Build your own hard case?

[Brassodemolish]

Anyone done this? I have all the tools and woodworking experience, even have a few full sheets of maple plywood. Only thing I know for certain is leave enough room inside the case for the padding and enough room for the shoulder straps.

 

[Dingo40]

I seem to recollect a thread by someone who had done just that ?
If you do build it, be sure to fit metal reinforcing corners to it. ??

 

[jozz]

I've build hardcases here and there, but never for accordion. The reason: it gets heavy real fast. For normal use you're better off with the 'Samsonite' type casings. Besides that, the cost of all the different components together does rarely compare favorably to a store bought flightcase.

 

[boxplayer4000]

I have had many home-made accordion cases over the years. In recent times the newer materials used in their construction has reduced the weight and increased the strength of the newer commercial ones and as already mentioned in this thread the cost of the materials to go home-made makes it ever less attractive.
Despite that I used a home-made case for many years which was very strong and formed the base for a large music stand. As the saying goes it was sturdily built, like the proverbial brick S.H. and was ideally suited to life on the road and in the boots of cars etc.
The sides and top and bottom were 6mm ply and front and back were 3mm ply. Rabbet joints pinned and glued held it together and the box was made in one piece and then carefully sawn in two to form perfectly fitting parts with lipped joints. Handle, corner protectors, clasps, piano-hinge etc. soon put the cost up.
These are 3 which are left.

 

[Valski]

Anyone done this? I have all the tools and woodworking experience, even have a few full sheets of maple plywood. Only thing I know for certain is leave enough room inside the case for the padding and enough room for the shoulder straps.

I like the idea for a custom built hard case for travel however my soft gig bag has grown on me. If I needed the extra protection I would order a road case with metal edges and corners. Casters would be important too because the rig would be heavy. As for size, I would make it big enough to fit my accordion in it's gig bag with a little extra padding. You could even make compartments in it to hold cables, pedals and even a Bk7m if you use one.

 

[Brassodemolish]

I like the idea for a custom built hard case for travel however my soft gig bag has grown on me. If I needed the extra protection I would order a road case with metal edges and corners. Casters would be important too because the rig would be heavy. As for size, I would make it big enough to fit my accordion in it's gig bag with a little extra padding. You could even make compartments in it to hold cables, pedals and even a Bk7m if you use one.

This will be less for travel and more for me to have my mini hohner imperial have the right humidity for storage. I also have alot of leftover solid cherry wood from other projects that I need to get rid of. If this was a normal sized accordion I wouldn't likely build a case because of weight.

I drew basic plans then last night I came up with the idea to use my router on the sides to add fluting zig zag lines in the art deco style trim on my accordion.

 

[Skari]

DIY shipping case
Here is a example of an accordion shipping case I received from France today via UPS. The case was especially built by Georges Pellegrini to ship my Hohner Artiste VI D. I have never received an accordion that was so securely and skillfully packed. Here are a series of photos from the unboxing. The last photo shows how the bass mechanism was meticulously blocked. Very impressive.

 

[donn]

Blocking the bass mechanism, that's someone who isn't just guessing how to do it.

I've thought about making up boxes for shipping, and thought about using the extruded polystyrene insulation boards they sell at the big box hardware store, the way expanded polystyrene was used here. More resilient, and something about that EPS stuff squeaks bothers me a lot.

I wish I had a picture of how my Fratelli Crosio arrived from France, in its carrying bag, partly surrounded by a wad of something that looked like furniture stuffing, in a cardboard box that had become more of a bag at the end. Sturdy accordion, they don't make them like that any more.

 

[JerryPH]

JimD bilt a few rolling cases that looked like they could take a direct hit from a Sherman tank and survive... lol. I cannot find that thread now, however.