Successful flight stories

Gear
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Hoping folks can share a bunch of stories about successful flights with their instrument and what worked well. I’m currently causing myself un-needed anxiety determining if I should try to bring my Steinberger spirit in a soft carry bag and try to get it into an overhead bin or if I should buy a hard case and bring a bass that would be easier to play.

I’m going to spend a week at the Music/nature camp at Wooten Woods so probably the most important thing is having a playable instrument. A few of my basses were < $300 and my 5 string was only $100 so I guess it wouldn’t be the end of the world if something happened but I’m cheap and dropping $200 for a case I might not use again might be a stretch.

There really isn’t too much on the used market around me. I was trying to see if I could put my own foam in an SKB hard case with wheels but I’m not sure it’s wide enough to put enough foam in there.

Also does anyone know how much oversized items cost to check? I saw in the other post that some people take the necks off of their bass and put them in a suitcase but I don’t want to worry about stripping screws and doing a full setup once I get there.

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look up adam neely and travis dykes on YouTube - they both have a number of videos about traveling with a bass, flights, cases, etc

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I chaperoned my daughter’s jazz group on a flight. A couple of the kids carried on instruments; banjo and a couple of brass instruments. But most checked them in hard cases. They all fit in the overhead bins but some a-hole crammed their stuff on top of the banjo which luckily only broke a string. Something to remember; not everyone is considerate.

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Traveling with your bass will always be a nerve-wracking thing. There are many different strategies that people have posted on the net, not just how to pack the bass, but how to get the case into the cabin and how to secure space etc.
All these strategies hinge on factors beyond your control (nice flight attendants, nice people in your row, space in the overhead compartments, etc.).

Ian Martin Allison just recently posted about how he got his bass being put with the pilots in a Lufthansa flight (should be somewhere on Insta). Don’t bet on you pulling this off though :joy:

Hard cases (with wheels) might be a good idea, but it’s unlikely that you get those inside the cabin. Soft cases are easier to “smuggle” into the cabin, but if they make you check it, you’d wished you had put the bass in a hard case.
On the other hand, once you get to your destination, would you rather have a soft case (with straps to carry on your back) or a hardcase, which can be a pain to lug around??

And so it goes on…

I took a plane to London a few months ago and needed to bring my bass. In the end, I used a fairly sturdy soft case, wrapped the bass (inside the case) in bubble wrap and also filled any remaining voids with T-shirts. I put a luggage strap around the case for added safety (in case the zipper broke). I accepted from the get-go that I’d need to check it. Everything went fine (on both legs of the journey). I happened to sit at a window and see my bass being loaded:

(NB: that was a 2500 dollar bass :grimacing: :grimacing: :fearful:)

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Oh man $2500 that’s nuts. I saw the Skb bass safe that looks like a shell you can put over a padded gig bag. It has wheels and is $199. To rich for my blood but maybe the best of both worlds as far as a solution goes.

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I’ve never flown with my bass, but I have flown (many times) with my bagpipes as carry-on. You cannot believe the PANIC that the TSA agents have when they see on their monitors all those “pipes” with a round dial next to them in the case. Of course, that was my tuner. The bells go off! Several times they’ve made me play them to prove that they are a “musical” instrument. Yeah…good times :rofl:

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Should have winced every time you hit a note :rofl:

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That’s pretty much a given.

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If you’re planning to keep it in the cabin you’ll be gambling a lot if you’re not priority boarding on space still being available.

I’d check a hard case, maybe you could rent or borrow one?

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If you want to fly with an intact/assembled, non-tiny bass, it’s going to cost money, one way or another.

I’ve flown many times with a full mobile studio of video production gear: full camera package (lenses, accessories, batteries, etc.), an Arri pro incandescent light kit (multiple light heads, cables, etc.), a full grip gear package (multiple light stands, heavy-duty extension cords, etc.), and a complete sound package (various microphones, XLR cables, accessories, etc).

I used a customized rolling carry-on for my camera package, a hard shell rolling case (big!) for my light kit, a hard shell rolling golf club flight case for my grip gear, and a large duffle bag for my sound gear. It was a lot of stuff to schlep through busy airports.

My camera gear was in a custom carryon case that I boarded with, but I checked everything else – which added up, fast. Airlines charge by weight and for over-size items, and they’re sure not shy about it. I had to pay up to $450 to check my gear, depending on the airline I used.

All of this said to provide context and perspective.

So, @MattyD, the absolute cheapest, safest way to travel with your bass is to carry it on and stow it in the upper compartment, which will necessitate removing the neck. Taking the neck off/putting it back on will not strip screws or otherwise harm it as long as you are careful. But replacing the neck WILL require a screwdriver, which you CANNOT carry on, so you’ll need to pack it and other tools inside your checked luggage.

If you choose to check your bass, you should get a hard case and, as @joergkutter mentioned, pack every space with tshirts or other clothes. Incidentally, this would be a great place to pack your tools, tuner, etc.

Bottom line: Flying with anything other than a stowable carryon ain’t cheap. Plan accordingly.

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International was $190. I paid that when I took my Ken Smith to Thailand years ago. It’s more now.

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@Rob5589 They didn’t. I am actually quite good on the pipes. When flying with my pipes it was usually for a gig with the Chieftains in Las Vegas, LA, Phoenix, Denver. But I get your point. And I do know ALL the bagpipe jokes.

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Wow. I heard that Southwest allowed for 2 checked bags and if you check the bass at the gate there isn’t a cost but that may be outdated info

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I would pay a lot of money to have the privilege of playing the pipes in a crowded airport :rofl:

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I used to play at some of our Medieval events.
In particular a big one held every 2nd year was in the forest where we would ‘period’ camp and have battles in various parts of it.
One time I was playing behind our side and launched into a bagpipe version of Stairway to Heaven and a Scots mate who was also a heavy metal drummer stops fighting, comes back to me and said “I could feel me balls shrink into me body when ya played that”

Good times

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Travel alone, male, late 30s with one carry on even with a bass guitar is a sure way to get hold up and search

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Good thing I’m 45. :sweat_smile:

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The terrible thing right now is me searching FB marketplace like a crack head for a $100 Ibanez Gio in a $200 case that is selling for $150 :sweat_smile:
“Well hon… I know I said I wouldn’t by an 8th bass but this one can go to the kids I just need the case for this trip” :rofl:

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Would something like this work? It’s only $50 less than what you’re looking at, but $50 is $50.

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Southwest will charge for checked bags. Their legacy of not charging for them is over now, or will be very soon.

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