Southwest broke a 70's MSA

Nikolai Shveitser · Post by **Nikolai Shveitser** » 20 Oct 2023 9:09 am

Flew from San Diego to Nashville with the steel in a foam padded Pelican Vault case. I gate checked it and they sent it down the conveyor belts upon arrival. I opened the case, and lo and behold - two pedal are snapped off. The case got roughed up but is structurally sound. Southwest claims they can't compensate me because the exterior of the case looks OK. I know folks use the gun cases for steel but that's gonna be the last time for me. And let this be a warning against flying Southwest with musical instruments.

Phillip Hermans · Post by **Phillip Hermans** » 20 Oct 2023 11:02 am

It is sad to see if happen, I feel for you.

I was planning to post this video thinked it was for Southwest, but apparently it was United: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=5YGc4zOqozo

Safe to assume no airline baggage handler cares about your expensive instrument. I would need a healthy paycheck to warrant flying to a gig with my steel.

scott murray · Post by **scott murray** » 20 Oct 2023 11:17 am

hate to see that Nik. it actually seems harder to do that kind of damage than not.

Wayne Brown · Post by **Wayne Brown** » 20 Oct 2023 12:11 pm

I am sorry to see something like this. However this might help a bit. We do have these in stock
https://outwestcountry.ca/index.php/pro ... t-pedal-2/
thanks
wayne

Donny Hinson · Post by **Donny Hinson** » 20 Oct 2023 1:08 pm

I feel for ‘ya, man. The pedals were probably snapped off by the heavy legs after a fall of a foot or two. Fortunately, they’re cast aluminum, and are fairly easy to repair by a competent welder.

Bill McCloskey · Post by **Bill McCloskey** » 20 Oct 2023 1:10 pm

Would split cases have prevented this?

Bobby D. Jones · Post by **Bobby D. Jones** » 20 Oct 2023 1:42 pm

The actual weight of parts in a steel guitar in a case can self destruct itself. Somewhere the case hit something falling or sliding down a conveyor and, Caught on something solid. The weight of the pedal bar, The guitar and a golf bag or something heavy behind it could have added to the impact.
A MSA Classic D10 weighs 85 lb. in its factory case.

Donny Hinson · Post by **Donny Hinson** » 20 Oct 2023 2:56 pm

Bill McCloskey wrote:Would split cases have prevented this?

Probably not, since the (heavy) legs would be in the same case. Very few case designs are set up to separate the body, legs, and pedalboard, each in its own divided area.

Joel Jackson · Post by **Joel Jackson** » 20 Oct 2023 4:38 pm

Man, that sucks. As luck would have it it’s just the A and B pedals.

Dave Stagner · Post by **Dave Stagner** » 22 Oct 2023 6:37 am

I fly with an acoustic guitar at least once a year, so I’ve gotten religious about gate-checking them. About half the time, I can get staff to put it in a closet for me. If they do check it, then half the time the crew will bring it back up with the strollers and stuff. Last time I flew with one, they sent it out through the system on the way back, and LOST it in the airport. It got sent to the wrong baggage claim, and sat around for a half hour where anyone could have walked off with it, untill a staffer noticed it and carried it through the other gates until she found the guy FREAKING THE HECK OUT and I got it back. And I got COVID while waiting.

Anyway, the weight-in-parts thing is a big problem if you run it through the system. I use magnetic pickups in my acoustics, and I always take them out before flying, for fear of breaking the soundboard with a shock.

Airlines are legally required to accomodate musical instruments if at all possible, so gate-checking is always an option. At the very least, it reduces the time your beloved instrument spends in the machinery by 50%, and you know it gets on the right plane. And if you ask nicely, theres a good chance you can get it into a closet instead of in the baggage compartment.

Dave Hopping · Post by **Dave Hopping** » 22 Oct 2023 9:18 am

Southwest will let you carry-on if it's acoustic guitar-size or smaller. I do have to say, though, that I'd think at least twice about flying a steel anywhere unless it was in a TSA-approved flight case AND the venue paid the over-weight costs.

I had a friend in the airline biz who referred to the baggage handlers as "Bag-Smashers". I think that's an excruciatingly accurate characterization.

Mitchell Smithey · Post by **Mitchell Smithey** » 23 Oct 2023 12:56 pm

Flying with a steel is a huge pain. You could move the pedals from the bottom neck until you find replacements.
There is a set screw in the hole next to the ball joint that tightens on a steel dowel. Use a 3/32” Allen wrench to loosen it and push out the dowel. Pedal will pop right off.

K Maul · Post by **K Maul** » 24 Oct 2023 4:22 am

I broke a pedal on a Sho~Bud once traveling in a van in its factory case. Your case was probably not the issue as much as how the pedal board was placed. What seems ok in regular transport doesn’t apply for air travel. You need to have LOTS of internal padding and keep those pedals isolated from possible contact with anything if there is a shock.

David Mitchell · Post by **David Mitchell** » 30 Oct 2023 12:49 pm

As stated earlier, it's the shear weight of the parts inside the case that breaks a steel apart. Usually the wall between the pedal bar and guitar collapses. I've had other airlines give me my case all taped up when all the latches broke off from the handling. Even in a heavy duty flight case you need to make sure nothing can move or it will self destruct within. I know Southwest has only 30 minutes to get all the baggage on the plane because my wife worked for Southwest in the 70's and 80's so the baggage is thrown and there is no weaklings loading planes. I've been on the ramp watching them load. It's a very physical thing.