Have a question that's not answered here? Please contact me. I'll be happy to help out if I can.

 

Q: I just bought a game on eBay, and the seller says he won't ship it, he'll allow "local pickup only". Can you help?

A: Absolutely! That is one of the primary advantages I offer over a freight company. I can go and pick up your game just as if you were picking it up yourself. The seller does not need to crate it (i.e. package it), does not need to bring it anywhere, and does not need to prepare it for me in any way. If you hire me to move your game for you, the only thing that the seller of your game will need to do is decide on a time for me to pick it up, and with regards to that I can usually be pretty flexible.

Q: What other advantages do you offer over a freight carrier?

A: Several major ones, in addition to the personalized and friendly service you'll get from a fellow game collector and enthusiast: First and foremost, because I'm a video game collector myself, I know things about moving games that a generic freight carrier probably won't, such as making sure that the monitor, coin mechs, and other removable assemblies are properly secured in the cabinet or removed to prevent damage. If you're buying from someone you don't know, I can also inspect the game and verify that it is working properly before picking it up, and can contact you before moving the game if it is not. That's something you won't get from a freight carrier, and is a must if you're buying a game from an unknown seller, sight unseen. Beyond door to door service: You don't need to have your seller pallet or crate your game before pickup, like you would with most major carriers for loading on to a truck. It will be carefully handled by me as the one of a kind item that it is, and delivered all the way to your home in one vehicle, not to a nearby freight terminal, and not transferred from truck to truck. If you need assistance bringing the game in to your game room, I will be happy to help with that as well, and in most cases at no extra charge (there is a small extra charge for difficult deliveries, such as up or down stairs.) Assistance for those new to the game hobby: For people buying their first game, I will go over the game with you and show you things like how to turn it on and adjust the volume (don't be embarrassed, on older games it's not obvious, and it took me a while to figure out on my first game too!), how to set it for free play, and so on. More personalized service: Again, I'm one person with a trailer, not a big company with a fleet of trucks. You can contact me via e-mail at any time, and you'll get a fast reply from the actual person moving your game, not a shipping clerk. I do not try to compete with freight carriers on price, I compete on service. That having been said, for many short to medium distance moves I can offer a lower price than major freight carriers, simply because my costs are lower.

Q: What equipment do you use for moving games?

A: Believe it or not, I actually use a 1997 Saturn sedan, and a small utility trailer, rather than the large box truck that many people seem to expect. Although this combination limits me to only one or two games at a time, it also keeps my costs much, much lower than they would be with a fuel-guzzling box truck (or even a pickup truck for that matter.) With fuel prices currently at well over $3.00/gallon, this makes a huge difference! At the same time, the small trailer makes it easy to load and unload games, and transports them gently.

Q: How do you protect games from damage during shipment?

A:I have a well established system of moving games that ensures they arrive safe and sound. Once loaded, your game will not be removed from the trailer until it is delivered. It will never be transferred to another vehicle or stored in a freight warehouse like it might be with a freight or trucking company. When moving a game, I first prepare the game for shipping: For video games, I ensure that there are no lose parts such as coin doors, keys, manuals, back panels, etc. If I find any, I either secure them or remove then and package them in a separate box, as appropriate. For pinball machines, I remove the balls, keys, coinbox, manual, etc. from the game and package them in a separate box, then remove the legs and fold down or remove the head (depending on the model.) the glass is protected in place by a padded moving blanket placed between the body and the head, and the head is strapped to the body with padded tie-down straps to ensure it does not move or vibrate. I then transport the game on end. For jukeboxes, I remove any records that could comes lose during shipping (with most jukeboxes the majority of records can be left in place, but the first few in the rack often need to be removed to prevent damage), I ensure that the mechanism is properly secured for moving, and I remove and lose parts such as keys or manuals and package them in a separate box. After the above preparation, I wrap the game in a padded moving blanket, and then wrap it in a waterproof tarp over that to protect it from the elements. I then load the game in to my trailer and securely fasten it to the trailer bed to ensure that it can't shift position while in transit. While in transit your game will be the only thing in my trailer. I don't move anything except games, so you don't need to worry about boxes or any sort of freight coming in to contact with your game while I'm moving it.

Q: Does your price include crating or packaging my game?

A: Because of the way that I move games, no crating or special packaging is required. I move each game on to the trailer using a 2 wheel appliance dolly, wrap the game for extra protection, and then secure the game directly to the trailer. Your game will be protected from the weather and from dust, and it will arrive in the same condition it is in when I pick it up, I guarantee that. Since many dealers who sell video games and pinball machines charge an additional fee for packaging or crating a game, this can actually often save you some money, so if you are shipping a game though me that you just purchased, be sure to let the seller know that you do not need it crated or otherwise packaged.

