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Flight cases are just too heavy, and the airports won't take them. So, I am considering checking my tuba with it's original hard shell case. I read a few posts and will be using an inflatable ball in the bell as bloke had suggested. The case comes with a strap to hold the horn down.

Any other suggestions to reinforce the case, protect the horn?

BTW, my heart won't be totally broken is the horn is destroyed, I do plan on insuring it. I will have a "back-up horn" at my destination in case something goes horribly wrong.

I will be flying Air Canada from Toronto, Ontario to Calgary, Alberta. It's a 4-hour flight.

I've done it both ways, and when I've gone hard case I've had good AND bad experiences. If you can't get a flight case, make sure you mean that you don't care if its damaged.

I flew to Europe on Air France with my hard shell case. I didnt' get to try the inflatable ball in bell trick, but I did add extra padding. and by extra padding, i mean i stuff all of my soft clothes into the nooks and crannies of the case. You don't want to cram it in there really tight, because that could actually cause dents itself (in flight that is), but soft clothes without zippers worked well for me and it lightened my baggage!

I made that flight a few months ago with my tuba, but in a flight case. In my experience, Air Canada is quite gentle with fragile and oversized items. If you can get away with a flight case in Toronto, you should be okay in Calgary if you use the automated check in (they didn't even have a scale to weigh it with). Anyways, make sure it is put through at special services and follow all the standard packing advice etc. and you will probably be fine. Also, for overweight fees, Air Canada is quite reasonable. I've only ever had to pay twice in about 10 flights and the fee is around $30 dollars. Best of luck.

i refuse to put my instrument under a plane. 1.) they don't understand the importance of what they're litterally throwing around. 2.) when my band went to indy some checked their horns and when they got to the hotel opened to find numerous dents w/ little cards that said "faithfully checked by #2". plus they charge you an arm and a leg because it WILL be over weight.

when i went to interlochen we shipped my horn fed-ex. they checked the inside before i sealed it. for packing, use foam rubber. you can buy it for cheap at wal-mart. if you don't feel like buying foam rubber, use pillows. cheap and they work. then either lock the case or tape it closed (if you don't mind the look of the outside of your case). the downside is that you have to ship it a few days in advance. mine made it to MI from TX in 5 days but it's cheaper than checking it.

if push comes to shove shell out the extra clams and buy a ticket for your horn. it's the most expensive but it's the best way to ensure your horn gets to where it needs to safely.

hope it works out. cheers!

-casey

Always travel with an old tuba. I took an old junker to Jamaica once in a canvas bag with no padding at all, checked through with the luggage. The only damage was some brandy got spilled all over the canvas. I also flew to the ITEC in Durham, NC with a pre-dented YBB-103 in its plastic case, and made it home without incident. More recently I have been using a home-made case that is a little stronger than most basic tuba cases:
http://www.galvanizedjazz.com/tuba/tubacase.html

Ahh so you actually did succeed in making that case (if thats the one that was posted about a while back)...Cool!

Just wanted everyone to know that I did travel with the horn in it's hard shell case. I used a volleyball in the bell, socks around the sides and the strap in the case to hold it down. It did not move at all!

Anyways, I arrived and the horn was just fine. No damage at all. I guess I was lucky! Also, I checked my euphonium (in it's hard shell case) inside my tuba gig bag (a Tuxedo Humes & Berg bag) and that made it over there just fine too.

I think that because I wasn't flying very far, and because it wasn't an international flight, there is less need for a flight case. I actually went through without paying a single cent for the tuba or the euphonium (in the tuba gig bag). Sure beats paying $250+ for an overweight flight case!