Steel on plane

Alan Pagliere · Post by **Alan Pagliere** » 19 Mar 2004 2:07 pm

I will be rejoining my old college band (at a 30th anniversary of a folk festival) in New Jersey. I live in Michigan and so can either drive out with my MSA Millennium and my Nashville 400 or I can try arranging to rent an amp out there and jump on a plane ... with my steel.

First the easy question. What are the chances of renting a similar amp somewhere "out there"? Would an amp made for, say, a keyboard with its wide pitch range, do?

Now the harder question. How many of you have traveled on a plane with a steel? Can I trust (ha) that it will make it as checked baggage? Special instructions? Forget the whole thing because they'll drop it from 32,000 feet?

Any advice, experience, comments, suggestions?

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Alan Pagliere
MSA Millennium S12 Universal

Joey Ace · Post by **Joey Ace** » 19 Mar 2004 2:16 pm

See the discussion at http://steelguitarforum.com/Forum15/HTML/005211.html

I wouldn't take the amp on a plane. Just too expensive.
Arrange to rent or borrow one there. Most music rental places can provide a Twin Reverb. You can post a request on this Forum and possibly locate a Nash 400.

I don't know what kind of case your new MSA has. If it's not a strong flight case, build an outer cardboard box for it's trip. Be prepaired to pay a bit extra for over 50lbs baggage.

Rick Schmidt · Post by **Rick Schmidt** » 19 Mar 2004 2:27 pm

Alan...one of the main reasons I'm so interested in getting a new MSA myself is how well it fares with the new airline weight requirements? Please let us know how it all goes! Do you have a D10 or S12? Do you have the case that is supposedly the ATA approved one? Is it under 50LBs?

Flying with anything these days is a gamble, and we sure don't want anything to happen to an investment like the Millennium! Make sure you emphasize to the ticket agent how fragile it it. Maybe get insurance??? I usually always put extra foam rubber in my cases when I fly.

As far as the amp goes. I'd always carry a Boss RV-3(reverb) and ask for a bass combo amp if I couldnt get exactly what I really wanted.(A PV or a Twin) I'm not a big fan of most keyboard amps for steel. The tweeters they have usually sound too brittle for my taste.

good luck! Rick

Brian Davis · Post by **Brian Davis** » 19 Mar 2004 2:58 pm

See my recent thread about flying with a PSG....I just got back from San Fran via Southwest with a Professional D10 and a Session 400 with no problems or fees. They didn't even weight the thing...although their limit is 80lbs, I believe. Go with Southwest.

Brian

Emmett Roch · Post by **Emmett Roch** » 19 Mar 2004 3:13 pm

Alan, Joey & Rick both pretty well nailed it. Living in Europe as I do, it's basically pot luck as far as what amp I'll get at any gig. So, like Rick, I also carry a little reverb unit, plug it into whatever amp--or direct box--they give me and hope for the best. You could try to contact some music stores in that area and see if they'll rent you an amp.

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GFI S-10

Emmett Roch · Post by **Emmett Roch** » 19 Mar 2004 3:18 pm

Brian, you must be part Leprechaun to have such good luck--I hope you continue to have it (and that a little of it spreads to the rest of us)

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___________________
GFI S-10

Rick Schmidt · Post by **Rick Schmidt** » 19 Mar 2004 9:02 pm

Brian...you ARE the lucky one!!! I've had good luck with SW for the most part, but I've also been charged at random for overweight baggage on my D10 Professional...even with the legs in my suitcase. And then....they lost my !@#$% suitcase temporarily. Like I said before, it's a gamble.

David Wright · Post by **David Wright** » 19 Mar 2004 10:25 pm

My MSA..M-2 S-12/9&6 in the case is 62 lbs, I have had no problems with the air lines with it...been to Dallas/St Louis...

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Jim Cohen · Post by **Jim Cohen** » 20 Mar 2004 6:16 am

I fly fairly often with my D-10. Here are the tips I can offer:

1) If it's over 50lbs, reduce the weight as much as possible by putting the legs and pedal rack (if it will fit) into your suitcase instead of your steel case.

2) Use curbside check-in whenever possible, instead of going up to the counter inside. At curbside, they usually do not have a scale available, so they don't weigh your bags. But if it "feels" very heavy to them, they "might" try to hit you up for the overweight fee. But the good news is that the skycaps are always willing to accept tips. I just plan on giving them a $5 or even $10 tip (which is a whole lot better than the $75 fee they'd slap you with inside); it doesn't hurt to have that bill showing in your other hand, when you hand them your steel. Note: do NOT try this inside at the counter! You can NOT tip those people and they DO have scales and use them on virtually EVERY bag. (Although on my trip to Dallas the line at curbside was so long that I had to go inside and they just had me take my steel over to the scanning machine for security check, and never did weigh it; got lucky that time).

3) If you're not concerned about paying for overweight baggage, use a flight case, of course. But they're very heavy indeed. I use a Sierra Wheel-EZE case and have never had a problem with damage to my steel, despite over 50 flights with it on all kinds of airlines. Only thing I've ever had was some screws got loosened up and needed to be tightened.

4) Pack it well. If possible, make sure the steel, tuning keys, changer, etc. are blocked so that they're not actually in contact with the side of the case. Pete Burak even puts a piece of shock-absorbant wetsuit material around the outside of his case (though nowadays that might be a problem, since they ALWAYS open my case to inspect the contents and that would make it hard to open; they'd probably just cut it off!)

5) Leave it unlocked! Nowadays they want to be able to look inside everything, so if you lock your case they're liable to break it open. But when you hand it to them for screening, ask them to please put tape over the latches when they're done. They always have packing tape on hand and are willing to do that for you, no problem.

6) Good luck!

Joey Ace · Post by **Joey Ace** » 20 Mar 2004 6:49 am

All good advice, Jim.
Didn't Northwest "loose" you Fessy for a few days between Philly and Grand Rapids?
At least it was packed well.

Dave Frye · Post by **Dave Frye** » 20 Mar 2004 8:01 am

David Wright, why don,t you fly over and drop your NEW MSA over my house????????? huh huh Ole Dave Frye