Q: Do you deliver door to door?

A: I sure do. In fact that's one of the advantages to having me deliver a game for you, rather than a big freight carrier, since they will often only deliver from one freight terminal to another. I'll even help you bring the game inside and in to your game room if you need me to, although there will be a small additional charge if it needs to go up or down a flight of steps, or across a lawn or other difficult obstacle.

Q: Do you offer insurance?

A: I don't insure through an insurance company in the way that the US Postal Service or UPS does, so I don't offer insurance per se, however I do guarantee my services and take responsibility for any damage that occurs in transit myself (to date, there has never been any, but if there ever is, I will get the game repaired or replaced for my customer as appropriate.) So in essence, you could say that I self-insure, which is similar to what many large trucking and freight companies do anyway. I have been a licensed driver for almost 20 years, have driven many more miles than the average person my age, and have a safe driving record. On the road I always act in a safe and professional manner, and will make every reasonable effort to ensure that your game arrives in exactly the condition that it was in when I picked it up. With me there is only one person handling your game from pickup to delivery, and it will not be getting moved from truck to truck or moved through freight terminals, so there is really very little chance of damage occurring.

Q: How do you calculate your fees?

A: My fees are very straightforward: Since I only deliver one or two games at a time, and only for one person at a time, I will be making a trip from my home in Battle Creek, Michigan to your game's pickup location, from there to the delivery location, and from there back to my home in Battle Creek. To calculate mileage when delivering a game I use the straight-line mileage between those three points, i.e. "as the crow flies", rather than the over the road distance. This is better for you, since over the road mileage is always longer, and thus would result in a higher fee. It's also better for me, since I can choose the best route to get the game to you based on terrain, speed, tolls, etc., without having to worry about the mileage involved. I charge $.35/mile for this mileage, plus a base charge of $40.00. Finally, I add to this any tolls if it is necessary to travel over toll routes to get the game to you in an efficient manner. (I do try to avoid toll routes whenever practical though.) For multiple game deliveries, I charge only 30% more for the second game. You can instantly get an accurate quote from my web site at any time. Just go to the main page of my site and enter the source and destination zip codes for your game's delivery, no other information is required.

Q: Why is your quote for moving my game so high? Is there any way you can do it for less?

A: generally, no, there is no way I can do it for less. As explained in the answer to the question just above this one, I am one individual who lives in and operates his business out of Battle Creek, Michigan. Unlike a big company that may have terminals in various places throughout the country and dozens or even hundred of trucks criss-crossing the nation, I need to take in to account my travel time to and from my home to where your game is located, and where it's going to. For people needing a game moved within the area close to where I live I can usually offer a great deal, often better than a big freight carrier can. If either the source and destination address of the game are far from me however, especially if either of them are on the West Coast, I may not be the best choice, at least when it comes to pricing. I'll be happy to deliver any game from anywhere in the U.S. to anywhere else in the U.S., but if the delivery is far from me, you honestly may be better off finding someone local to you who can make the delivery for less money than I can. There is one exception to this however - I do with some regularity (at least several times per year) travel to the Boston, Massachusetts area. So, if you have a game that needs to be moved along that route and can wait until the next time I will be going there, I can usually offer a discount. Please contact me to see if I can offer you a discount from my standard rate.

Q: Why isn't there a phone number on your web site? Can I call you to get a quote for moving a game?

A: Because GameMover is a one man operation, and I am on the road much of the time, there is no way that I can provide a telephone hotline for providing quotes, or book orders over the phone. I do have a cellular phone that I take with me when I travel, but as you can imagine, it would be neither practical nor safe to try to pull out a laptop computer to look up distances or schedules, or to take down a customer's contact information, while driving down the interstate at 60 or 70 mph. :-) Also, the cost of hiring a secretary or answering service to take calls from clients and answer questions just isn't realistic for this small of an operation. This is something that I do on apart-time basis, and on a good week, I may take home a few hundred dollars for 30-40 hours of hard work. Please note that I have set things up so that you can get an instant, guaranteed quote from my web site at any time. Just go to the main page of my site and enter the source and destination zip code for your delivery, and all of the options available to you for your game move will be displayed within seconds. If you really need to talk to me on the phone for some reason, please send me an e-mail including your telephone number, and I will call you when I am at a location where I can safely stop to call you and discuss your concerns. Please note that email is generally a much better way to communicate with me though, and I have yet to ever run in to a situation where there was anything related to my services that really couldn't be addressed via email.

 

Have a question that's not answered here? Please contact me. I'll be happy to help out if I can.