Question about how to pack fragile items for mailing

[frogmarch]

For her birthday I ordered my sister a small (9” high) cold cast bronze statue, and it arrived here enclosed in one of those Styrofoam molds inside a nice gift box, which was packed inside a larger box with a couple of air baggies.

My question: The forearm & eagle part of the statue has no support under it inside the Styrofoam mold. The statue arrived unbroken, but now it will be going all the way from here in western Nebraska to Hawaii. Should I put some kind of support under the forearm & eagle – like bubble wrap or something? I think doing that would probably be pointless, but I don’t know.

Thanks for any thoughts or suggestions.

[fizzgig]

1. go for it

may not be necessary, but it would be a shame if it arrived broken.

what a lovely gift

[frogmarch]

2. I've had other statues arrive with

parts of them unsupported inside the Styrofoam molds, and I've wondered why. On one statue, the unsupported piece had popped off. Anyway, thanks. I will make some confetti out of bubble wrap and see how that works.

Cold cast bronze items are just as fragile as plaster items, because just the outer layer is bronze (and resin). The nice thing is that people like me can sometimes afford them.

[jakeXT]

3. Tinfoil and plaster (without the glue), like they use for bones ?

(It's at 36 minutes )

[frogmarch]

4. That was so interesting that I

almost forgot why you posted it.

I've jacketed quite a few fossils that way, and if the statue weren't already encapsulated in Styrofoam (except for the forearm and eagle, which are suspended in midair, with no support), I could do something similar to what is shown in the video to prepare it for mailing, but with lighter-weight materials. What I need is something to cushion the forearm and eagle from underneath. Maybe fine sand or something similar to it sealed in plastic wrap would work as a pillow.

Thanks for posting the video. Fascinating!

[elleng]

5. POPCORN!

[frogmarch]

6. HEY!

By george, I think you've got it!

I am going to try it!

Thanks!

Why didn't I think of popcorn?

[frogmarch]

8. I just made some in the air popper.

When it cools I'll put some in the box. Haha, right - it wouldn't be very smart to add salt or butter!

[frogmarch]

10. Good idea.

thanks!

[frogmarch]

12. I thought about that too.

My sis is a huge environmentalist, so she will do that, I am sure.