USAKilts shipping is quick, USPS not so much.

[Bill aka Mole]

I ordered some additional kilt hose on 05 Dec. which were shipped on 06 Dec. Unfortunately, the USPS decided to hold on to them for 5 days trying to determine the most efficient route to get from PA to SC. They arrived yesterday and look great. Thanks for the very quick service, Rocky, Kelly and any other crew at USA Kilt. Perhaps you should give pointers to the USPS. On second thought, maybe not: Why would the USPS need to know how to make kilts!

[RockyR]

Sorry to hear the Post office took so long. They're an odd company... I've shipped things out on a Friday and had them arrive in FLORIDA on Saturday via Priority mail (go figure THAT one out) and I've had things like this that take 10 days to go a few hundred miles. No consistency.

It MAY be due to the time of year, but that's not much of an excuse. I'm just glad they arrived safe and you're pleased with them.

[MikeS]

Sorry to hear the Post office took so long. They're an odd company... I've shipped things out on a Friday and had them arrive in FLORIDA on Saturday via Priority mail (go figure THAT one out) and I've had things like this that take 10 days to go a few hundred miles. No consistency.

As an employee of the USPS for nearly 14 years i'd like to offer some insight. I'm a carrier so I work in a local post office delivery unit, so my observations are mainly based on that.

1. Scanning devices do not live update to the web like UPS does. If I scan a package 'delivered' at 9am, it will not download until i plug in the scanner at 4 or 5 pm which means it won't show up on the web until sometime after that.

2. USPS tracking is not true tracking in the sense that every little stop along the way will show up.

3. The arrival time listed on the web site are most likely the 'best possible outcome'. The post office always assumes everything will always work perfectly.

4. Parcels are still largely sorted by hand by standing in front of 40 or 50 bins and throwing them one at a time. If it lands in the wrong bin it may take 2 days to come back (1 there, 1 back) from wherever to get resorted to the proper destination.

5. Mail does not always take the shortest path to its destination. For instance, I live on the Ohio-Michigan border,literally less than 1/4 mile away, in Toledo. If I mail a letter to Bryan Ohio which is near the Indiana border about 80 miles west of Toledo and drop it in a box in Toledo at 9am it will be in Bryan the next day, because the mail for Bryan is sorted at the processing center in Toledo. If I mail that letter just over the line in Michigan it will go all the way to Lansing to get sorted to Toledo to go to Bryan. This seems to add 2 days to the trip.

6. Most importantly, most postal workers are unable (not unwilling) to do anything about it when we do find something wrong. Being a government agency that is largely staffed by military vets, it is run as a top-down paramilitary style organization and does not accept input from the employees doing the work.

Mike

[BoldHighlander]

I was told the other day by our local post office that if you ship a package via ground (rather than priority or express) that right now it could take 3 weeks for it to arrive. This is because all their shipping containers are filled to capacity (no more room).

[rlloyd]

I have to agree with Rocky...the USPS is a great mystery. I had my most recent (well, not anymore...) order from Rocky leave the USPS sorting facility in Philadelphia at 9PM last night; since then, no update. I can only hope they just forgot to scan it somewhere to update the tracking and it magically arrives today, the day after shipping. Hey, a guy can hope!

[RockyR]

I have to agree with Rocky...the USPS is a great mystery. I had my most recent (well, not anymore...) order from Rocky leave the USPS sorting facility in Philadelphia at 9PM last night; since then, no update. I can only hope they just forgot to scan it somewhere to update the tracking and it magically arrives today, the day after shipping. Hey, a guy can hope!

They don't scan every step, though they are supposed to. Reliability of DELIVERY is at 99.9% for us, which is pretty frickin' good for 8 + years in business.

[Dale Seago]

Similar thing going on myself right now:

Priority mail package shipped Monday from STM in North Carolina. Their website shows "expected delivery Wednesday, 12/14".

Last scan shows it in Aurora, CO Tuesday evening.

And today is Friday, and it's still not here. It's a pair of garter ties I was expecting to wear at an out-of-town event tomorrow.

[rlloyd]

Oh, I've never had a package lost in the mail even shipping overseas (knock on wood!) so I have no doubt it will arrive. I just question the general...logistics of the USPS, particularly with packages. Living in East TN, I once had a package from Eastern NC get to me via Memphis, all the way across the state some 500 miles away.
Personally, I won't be entirely surprised if today's order gets to me before the one which shipped yesterday.

[rlloyd]

Ouch, at least mine isn't time sensitive. Good luck with your shipment!

[Dale Seago]

Ouch, at least mine isn't time sensitive. Good luck with your shipment!

Just got off the phone with USPS after being on hold for 45 minutes. I got an investigation opened yesterday and asked for the status.

They think it's still in Aurora but they haven't been able to find it yet.

Well, it's not as though I don't have other garters I can use, I have 8 or 9 different colors. But I really wanted to wear these new mustard ones with the USAK Maple Leaf kilt Rocky made for me. Obviously not happening tomorrow.

So I'm thinkin' this "pumpkin" silk/cotton blend shirt that goes well with that mustardy stripe in the tartan; claret hose and loden garter ties. Or loden hose and claret garters, either of those sets should work well. Or a loden-green shirt with mustard hose and either claret or loden garters.

At least I have options. . .