Weird Shipping from Midway USA!

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deerslayer303

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I ordered a bullet mold and some other various gun stuff from Midway back on the 22nd. Well I got to looking at the tracking. It started off with UPS then when it got to Nashville it went over to a USPS processing facility. And USPS will be the end carrier for delievery. What in the world? Is UPS and USPS working together now instead of competing? I know USPS and Fed Ex are together now. This is not a complaint, I had just never seen nothing like this before.
 
yep seems weird, but I have seen this very thing from other vendors.
It shows up when I select the cheapest shipping possible.
 
I have been receiving packages as you described from different companies for the last 3 years. For some orders it is cheaper for UPS and FedEx to give the package near the end of it's travel to the U.S. Post Office for final delivery. I hate the set up as the post Office can hang on to the package for many days even though it might be just a few miles from your home.
 
UPS hands off to USPS for final delivery. It's called UPS Basic or something like that.

Kind of weird, the first time you notice it.
 
It's a win-win for both companies - Midway gets lower shipping costs, UPS has lower costs, and the USPS gets a little money to help them
 
Nothing new.

UPS calls it (at least last time I checked) UPS Mail Innovations and FedEx calls theirs Smartpost.

The private carrier gets it to the region (if not the metro area) of the delivery address and then hands it off to the USPS for the last couple steps. When I get stuff FedEx Smartpost it usually gets delivered to the main USPS package sort facility nearby (it handles every USPS package for at least this side of the STL area, if not all of it). UPS seems to drop it in a little further away.

Sometimes it means an extra day or two delay in delivery. Sometimes not.
 
I found out about the UPS / USPS working together the hard way about two years ago. For a short period of time, I worked as a USPS Postmaster Reserve in a small town near me. My first day on the job alone the UPS truck backed in and started unloading packages. I asked him what the heck he was doing, so he had to explain it to me. Works quite well when you think about it. UPS doesn’t have to find you, the USPS knows right where you are. Both get a little profit out of the deal. I want to say it was called something like “Final Destination Delivery” or something like that. It does add at least one day to the delivery time.
 
It isn't that uncommon. I bought a few things as a gift for a friend that lives in a rural part on Maine. It's he delivery spent most of its time on FEDEX vehicles and the final leg was the USPS. I wouldn't worry about it. Google it if it give you agita(I did).
 
I got a package from Midway the same way.Problem for me is UPS delivers to my doorstep. My mailbox is a mile from my residince on the dirt road and if the package is to big to fit in the mailbox I get a notice left in the mailbox that I have a package to pick up at the post office 15 miles away. Sure as heck not much of a savings for me.
 
It makes perfect sense, USPS drives around the neighborhoods everyday, UPS may not find their way around as quickly. Lets UPS truck handle the commercial accounts like office buildings. Best scenario for both companies.
 
Nothing new. USPS does the final delivery portion. It is cheaper than UPS doing it alone and quicker than USPS or something like that.
 
Well my package arrived today. It didn't take all that long at all. At any rate its here and that was the cheapest shipping Midway had. And thats the one I choose always (but the first time my stuff got shipped like that). Mainly because Midway's shipping is high. They need to figure out what USPS flat rate boxes are. :D I've never had a problem shipping that way.
 
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