Ukulele cases at Summer NAMM 2015

I sought out ukulele case makers at Summer NAMM, and found Stagg, Gator, and Saga/Superior.

Stagg was showing a case covered with a golden tan fabric and lined with a velvet-like material. It included a compartment in which you can store picks, a capo, or extra strings.





Gator was showing a gigbag, and a case covered with a white burlap material.It also has a storage box beneath the neck. Unlike the Stagg, it has loops to which a shoulder strap were attached.







continued in next post because I can only upload five pics at a time…

The Saga booth included a Superior brand of case. It seemed to be made of rattan or wicker, and reminded me of a picnic basket.



They also had some mandolin cases which are made of a white fiberglass.



It seems that flying with an ukulele is a topic that comes up on this forum about every three weeks. I mentioned this to the manufacturer representatives, and asked whether they considered their case safe for airline checked baggage. All of them scoffed at the idea, recommending only using the overhead bins or storage closet at the front of the plane.

I encouraged all of them to consider making something that was safe for checked baggage. More and more ukulele players are traveling to festivals and want to safely take their ukuleles.

One of the reps steered me to Mental Case. This company builds custom cases for professional musicians. I'm sorry my photograph is out of focus.




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I know there are other cases out there, but these are the ones I saw at Summer NAMM.

Thanks for the post! How was the attendance? I haven't been to Summer NAMM since they opened the convention center.

Thanks for the post.
Were there any pineapple cases?

-Vinnie in Juneau

I was there on the last day, and attendance was "comfortably crowded." I occasionally had to wait to speak to a rep, but never for very long.

The trade had two days to see things before I got there, and I have no idea how crowded it was during that time.

Timmit65, is it always held in Nashville? This is the first year I was even aware of NAMM.

mvinsel said:

Thanks for the post.
Were there any pineapple cases?
-Vinnie in Juneau

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Sorry, Vinnie, but I did not notice any pineapple cases. I did see a couple of pineapples, but not very many.

Ooooohhhh! I adore the pic-a-nic basket ones. Where's Yogi when you need him?

Timmit65, is it always held in Nashville? This is the first year I was even aware of NAMM.

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Well Summer NAMM has been held in Nash. for a while. NAMM tried to "Strong Arm" Nashville several years ago, so they moved it to Indy and Austin. Which, I'm pretty sure they regret. Attendance hasn't been the same since they moved it...both exhibitors and dealers have been slow to come back! FWIW, winter NAMM is in Anaheim in January. I don't exaggerate when I say Winter NAMM is 20 times the size!

You see any molded uke cases?

stevejfc said:

You see any molded uke cases?

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I didn't see any while I was at NAMM. If some were there, they eluded my attention.
There was plenty to overlook. I can't imagine an event 20 times larger.
I have seen molded cases for 'ukuleles on the Web; you have several to choose from--depending on size.