Which case to fly with?

[dclaassen]

I am taking some students to a jazz festival in Germany, and need to take my newly acquired Spectracore fretless along. I just found out that we are flying, which means checking the bass. I have a quality Gator gig bag and a nice SKB hard case. I prefer the gig bag, but which would you use? Probably our favourite Irish airline as well.

[mybass]

You will very likely not be allowed to carry the carry on board, unless you can purchase another seat for it. I have in the past had my bass inside its soft case and then inside the wheeled SKB ‘flight case’ with locks on it. Good luck.

[Lozz196]

Flying = hard case imo.

 

You have no control over where the instrument will be, unless you buy a seat for it.
 

As such work on the premise that it will be in the hold, at the bottom, with everything else on top of it, and that every time it’s moved it’s moved without any care or attention. 
 

Gigbag no longer such a good option.

[meterman]

If you’re checking the bass in, always use the toughest, most resilient case you have access to.

 

I haven’t flown with an instrument since late 2019 but I’ve toured Europe many times and usually used Hiscox Liteflite cases and they were always fine. The only time I used a different hard case was a plastic Fender case, which looked similar to a Hiscox, but on arrival back at Heathrow the case was completely destroyed. Like, unsaveable. It was the last item to come off the baggage carousel and it had been gaffa taped together (badly) and I thought my guitar (a 1968 Telecaster) was a goner, although it was fine. After that I went back to using Hiscox cases, and travelled with a cheaper instrument. 

 

Other thing to check is the airline’s check-in weight allowance. But you’ll probably be fine 👍

[Bunion]

Hard case no question 

[Jason Karloff]

Ryanair eh. 

Got to love their website when booking a flight. 

Wow thats cheap. 

 

Would you like a pilot? 10 quid extra. 

Would you like oxygen in the cabin? 10 quid extra. 

Do you want the wheels out before landing?....... 

In the end could of gone B.A

[dclaassen]

I’ve been telling our folks that for years…they only just look at the airfare.

 

I won’t use them for personal travel…just can’t support that level of sliminess.

[Jason Karloff]

I did see on one particular flight a woman with 2 carry on pieces. She was holding her friends bag who was stood next to her who had a broken arm. They wouldn't have it. 

[dclaassen]

This does not surprise me at all…

[ambient]

Maybe use an SkB Bass Safe? Your gig bag fits inside it. There was one advertised in the sales section recently.

[Lozz196]

55 minutes ago, Jason Karloff said:

I did see on one particular flight a woman with 2 carry on pieces. She was holding her friends bag who was stood next to her who had a broken arm. They wouldn't have it. 

I’m surprised they didn’t charge extra for the cast

[Lozz196]

1 hour ago, Jason Karloff said:

Ryanair eh. 

Got to love their website when booking a flight. 

Wow thats cheap. 

 

Would you like a pilot? 10 quid extra. 

Would you like oxygen in the cabin? 10 quid extra. 

Do you want the wheels out before landing?....... 

In the end could of gone B.A

I flew with Ryanair once. When the plane landed the rest of the passengers clapped. In my naïveté I thought that was what was meant to happen.

[Bolo]

Hard case. If you're worried about it taking a hit, wrap it in cling film (Saran wrap in some areas). Protects extrusions like the locks etc.

[Nicko]

It's a few years since I flew with a bass - but I have two differing experiences - both long haul.  With one carrier I  was in economy and checked with them beforehand. They allowed the bass in the cabin (they actually put it in the business class wardrobe) in a soft case.  With another I was booked in business and they wanted it in the hold - fortunately it was cased but only in a standard Fender Tolex case.  The Tolex suffered some damage in transit but the bass was fine.  I was unfortunate enough to see them loading it and it was clear they weren't treating it carefully despite the check in staff having plastered it with "fragile" labels.  On this basis I would never check in a bass in a soft case.

[Bassman68]

10 hours ago, ambient said:

Maybe use an SkB Bass Safe? Your gig bag fits inside it. There was one advertised in the sales section recently.

I thoroughly second this,  I’ve done some travelling recently & got a Bass safe on recommendation, very impressed.

Just have your bass in a gigbag & put the gigbag in the Bass safe….Plenty of protection & with the rear wheels, a lot less cumbersome to drag through the airport?

[casapete]

Afraid I’d be tempted to take a less valuable bass but still in a hard case.

( If it’s only for one gig then bite the bullet and remove the stress?)

If that’s not an option then would recommend the SKB case with gig bag inside method as mentioned above.

[binky_bass]

@dclaassen - I have an utterly ridiculous certifiably bomb-proof flight case that'll almost certainly fit your bass, you're welcome to borrow it if you want. I'm in Essex so not a million miles away. 

 

Without exaggeration these cases used to be tested by the company (Rock Hard Cases) by being loaded with an instrument then being chucked out of a van driving 70mph! So should survive even Ryanair...

 

It's basically one of these, but white on the outside, red on the inside and cut for Binky (my 10 string bass).

 

Edited April 13, 2022 by binky_bass

[dclaassen]

That is a very kind offer. This base has a 35 inch scale, so I’d have to make sure it actually would fit. I have another decent case that came with a Yamaha and looks quite a bit like the old fender cases. It fits the bass really well, so I may just use that. I will certainly let you know if I decide to take you up on your kind offer.

[bassbiscuits]

I have a hiscox Liteflite which I keep for those gigs which either involve flying or ones where the bass goes in the back of a van full of other heavy equipment. It’s come out on the luggage carousel looking like s**t more than once (splattered with mystery liquid) but the bass inside is fine. 
 

[Lozz196]

Good call on Hiscox cases, that’s what I used for flying gigs. I saw the baggage handlers help my bass to fly by launching it onto the conveyor into the plane, but when it was back in my possession at the other end the bass (and the case) was fine. I’ve read about people using Mono gig-bags in the hold, but for me Hiscox is where it’s at for that job.

[Lfalex v1.1]

Proper flight case.

Insure it to the hilt.

 

Just because it's now virtuality indestructible,  it's not so large that they can't lose it, nor inadvertently send it to the wrong hemisphere.

[Dr.Dave]

It's obviously dependant on whether your bass is a bolt-on or not but on the few occasions I've flown with a bass I  whipped the neck off my precision and stuck both bits in my little wheely suitcase along with my socks and undercrackers etc. and took it on as hand luggage. 10 mins to take down or reassemble. Once my guitarist pal insisted on taking a Gibson explorer in a very expensive flight case as hold luggage , in fact I think he paid extra for it to be looked after or something , and when we collected it on landing in Portugal  a corner of the case was crushed. No damage to the explorer but still.

[Sparky Mark]

A Hiscox is the only hardcase I would trust to survive airport baggage handlers. SKB and other plastic or wood cases might look good but don't offer anywhere near Hiscox crush resistance. A true flightcase (i.e., not a cheap Chinese look-alike) will do the job but will be bulky and very heavy. An SKB bass safe with a high quality gig bag is good too but they seem hard to find.

As well as being lightweight and very reasonably priced I don't know of any hardcases that offer the same level of protection as Hiscox.

PS, I have no affiliation with Hiscox.

[binky_bass]

I do have a Hiscox case in a cupboard under the stairs too... definitely a huge amount smaller than the Rock Hard case. 

 

Give me a shout if you want to borrow either. 👍

[tauzero]

I've been to Germany and back to gig three times, all on Easyjet, all using a normal Hiscox bass case. No problems.