hard case vs well-padded soft case

Uncle Rod Higuchi

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any strong opinions one way or the other?

it would seem that hard cases equal better overall protection,
but softer cases appear to be more comfortable to carry around.

Does it have to be protection vs ease of carry?

what are your thoughts and experiences?
 
I like well-padded gig bags (say 20mm) for transporting ukes. But, then again, I don't own any really expensive instruments. If I did I would probably want to keep them in a hard case... inside a safe... inside a locked room... etc...
 
My local ukulele jam meets in a small pub. I think it'd be rude to turn up with a great big hard case taking up space. A simple canvas gig bag is plenty for that - enough to keep any rain off.

On the other hand, if I were going on a coach trip and wasn't allowed to take my ukulele as hand luggage, I'd definitely want a hard case to make sure it wasn't crushed under all the other luggage.
 
While I prefer well-padded bags because they are more convenient and I won't accidentally bang the ukulele against the latches when I take it out or put it back in (or have the lid fall down), but I use mostly hardshell cases for the better protection (also when shipping) and "stackability".

One concern I have about cases is that the lid may press down on the bridge, which definitely isn't a good thing, so I try to get cases with an arched top or enough room between the top and the bridge.
 
I have hard wood, fiberglass (Crossrock 1000), ABS (Crosrock 800) cases and nice gig bags (Mono M80's). My nicest hard case is an Ameritage Gold. It is gorgeous. I NEVER carry it. It weighs 9 lbs.

I think the Crossrock 800 is hard to beat in value for the money. I do like the 1000 but cannot honestly say it's worth the incremental cost.

The Mono's are great for local stuff and I have used them traveling as a carry on. Again, they are more than the Crossrock 800.
 
Both, it depends. If I'm going to be hauling it around, like in the car, a hard case. If I'm going to be carrying it around, like to the beach or at a festival, gig bag.
 
I travel quite a lot, and I swear by the hardcase
Have traveled with ukuleles, guitars etc on three continents, and hardcase has been a good investment
 
I'm a hard case fan. I really don't think it is that difficult to carry it. It's got a great handle. I lust after an Ameritage case.
 
I've also been torn.

I have mostly hard cases because they are better protection.
But then I travel with beaters cuz I'm terrified of something bad happening to a nice uke.
If I buy another case.. it will be soft, backpack style.

I guess it depends on what you are trying to protect, and what risk you accept for it.
 
Cases are classier and offer more protection. However, you can't transport 8 ukes in hardcases on a bicycle, but you can with padded bags.
 
Thank you all for the input.

Seems like we can all agree to (perhaps 'disagree' is too strong a word, how about...) make our
own choices depending on our general or specific needs at the moment.

I suppose when we are carrying our own ukes, padded gig bags work, but the minute we have to
entrust our babies to other handlers, well, perhaps only a few cases would really quiet our
apprehensions! :)

Perhaps I should have shared a couple of scenarios:

1) travelling by air to a Uke Festival;

2) travelling by car to a Uke Festival. :)

Thanks again,
 
I like hard cases because I often travel with the family and our instruments - including my uke and my son's cello in soft cases. If we didn't have hard cases for the other instruments, packing would be very difficult because the soft cases need to go on top.
 
If you have any issues with low humidity, in my opinion, you NEED a hard case. Even the best gig bags/padded bags do not have tight enough of a seal to keep humidity controlled. Heck, some hard cases don't do a good job. More often than not, a hard case provides a tight enough seal around the edges to control humidity during the cold winter seasons (or inside a home when heating is on full blast)
 
Uncle Rod

Answer to #1: travel by air to a uke festival.......a hardcase

Answer to #2 : travel by car to uke festival.........a hardcase.

I really don't find a well fitted hardcase any more bothersome then a well padded gig bag. A Mono, Blues Reunion or Fusion is not much smaller and does not give the same protection.

When flying I always take a tenor on a hardcase and have no trouble carrying it on and stowing it in the overhead compartment
 
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I've been using a Crossrock CRA400TUYL. (TUYL stands for tenor ukulele yellow. The case also comes in black, gray, champagne, green, pink, purple, silver, turquoise, and red.) It's got a plastic hardshell and D-ring clips for backpack or shoulder straps. It's probably not as protective as those Oahu hard cases, but it seems to be almost as protective and with backpack straps, it's a lot easier to carry than a hard case.

https://www.amazon.com/Crossrock-
CRA400TUBK-Zippered-Hardshell-Lock-Black/dp/B00OHLOFKO/ref=sr_1_fkmr1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1474918170&sr=8-1-fkmr1&keywords=crossrock%2Bhybrid%2Btenor%2Bukulele&th=1



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Hi Rod..not sure if you are talking about a gig bag as the soft case...
but the Uke Crazy Canvas case is foam and the Oahu cases are wooden...neither is a gig bag....

I think the Uke crazy is good for traveling and way lighter than the Oahu cases....both are good to travel with.....but if you drop your uke/case the foam Uke crazy case will absorb the hit better.....

that being said..when I fly Hawaii/Calif I always used a nice gig bag.....
 
Hi Rod..not sure if you are talking about a gig bag as the soft case...
but the Uke Crazy Canvas case is foam and the Oahu cases are wooden...neither is a gig bag....

I think the Uke crazy is good for traveling and way lighter than the Oahu cases....both are good to travel with.....but if you drop your uke/case the foam Uke crazy case will absorb the hit better.....

that being said..when I fly Hawaii/Calif I always used a nice gig bag.....

I had to repair a very nice uke last year that was crushed in an overhead bin of an airplane. That wouldn't have happened with a hard shell case. I especially like the domed top ones like that which is found on the Oahu or Ameritage brands; it adds strength. I think it comes down to not what the uke costs but how much it's worth to you. I'd have no problem carrying an uke I didn't value much in a padded gig bag just because it's more comfortable. But a quality uke should go into a quality case IMO.
 
Thanks, Chuck, just the kind of real-world info we all need.

Sorry to hear of the damage, but I'm sure that, with you as the repairer,
the customer is very satisfied with the work that needed to be done.

Thanks for your words of wisdom:

"I think it comes down to not what the uke costs but how much it's worth to you."

and,

"... a quality uke should go into a quality case IMO."

Mahalo,
 
Hard case for anything of value, even walking next door. I use a Mono 80 for around town for my beater. The Crossrock 800 or most ABS/Fiberglass cases are nice, sturdy and light. On the other end, I have an Ameritage which you could run over with a tank..........but it weighs a ton.
 
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