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Taking my bass with me on a trip

N

NextStepGuy

Dec 28, 2012
9
0
Sunny California
#1
I was wondering how you guys manage to take the plane and travel in general with your precious instrument. The trip will last a week so I would prefer practicing than breaking my habit.

I have few options:
- Hard case and checking in the luggage
- Gig bag and hoping the plane is not full or overbooked (rarely these days) so they let me carry in and store it in the overbin compartement.
- Ship it with UPS ground ahead of time and hope hotel management doesn't lose it or mistreat it. Cost ~$75 one way then pay for sending it back.
- Buy a cheap bass and do one of the above without worrying so much. Cost $300.

What are the other or better alternatives? Thanks for your help in advance.
 
#3
As someone who travels a fair amount on business, I am not sure that I would feel comfortable checking anything of any value. Futher, overhead space is so limited these days as everyone wants to carry on their luggage. If it were me and I wanted to travel with something, I would take my squier affinity P bass and hope for the best. I wouldn't risk any of my good basses. I wouldn't mind risking my squier because I didn't pay much for it in the first place.
 
#4
I have few options:
- Hard case and checking in the luggage

if you do this, get a chain with a nice lock. last thing you want is to open the case when you land and find nothing in it...also, youll need a nice hard case becuase they pack those cargo cabins to the brim and just throw stuff on top of stuff without regard for what it might be.

- Gig bag and hoping the plane is not full or overbooked (rarely these days) so they let me carry in and store it in the overbin compartement.

maybe, if your plane isnt booked full and it will actually fit in the over head. last time i took a bass on a plane they MADE me check it. said there was no way it was going in the plane with me...even though thats how i got it to where i was and i was just going back home. still, if you have it in a soft case and they dont let you take it onboard, then our stuck with the above option but in a soft case...:(

- Ship it with UPS ground ahead of time and hope hotel management doesn't lose it or mistreat it. Cost ~$75 one way then pay for sending it back.

expensive. my brother works for fedex. he throws mail. thats what they call it, throwing mail...becuase he literally throws mails. regardless of what it is. same for my friend who works for USPS...he throws mail. both have told me several times - even if it looks like a guitar or has a company name on it (gibson/fender ect), it still gets thrown with everyhting else...
$75 and possibly a worse situation then taking it on the plane.

- Buy a cheap bass and do one of the above without worrying so much. Cost $300.

expensive, but your choice.

What are the other or better alternatives? Thanks for your help in advance.

when i was traveling alot for work, i bought a cheap practice travel bass. i think i spent like $100 on a steinberger-ish cheap crap guitar. thing was bare bones and sucked to play...but i played it...and got rid of it as soon as i stopped traveling, but i never had any problem taking it on a plane with me and storing it in an overhead.

another thing to think about - some airline companies have instrument policies that may require you to buy the instrument a "seat"...so you have to pay for two tickets.:rollno:

i later did a little more traveling for work. i would just find the closest music store / guitar center and go jam for awhile and get it all out. went to colorado for about two weeks and i think i went to guitar center (2 blocks from my hotel) almost everyday and played just about every bass they had. easy and free.
 
#5
I looked at the Steinberger clone (spirit). It's okay and that's what I referred to when I brought up this option ($300 free ship and no tax in the people republic of Kalifornia.)

Now there is this U-Bass thing that every other artist (Tal, Skiar, etc...) seem to endorse and rave about. Is this really an option for a bass player on the go? Cost $650 but better than Steinberger clone?
 
#6
Maybe this might do depending on your needs..[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]..[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

Also, on many flights you can just put your axe in the overhead - IF - it is a larger jet rather than a small commuter plane.OR ask nicely and they might let you put it into the forward coat closet where crew puts their stuff.
 
#7
I tour with an acoustic guitar extensively in its Roadrunner case. For size comparison:http://www.musiciansfriend.com/accessories/road-runner-polyfoam-acoustic-guitar-case?src=3WWRWXGP

This fits in most planes' overhead compartments (not on the tiniest planes, though). I own a roadrunner polyfoam bass case that might fit, but might be too boxy/long. A standard hardshell or molded case might present the same problem.

