Justin,

I routinely ship guns from Japan to the states via USPS - the insurance I put on the packages range from $800 - $8000. And the guns are sent via Registered Mail. I've never had a problem with insurance or with USPS. The posts in this thread have reinforced my own experience with USPS. I tried to ship some rifles to Alaska from Texas via FEDEX and UPS, but the cost was triple the cost of USPS and they were not very smart on the correct procedures. I mailed the rifles from my home in Texas to myself c/o a friend in Alaska with no issues at all.

Sincerely,
Patrick