Accessories Very protective tenor sax cases? (To survive lots of walking)

[Pete Effamy]

You should treat your saxes in a good way. Saxes are built for comfort.
View attachment 34894

Gig fee…

 

[Stephen Howard]

The Key Leaves Gap Cap is a telescopic end plug that goes in to the neck socket and enables a snug fit inside a case to help minimise movement. Depending on your saxophone and case combination it may help. The last thing you want is the sax moving around inside the case.

I don't think it will help that much. In the event of the case being dropped the damage is caused by the momentum of the horn coming to a sudden stop. Without sufficient shock absorption all that energy has to go somewhere - and that's when things get bent.
I carried out a test on a Chinese soprano many years ago for a retailer; every time it got sent out to the customer it arrived damaged. My brief was to find out how this was happening, and I eventually found that it was due to an impact to the case at the mouthpiece end of the horn.
Now, the case was pretty decent - a snug fit. The problem with those Chinese cases is that they fall apart over a relatively short space of time - but when new they give a reasonably good degree of protection; the polystyrene core will take care of minor knocks and bashes.

But an end-on drop is pretty rare - more often than not the impact is to the bottom or sides of the case, so even if the horn was secure along its length the end cap will do nothing for side-to-side movement.

In the end it's completely about how well the core of the case is able to absorb an impact and that tends to mean using a soft(ish) foam...and quite a lot of it.

Empirically I see more horns in shaped cases exhibiting shock damage than those in standard cases - but this is likely to be more about how the case is carried/handled than a design issue...though it's fair to say that standard cases often have room for more padding. Unless you have a 900 series Yani bari, where the crook clamp screws sits right against the bottom wall of the case.

 

[Sacks Of Phones]

My saxophone case is so protective of my horn, it won't let my clarinet anywhere near it...........(insert drum hit and symbol crash here)

 

[greenstripe]

Empirically I see more horns in shaped cases exhibiting shock damage than those in standard cases - but this is likely to be more about how the case is carried/handled than a design issue...though it's fair to say that standard cases often have room for more padding. Unless you have a 900 series Yani bari, where the crook clamp screws sits right against the bottom wall of the case.

I wonder if it's a case (pun intended) that shaped cases simply don't sit and stack neatly alongside other boxes and cases so are liable to fall over, slide around and get banged in transit.

I did say 'may help' on the gap cap, there's obviously a lot of other variables, it does have some shock absorbing properties. But if the case doesn't get the basics right then it's beside the point.

 

[skeller047]

Weight is also an issue. I have and like the Protec Micro-Zip case. It’s a hard shell, and my tenor doesn’t move inside it. I comes with backpack straps and it’s relatively inexpensive. It’s similar in size and weight to the old Berkley shell cases, though there is a separate area for neck and mouthpiece.

The only issue is to store “extras” like reeds and swab, you will need a bag that goes into the bell. I glued a bank deposit bag to the outside of the case to manage this. Protec now offers a case that has a clip on setup for a bag to attach to the outside; the bag is extra, of course….

 

[mizmar]

Maybe - we don't know - the OP just gets very negligent once the sax is on their back?
In which case the right answer might be: stick the sax in a bin-bag and carry it in your arms... You won't forget to take care of it, then! 😀

 

[Dr G]

The Key Leaves Gap Cap is a telescopic end plug that goes in to the neck socket and enables a snug fit inside a case to help minimise movement. Depending on your saxophone and case combination it may help. The last thing you want is the sax moving around inside the case.

The Gap Cap is useful if you don’t have an End Plug. An end plug is useful to protect the octave mechanism, especially when the actuator rod extends beyond the receiver (a terrible design flaw).

 

[Ivan]

I was look at a BAM Cabine but it doesn't look that comfortable to carry...

I have an alto BAM cabine that is comfortable for me... perhaps the tenor would be OK too... Best to try in a shop

The thing to watch with the case is the catches can flip open too easily if they brush against something... so I always lock one of the catches when in transit

 

[lig]

I have an alto BAM cabine that is comfortable for me... perhaps the tenor would be OK too... Best to try in a shop

The thing to watch with the case is the catches can flip open too easily if they brush against something... so I always lock one of the catches when in transit

I have a BAM Cabine for tenor and it's nice but yeah - the latches haven't failed me but they seem like they have the potential for failure.
The case that has surprised me in a good way is the GL case that Ishimori specifies for their horns. Love it. Very snug and secure fit. Seems robust without being a tank.

https://www.glcases.com.tw/product/wind-instrument-cases/glq-series-compact--1/glq-t-l18-tenor-case

 

[thomsax]

My friend bought a "fashion" sax case to replace his Walt Johnson tenor case. After some years he was back to his old Walt Johnson case.

