• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Double Bass Gollihur Lightweight Travel Case for Shipping URB? Thoughts?

D

dpollak

Oct 25, 2008
22
20
Washington D.C. Area
#1
I need to to ship my URB from Washington D.C. to California soon. I'd rather not spend thousands on a trunk. I looked into renting one, but then I came across this item at Gollihur, a hard case for URB that only costs $815. By my calculations buying this case might actually be cheaper than renting a pro quality travel trunk. Anyone have experience or thoughts on this item?

Lightweight Travel Hard-side CASE for 3/4 size Upright Bass at Gollihur Music - Double Bass, Upright Bass, String Bass Specialists

I'm at this point thinking I'd do ground shipping because I'm hearing airlines can give you a lot of headaches with this kind of thing. I imagine I'd probably only need this for the one use, so I'm not too worried whether it will last a lifetime or not.

Further info for those interested: my upright bass cost $6000 new, so not a cheapie but not high-end either.
 
#2
Not sure what you mean by ground shipping - freight? This case doesn't look up to the task. The way I read Golihur's description, its meant to be loaded into a tour bus or trailer, but putting a bass into the hands of a commercial shipper is a different animal altogether. My son has a business where he ships items across the US and into Canada, and in order for something to be shipped safely, it needs to be strapped onto a pallet. Items get loaded, off-loaded and reloaded into different trucks multiple times during transit, usually by forklift. I don't think that a freight company would take a case like this. And I wouldn't trust a bass in it.
 
  • Like
Reactions: RSBBass, 210superair and dpollak
#3
bherman said:
Not sure what you mean by ground shipping - freight? This case doesn't look up to the task. The way I read Golihur's description, its meant to be loaded into a tour bus or trailer, but putting a bass into the hands of a commercial shipper is a different animal altogether. My son has a business where he ships items across the US and into Canada, and in order for something to be shipped safely, it needs to be strapped onto a pallet. Items get loaded, off-loaded and reloaded into different trucks multiple times during transit, usually by forklift. I don't think that a freight company would take a case like this. And I wouldn't trust a bass in it.
Click to expand...

Thanks, helpful. I was thinking ground shipping. And you are probably right this trunk is not up to that. Air travel is another possibility (checking as luggage) but I have heard that TSA can be a nightmare with items like this.
 
#5
Phil Rowan said:
What about contacting a luthier and asking if they offer a bass packing service? I imagine top notch luthiers are likely to have experience not only packing basses for freight shipping, but also knowing which freight carriers to trust.
Click to expand...
If anyone knows someone in the greater D.C. metro area that does this, let me know! I already checked with Bob's House of Basses and LeMoine Violins.
 
#8
bherman said:
Not sure what you mean by ground shipping - freight? This case doesn't look up to the task. The way I read Golihur's description, its meant to be loaded into a tour bus or trailer, but putting a bass into the hands of a commercial shipper is a different animal altogether. My son has a business where he ships items across the US and into Canada, and in order for something to be shipped safely, it needs to be strapped onto a pallet. Items get loaded, off-loaded and reloaded into different trucks multiple times during transit, usually by forklift. I don't think that a freight company would take a case like this. And I wouldn't trust a bass in it.
Click to expand...


Hard Cases are great when doing repeat travel by plane for tours. If you are talking about a 1 time shipping situation, I suggest building a packing crate out of wood. Bass in gig bag, gig bag in packing crate, ship away. Build the crate large and rectangular, weighted at the bottom and a perfect fit for forklift pallet. Attach your crate to a pallet yourself to make it easy for shippers. Use screws instead of nails so you can more easily disassemble the crate and reuse the wood on the other side.

Very inexpensive to build compared to a hard case for DB.

Take care,
 
  • Like
Reactions: RSBBass, dpollak, Fretless55 and 1 other person
#9
longfinger said:
Hard Cases are great when doing repeat travel by plane for tours. If you are talking about a 1 time shipping situation, I suggest building a packing crate out of wood. Bass in gig bag, gig bag in packing crate, ship away. Build the crate large and rectangular, weighted at the bottom and a perfect fit for forklift pallet. Attach your crate to a pallet yourself to make it easy for shippers. Use screws instead of nails so you can more easily disassemble the crate and reuse the wood on the other side.

Very inexpensive to build compared to a hard case for DB.

Take care,
Click to expand...

this makes a lot of sense. Total materials cost maybe $100.
 
  • Like
Reactions: longfinger
#10
longfinger said:
Hard Cases are great when doing repeat travel by plane for tours. If you are talking about a 1 time shipping situation, I suggest building a packing crate out of wood. Bass in gig bag, gig bag in packing crate, ship away. Build the crate large and rectangular, weighted at the bottom and a perfect fit for forklift pallet. Attach your crate to a pallet yourself to make it easy for shippers. Use screws instead of nails so you can more easily disassemble the crate and reuse the wood on the other side.

Very inexpensive to build compared to a hard case for DB.

Take care,
Click to expand...

This makes a lot of sense. Unfortunately I am not really a handy/building-stuff kind of guy, and I don't really much in the way of tools or a good workspace to undertake such a project at the moment even if I was. But I will think about this, I might be able to find someone who can help me build a crate. I just did a bit of googling and I see there are also companies that make crates. Seems like a promising avenue to explore...
 
  • Like
Reactions: longfinger

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back