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Both of my previous road cases were designed so that the tuba travelled on it's side and opened like a clam shell. I'm about to have a road case built for my new tuba and I'm thinking of having it made so the tuba travels vertically. I know most of us stand our tubas on the bell when resting, but I'm not sure if this is the best way for the tuba to travel on a truck. Would it be better for bell to be at the top so that a well-fitted cradle of high-density foam could support the bottom bow?

Thanks,

Cam

cambrook wrote:Both of my previous road cases were designed so that the tuba travelled on it's side and opened like a clam shell. I'm about to have a road case built for my new tuba and I'm thinking of having it made so the tuba travels vertically. I know most of us stand our tubas on the bell when resting, but I'm not sure if this is the best way for the tuba to travel on a truck. Would it be better for bell to be at the top so that a well-fitted cradle of high-density foam could support the bottom bow?

A well-fitted cradle for the bottom bow will distribute the loads into the tuba much more safely than any load path that goes through the bell rim. In fact, I think the approach most likely to prevent damage is to cradle the tuba between the upper and lower bows, and between the bell stack and the outer branch, and let the bell float in air with about 3" of emptiness around it. I would do the same for the valves. A design goal might be to provide enough resilience in the padding to allow the tuba to receive a 10-G shock without moving far enough for the bell or valves to reach the limits of the space.

If you put padding up against the bell stack, I would want a fitted cone that fits down in the bell stack at that same point, to keep the bell stack from being ovalized under load.

If you do all that, it probably won't matter which end is up.

Rick "wondering if anyone has thought through a complete design based on engineering principles" Denney

A well-fitted cradle for the bottom bow will distribute the loads into the tuba much more safely than any load path that goes through the bell rim.

That's what I was thinking, but I was getting side-tracked by the other flight cases that are bell-down. The tuba will be in it's gig-bag, but I will organise the foam packing to hold the tuba in the same way that it would if the case was horizontal - leaving room around the bell rim and the valves. I'll be happy if the case travels horizontally, and can put the "arrows" on and know that the guys who move the orchestra understand and respect them. I'm thinking of the vertical format as floor space is at a premium backstage.

The design goals are slightly different than for a flight case, keeping the size and weight down is not so important, but protection and a rugged case are vital as it will go on and off the truck for years. The road case I had for my older tuba fitted the tuba without the gig-bag, and it was always a hassle to find storage for the gig-bag when I put the tuba in the case, so the tuba will go in the gig-bag in the road case this time

This is my solution and a quick pic taken with my phone.
It's a big padded box that my regular tuba case fits in. I can take the regular case anywhere and then put it in the big box for travel. The other things in the box are bass bows and underneath them is an old stand for the horn, I can also fit a small bag if I want to. This solution worked for over 120 trips in 08 and is still working on 09. Having the small case is proving very useful for local travel, and I can certainly think of uses for the box in the future.
Good luck.
Peace.
ASG

I would think that it is really about distributing the shock that shipping entails. On the bell puts most of the weight on the weakest part of the horn. Resting on the bottom bow would be better, after all, that's what it is supposed to do. On it's side, or back provides the most surface area to absorb any impact, thus lessening any damage.

Inside, I still think the padding should fit snuggly all around the horn and be firm enough to restrict movement. Outside the case needs to be hard enough to withstand the impact and durable enough to last many trips...fiberglass or plywood fits that description best.

Rick Denney wrote:

A well-fitted cradle for the bottom bow will distribute the loads into the tuba much more safely than any load path that goes through the bell rim. In fact, I think the approach most likely to prevent damage is to cradle the tuba between the upper and lower bows, and between the bell stack and the outer branch, and let the bell float in air with about 3" of emptiness around it. I would do the same for the valves. A design goal might be to provide enough resilience in the padding to allow the tuba to receive a 10-G shock without moving far enough for the bell or valves to reach the limits of the space.

Rick's been looking closely at the case for his Yamaha 621F.

I recently had the occasion to take apart (gently) the case for my 621BBb - the key to safety is that the outer shell does very little except to hold in place a styrofoam blob which holds the tuba by the largest tubing (top and bottom bow, throat). The bell floats freely (not 3" of space - but close to that). The valve stems sit in a bubble of air that I don't *quite* trust - so I reversed the springs to push the valves all the way down.

Delta managed to put a serious crack in the outer shell - which I repaired with Gorilla Glue and Gorilla Tape (see my Facebook photos). Even so, the Styrofoam block was undamaged, and the tuba was (of course) very well shielded.

I wish the case were more V-shaped, rather than T-shaped around the bell (to eliminate the weak point in the shell), but I'm pretty impressed by the overall design. I begin to suspect that the outer case may be *over* designed, in the sense that it has too many hard, inflexible pieces that can be shattered or shorn off. I wonder if some combination of a fabric bag holding together a styrofoam shell might be more effective. Even more blue-sky - think about a gig bag with a (tough!) inflatable airbag (with an integral pump?) This creates a small problem with SIZE (say, for airline checked baggage), but saves weight! For maximum protection, you still need a semi-rigid shell to carry forces away from delicate parts and direct them towards the strongest tubing - but perhaps this belongs on the INSIDE rather than the OUTSIDE?

Current wisdom has a hard shell on the outside and soft squishy cushions touching the instrument. I'm proposing the opposite - an inner shell surrounded by an air bubble.

I've had this road case for a while now, but haven't had a camera at work to take some photos of it. Our transport guys requested that the case be rectangular to make it easier to load the truck, and they were also keen to keep the mute with the tuba if possible. Although this means that the case is B-I-G, it only adds about 6" depth to the case. The remaining space fits my tuba stand, a Baltimore Brass base with an 8" drum pad, and carries my mouthpieces in padded pouches. BTW, the excellent Schlipf mute has an extension on the handle to make to easier to insert/remove.

As the pictures show, this is in no way a "flight case" The MW 6450 is in a Soundwear gig bag which gives excellent protection, but is consequently big. This bag fits into the case with some extra padding, particularly on the bottom to keep the tuba properly supported and centred in the box. This means that I can simply open the box, unzip the bag and remove the tuba.

The issue here is: is it luggage, or is it freight?

A flute is luggage; a piano is freight.

Our problem is that a tuba is at the boundary - and boudaries are where all the problems are.

bloke wrote:I REALLY do NOT believe that "tubas" and "airliners" mix.

Were I to tour regularly, I believe I would make an extensive (not just two or three days) project of designing a trunk (not a "case") that would protect from (typical of airliners) 10' drops. This would be quite an engineering challenge indeed! The most high-tech string bass trunks have air bags in them that deflate (with resistance) when the trunk is impacted from the side opposite the side where a particular bag is located. The advantage that the manufacturer of those trunks has, though, is that string basses (in shape) vary much less than do tubas.

Add to that the fact that the airlines can refuse to take anything over 70lbs. The case I have, in the pic above, weighs 150 lbs. In my current and last jobs, I'm paid to be the "band tech". I supervise the load in and load out of the pit orchestra. Having new truck loaders in each city, I wait on the loading dock until my tuba is in the position I want it in. I wheel the string bass on the truck myself. There are things worth so much more than any tuba on a tour, that our "precious" horns are just another insurance claim to a company, and a small one at that. I'll be off the road in a week, and am looking forward to not traveling with anything more than an electric bass for a while.
Peace.
ASG