One Case to Hold Them All

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I've been ferrying my Les Paul around in the gig bag it came with for the past month or two and the more pubs after practice I take it it to, the more I grow concerned. For whatever reason, the exterior of the gig bag is shaped to the ridiculous head-stock angle of the guitar, this means that the case doesn't lie on the floor flat - much like the guitar itself!

It seems a little stupid to me. Its a notorious weakness of the guitar and the case doesn't do enough to protect it. Oh well.

I want a Hard-case but I already have one for a Telecaster that the LP won't fit in and I simply don't have the room in my small flat for another big case. Is there a hard-case out there that can fit a Telecaster and a Les Paul model comfortably? 

I've come across this (https://www.thomann.de/gb/rockcase_rc20806b.htm#bewertung) so far and little else.

Amusingly this gator case ( https://www.gak.co.uk/en/gator-gc-elec-a-deluxe-fit-all-electric-case/34508?gclid=EAIaIQobChMInoidx8ux1wIVx53tCh0C4AKIEAQYBCABEgLW1_D_BwE ) is described as 'Fit All' and then in the description explicitly says that it only fits Strat and Tele shapes :'(

Any recommendations?



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Comments

  • LegionreturnsLegionreturns Frets: 7965
    edited November 2017
    One of the rectangular ones that's quite deep should do. They have padding you can move around depending on the guitar you're putting in it. Pretty sure I've got one in the house I'm not using, I used to keep my SG in it because the gig bag had that same angle problem. 

    My Trading Feedback    |    You Bring The Band

    Just because you're paranoid, don't mean they're not after you
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  • gig bags are evil
    you need a proper hiscox case
    "Working" software has only unobserved bugs. (Parroty Error: Pieces of Nine! Pieces of Nine!)
    Seriously: If you value it, take/fetch it yourself
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  • LebarqueLebarque Frets: 3755
    I've previously used SKB cases, but these look great value to me (as highlighted by another fretboarder the other day):

    http://www.flightcasewarehouse.co.uk/industry/index.asp?section=guitar-hard-cases-4775


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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 71952
    You're unlikely to find a *proper* hard case that fits both a Les Paul and a Tele, exactly because the neck and head angles are totally different.

    What to do is simple - get a Hiscox for the Les Paul and, keep the gig bag for the Tele and get rid of the Tele hard case - it doesn't need one.

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • ESBlondeESBlonde Frets: 3576
    Search on here about cases, Hiscox is the way to go. at about £100 new for the PROII or more for the artist range for very superior protection in a lightweight case.

    They demonstrate them by putting a les paul in the case and throwing off a balcony one story high. Then stand on the case, then open it and play the guitar!

    Also many luthiers sell thier hand crafted guitars in Hiscox cases by default.

    Heres a way to spend half an hour



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  • gig bags are evil
    you need a proper hiscox case
    The Tele case is a Hiscox that i've had for 16+ years. I wish I had room for another but alas. 
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  • ICBM said:
    What to do is simple - get a Hiscox for the Les Paul and, keep the gig bag for the Tele and get rid of the Tele hard case - it doesn't need one.
    Yeah that's a good call, thanks. I think that's what i'll do.

    I've played Fenders since forever. I'm new to this Gibson world of fragile necks and printed circuit boards. If someone wouldn't mind humouring - just how easy is it to break the headstock of a Les Paul?
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  • SkippedSkipped Frets: 2371
    The Les Paul needs the most protection.
    You would need a Les Paul case  - that properly supports the neck and holds the headstock in space - which can also accomodate a Telecaster with adequate protection.

    It is going to be hard to find a hard case that will do that.


    Only you can judge if the single version of this double case might do the job for you??
    (Like other posters - I don't like gig bags. Not even top quality gig bags).
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lHsuNVUuxs



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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 71952
    edited November 2017
    ESBlonde said:

    Heres a way to spend half an hour

    [Hiscox Cases. How they are made.]
    He's no David Attenborough , but there are some really important points in that video, which confirm my experience with them and other apparently similar cases - the Hiscox is *much* better. They are slightly more expensive, but the difference in quality is much more important.

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 71952
    tralfamadan said:

    I've played Fenders since forever. I'm new to this Gibson world of fragile necks and printed circuit boards. If someone wouldn't mind humouring - just how easy is it to break the headstock of a Les Paul?
    It depends on the Les Paul... the direction of the wood grain behind the nut, and the exact shaping - some are much thinner than others - both make a big difference.

    Some are fairly strong and can take a bump. Some are so weak that the guitar being in a hard case which falls forward onto its front is enough to snap the head as it moves forward under the combination of the string tension and its own inertia. I would never put one in a gig bag without a proper neck support (like a Mono) anywhere pressure could be applied to the back of the headstock. And definitely not the gig bag Gibson supply.

