Another musical instrument as checked baggage story

[Geotuba]

Not tubas but a warning nevertheless

United Breaks Guitars

[windshieldbug]

That can happen when you stick your "neck" out...

[MartyNeilan]

Don't fret over it, or get strung out.

[David]

http://www.myspace.com/davecarrollmusic ... ks-guitars" target="_blank

Looks like they went into works to try to pay the guy back the $1200 it cost to make the instrument playable again.

Gotta love these large businesses. Put you on hold, outsource their customer service, forget your information
refer you to unhelpful people or just plain say "no," they'll do anything to avoid taking responsibility.

[windshieldbug]

Don't fret over it, or get strung out.

I wouldn't want to be "saddle"d with that responsibility. Water under the "bridge"...

[Biggs]

Plectrum!

[ken k]

he should have "picked" another instrument...

[windshieldbug]

he should have "picked" another instrument...

perhaps it struck a "chord" with his cords (or jeans)...

[Tubaryan12]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31836977/" target="_blank

[jacojdm]

Wonder if there was any damage to his G string.
Seriously, though, I don't have much sympathy for this guy if he didn't pack his guitar appropriately in a flight case.

[imperialbari]

This song was briefly presented in the Danish TV2 News Friday night.

Klaus

[jonesbrass]

Seriously, though, I don't have much sympathy for this guy if he didn't pack his guitar appropriately in a flight case.

As a person who plays guitar as well as tuba, I don't think I can feel that way about it. No matter how you pack or encase a musical instrument, improper handling can always result in damage of some sort. I know the video showed a standard hardside guitar case, but that doesn't mean he didn't have it in an anvil or fiberglass case when the actual damage occurred. Some people might actually find it fun to toss an instrument for maximum damage, especially if they know there will be no personal responsibility for the damage.

[rocksanddirt]

Seriously, though, I don't have much sympathy for this guy if he didn't pack his guitar appropriately in a flight case.

As a person who plays guitar as well as tuba, I don't think I can feel that way about it. No matter how you pack or encase a musical instrument, improper handling can always result in damage of some sort. I know the video showed a standard hardside guitar case, but that doesn't mean he didn't have it in an anvil or fiberglass case when the actual damage occurred. Some people might actually find it fun to toss an instrument for maximum damage, especially if they know there will be no personal responsibility for the damage.

and my observation is that nice guitars are fairly fragile, regardless of case/packing issues.

[jonesbrass]

and my observation is that nice guitars are fairly fragile, regardless of case/packing issues.

As are tuba bells . . . except that dents can be rolled out more easily than broken tops or necks on guitars can be repaired.

[MaryAnn]

My oboe teacher has twice told me a story of when he worked a summer in the post office (probably 40 years ago). Whenever a package came through with Fragile stickers on it, the workers made a point of yelling "Go out for a pass!" and then throwing the package like a football. Of course the point was to make it hit the floor, and after it did they would say something like "Too bad!" and laugh and go on to the next one.

My better half, who works for the post office, says that that kind of behavior would lead to instant dismissal now. But the airline baggage people likely do not benefit from that kind of oversight.

Just yesterday I was at someone's house and there was a tuba case with Fragile stickers on it sitting in the next room. When I asked about it, he said that a friend was visiting and had brought her tuba with her as checked baggage. I was astonished and asked if it arrived in one piece, it being "just" a hard case and all. He said yes it had, and had gone through more than one flight leg on the way there. The 2nd leg had tried to charge her an excess baggage fee and she protested saying that the first leg had not charged her, and got away with no fee....but I cringe to hear what will happen when she goes back. He said she wasn't even playing it, what with visiting friends and all. What a way to learn a lesson....

MA

[windshieldbug]

I know that in many airports it's not just the handlers, but the handling system. There is a reason that they tell you to pack your horn as though it will fall off a 6' high conveyor belt... it just might! (and no help required!)

[Arkietuba]

Heck, it doesn't even have to been "handled" roughly either. It could be messed up just from flying. We took our school tubas to Austria last summer since we couldn't find flight cases for our own private horns. On the way back from our stop in Amsterdam we heard a very large object fall back to where we were sitting, under our seats in the luggage compartment. We joked that it was our tubas...well, when we landed in Memphis I checked my horn and of course the bell was flattened and that was after my case had been messed up on the way over to Vienna.

And of course when our directors told me to file a claim with Northwest, they said they would call me back and I gave them my contact info............still waiting 14 months later.

Thank God we took the schools 40+ year old horns that could be repaired with school funds rather than my Sam Gnagey and the other guy's 2145 that would require our own money.

[Wyvern]

Just to counteract all this doom and gloom about air travel. My band every other year does a long distance overseas trip including flying. The other tuba player in my band always takes his Besson Eb in its standard hard case which he just pads out internally with clothes. It has not received any damage over several trips.

So a lot of luck (or bad luck) involved!

[olaness]

In my experience, you cannot protect your instrument well enough against the treatment it receives at airports, human or machine. However one lesson I have learned from many many claims against airlines (not only tubas, but prams, suitcases, suitcases broken open and stolen from, etc etc etc) is that if you behave in a civilised manner, or are being polite, you will never ever get your compensation. The way to get your money back is to be rude, aggressive, and most importantly, threaten litigation. Find some way (fictional or not) that the damage they have caused will cause bodily harm, sickness, time off work or any thing that you could sue them for and say you will contact one of these 'no win no fee' companies to get compensation. The slowest I have had my money in this way was 24 hours, usually much quicker. Compared with months of being ignored or given the runaround if you are being polite to them.

Ola

[Rick F]

The 'Sons of Maxwell' just released a second video a few days ago. It has tuba and euphonium in it. Well, not played, but used as props. Be sure to watch thru to the end. Pretty funny, but not quite as good as the first one.

United Breaks Guitars Song 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-UoERHaSQg