Posted by Henry on September 19, 2003 at 13:08:11:
In Reply to: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: oversize flight cases posted by Mary Ann on September 19, 2003 at 10:53:24:
I used both. The expanding is hard as a rock when cured, even stickier (and when I say sticky I mean sticky....), and ...well...it expands. The good news is that it really does form fit in a way that causes an absolutely perfect fit. The bad news is you have to leave a bit for expansion, pretty easy in itself. The problem arises in that it continues to expand for a good twelve hours and if you jump the gun, as I have been wont to do, what was a perfect fit now is a fit that needs trimming (and in the process of trimming you lose some of the "perfect fit advantages")and once I wound up trimming(and regrettably swearing) away as I realized that the top (I took out the sax after 5 hours when everything was absolutely perfect and left the case open) no longer closed and that even after trimmed back the form fitting space in the top was now too shallow to fit the sax with the case closed...... Had I merely left the darned thing closed with the instrument in place for a day or day and a half it would have been a triumph with minimal work. As a result of my impatience it was a drawn out process eventually resulting in a very painful redo.
The softer foam dries more slowly, is always a bit spongy, and is probably easier; but I don't think the end result is quite as satisfactory. Ok, but not really first class.
Neither one has any appreciable weight so the end product is pretty light and if you plan in advance you can insert spaces for mutes, music, mouthpieces, stands- anything that you can fit in the case while filling in the foam. Make sure A: the object doesn't get swallowed by the foam, B: that you can insert/romove it once foamed (IE large end up if in the bottom of the case) and leave space to line the insides of any additional cavities with the fabric. You might plan on at least a 1 1/2 inch "wall" twixt and heavy object and tuba tubing and if you use a cardpoard box as a place holder in the foam you'll find it sort of bows in at the sides from the foams expansion.
Again- you get my personal guarantee........ free; and you get what you pay for!
Henry