Durability of an MTS case

[mTaUrBkA]

I have a Mirafone 186 with an MTS molded case with wheels and I was wondering the durability of the case. I am flying from Boston to Chicago and was wondering if it is safe to fly using that case The case doesn't have a lock, but does anyoen have any suggestions about adding a lock or adding soem mroe security to the case? Any comments or suggestions are greatly appreciated.

[Casey Tucker]

the MTS line of molded cases are very durable. i have one for my PT20 and i just took it to philly and i put it under the plane. the case itself didn't receive damage and didn't allow damage to come to the horn. the only thing you need to think about is the airport security. they opened it up, took out the horn, dented the bottom bow and replaced the horn. and they won't cover the damage. also, put a pillow in the bell. this gives the horn more of a seal and won't allow damage if the case does take a spill. but overall the cases are really well put together.

-casey

[mTaUrBkA]

is there actually any way of preventing airport security hurting the horn?

[Casey Tucker]

the truth is... no.

BUT, if you so paste fragile stickers it might get the message across. the way it's going to happen is you're going to pay $25 for the weight. they're going to personally walk it down to security since the conveyor belts can't handle the size. the reason why they check it is because it won't go through xray machines so they have to inspect it. it's a harsh reality but outside of buying a seat for it it's the quickest way of getting your horn at the location at the same time. best of luck.

-casey

[mTaUrBkA]

I am flying to visit colleges over my April vacation, and my mother doesn't want me to be driving such long distances (I already tried to convince her to let me drive). Unfortunetly because chances are my tuba will take part in a decent amount of flying and shipping anf other traveling in the future, is it worth investing in a unitec case or a similar product? Again...any suggestions/comments greatly appreciated!

[mTaUrBkA]

if I add some extra foam inside the case, am I better off using an extremely dense foam, or a softer foam, or a combo of the two?

[Naptown Tuba]

if I add some extra foam inside the case, am I better off using an extremely dense foam, or a softer foam, or a combo of the two?

I've got an MTS case, and the "inflatable ball" idea that bloke mentions is the best and easiest solution of "added" protection that I've ever heard of. My .02

[MomX4]

Don't fly with a tuba unless it is in an ATA approved FLIGHT case. We purchased a custom made (Elite Series) actual FLIGHT case from UNITEC (The one posted above is "road tough" NOT a flight case). The tuba survived several flights without any problems.

Remember, tubas are over WEIGHT AND over SIZE. This will cost you $150 average per leg to fly with your tuba, if it is one of your 2 pieces of luggage. If it is your 3rd piece add another $80 (depending on the airline).

Also, if you are going to school far from home, you will need a flight case anyway (unless you will always drive) so get it now and save the repairs.

Don't fly with a molded Winter or MTS type case! EVER!

Check out the UNITEC Elite - ask for Chuck.

[MomX4]

Here are a few photos of the UNITEC "Flight" case. It has a lifetime warrantee and it is ATA approved. UNITEC made it very quickly and it fits the tuba perfectly - the case is not too big and not too heavy - easy for the airlines to move and very strong.

Hope this helps.

[mTaUrBkA]

Unfortunetly I was irresponsible and didn't start thinking about the tuba's protection until about a week and a half before I need to fly..... maybe I will take a chance with a basketball and foam in the MTS case and maybe rig some more things on the outside of the case? Then afterwards have a flight case made when I know where I am going to be goign to school. I don't necessarily want to take the risk, but maybe some added foam and FRAGILE stickers will be alright. Has anyone had any experience on Northwest airlines?

[SplatterTone]

[pulseczar]

I had my horn shipped from east coast to west coast in a Walt Johnson case. What makes me really mad is somehow, the bell crushed itself against the body so the brace connecting bell to top bow is compromised, there's a leak where the bell and bottom bow meet, and the leadpipe's crushed in three places.

Moral of the story is don't trust ANYBODY with your horn, even if it's in a tank of a case.

[finnbogi]

Since I live in the middle of the Atlantic, my options are flying with the tuba or staying at home. I haven't got a proper flight case, only the Besson hard-shell case that came with the horn. My standard procedure is to line the inside of the case with bubble wrap to secure the horn and insert an inflatable ball into the bell. After getting the horn through security inspection, I use duct tape to secure the latches and hinges of the case, add a few Handle with care labels, and then check it in at the odd-sized baggage desk.

I have twice taken the tuba to the US and more than twenty times to Europe (in most cases Germany or Denmark, but also the Faeroe islands, Finland, Sweden, Romania, Austria, Hungary and the Czech republic) and it still hasn't taken any damage. I do, however, realise that it is an impending disaster.

[bisontuba]

Hi-
In case some of you don't know, Yamaha puts out to bid each year their cases for their instruments. For a lot of years, MTS has won the bid and has made Yamaha cases. So if you use a Yamaha case, it might actually be a MTS case.
Regards-
mark
jonestuba@juno.com

[mTaUrBkA]

thanks for the info and advice everyone! I think I am going to take a risk on this flight due to the time crunch, but then look into the Unitec and Anvil flight cases. Are there any other comparable flight cases out there?

[mTaUrBkA]

Good News....I convinced mom to let us drive! It took some time to convince....and it will take about 20 hours driving to get there...but that's alright.

[mTaUrBkA]

I should be alright....My mom and I splitting it up into a three day trek there because she doesn't think she can handle it in bigger chunks. Last college visit I went to was Uconn and it was wonderfully timed with a huge snow storm, so I have learned my lesson, even though I still made it on time.

[Tom Holtz]

I've flown once with my MTS case, no problems. I got it when the case for my Besson 983 was too beaten up to trust it to another flight. It lasted 7 round-trip flights before I had to trash it. No way to tell how many flights the MTS will go before there's serious damage to horn or case. My 983 is still intact, knock on wood.

As far as the "fly/don't fly" debate... I'm being paid to fly with the tuba, driving is not possible. The USMC doesn't give me enough leave to tag 4 driving days to the front and back of every jazz festival I play. If I don't fly, I'm not in the band. The gigs I've done with the band have paid for the Besson. In fact, I got the Besson primarily to take on the plane for the festivals. Got it from the bone player in the band, actually. I'm glad the Brits built these things to last, because it's gonna get tested.

[MomX4]

Great decision; this can be a nice time for you and your mom to spend together before you head to college. Check out the UNITEC case when you return. Good luck. MomX4

[pjv]

I did a tour of the US and Canada to the tune of about 10 flights...and one twicked tuba case. The case was from my Conn 56J (thats a MTS, isn't it?), but fortunatly I had my 50's 2J in it (with ball in the bell, thank you very much TubeNet for the idea). The bell section of the case looked like it had gotten squeezed. Fortunatly, the 2J is small for the case and survived. Won't do that again.

My advice is either;

-demand that your employer buys an extra seat for the tuba (in a gig bag of coarse)

-buy a second tuba which won't break your heart when it arrives mangled up, AND insure it and the case.

I'm still playing with the idea of having a small sized tuba devided in half as to reduce the size and weight. Kind of like the detachable-bell idea but then deviding the horn more evenly. Such an operation probably won't make the tuba play any better, but it'd sure beat the extra over weight and over size costs.

Btw, I have the idea that my MTS sousaphone case is a ALOT better is than the MTS tuba cases. You can stand on it for one. Can't do that w/ the tuba cases.