Greetings,
I just wanted to share a quick tip that I had seen from another user at a different forum (can't recall which one) not long ago.
This tip will work if your largest drum (other than your bass drum) is 14" or smaller, which many of us have. My kit shown in the pictures is a Sonor Safari. It does not have the matching snare, but the snare shown in the pictures is the same depth (actually it might be 0.5" deeper), so you'll get the idea for illustrative purposes how it works. NOTE: You can be creative and maybe find a different size bag if you have a 16" floor tom. The idea here is to share my tip and then have you make it work for your individual needs.
I went to Wal-Mart and got this rolling duffel bag/trunk:
https://www.walmart.com/ip/36-Rolling-Trunk-Gray/495102963
While I was there I picked up a couple more things to go along with this:
-A 4-pack of 1" thick foam squares (16"x 16"-$6.99)
-2 pillows (Mainstay "Deep Pockets", they were less than $2.50 a piece)
I unzipped the duffel all the way; it has a folding rigid bottom that comes with it. I put two of the 1" foam squares on each end of the bag. Then I loaded in my floor tom, put a foam square in, put in my snare drum, put a foam square in and finally my rack tom. I was also able to fit the top of my throne in between the rack tom and the end of the bag (it has a white fleece cover on it so it's a little hard to see in the photos).
The duffel itself is 36". The total depth of the drums in the bag is 25.5". Considering hoops and heads, it's probably about 30" or so of total length. That's why I had extra room for the top of my throne. Your mileage may vary, depending on the depth of drums you have. I put two pillows on each long side of the bag, both for extra protection, and to make the bag look and feel "full", so it retains it's shape when you roll or lift it.
This works very well for me. It's much easier to carry/roll one bag than it is to handle three individual bags, even if the drums are small. Even loading it in/out of the car or going /up/down stairs is still pretty easy, due the way the weight is spread out in the bag; it doesn't feel as heavy as it should. The pillows that help the bag retain it's shape really work well when lifting and carrying it. In addition, the bag has a nice size front pocket, for accessories like power strips, extension cords or even stick bags. If you want, you can get an additional 4-pack of 1" foam squares to line the bottom of the case too.
In addition, I have a rolling hardware bag, a backpack cymbal bag (with a large front pocket for a stick bag) and I carry the bass drum separately. It's easily 2 (or even 1 if you play your cards right) trips to load in/out.
I just wanted to share this with you all. For around $35 (for the bag, foam and pillows), it's less than the cost of a typical floor tom bag.
Enjoy!
V
