My surest path to a strong, just-big-enough box for shipping wheelsets is a trip to an independent auto repair shop. The boxes that are used to ship radiators come in a variety of sizes well shaped for squeeking in under the USPS sizing tiers, and are on the thick side for protection of contents.
David Snyder
Auburn, CA usa
> Best way I've found is to cut down a bike box...easier than it
> sounds...wheel set boxes seem scarce around here. I like to put an old
> set
> of tires on if I can and lightly inflate them...if not, I put the same
> pipe
> wrap around the rims I would use on bicycle tubing. I always double up
> the
> cardboard on the sides...I like to tie an old sponge on each side, over
> the
> axle ends ...don't let your wife toss them when they get funky...they are
> great for this and also padding the tops of a seat tube or the top of a
> head
> tube when shipping bikes. Extra cardboard goes between the wheels, too!
> I do sometimes get carried away in my packing frenzy and over pack, I'll
> admit...I once sent John Waner a set of wheels that were nearly $50 in
> shipping, I had so much padding and stuff in there. He was kind enough to
> re-imburse me or I'd have lost money on the transaction for sure. Nice
> fella! A little bubble wrap on the inside at the top and bottom of the
> box
> is a great idea, too.
> Cripes, the longer I pack bike stuff, the more fanatic I get about extra
> protection...where will it end?
> Tom Sanders