I have always used soft cases, Gator and Road Runner to be more specific, and beginning to wonder if I should make the switch to hard cases. I have had Gator on my Mapex for a year and RR on my OCDP for about 6 months and both sets are ripped up, zippers gone, won't close, ect...

What have you found to be the best way to transport your drums? What has held up the test of time and is the best product out there?

Hard cases are the way to go, I even use a hard case cymbal vault. I truly feel more comfortable knowing my shells are safe and sound inside a hard case. I highly recommend the SKB line of hard cases. On two occasions they truly held up. One night after a gig and loading my cases in the truck I ran back inside to make sure everything was ship shape only to come out 10 minutes later to an absolute downpour....the cases were completely dry inside as well as my heads and shells. On the second occasion my bass, still in its case, was accidently kicked down a flight of stairs...and when I opened the case...not a single nick or dent or scrape or scratch on the shells.

They even have a great wheeled hardware case thats great for cymbal stands throne and pedals...and that case is a BEAST!

Haha! I will say that I am very impressed that your kick was still intact after a spill like that.

I've really been wanting to switch to hard cases but worried if I do, my kit won't fit in the back of my Honda Hatchback. I know that in theory the cases would only be a bit bigger than the shells but it adds up fast and the hardware case may be too big. Obviously it will all fit in the trailer, but it's the local gigs where I load in to my car that I worry about. They just barely fit now with soft cases and I only carry 4 pieces, hardware, and cymbals.

Sounds like a need a more drummer-friendly car, huh?

I was so surprised myself that the bass was completely intact and OK!!! Honestly, Hard cases are the answer, but even a four peice in hard cases will be a very very tight fit. The bass cases are huge and they are the most difficult to pack when dealing with tiny space, but if you were a fan of Tetris it will definitely be a challenge. Now the SKB cases are very hefty and heavyduty, but another slimmer fit with great protection may be the Hard Rock hard case....I do not remember who offers those...but google is king!!

The drummers in the brass band I used to play in hauled the band's concert bass drum in the back of a pickup truck -- with no case. They got to the gig one day and the drum was gone. It had rolled out of the back of the truck and they found it, undamaged, four blocks away. They still haul it this way. Hmmm.

HAHAH Thats incredible. Those concert basses are pretty sturdy drums. The Adams one we used in college, had a bass cradle that was welded steel tubing, and that thing probably could have survived WW3 completely intact. It was a beast! The cradle alone weighed roughly 350. It was insane.

Funny enough, just a few nights ago a buddy dropped his black panther snare inside of his SKB hard case and snapped a rim! I think it comes down to taking care of your drums no matter what they are wrapped in!

Wow!! That's such an ironic giggle right there!! Man that sucks, about his snare thats a tear jerker. Yeah as long as you take care of your gear it will take care of you. I guess it would be best to mention that SKB cases are a little loose fitting and adding extra padding around the drum will seat it tighter to the case and keeps the drum from sliding inside the case.

Agreed - tightening up an SKB case is a must! You can buy shaped foam cheap on ebay that you can cut up for the cases and use as soundproofing for your home rig or practice space!

My favorite to use is the old school yellowish egg crate foam. It fits great inside of the cases and adds GREAT cushioning on the inside of the cases. Also, adding some foam to the inside of your snare shell will take almost every bit of under/over tones. Plus it provides a stdio throwback crispness. Oh and adding small strips of foam to the inside bass shell will produce that really funky deep slap bass tone that just keeps on rockin all night. The coolest part haha is depending on where you place the foam on the inside of the shells, alters the muffling and tone depth as well as shell resonance. Its almost like tuning your actual shell down or up chromatically. Never experimented with my toms, but the snare and bass are definitely worth experimenting with. Also, instead of using spray adhesives on the wood and foam, I use either double sided tape or velcro strips.

That's some interesting tips dave, have to try them out.

I only transport my kit on cushioned hard cases. Back in the day I used to just load the kit in the truck of my car, just by themselves. Then I would have to be looking for lugs, bits and pieces that were missing when I arrived to the venue, haha.