So I left my string bass at my parents’ house in California, and while I do play it a bit when I visit, it’d be nice to get more use out of it here in Michigan. Any ideas on the best/cheapest way to get it here? Unfortuneatly, I don’t have a hard case for it, just a canvas slip cover.
Unless you get a hard case, I wouldn’t advise any courier, shipping company or USPS. The canvas cases are only intended as a protection against scratches. So, you’re left with driving out from California to Michigan (with a friend?) or getting a hardshell case. You could look into renting or borrowing a case rather than purchasing. Me, I’d go for the road trip. Busy until September, but call me if you’re still stuck in the fall…
Please forgive a frivolous link in GQ, but I really think you ought to listen to this .
I vaguely remember a thread quite a while back where the advice was to go to a guitar shop and ask if you can have one of the boxes they shipped the guitars to the store in. Call 'em up; it can’t hurt.
Call up the UPS Store (or other packaging/shipping shop) nearest to your parents’ house and ask them for a quote on packaging and shipping, then compare the cost of packaging with the cost of a good hardshell case. These types of stores have experience packing everything from violins to boat motors and will probably have a good idea of the best way to ship it.
All the same, I’d insure it, just to be safe. Also, if you do get a hardshell case, pack the bass into the case, and then pack the case into the box and packing materials that it came in.
I recently bought a cello on eBay. It was shipped in a “hard” case inside a large carton. There was no packing material between the case and the carton. The cello arrived with its neck broken off. Apparently, even a hard case has enough flexibility to enable its content to be damaged. After two months, we’re still negotiating the repairs.
Definitely get professional advice, plus insurance. And when it’s delivered, don’t sign anything until you’ve inspected the instrument.
Actually, when the high school band and orchestra went to Hawaii, I took the school’s bass along, checked into the hold. Wasn’t a problem. Of course, that was in 1992, so it might cost a bit these days. Maybe I’ll just wait until I fly back in September.
Depending on the quality of the bass, it may end up being cheaper and less hassle to sell it in California, and buy another one in Michigan. Stringed instruments don’t depreciate much, so you should still be able to get a decent price for the old one.