diff --git a/lib/transport/shell.js b/lib/transport/shell.js
index 85f3529..6dc143c 100644
--- a/lib/transport/shell.js
+++ b/lib/transport/shell.js
@@ -1,5 +1,7 @@
 var util = require('util')
+  , fs = require('fs')
   , exec = require("child_process").exec
+  , tempWrite = require('temp-write')
   , Fiber = require('fibers')
   , Future = require('fibers/future')
   , Transport = require('./index');
@@ -68,12 +70,14 @@ ShellTransport.prototype.__transfer = function(files, remoteDir, options) {
     files = files.stdout;
   }
 
-  files = (files || '').trim().replace(/[\r|\n|\0]/mg, '\\n');
+  files = (files || '').trim().replace(/[\r|\0]/mg, '\n');
   if(!files) {
     throw new Error('transfer: empty file list passed');
   }
 
-  var rsyncFlags = '-az' + (this.logger.debugEnabled() ? 'v': '');
+  var tmpTransferListFile = tempWrite.sync(files);
+
+  var rsyncFlags = '-az' + (this.logger.debugEnabled() ? 'vv': '');
   var _results = [];
   var task = function(config) {
     var future = new Future();
@@ -84,8 +88,8 @@ ShellTransport.prototype.__transfer = function(files, remoteDir, options) {
                                 , (config.username ? config.username + '@' : '')
                                 , config.host, remoteDir);
 
-      var cmd = util.format('(printf "%s") | rsync --files-from - %s --rsh="ssh -p%s%s" ./ %s'
-                                , files, rsyncFlags, config.port || 22
+      var cmd = util.format('rsync --files-from %s %s --rsh="ssh -p%s%s" ./ %s'
+                                , tmpTransferListFile, rsyncFlags, config.port || 22
                                 , sshFlags, remoteUrl);
 
       _results.push(this.exec(cmd, options));
@@ -100,6 +104,9 @@ ShellTransport.prototype.__transfer = function(files, remoteDir, options) {
     tasks.push(task(this.flight.hosts[i]));
   }
   Future.wait(tasks);
+
+  fs.unlink(tmpTransferListFile);
+
   return _results;
 };
 
diff --git a/package.json b/package.json
index 5dc64b0..d8ad96b 100644
--- a/package.json
+++ b/package.json
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 {
   "name": "flightplan",
   "description": "Library for streamlining application deployment or systems administration tasks",
-  "version": "0.4.1",
+  "version": "0.4.2",
   "author": "Patrick Stadler <patrick.stadler@gmail.com>",
   "keywords": [
     "deploy",
@@ -34,12 +34,13 @@
     "test": "echo \"Error: no test specified\" && exit 1"
   },
   "dependencies": {
-    "fibers": "~1.0.1",
-    "ssh2": "~0.2.17",
     "colors": "~0.6.2",
     "commander": "~2.1.0",
+    "fibers": "~1.0.1",
+    "pretty-hrtime": "~0.2.1",
     "prompt": "~0.2.12",
-    "pretty-hrtime": "~0.2.1"
+    "ssh2": "~0.2.17",
+    "temp-write": "~0.3.1"
   },
   "optionalDependencies": {
     "coffee-script": "~1.7.1"