by Andrew Borakove
September 12, 2017
Renting a Gong from Gongs Unlimited:
It’s simple!
Hello there, Potential Gong Renter. It’s nice to meet you. We at Gongs Unlimited, most likely the preeminent gong seller in this galaxy and the next two or three over, realized the other day that people frequently ask us the same questions–some places acronym this up as FAQ–about how they can rent a gong.
So we thought we would answer these frequently asked questions here in one place and make it easy for you to find out what you need to know before calling or emailing us. Good for you, good for us.
What size gongs do you rent? We rent 32" diameter Chau Gongs. They are large enough and loud enough for most events: weddings, hamster funerals, gong shows, trade shows, etc. We usually rent a Chau Gong.
The Chau Gong is the classic Chinese gong that looks like a target or a bullseye. It has a nice deep tone that everyone expects of a gong.
Will you rent small gongs? No. It doesn’t make sense. For the price, it is better just to purchase a small gong, even up to 22". You will be happier in the long run.
Suppose I want to rent a really big gong to compensate for my small mallet? We don't do that either. You have to purchase very large gongs. We have had people try to get around that. Once we had a photographer purchase a 52 inch gong, take photos of it and try to return it because we would not rent it. He now has funky karma that will come back to bite him in the butt one day. When this happens, we charge a rental fee onto this returned gong before we refund.
Can I rent more than one gong? Yes! We have done that for some special Asian-themed events and camps.
Does the rental come with everything I need? Yes! We ship to you the gong, the gong stand, and a mallet to strike it with. The gong has a rope to hang it with.
Will it get here on time for my big event? Do not worry about that Gong Renter! You tell us the day you need it and we make sure it arrives 1 to 3 days beforehand.
Gongs are not like cars. We do not have a heavy schedule of rentals. There is usually a bit of space between your event and the last one.
I need a rental gong tomorrow, can you do it? If you want to spend hundreds of dollars on shipping this big heavy package overnight we could.
That said, to most places in USA, it only takes 2 or 3 business days, so you can get a rental gong fairly quickly.
How far in advance should I reserve the gong? If you know the event is two months away and want to make sure you have the gong and not worry about it, reserve it right away. If you discover one week out that you need a gong, call us. That usually is sufficient time.
Can you ship to the hotel where we are having the event? Sure! Not a problem. We do it all the time.
What does it cost? The rental fee is 95 dollars for like a weekend, or a week or so. If you need to rent it for longer than that, like two or three weeks, for a theatrical play or similar, call us and chat.
95 bucks! For a 32 inch Gong and Everything? Wow!
Well, there is shipping cost back and forth as well.
Of course, shipping. Duh. How much does that cost? It varies, but generally we find it costs about 100 USD each way. Continental USA. Unless you are in a really remote part.
So shipping and insurance is additional 200 USD total.
We ship via UPS Ground.
Can I use my business’ Fedex or UPS Account? Sure. We charge an extra 10 dollars for the box then though. These large boxes get toasted in transit back and forth and they are expensive. We normally incorporate the 10 dollar box fee in shipping cost.
When I have to ship it back, how do I do that? No worries! We include a return shipping label in the box and instructions.
Your job is to wrap everything – gong, stand, and mallet – back in the bubble wrap they came in, seal the box really well, and either drop it off at a UPS Office store, or if you are at an office with a UPS Ground pick up, to have them take it.
The Gong Rental was needed on Saturday, but we won’t have time to get it shipped back until Wednesday. Will we get charged extra? No. As mentioned previously, there is an inherent looseness to gong renting that is not the same as renting a car. (We understand you may have used the gong at your wedding and gave the responsibility to your new brother-in-law to pack the gong up and ship it, and he is busy post-wedding not returning texts to your fourth bridesmaid, a.k.a. Megan Low-Self-Esteem, with whom he celebrated with that evening.) Mr. I-Got-Lucky won’t be getting it packed on Monday. That is fine. No worries. But tell him that he needs to get the gong moving back to us sometime that week.
How does payment work? We charge your credit card 500 USD as a security deposit. This makes sure you ship us back the gong.
When the gong is returned, we add up the rental fee which is 95 USD, and then the shipping cost back and forth 200 USD (100 USD each way). That's a total cost of 295 USD. Then we we credit back to your credit card the 205 USD.
We will need a receipt for our business, do you provide that? Yes we do.
I’m ready to rent a gong. What do I do? Email us at info@gongs-unlimited.com or call us at 402-474-GONG or contact us in the comment section below.
Andrew Borakove
Author