postcards). This regulation also applies to mixed lots; for example, packages that include magazines and books. (These are the post office’s regulations, not mine, and I can’t make exceptions.)

In most cases, I have a pretty good idea of what an item costs to ship. I'm sometimes off by an ounce one way or another, but the difference rarely is more than 25 cents to 50 cents. If I'm really off the mark--if, say, I overcharge you $2--I'll send you a refund separately. In all cases, if the shipping costs I quote you don't seem right, please e-mail me, and I will double-check my numbers.

If you have a choice between priority and book rate, I recommend priority for several reasons based on feedback from buyers:

· Items sent book rate can take weeks to arrive, especially if they're going long distances

· Priority packages get better treatment and are less likely to get banged around

Insurance is optional for items valued at less than $50. I'll add the cost of insurance to your total if your high bid is $50 or more.

All USPS special-handling services are optional. Please let me know if you need a certificate of mailing, delivery confirmation, or other such service and I will send you an adjusted shipping cost.

An important note: The post office does NOT provide any kind of paper trail for regular mail. This means no proof of mailing, no proof of delivery, and no tracking number. After a package leaves my hands, it is in the system, and I have no way to know where it is or when it will arrive.