Posting small objects through letter delivery

[sayf_mohtadi]

I'm very new to selling on eBay and I would love to get some help. The objects I intend to sell are very small (ie phone cases and protectors) and thin. I heard that such objects may be shipped using an envelope and through letter delivery, hence being very cheap. Can someone tell me the  risks associated with such a delivery method as well as how to avoid these risks. 

One more thing, do CD mailers count as envelopes (and hence cheap shipping)? 

Also, i noticed these CD mailers http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/100-152x132x16mm-CD-DVD-DISC-MAILER-Mailing-Box-Rigid-Envelope-Large-Lett... for a pretty cheap price. Ik this question may seem stupid, but I'm extremely new to all this... Would these envelopes need stamps before being shipped out? If so, how many stamps will they require? How do I know which envelopes need stamps and which don't?

I really need help and would really really really appreciate it if someone could help me solve my problems. Thanks 🙂

[i-love-my-sheep]

50c for padded bags in bulk? Mine cost 12c by buying in bulk! That was from the same seller that the OP left the link for and the item number I left further up. I was originally paying about 50c from Officeworks, which is when I looked into the buy in bulk option.

I couldn't get my PO to part with a letter gauge, that's why I mentioned that I'd made my own from thick cardboard. It works great and have never had any issues with items being too thick. I think I may have even made the slot 19mm just to make sure it didn't go over.

[cq_tech]

How many are you buying at a time, sheep? I buy 50 x PB1s (perfect for DVDs) from a seller in Melbourne for $13 which means they're costing me 26c each, but if I was to buy 100 the price would come down to 19c each, so I'm curious how yours are only costing 12c (unless you're picking them up and not paying postage).

[diltronix]

I get 500 of the

The cardboard box ones with size 310x220mm are about $0.50 for 200 pieces. I only use them for stuff I really dont want bent, they also weigh quite a bit and often push the postage cost into a higher amount.

[diltronix]

Not sure what happend to the first paragraph, but.....

I get 500 of the #01 kraft bubble mailers (160x230mm) from the place the OP had a link to for $0.15 each. The size smaller is about $0.11 for 600. I prefer to use the larger ones as it gives plenty of room for the address and I only need to keep one size of the bubble mailers.

[cq_tech]

They're pretty good prices, but only if you pick them up from the factory. They're dearer then my current supplier for PB1s which they sell at 50 posted for $15.90 while I'm only paying $12 for the same amount posted from my seller in Melbourne. It's the postage that's the killer though. If I lived close enough that I could pick up whatever I needed, the cost would be around $10 for 100 for PB1s.

[cherry*135]

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@cq_tech wrote:

I post single DVDs in a PB1 padded bag with 2 stamps as they weigh around 118g. Double DVDs unfortunately weigh over 125g so I cover them in bubble wrap and send them in prepaid C5 envelopes which cost $1.70 (but take up to 500g for the same price). I send 2 x DVDs in a PB2 padded bag with 3 stamps, and all of the above go as large letters as they are all under 50mm thickness.

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A query - is that 50mm correct?..letter rate Height  is either up to 5mm for small envelopes (70c) and up to 20mm for large letters?

[digital*ghost]

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@cq_tech wrote:
They're pretty good prices, but only if you pick them up from the factory. They're dearer then my current supplier for PB1s which they sell at 50 posted for $15.90 while I'm only paying $12 for the same amount posted from my seller in Melbourne. It's the postage that's the killer though. If I lived close enough that I could pick up whatever I needed, the cost would be around $10 for 100 for PB1s.

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Might pay to keep a watch on them anyway, (although probably more to those who would need to have them posted, anyway) they often have 5-10% off sales on some items, including the rigid envelopes and padded bags, which is great when you've got an eBay voucher to use, as well. 

[i-love-my-sheep]

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@cq_tech wrote:
How many are you buying at a time, sheep? I buy 50 x PB1s (perfect for DVDs) from a seller in Melbourne for $13 which means they're costing me 26c each, but if I was to buy 100 the price would come down to 19c each, so I'm curious how yours are only costing 12c (unless you're picking them up and not paying postage).

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I bought a box of 200 for $25.50 which included postage ('free' postage). They are 180x100mm 220678678187 Check them out for the ones you buy and see if they are any cheaper there. I thought their prices were pretty good. I did a lot of browsing when I was looking for them and this place came in the cheapest. They have all manner of sizes and styles. They posted the same day too.

[cq_tech]

Yes, that was a typo. Sorry. It obviously should have been 20mm. I got confused because I was also talking about prepaid C5 envelopes which can carry up to 500g for only $1.70.

[cq_tech]

They're good prices, sheep, although I doubt I'll be needing any more PB1s for quite some time (if at all, the way things are going with eBay). I don't need to buy any PB2s as I tend to receive more of those than I send, so I'm fortunate that I'm in a position to recycle.

I was going through so many prepaid C5s that I was buying them in bulk from the PO at $16.20 a pack for 5 packs or more (normally $1.80) as they can take up to 500g which was perfect for the item I was selling at the time.

However, I've since sold out and I won't be buying any more stock now. I'm currently running down my current stock levels and when they're gone, so am I, and I won't be the least bit sorry to see the back of eBay either. I'm not in the habit of going down with sinking ships.