I sent a book out a couple days ago and when I took it to the post office, it cost .17 cents more to mail it than what was on the suggested price to mail.  I always wrap my books in plastic then seal them in with tape all around.  I don't want to have any problems with books getting wet.  Do you think the plastic and extra tape made it be that much more to mail?

This is the second book that was that way.  The first book was just  2 cents more than the sugg. price.

Yeah-- it happens. The price on the wrapper is an estimate. I always double-check the weight of the wrapped book using either my kitchen scale at home or the APC at the post office... If you don't put enough postage on a media mail package, the reciever can get stuck with making up the difference.

A lot of the time the weight listed for the book is wrong. It's best to double check it.

I have a postal scale, so I always check the weight before printing the wrapper, and a lot of the time it's wrong. Sometimes the book weighs more than PBS estimates it does, but sometimes it goes the other way too; I was able to save some postage money on a book I wrapped yesterday, which weighed 4 ounces instead of the 8 ounces that PBS estimated.

Sometimes the weights on the books are WAY off--I don't know where they come from, but there are times when I think the weight listed is for the hardcover version or possibly trade paperback, and what I'm sending is a Mass Mkt Paperback. I have a scale that weighs to the tenths of an ounce and I always check before printing the label--you can change the weight in the details there before printing. If it's right on the border where more postage would be needed, I always estimate upwards to account for packaging.

Cheryl

Keep wrapping the way you have been, Karrie.  I doubt that your wrapping bumped the price up.  Much more likely that the estimated mailing cost was simply off, as others have indicated.  Occasionally there's a book that's borderline where the wrapping pushes up the cost, but even so I think it's worth it to make sure that it's well-wrapped.

I never ever go by what the print out says.  I just now mailed a book that I knew, as a hardcover, weighed more than the 8 oz it printed out as.  It was 24 oz!  Last week a thin paperback came up as weighing over 4 lbs, and I believe it was 8 oz.

Get yourself a cheap scale at the store, it is worth it.

I always take my books to the post office to be mailed. That way the post office can determine the correct weight and postage. Its just easier for me.

if you come across a book that is way off, go in and edit the weight in the book data.  You have to put why you are editing it at the top, just put adjusting weight.

remember that it is in ounces and decimal form, so 0.5 is 8 oz and not 5!

Most of my weights lately have been pretty right on.  I have a Walmart scale that is very helpful to have aorund...it is exaxtly like the one in the kisok, but it doesn't weigh the bigger packages. I generally but the wrights up a few ounces to cover any wrapping. As far as I know all my books have gotten there-and if they didin't, it wasn't because of the postage!

I use bubble wrap envelopes to send my books out, and always take them to the PO.  Most of the time the postage PBS estimated is right.  Sometimes, it's cheaper to go 1st class rather than media.  They always check both ways for me.  It all works out in the end.  Pat

If you add PBS delivery confirmation when you print your label, you have to put 18 cents additional postage on the package.

I usually just wrap my books and take them to the post office. I hand it to them and tell them I need to mail this. They weigh it and tell me the price.

I live in the country and have to go to down everyday to go to work so it is no bother for me to go to the post office if I happen to get a book request.  I just wondered if I might have been getting a little on the heavy side with my wrapping and wondered if anyone else had the same problem.  I will try to edit the book's weight if I mail another one off and it is different.

Thanks to everyone for their answers!