Hey everyone. I was wondering if anyone mails US domestic USPS with bubblebath mailers (ie for graded cards) and stamps. I noticed a few of my bubblebath mailers being returned from ‘insufficient postage, require postage 4.20$’…
Yes, I realize many of you may have valuable cards that require tracking ($40+) and would suggest mailing with tracking. However, I’m referring to cheap graded cards That are $10-15 range so it doesn’t make sense to pay $4 for shipping…
So is bubblebath mailer + stamps ok? I put $1 of stamps on a 2oz max bubblebath mailer (.70cent mailing)
Yes, you can use stamps on bubble mailers. Generally (depending on the weight, obviously), it will require at least two forever stamps. For a PSA-graded card, two stamps should be enough.
@zorloth , Thanks for the response. I did use 2 stamps. Have you had any mail returned to you?
I think my post office is misinformed/hating and sending my cards back. At first the enveloped returned and said 4.20 postage requirement. I thought the stamps were touching each other overlapping a little, so I resent it after carefully removing each stamp and replacing it onto a new envelope. Now they return my stamps and X the stamps so I can’t even reuse it, when they were never used.
Depends how much the mailer weighs and how much postage you put on it. It costs, IIRC, 15 cents per ounce beyond the first ounce (the first one being covered by one forever stamp).
If you use a bubble mailer, I usually use 2 stamps and an uncle sams hat stamp (.15 cents) to cover the surcharge. I haven’t had any issues shipping up to 15-20 cards this way.
The post office knows what they’re talking about, I’m not sure why you don’t believe the price they’re quoting you.
You’re sending a bubble mailer. A bubble mailer is not an envelope. A bubble mailer is considered a package. You are therefore using their first class package service, which has a retail price of $3.80 for a 1oz package (final price also depends on destination).
Also, you can’t just put a “non-machineable” sticker on an envelope and have it suddenly be so. You have to pay for a non-machineable stamp, which will cause the envelope to be handled differently. A package such as a bubble mailer is already going to be non-machineable.
@hypernova, You would be surprised, one location’s policy could differ from another’s. Do you work within a usps or their logistics to be so adamant about how to classify machinable/non envelopes? Or have you had some returned mail you’d like to speak about?
I didn’t get a quote, I got a couple pieces of returned mail with most of them successful. I thought it was bad stamp placement. As others have noted, there is a majority success rate. I thought it was a mistake the first time due to stamp placement.
I was under the impression that this was the common way to ship and have seen envelopes with the non-machineable writing as well. The bubble mailer is a small envelope with a little bit of bubblewrap inside, like wrapping a card with bubble wrap and putting into an envelope.
You can use stamps on bübble mailers, but they need to be less than 1/4 inches thick. Many bübble mailers are 1/4 without any cards. So the more cards you add, the higher the chance that the package will be returned.
A PSA case is ~1/4” thick on its own, and of course is thicker with bübble packaging and so is bumped up to the First class package rate minimums.
Interesting, didn’t realize the thickness maximum was that low. I’ve only ever shipped PSA cards with tracking anyway so I haven’t run into that issue. Honestly, for a PSA card that’s not worth enough to be worth shipping with tracking, it’s probably better to just crack it out and ship it PWE for 50 cents lol.
…I figure if I’m selling a PSA card for less than $6 I’m probably losing money anyway. For everything else the $3.70 it costs for a first class package it’s really tough to complain about. It’s an excellent service that puts money into my pocket
