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One came with a sousa for me as well, and i like them.

They are convenient for the hands freeness. Harder to angle them to go through doors than i like (already alluded to above) but do protect from abrasive kind of contact.

My favorite minimalist tuba packing what i've seen makes me think of TMNT... (tuba in a half shell?) where a yoga matt donut is inserted between sousa bell and body, possibly a fanny pack style thing for neck, bits and mouthpiece (no lyres or flip books for these folk, but if so, a slightly larger bag?) and then it is just safety belt strapped to their back, and they bike to their gig. And usually this is done with a 36k style sousa. I think the general vibe is more maneuverable than anything bigger than them, and faster than most things smaller than them, with wheels sticking out before and behind.

Are pick up $100k pick up trucks really a typical tubist vehicle? I don't blame them for cutting corners on tuba pricing if they have to buy gas for them...

I can't LIFT a hard case with a tuba in it.
Q.E.D.

If I'm not allowed to park as close to a venue as I would prefer, I will remove an instrument from its hard case at the car, and carry it into the venue, particularly if I'm leaving the venue for the day after the service is over, in particular: a single rehearsal or a single performance, and this also assumes the use of a single instrument, which is roughly a 50/50 circumstance).

Sousaphones tote on the shoulder and - actually - tubas do as well, though tubas require a hand to hold them in place.

More often (in the same circumstance), I'll pull up to the stage door, offload equipment, and then go park.

As a huge ogre, if I get to the place where a 20 or 25 lb case vs. an 8 lb bag makes more of a difference, I will reluctantly retreat to using tuba bags (I have not sold my bags)... but (again) sousaphone hard cases are just ridiculous nuisances, and are so huge that they don't fit in some vehicles. If I start driving the ancient Corolla again, it would be a darn good trick to get a sousaphone case in that thing. I'm thinking it might even be a little bit of a struggle to wedge a sousaphone (inside a Protech bag) into a Corolla , as it would be much easier to put the bell in the Corolla first and then the body over the bell. This is why I embrace the miracle of fiberglass - along with a quilt - one which no longer looks nice enough to use on a bed.

I realize that a lot of people enjoy their big pickup trucks, SUVs, and other generously-sized vehicles, but I just don't have the money to routinely purchase that quantity of gasoline, and neither for that pricey of a vehicle. I do have the big old GMC work van, but I really don't want to do the 16 miles per gallon thing on these (typically: MINIMUM 60 miles one way) commutes to venues. I suppose if I had more disposable resources or revenue - and didn't try to make my playing profitable, these sorts of calculations wouldn't matter as much.

bloke wrote: ↑Sun Sep 15, 2024 9:38 am I realize that a lot of people enjoy their big pickup trucks, SUVs, and other generously-sized vehicles . . .

If only . . . Child 3 borrowed my daily driver, so I drove the fun-mobile - Miata - to rehearsal . . . fortunately only euphonium, but a sousaphone might fit with the top down. Right-side lane changes would be Yugoslavia-style: cross fingers, hit the horn, and swerve. I think tuba's too wide for the gear shift; might relegate me to driving only in 1st & 2nd gear.

I could've borrowed my wife's Sienna, but I really dislike trying to figure out all the electronics. I can't even figure out the temperature controls, never mind the auto-braking and other whiz-bangs. I'd almost rather walk to rehearsal.

tokuno wrote: ↑Sun Sep 15, 2024 10:16 am response

It's the old stereotype of the upright bass player with their Volkswagen Beetle.

I believe I got this image from another thread here, but seems appropriate.

I got a similar shipping included deal on my Gard bag.