Best way to ship a CPU?

[Hi-Fi Man]

I usually ship them in those plastic containers they come with however, I don't have any on hand right now and ordering more isn't feasible right now. So instead I was thinking of wrapping the CPU (Core i7 3770K) in paper then mailing it in a cushioned envelope. I know paper isn't really conductive but is there still a slight chance of ESD happening and damaging the CPU once wrapped in paper?

 

[BonzaiDuck]

I usually ship them in those plastic containers they come with however, I don't have any on hand right now and ordering more isn't feasible right now. So instead I was thinking of wrapping the CPU (Core i7 3770K) in paper then mailing it in a cushioned envelope. I know paper isn't really conductive but is there still a slight chance of ESD happening and damaging the CPU once wrapped in paper?

Don't you save your little anti-stat plastic bags? That's what I would use.

In my Rubbermaid parts-lockers, I keep a small space in the corner where I just stuff anti-stat bags for later use.

 

[AnonymouseUser]

Oh hell no. It needs to be in a box of some sort, preferably within the plastic clamshell as well. If I purchased a > $250 CPU and it arrived in paper and padded envelope I would be pissed.

 

[Mike64]

Oh hell no. It needs to be in a box of some sort, preferably within the plastic clamshell as well. If I purchased a > $250 CPU and it arrived in paper and padded envelope I would be pissed.

^ This

 

[SithSolo1]

If I didn't have the proper shipping materials on hand I wouldn't have listed it for sale but thats just me.

You need a box and something anti-static. Stuffing it in an envelop, even padded, is just asking for it to get fubar.

 

[techne]

You need a box and something anti-static. Stuffing it in an envelop, even padded, is just asking for it to get fubar.

^ This.

As a last resort, you can try to improvise a Faraday cage with aluminum paper.

I said: as a last resort.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

Stop by a local electronic store and ask for a plastic CPU case. They almost always have them laying around and are happy to give you one.

 

[ehume]

Stop by a local electronic store and ask for a plastic CPU case. They almost always have them laying around and are happy to give you one.

^^This.

 

[KingFatty]

A laptop CPU I bought off eBay was shipped to me wrapped in a sheet of soft flexible foam. The sheet is just thicker than the pins of the CPU, which were sunken/embedded into the foam. It felt like a safe way to isolate everything. That was then inserted into an anti-static bag, which was put into a padded envelope.

I wonder if there is a wrong way to use foam to where it generates uncontrollable static electricity? I just figured that if you properly ground yourself, you can mess around with flexible foam sheets like that.

Edit to add picture - the type of foam was like this:

 

[Mike64]

I wonder if there is a wrong way to use foam to where it generates uncontrollable static electricity? I just figured that if you properly ground yourself, you can mess around with flexible foam sheets like that.

Grounding yourself when wrapping or unwrapping something won't help while it's in transit, though... They make anti-static foam wrap like the stuff in the pic you posted, except that by convention (or maybe even some sort of formal specification I'm unaware of) it's pink. They sell it at most places that sell the ordinary white sort...

 

[Raduque]

Both the recent CPUs I bought came to me in an anti-static bag, wrapped in foam in a padded envelope. A Xeon 2670 and Core i3-2120.
Both were from eBay stores that sell lots of CPUs.

 

[bononos]

I usually ship them in those plastic containers they come with however, I don't have any on hand right now and ordering more isn't feasible right now. So instead I was thinking of wrapping the CPU (Core i7 3770K) in paper then mailing it in a cushioned envelope. I know paper isn't really conductive but is there still a slight chance of ESD happening and damaging the CPU once wrapped in paper?

I'd also be concerned about bent pins if the envelope get squashed, thrown in the back of the van or sat on by accident during delivery. Get a box or make one.

 

[Mike64]

I'd also be concerned about bent pins if the envelope get squashed, thrown in the back of the van or sat on by accident during delivery. Get a box or make one.

Yeah. Frankly, I'd be a lot more worried about that than the potential for static-electricity induced damage...

 

[techne]

Posts that mention the use of a box: #3, #4, #5, #6...

 

[Hi-Fi Man]

Lucked out and got a hold of a box, padded package, and ESD bag. It was kind of last minute and the BX on base didn't have what I needed...

 

[Killer_Croc]

I usually ship them in those plastic containers they come with however, I don't have any on hand right now and ordering more isn't feasible right now. So instead I was thinking of wrapping the CPU (Core i7 3770K) in paper then mailing it in a cushioned envelope. I know paper isn't really conductive but is there still a slight chance of ESD happening and damaging the CPU once wrapped in paper?

If you can look around and see if you find the plastic clamshell that the CPU came in. It's anti-static and it gives it some protection. Anti-static bags are very important in my opinion or at least shipping in an anti-static tray or something of that sort.

 

[TeknoBug]

If I ordered a CPU and it wasn't in a plastic clamshell or anti static bag and box upon receiving it, I would go out and kick a cow.

 

[repoman0]

I couldn't find the plastic clamshell for my 2600k when I sold it a few weeks ago. Instead, I cut a piece of a large antistatic bag, taped it up securely, and shipped it out in one of those $5 USPS small flat rate boxes with bubble wrap. No complaints from the buyer so it must have worked.

I wouldn't ship a CPU with pins without its original clamshell and foam though.

 

[techne]

Lucked out and got a hold of a box, padded package, and ESD bag. It was kind of last minute and the BX on base didn't have what I needed...

I'm happy to hear that! :thumbsup:

 

[Heatshiver]

Good to hear it worked out, I was going to suggest just walking it over, or if it wasn't close, gearing up for a road trip.