Traveling with gongs

[Jamie Bechtold Ford]

Hi everyone! For those of you that travel with gongs by air I would love to hear how you do it. Which cases do you use, do you ship them separately or take on plane, what about stands. Thank you! I'm trying to figure out the easiest and most cost effective way to get a few gongs to retreat centers out of the country.

Thanks!
Jamie

[Michael Bettine]

Is this a one time/one way trip?
What size Gongs and how many?
Heavy stands may be a problem to ship and it could be cheaper/easier to buy or build stands at the final destination.

[Jamie Bechtold Ford]

I want to start facilitating sound bath retreats out of my general area. Hawaii, mexico, or other places. I'm just not sure on the best way to do that with the gongs...in a way that is cost effective and of course travel safe for the equipment. I was hoping someone has been doing that, or maybe has some ideas for me. I have a range of size gongs - ideally it'd be great to take 2-3 gongs - biggest being 38 or 32.
Thank you!

[Michael Bettine]

I have a 32" flight case that I easily put 3 gongs in (32/28/26 or 24). It protects them well. In fact, it went down a flight of stairs with no damage to the Gongs. As you can imagine, it's a heavy beast when fully loaded. Not for the faint of heart!

You can also get a Humes & Berg molded Enduro case up to 32". These are great and a lot lighter than the flight case, so cheaper to ship.

One question is how much travel will you do? If it's a lot of going back and forth to the same places/areas, it might be more cost effective in the long run to have multiple Gong set ups, one in each place/area (like one in Hawaii, one in Mexico, etc.). Those shipping charges can add up over time. Also, there's no chance of damage from shipping things.

[Jamie Bechtold Ford]

Thank you Michael! I will look into those. Do you travel with the stands too or just figure that out when you get there?

[Paul Ford]

I concur here with Michael in saying that several gongs in a trusted flight case and packed very well is an option. Again, having gongs already at your destination would be preferential, sure costly to establish. Over time, given it being a regular event it would i feel be to your adavantage. Especially if a high number of participants is anticipated!. The world is simply just to big for us Gong players!, and air flight expenses are the killer.

Kind regards 

[Jamie Bechtold Ford]

Thank you Michael and Paul! Michael, do you ship them before you leave or do they go on the plane with you? What is the average cost for the three gongs? Thank you!!!!