Flight case option for a lute-back.
I have taken one trip with the following "flight case". This was from
Seattle to San Antonio Texas on United Air - a flight which had a
change of planes in Denver. So far no problems. It arrived at both
ends safe and sound, although it had been opened for inspection on
the way down.
Both Chris Wright and I will be taking our HG's to England and France
in April in these contraptions - so we'll report on our experience
afterwards, and we have our fingers crossed.
I purchased a Coleman 100-qt Extreme Cooler - (in October it was $80+
and in March it was $60+ at Sports Authority near Seattle. Coleman
lists their local dealers on their site.) This has wheels and a large
handle to pull, and two other handles for lifting. It is light, and
has plenty of room for the gurdy in it's soft case (crank removed).
There is also room for all the other stuff (tools, strap, extra
strings, etc).
http://www.coleman.com/coleman/ColemanCom/detail.asp?product_id=6201A748
I had a local foam company line the cooler with foam (dk
specifications of the foam, but it's fairly dense), which they glued
in to make the gurdy fit tightly. Since the gurdy is in it's soft
case, this is not a sculpted shape. (price about $90).
One problem with the cooler is that there are no latches. After
debating whether and how to install locks or catches, I decided to
simply use (lots of) tape and carry plenty of tape with me. Alden
suggested that I glue in an internal strap to hold the gurdy in the
case, even if the lid came off - and I plan to do that. (I don't want
to drill into the structure of the cooler to attach it mechanically).
What else? I have put fragile stickers on the outside, as well as my
name and address. Inside I have a photo of the instrument and a
sentence that says it is a hand-made, fragile, valuable musical
instrument. I'm reluctant to identify it on the outside....
The entire contraption weighs about 32 lbs with instrument, which
makes it possible for me to lift it easily up and down stairs, etc.
It IS quite large and I imagined I'd be dinged with oversize charges
- so far there was no hint of that, but I can imagine it will happen.
I can imagine trouble in small cars. On the other hand, you can sit
on the case and play when you are stranded!
I do hope this will be secure enough. My decision to try this is
based on the discomfort of the constant anxiety about whether I will
be able to carry on my instrument, as well as flights on planes that
are small enough that even normal carry-on luggage must be gate-
checked. I have avoided the Pelican-type-case solution because it is
so heavy and isn't much smaller, if at all.
As I've said, we'll report back.
And we look forward to giving an in-person demo to anyone at the UK
gathering in Lancaster - we look forward to meeting you there.
Marjy Fiddler and Chris Wright
http://www.coleman.com/coleman/ColemanCom/detail.asp?product_id=6201A748
On Mar 14, 2007, at 2:28 PM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
I already took vacation for the festival but I'm going to avoid
taking the
train... I'll just have to try my luck at flying with my insturment.
Another option is to ship the instrument ahead of you. We'll be
happy to be
the collection point for people to ship their gurdies if that works
out better
than putting them on the plane with you.
An option for the "flight case" problem is the ingenious solution
arrived at
by Marjy Fiddler: a big Coleman cooler. It has its own wheels built
in, and
stands up to being kicked around. I'm hoping she'll post about it.
Alden
