Recent bass trunk passage to Europe

[M Ramsey]

Afternoon all,

I have a friend who is scheduled to make a trip to England this coming September. Does anyone have a recent experience flying over with a bass in a Gage trunk?

If so, what to expect, fees, etc., etc.

Any help and first hand knowledge (from recent trips) will be greatly appreciated. He is trying to determine if he could do it or if he'd be better to prearrange for a loaner (in England) for the trip.

Thanks,

[coreybass]

I flew to Scotland and back last month with my bass. Smooth as silk. I travel with my plywood bass in a one of those hard foam cases that have been discussed here in the past. I flew Aer Lingus and was charged $50 on the way over an 50 GBP on the way back. Not too bad. It really just comes down to the airline's policy and the mood of the person checking you in. I fly all the time and it really varies. My advice is leave yourself enough time to sort it out at the ticket counter and be prepared to pay some cash to get it on the plane. Good luck!

[M Ramsey]

Corey,

Thanks for the info. My son plays mandolin for Mountain Heart and Jason Moore (bassist) is debating on taking his Kay bass over. I'm a partial owner of an older Gage case and we've told Jason he can use it if he wants to when they go to England at the beginning of September.

I told Jake the other day, planning ahead is much easier than reacting at the last moment. I love playing bass but I feel for the traveling bass player. Most of the time the other smaller instruments are easily transported, but the piece of furniture we play isn't. It don't seem fair that sometimes the bassist has to make a lot of concessions (using borrowed basses) that the other players don't have to experience.

Thanks for your help.

Any other recent experiences (applicable to travel to England or Europe) will be appreciated.

[Jake deVilliers]

"I told Jake the other day"

Jake who?

[M Ramsey]

Originally Posted by Jake deVilliers

"I told Jake the other day"

Jake who?

Jason=Jake

[Mike Arnopol]

I travel back and forth to Europe at least 3 times a year. I researched and bought the best electric upright. Prior to 4 years ago I always traveled with my double bass in a Gage trunk. It was badly damaged twice.
I'd feel pretty good about using a plywood bass, though. Much more durable.
I recently had to take my trunk to Italy to pick up a bass I had made. No big problems. I was charged $100 each way which is good. I've been charged as little as nothing and as much as $440 one way. The $440 charge is probably what they are supposed to charge, but usually they are less strict. On average when I was flying with a trunk I paid between $100 to $250 one way.
It's all pretty much up to the ticket agent. I am the world's most charming, funny and cute person when I'm trying to schmooze a ticket agent. If the next available agent is a crabby old man or woman, I'll wait for the smiley one. If they want to charge a high price, I'll ask for the boss and try ( beg) to negotiate it down. A double bass in a trunk is overweight and oversize. They are supposed to charge a triple excess charge if it's both. 90% of the time I would get it down to a singe or double charge.
NEVER call the airline to ask their policy as far as basses. Technically, because of it's size and weight it is actually against most airline policy to even accept it as baggage. I had to ship my bass air cargo one time because management asked the airline their policy. They were dumb enough to tell my name and flight, so it got flagged. $600 charge each way and a day at Dutch customs. I was only turned down once as far as it being accepted and this was with one of the new regional jets where it literally wouldn't fit.
In the USA people don't know the difference between a double bass and a mandolin. Ticket agents would routinely ask me about my "cello". Cello overage charges are pretty low, so I'd never correct them.
Happy Travels!!!

[bluegrassboy]

If I was a touring pro like Jason, I'd really consider an electric upright for those times when I just didn't feel like it was feasible to carry the acoustic. Wayne Taylor of Blue Highway and Byron House of the Sam Bush Band use them. (The last time I saw Wayne he was using a Clevinger and Byron uses an Eminence.) I'm no touring pro, but I have one as well (NS Design WAV 4) and it's often a lot easier to deal with. If they're traveling by air a lot, it would pay for itself rather quickly, I believe.

Alan

[coreybass]

I'm writing this from Chicago Midway. While I'm not on my way to Europe, thought I'd relate that I was not charged a cent on Southwest Airlines today. They are by far the best in my experience and their charges for basses are usually $50 and it's never a hassle.

My experience going to Europe a few times a year have been similar to Mr. Arnopol's. Sometimes there's no charge. The most I was charged was $375 one way on KLM to Copenhagen. Oddly enough on the return flight on that trip I wasn't charged anything. Same airline, same connection. It really just comes down to the ticket agent.

Some airlines have a stated "no bass" policy such as US Airways, but for the most part they'll take it. If they'll take surfboards, then they'll take a bass. I couldn't agree more about not calling the airline. In my experience that only results in a big fat "No" for an answer. Like I said, I use a lightweight hard foam case which is still oversized but not overweight.

I used to use a Stevenson Trunk, which was massive and heavy, and had fine luck with that too but I was always charged and it really was a lot more trouble to handle. The foam case with a plywood bass is really easy for one person to manage and because it's so light it slips by without a charge more often.

I've also just heard of this new design:

http://foldingbass.com/

It looks cool, especially if it could be done as a retrofit. Too bad there aren't any pictures of the case on the website.

Good luck!

Corey

[Dave Whitla]

I may as well toss my 2 cents in. I've flown transatlantic and domestic north american quite a bit it the past. As with some previous posters, my experiences have varied greatly, from being charged nothing with no hassle to being charged varying amounts and more hassle. The most I was ever charged was only 75 GBP (with Aer Lingus from London to Ireland, but I have also flown with them from Ireland to New York and back with no charge) but on that flight they also broke the neck off my 200+ year old bass, causing about 5000 euro of damage.

I have always used a Stevenson trunk, and feel that my bass is safest in it. I think the lighter trunks can get tossed around more by baggage handlers who not necessarily the most careful. I always tell the check-in people that it weighs "48 kilos", which is under 50 so they don't mind so much. They have only ever charged me for the actual weight once- that was in Germany so what do you expect :-)

Corey is right that the best thing you can do is arrive with plenty of time to sort out whatever the check-in person opts to throw at you.