Not to rub it in or anything, but my experience was very different because I live close to Vans. So I just drive over there whenever I need something and bring it home. So I never had to deal with shippers, boxes or crates, or all that paper. (I saved $$$ by not having anything crated, and of course, no shipping cost). I'm very grateful and thankful for this. My major kits were waiting at Will Call, usually on a rolling table or cart of some kind. Vans would call me when it was ready for me. It was still exciting to load up, though, and inventory when I got home. I'm sure that's the same for us all! Here are a few photos from memory lane:
My empennage kit, waiting for me on this rolling table. This was like the day after I ordered it, as I recall:
About 6 months later, here's my wing kit, all loaded into my SUV:
And believe it or not, even the fuselage kit all fits in an SUV:
... as long as you can use the front seat and floor:
The finish kit would not all fit in my SUV, though, and I knew it. So I got my brother to come along and bring his van. Between the two of us, we loaded up the canopy, the cowlings, and all the other stuff in the finish kit. My Dad came along for the fun, too.
We even had some time for some silliness while we were at Vans. My brother, the cone head!
My Dad was such a good sport. This was out of character for him! He is no longer with us, so this is priceless.
For those of you who haven't been to Vans, it's definitely something worth doing some time when you can work it out!