was the shell splintered in the trip as well?

Ouch Gerard! Did you complain to the seller?

Is that a Leedy Dual? I just bought one from Australia. I hope it survives the journey better than yours.

Hi Andrew. Thankfully it was just the tension knob but I was so upset especially as it was so avoidable. I left some pretty harsh feedback for the vendor. Freight handlers are pretty heavy handed in my experience. A while back I ordered a new Ludwig tom holder and when it arrived it looked like it had been run over by a truck!

That should have been crated to go that distance.

I think that would be over-kill. We already pay a massive premium on shipping for the pleasure of living all the way down here:)

I'm not sure how much more handling goes into shipping a drum here as compared to shipping across the States but it would be fair to say that every trip has the potential to cause damage. So far I've been lucky and none of my purchases from America (there have been many) have been damaged in transit. In some instances the packing has been terrible too. I know I'll get unlucky one day I just hope it's not with the snare I've got coming from Australia which is just across the ditch - which would kind of prove my point. I've got myself nervous nowHmmmm

I agree Andrew. Buying anything snare drum-sized and above will add US$100 to the purchase price so one has to balance cost against practicality. On the whole I've been lucky but this was completely foreseeable which is what annoyed me. Mind you, I've been lucky enough to find a replacement part at a reasonable cost so all's well in the end.

Hi Guys....I sell worldwide and have a great reputation as a great packer. I always fully insure goods for breakage etc etc. I always do a double pack which is pack the snare drum up in bubble wrap then a layer of foam then the box. I then repeat this so your snare comes in its own house etc etc. All my packing supplies i go to local stores who give it free so packing is free just gotta pay the courier price and maybe an extra kg. All the drums i sell from small to large kits can be kicked around and never have a breakage or damage. Always insist on extra packing some of us on ebay treat the goods with a lot of respect. As you said that drum was poorly packed. Id have packed a screw driver better...Thanks.....sean ps Tell the guyto pay for the damage or claim on insurance thats if any was purchased.

Jeez mate, that's bloody awful. But I'm glad you got a replacement part fairly easily. Is it worth posting the seller's name so we can all avoid him/her in future?

When ever I pack a drum it always cost me way more than I charge because I want them to arrive safe ....