Tuba vs. Corvette

[TubaingAgain]

OK Tuba guys How do you fit a MTS Tuba case into a 2009 Corvette. I just got a new Vette and cant my Tuba into it. Damn the bad luck. Guess I will have to stick to my Ford F250

[jon112780]

Let me be the first to generously offer you the OPPORTUNITY of switching cars with me. I have a '93 Chevy Cavalier wagon. It's blue AND has a cargo rack! I can assure you your MTS case will easily fit inside.

PM me for the title switch.

Seriously, you may want to get a gigbag for the horn. They're much easier to accommodate than a hard case in small spaces, and some of the better ones offer protection surprisingly well.

You may also want to get the specs on your horn(s) and make sure there is even enough space (just the horn itself), to fit inside. I suppose you could put it in the passenger seat, if you were hard pressed without passenger...

Is it a convertable?

[ZNC Dandy]

Not sure how, but my brother drives a blown '96 C4, and we got my old tuba in it, plus his bass trombone...eventually

[charlieJ]

Congrats on getting absolutely wonderful car! We upgraded from a C4 to a C6 last April, and I just assumed my Besson 981 in the case would fit as snuggly in the C6 as it did in the C4....wrong. It will not fit in the rear, and I haven't tried the passenger seat. When I travel with the 981 I take my Saturn with 150,000 miles or my Chevy 2500HD with 100K+.

But, the Corvette C6 is amazing. As someone who cut his teeth on fast motorcycles and never found cars that exciting...the C6 changed my mind entirely. Get ready for a love affair that may challenge that you have with your tuba!

[sloan]

You stick it in some sort of tuba bag and slide it in the passenger seat @ a 45 degree angle.

But...but...then where does the flute player sit?

[tubaguy9]

I vote that to fix this problem, you get a car with a back seat...
at the least, if you want a sports car, have one with a back seat...
OR GET RID OF IT

[iiipopes]

You fit it in the same way I fit my Besson, without a case, into the passenger seat of my 1967 Jaguar E-type convertible.

[tofu]

If you are tempted to put the horn in the front passenger seat or on the floor leaning against the seat either in a gig bag or sans bag I would offer a word of caution. Stuff happens and brass is soft and accumulates dents easily. People cut you off and you jam on the brakes, you get in the moment and take a corner hard (and that is easy to do in a well connected sports car), kid/dog/deer etc runs out in front you - stuff happens. I only do this in my Verts with horns that I don't care about a few extra dents. It surprises folks how much hard jarring motion is transmitted to the floor of a car that you don't feel in the seat of your pants, but your horn will definitely feel if it's bottom bow is resting on the floor. I picked up a few dents that way and when I first saw them couldn't figure out when (and how) I got them until I put the pieces together.

One thing that has surprised me with a few of the two door sports cars I've had over the years that have a back seat (the kind that is there only for insurance purposes) with leg room that even a 4 year old would find confining is that these often are superb at fitting a big horn in it's hard case. The door is wide (so it is easy to slide the horn in) and the seat cushion is just wide enough for the width of the case and with no real space between the back of the front seat and the front of the back seat the horn is held well in place and the back seat cushion is higher then the top of the case so the horn is in a cushioned cradle. I've often been surprised how such a big horn could fit so well in such a small car. Plus this way the girl friend gets to come along and it is a whole lot more fun to lean over and kiss her then my tuba!

[MartyNeilan]

If I ever got a Vette, my choice would be a C5 as they as noticeably bigger then the C6 and lack the squeaks and rattles of the infamous C4. Wouldn't mind a C3 either just because of the sheer style, although tuba room would be confined to the passenger seat as their cargo space is nil.
I looked at a "4 door" Mazda RX-8 a couple months ago, and that can be a very practical sports car. What is lacks in sheer power it makes up in handling and "finesse".
Unfortunately, right now, my bigger concern is keeping my head above water, not getting my current car repossessed has taken priority. One of the nice things about being my age is that women don't really care what kind of car you drive. Corvette = guy with something to prove. Minivan = guy who has already proven it.