If you need to bring it, I never recommend checking your instrument through the regular baggage at ticketing. Much safer to take it through security and (very charmingly) ask the flight attendant if you can try to fit it inside the plane. Sometimes there is a closet available where it will fit, or it may fit overhead. On a low-passenger flight, they might even let you buckle it in right next to you like they did for me just yesterday.

If there is not room in the overheads, gate check your instrument to be returned planeside when you arrive. 9 times out of ten this is just fine with them, and your instrument is much safer. In nine years of 100+ days on the road each year, I have only had to collect my axe through regular baggage claim three times. I often gate checked my giant Dean acoustic, and had no problems whatever.

As I said, smile, be flexible and cheerful, maybe even wear a sportcoat with your jeans to make you look more like a pro. Act like you know what you're doing, and ask for help if you need it.
 
#8
Look for the best possible deal on Craigslist when you get there and sell it when you leave, you might even make a buck or two.

A lot of people do this with bikes when they travel, it is cheaper and easier to buy a used one and give it away than rent one. But you could easily get a buyer on your last day with a low enough price.

If you like it, ship it home.
 
#9
Sahe_Bassist said:
...if you do this, get a chain with a nice lock. last thing you want is to open the case when you land and find nothing in it...also, youll need a nice hard case becuase they pack those cargo cabins to the brim and just throw stuff on top of stuff without regard for what it might be...
Click to expand...

If you choose to check it and lock the case, make sure it's a TSA-style lock. Otherwise, they have the right to crack open your case. You have no recourse in collecting money for any damage caused.

Another idea just crossed my mind... Perhaps, I would not bring a bass with me. When I reach the destination city, I might like to check out their local music shops and/or classifieds & maybe get a good deal. I may prefer to ship it back home instead of the airplane. (Edit: Ok, the idea's not so original. Big Brother just above my post was typing the idea at the same time as me.)
 
#10
Thanks to all for your great suggestions. I am scrubbing Craigslist and the list of Guitar Centers in New Orleans right now. I dig the idea of playing basses at the local Guitar Center everyday. This one made me laugh out loud.

No one mentioned the U-Bass. With so many musicians endorsing it (one ad is blinking on the left side of this page right now), I would have thought that it would be a good thing to get (they mention the airlines approved form factor on their website.)
 
#12
What I have always done (until I bought a Kala U-Bass, of course), without incident, is to bring my instrument in a softshell case. If the nice attendant at the gate gives you the tag and says you have to gate-check the item, smile, say "Certainly. Thank you very much". On your way down the tube, remove the tag and put in in your pocket. When you get to your steward/ess, ask to coat-check the item. If they tell you there's no room or some such hogwash, inform them that the nice attendant told you this would be perfectly acceptable. If it takes holding up the line 30 seconds or so, do it. They WILL ALWAYS relent. I fly regularly, and have never once had this not work for me. Regardless, best of luck!
 
#14
After reading some of these comments, I've decided not to travel with my expensive bass. The multi-thousand dollars tag on the instrument and irreplaceable emotional value I attach to it make it too painful to go thru the process of gambling with TSA and flight attendants. The vision of my bass disappearing into the belly of the plane is not worth the risk playing it while visiting New Orleans. At this point, my best option is getting a cheapo bass (Spirit) or the Kala U-bass which I still need to do some research on. Any pointers on the latter greatly appreciated.
 
#15
If you have a bolt-on neck, you could separate it from the body and reattach when you arrive.
 
#18
If I'm gigging, I bring my main player as checked baggage. The case is solid, strong, secure, yada, yada, yada. All these decades never had a problem.

If I'm just traveling for pleasure I've taken to bringing a Ministar Basstar. Funny looking, but amazingly enough I like both the neck and tone. Again, weird looking but it's worked really well for me.
 

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