    Put it this way… as a repairer working in a shop, I can safely say that not only are Gibsons by far the most common head repairs, they're probably more common than *all other brands put together* - certainly 'quality' brands. It's rare that there isn't at least one Gibson head repair in the shop at any time, and often more than one.

    I'm not opposed to gig bags at all though - not proper ones, anyway - they're more than adequate for almost any other guitar, and in fact often give more protection than a cheap hard case, apart from against extreme crushing or bending forces. I wouldn't use one to put a guitar in a van with heavy amps and flight cases, but I'm more than happy to use them for even my expensive guitars for putting in the car or carrying on public transport - more than the hard cases I have.

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • richhrichh Frets: 449
    If you could get one, it would be very heavy, and bulk, I would think.

    You could probably get something custom made, but that would be expensive.
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  • siraxemansiraxeman Frets: 1935
    edited November 2017
    gig bags are evil
    you need a proper hiscox case
    Absolutely for a Les Paul or any Gibson type that has that weak tilt back headstock. If someone broke their Gibson and said "but I had a good gig bag for it ?" I would laugh in their face.
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  • Just for balance... years ago my Les Paul Custom (with volute) slipped off the front strap pin while I was standing chatting in a room with a concrete and tiled floor.

    It hit head first and bounced twice across the floor.

    Not a mark on the guitar.

    My trousers, on the other hand...
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  • BridgehouseBridgehouse Frets: 24578
    For more balance, I have a Mono gig bag for my pre-CBS Precision...

    Ok so it's a bass, it's a Fender and won't implode at the headstock joint after a slight tap, but still...
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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 71952
    edited November 2017
    clarkefan said:
    Just for balance... years ago my Les Paul Custom (with volute) slipped off the front strap pin while I was standing chatting in a room with a concrete and tiled floor.

    It hit head first and bounced twice across the floor.

    Not a mark on the guitar.

    My trousers, on the other hand…
    Late 70s one with a maple neck?

    If so I've done that too, with the same result .

    The volute doesn't help much in fact - you see plenty of broken ones. It's the reduction in the head angle and most importantly the maple necks which finally fixed the problem… until the purists moaned and Gibson went back to the old weak design.

    For more balance, I have a Mono gig bag for my pre-CBS Precision...

    Ok so it's a bass, it's a Fender and won't implode at the headstock joint after a slight tap, but still…
    I have Mono gig bags for my '73 Rickenbacker 4001 bass and 381V69 guitar. They're much better than the crappy plywood cases they came in, especially the bass one which gives almost no protection while also being a pain in the bum to carry anywhere. The guitar one is better for strength, but it's ludicrously heavy.

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • TitchTitch Frets: 45
    i use a double Mono gig bag for my Patrick Eggle Berlin & American De Luxe Tele  and so far haven't had any issues with it, mind you I do travel to gigs by car but if the guitars had to go in the van then they would be in their relative hard cases.
    As ICBM said they are ludicrously heavy.
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  • FelineGuitarsFelineGuitars Frets: 11494
    tFB Trader
    Get a Hiscox Liteflite Std-EG case for the Gibson
    Get a decent gigbag for the Fender 
    I've used Mono Vertigos for a while but the price has now shot up to £200+ so it would no longer be something I would rush to buy (although they are fab

    Many guitars have a re-sale value. Some you'll never want to sell.
    Stockist of: Earvana & Graphtech nuts, Faber Tonepros & Gotoh hardware, Fatcat bridges. Highwood Saddles.

    Pickups from BKP, Oil City & Monty's pickups.

      Expert guitar repairs and upgrades - fretwork our speciality! www.felineguitars.com.  Facebook too!

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  • I'm not sure if there is any truth in this but I've heard that even Epiphones have stronger necks than Gibsons because of the shallower headstock angle. 
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  • +1 on Hiscox and Mono for gig bags. K won’t use anything else when I have the option. I just wish Hiscox did a case that’d fit a CS336
    The Assumptions - UAE party band for all your rock & soul desires
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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 71952
    I'm not sure if there is any truth in this but I've heard that even Epiphones have stronger necks than Gibsons because of the shallower headstock angle. 
    It is true - Epiphone necks are stronger, both because of that and because many of them are scarf jointed, and/or made from stronger woods than mahogany.


    Get a decent gigbag for the Fender 
    I've used Mono Vertigos for a while but the price has now shot up to £200+ so it would no longer be something I would rush to buy (although they are fab
    I wouldn't actually get a Mono for a Fender - unnecessarily bulky and expensive. Any decent bag is fine, including the Fender ones.

    Fenders are so strong that you really just need something that will protect the guitar from the weather and minor knocks and bumps, rather than structural damage.

    Things like the number of pockets and quality of zips and straps are what matters - in particular avoid straps attached by plastic clips, they break. Fully sewn-in ones are best.

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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