[iiipopes]

Tofu and Marty make good points. My comment was rather tongue-in-cheek, but essentially was meant in the manner of their posts. I don't carry my 186 in the E-type; it goes in the back seat of the Aveo. The Besson, already looking like a tank that has been through a campaign, and is why I got it so cheap several years ago, is exactly what Tofu is talking about. I throw a pillow in the floorboard and off I go.

I would only modify Marty's statement to add, "Classic sportscar = never worried about "proving" it in the first place."

[David Richoux]

I have owned two "sports cars" and I was able to fit a Sousaphone (or detachable bell-front tuba ) into my 1969 Alfa Duetto (with the bell behind the seats) and I can put my Yamaha 621 in the trunk of my 1991 Lotus Elan with room to spare - using a gig bag. I actually checked the fit in the Lotus dealer showroom before I bought the car!

[k001k47]

Trade your 'vette for a Shelby GT500.

[Bob Kolada]

Trade your 'vette...

...for a HD diesel 4x4 pickup. Diesel's are the new/current hotrods.

[iiipopes]

Another great gig car is the Chevy Aveo hatchback. A single tuba in a gig bag will fit in the back seats nicely. If you need more room, they fold down, as when I need to carry two tubas, or a souzy, or a bass guitar and amplifier. And if you really need more room, then the rear seats fold up another time against the front seats, and the efficiency of space for such a small car is remarkable. And it also knows when to get up and get out of the way. Plus, turning radius is incredibly tight so you can pull around for optimum off-loading and on-loading positioning.

[tubamonster]

What? Jay Leno says that if you're hauling something in a Corvette (in this case a tuba) to get another car.

I personally would not want to drive a Corvette daily and would want another car in addition to it. I would certainly like to have a Corvette, but I am more of a Mustang guy (which can actually haul a tuba).

That said, just get a trailer hitch put on your Corvette and a small trailer for your tuba . Now to take care of the angry mob of Corvette enthusiasts forming at my door...

[tofu]

What? Jay Leno says that if you're hauling something in a Corvette (in this case a tuba) to get another car.

For most folks who own a true sports car you will find it is their third or fourth car. Which is why you can often find a great bargain on a slightly aged sports car because they have low miles, been garaged kept in the winter and really babied. There are of course ones that the owner stretched to buy and had to drive year round because it's their only vehicle. Nothing funnier than watching a guy with 500 hp rear wheel drive sports car with low profile tires trying to negotiate the roads during a heavy snowstorm.

[charlieJ]

430HP in snow....Monarch Pass, Colorado. OK, light snow - I wouldn't do it in heavy snow, that's what our pickup is for.

"One of the nice things about being my age is that women don't really care what kind of car you drive. Corvette = guy with something to prove. Minivan = guy who has already proven it."

Cute. At my age I don't care what women think, been happily married for many years. Corvette = amazing performance and an outstanding automobile, puts a huge smile on my face everytime I drive it. Minivan = what I'll get when my Saturn Ion dies....

[sugawi]

430HP in snow....Monarch Pass, Colorado. OK, light snow - I wouldn't do it in heavy snow, that's what our pickup is for.

My Subie can do it in any snow! But I'll have to dig it out first...




BTW, Don't leave your tuba in the car before snow storm, it might take some time to get it out.

[Michael Grant]

I have two cars. A Ford Fusion 4 door and a Honda 2 seater Insight. The MTS tuba case does not fit in the Insight but it does fit in the Ford. When I have to go to a gig, I usually use my gig bag. If I take the Insight I do as Bloke suggested and put it in the passenger seat. It fits in nicely. If I am going to be somewhere for a long time before a gig but not at home (at my work, for example), I use the hard case and I take the Fusion.

[TubaingAgain]

Anyone have any "COOL" gigbags for my "COOL" tuba to ride in my "COOL" Corvette for sale???

Maybe something with Black and Yellow leather??