Stay away from UPS. Never use UPS.

MikeC is right on (for most of it - sometimes it IS the shipping company's fault - forklift blades poked into the side and stuff like that)
The manufacturer (if coming direct) is responsible for developing the packaging as well as the product. I work in an R&D lab, and there is an entire team of people that do nothing BUT create and test the packaging to endure the "rigors" of shipping companies. You should see the shock and vibe table and be around when they do the "drop tests". What a job - getting paid to try to break stuff!
If it is a personal shipment, I also agree that the shipper is responsible for packaging it correctly. A discussion before buying is in order to gain agreement on who is responsible and what the consequences will be would be a good idea.

- aj

I do agree with many of the above posts regarding proper
packaging. I'm the owner of a 12+ year old video editing
and media duplication company. Over the years I 've received
and shipped well over a thousand packages with UPS alone -
not to mention other shippers such as FedEx and Airborne.
While UPS does screw up with their package handling at
times - I find that the main reason I get any item in
damaged conditon is a result of flimsy packaging. If any-
thing, I try to over-pack everything I ship - so the
receiving end gets their items okay.
I recently received a heavy McIntosh Amp that was shipped
to my location in Portland,OR from southern California. The
amp was shipped in the correct McIntosh double shipping
carton (and I think Mac does about the best job in the
audio industry with packaging!); and arrived in superb
condition. Even the outer carton was in near-perfect condition. I feel this was largely due to the fact that the
package weighed well over 90 lbs. - and was thus not easy
to lift or throw around.
However, in the case of lighter items - I think that
you will have to pack things very well; given the fact
that your package may be tossed around in shipping. So if
you have items below say 50 lbs.; better pack it very well!

Anybody shipping LP (which some are so rare and hard to replace) should use their common sense when shipping. If shipping a single LP, use the USPS (US Post Office) Priority shipping. Its cheap, it only takes packages up to a certian weigth and size as not to cause any damage. Anyone using UPS for shipping a single LP has got to learn a little more about shipping. Does it make sense to ship such a small fragile item along with large heavy boxes falling from belt to belt. Come on, a little common sense will go a long way. No wonder why you guys/gals can't get your systems together. You don't even know how to ship a LP. You be very careful when buying used. Also think about buying from someone who is not the orig owner. This means that your item your paying for may have been shipped many times and just think about all those long drops from belt to belt numerous times. Ground going across country can get loaded and unloaded many times at different HUBS across the country. Just think about what a 80lb amp or a 5k CD player is going thru. Know exactly how your item is being packed.boxed and who and how shipped with. Do not take shipping so litely. Its the most important part of a trnsaction after payment.

You stated: "No wonder why you guys/gals can't get your systems together. You don't even know how to ship a LP."

How did the thread about a damaged LP turn into a flame about everybody's system? Sometimes the packing here on A-gon from individuals is better than from the manufacturers themselves. On ebay it's a crap shoot.

You've expressed ideas regarding shipping that have been
mentioned time & again & that's a good thing as the more exposure there is to proper shipping techniques the better the condition of the items upon arrival. However, I take exception to your methodology of getting the point across.

Overall go fed-ex/While both are to big to give alays reliable service I did get a refund for a pair of broken tubes in two weeks instead of the 6 I thought it would take.Plus they are very aggressive in their pricing vs UPS.Even at home (if you are going to be there ) and especially at work even if you don't have a regular account call for a pick up for ground or air.If you have been using pacing shops like Mail Box etc you may not realize how much you are getting screwed price wise.