I used go by bike cycle to band rehearsals. I had a trekking sax case model. No shoulder strap, real harness. The problem for me was the heat the trekking case genrated. But I liked the bicycle / trekking case combo. I was in a higher gear after 35 min on the bicycle. No coffee for me before playing. I just changed T-shirt.

 

[dexdex]

I tend to prefer slim contoured hardshell cases, and carry them over the shoulder. I admit I don't walk that far, mostly a couple of 100 meters between parking/bus stop and rehearsal/gig. Switzerland is smaller than London and it's suburbs....
I always take an extra bag for the accessories, my bandmates call it the beach bag due to it’s trendy colour.
The tenor case is an older Eastman, in silver finish. It fits any modern MkVI-like horn. This thing is almost 20 years old, 4 latches, well riveted strap rings, I never ever had any mishap with it. I use it with 1 strap, but you could wear it on the back with the 2 provided straps. It does feel a bit hard that way.
With those cases, you can forget your tech's phone number.
The bad boy on this picture is the Reunion Blues leather bag. The bell down design and poor protection are pure nonsense. No surprise, this is the one which caused (with my help) damage to my curved soprano.

 

[PigSquealer]

The tenor case is an older Eastman, in silver finish. It fits any modern MkVI-like horn. This thing is almost 20 years old, 4 latches, well riveted strap rings, I never ever had any mishap with it. I use it with 1 strap, but you could wear it on the back with the 2 provided straps. It does feel a bit hard that way.

I have this exact same case. Purchased second hand. These are plush inside and rugged outside. I too don’t care for the feel of the shoulder straps and hard contour shape. I’m probably sensitive about the feel as I spent many years backpacking. For this reason I would choose a rectangle case.

 

[Jimmymack]

I have always found the BAM Trecker good for protection and carrying. It fits my Super20 as if it was custom made for it. It has plenty of room for music, reeds and everything else. It isn’t particularly light but once it’s on my back I can, and do, frequently, walk half a mile and more and not notice it. It’s supposed to be made to fit a Mk VI so should be ok with a Yamaha.

 

[Alphorn]

Why not just go with a current Yamaha case of the YTS62? I replaced a smelly case of my 62 purple logo with the current version. Perfect fit, good protection and back straps. It may look sleek but it is well worth its price. A YTS32 should fit very well.

I am a fan of original cases. I have encountered third party cases that were ill fitting or minimally protective. For the life of it I can‘t understand why people are crazy about Protec cases.

 

[PigSquealer]

Why not just go with a current Yamaha case of the YTS62? I replaced a smelly case of my 62 purple logo with the current version. Perfect fit, good protection and back straps. It may look sleek but it is well worth its price. A YTS32 should fit very well.

I am a fan of original cases. I have encountered third party cases that were ill fitting or minimally protective. For the life of it I can‘t understand why people are crazy about Protec cases.

I’m a big fan of factory cases too. Most of what I see is from factories that closed 50+ years ago. Protec is a good value and fit option.
If a factory Yamaha case has backpack straps I would definitely look into one. Great suggestion !

 

[dexdex]

I suspect that my preference for slim cases is related to mostly multi-horns rehearsals and gigs. Most trekker-like designs assume that you carry only 1 saxophone.

 

[PigSquealer]

FWIW, in my environment I mostly see units (saxes and cases) that are more than 15-20+ years old. Anything newer is either a pile of junk or in need of damage repair. I haven’t seen a pre 2012 Yamaha come in.
I do try to keep current and attend the trade shows of new goods.
NAMM 2026 the most recent and two days of 10 hours at minimum each.
All said, there’s a ton of small and huge makers of quality products.
Google is not your friend.
Keep looking and asking fellow saxophonists for options. Here or otherwise.
Make an informed choice.

 

[thomsax]

I'm not a fan of old saxophone cases. Most of the old sax cases I've seen doen't protec the saxes in a good way. Saxes are expensive ...... .

Two old original tenor cases. One is good and the other one is bad.

A Keilwerth case for a long and wide tenor from 1968. The case fit the sax. Ok protection.
The other one is a Hammerschmidt case. Worst case I have. The condition is fine, but the bell is taking too much weight. It's upside down.

 

[thomsax]

Two Martin saxes in thier original cases. They are not good (the cases). Not even when they were new. The saxes are too small for the cases.

Cases for a Martin Handcraft 1938 and a Martin Magna 1959.


I had to fill up around the saxes ..... .

 

[thomsax]

Here is the Martin Handcraft in a Hiscox case. Good protection but I have to use some extra paddings .... . That goes for , more
or less, all re-placement cases.

Old sax cases are cool but I just store my saxes, with open, in the old cases.