Case or Gig Bag?

I was looking at new G&Ls online tonight and noticed that most are sold with a gig bag. This seems to be more and more the norm from many makers.
I've heard that many people these days actually prefer bags.
I like a decent hard case myself. I must be getting old. ;- )
Not sure how I feel about spending 2k for a guitar and not getting a case....

And boy, the prices for an Asat these days!
Sorry to rant.

Mutts I’m with you all the way, guitars are supposed to come with a hard case. Gig bags are as the name says, “gig” bag for when you are going in and out and don’t feel like you need to use a hard case.

For the high price of guitars these days they should be part of the package and not an up charge.

Ok, now I’ll go yell at the clouds….

I was looking at new G&Ls online tonight and noticed that most are sold with a gig bag. This seems to be more and more the norm from many makers.
I've heard that many people these days actually prefer bags.
I like a decent hard case myself. I must be getting old. ;- )
Not sure how I feel about spending 2k for a guitar and not getting a case....

And boy, the prices for an Asat these days!
Sorry to rant.

I had posted the 2023 BTO Price Lists, first in February and then the new updates in June and you should have seen that the Deluxe Case became an option with the Deluxe Gigbag becoming the standard for all BTO instruments.

See those posts:
1/1/2023-5/31/2023 Build To Order Specifications & Options
1/1/2023 BTO Price List changes ...
6/1/2023-present Build To Order Specifications & Options

I do try to keep up to date on the Price Lists and post them in the G&L Specifications and Options sub-forum of the G&L Knowledgebase forum for you all.

I agree, hard shell case should be the standard on option order guitars (and CS of course), IMO.
I can see why they might offer the gig bag as standard on the Fullerton Deluxe range.
It is good to have a good quality gig bag for those times when you need it.
For those like me who store gtrs in cases when not in use, the hard cases are the way to go!

Beginning in 2023, only the CLF Research and Custom Shop models come with Deluxe Tolex cases.
Reference posts:
1/1/2023-present Fullerton Deluxe & CLF Research Series PL
1/1/2023-present Custom Shop Specifications & Options

I've gone through all kinds of cases and gig bags over the years, but I agree on a $1000+ instrument a gig bag is kind of a bummer.

That being said, I have a great ASAT bass with a fitted tolex case, but I have a fly date coming up and don't trust that with an airline, so I went looking for flight cases.

Found a good Gator TSA case for not too much money which would do the job, but still left me feeling anxious about flying with the ASAT.

I don't know if there's a good answer for all of this. If you're buying a guitar for local gigging a gig bag is probably fine. If you are buying a guitar to go do heavy roadwork then whatever is included is probably not sufficient.

My solution was to buy the Gator TSA and a Fender Meteora Bass that fits in the case and won't be as big a loss if the airlines destroy it. FWIW the Meteora was +$1000 and came with a gig bag

Some time back I was looking at Suhrs. No real interest in buying but they get great reviews. Seems most (or all) are sold with gig bags.. 3.5k guitars with gig bags??

I was looking at new G&Ls online tonight and noticed that most are sold with a gig bag. This seems to be more and more the norm from many makers.
I've heard that many people these days actually prefer bags.
I like a decent hard case myself. I must be getting old. ;- )
Not sure how I feel about spending 2k for a guitar and not getting a case....

And boy, the prices for an Asat these days!
Sorry to rant.

I had posted the 2023 BTO Price Lists, first in February and then the new updates in June and you should have seen that the Deluxe Case became an option with the Deluxe Gigbag becoming the standard for all BTO instruments.

See those posts:
1/1/2023-5/31/2023 Build To Order Specifications & Options
1/1/2023 BTO Price List changes ...
6/1/2023-present Build To Order Specifications & Options

I do try to keep up to date on the Price Lists and post them in the G&L Specifications and Options sub-forum of the G&L Knowledgebase forum for you all.

Thanks, Craig. I must have missed that. Any idea what the case adds? Is it available with any new G&L?

Thanks, Craig. I must have missed that. Any idea what the case adds? Is it available with any new G&L?

I would say MAP is somewhere between 99 and 101. I'd recommend contacting a local dealer and see if they would
do a deal for you on a BTO model with the Case Option. Only the BTO models have the Case Option.

I checked the G&L On-Line Store and they have a category for Cases but no items in there, so no pricing either.
It look's like they are updating the Store and might not be done yet.

Hope this helps.

G&L tolex cases are made by G&G in Los Angeles. You might be able to contact them directly to see if you can buy a case that will fit, though without the G&L logos. The were able to provide my keys for one of my G&L cases. I bought a BTO Bluesboy recently and the dealer sold it with the G&L deluxe tolex case. Oddly it doesn't have "feet" on the bottom, only on the back edge. My recollection is that G&L S & T style guitars are longer than Fender so measure for fitment if you are looking at a Fender case.

https://ggqualitycase.com/

Personally, I really like SKB cases if an OEM is not a requirement, and bought one for a Tribute ASAT. Hiscox make some excellent and very durable cases and I use them for my acoustics. They have cases specially crafted for airline checked baggage, and guarantee their function. If I travel with a guitar, I try to bring a not so great one in a gig bag and carry it on. Usually the flight attendants will help if there is no overhead space. Last time I checked a guitar as baggage I used my 35 year old Jan-Al ATA case. It's pretty much indestructible, but would probably cost $500 to check today.

I was looking at new G&Ls online tonight and noticed that most are sold with a gig bag. This seems to be more and more the norm from many makers.
I've heard that many people these days actually prefer bags.
I like a decent hard case myself. I must be getting old. ;- )
Not sure how I feel about spending 2k for a guitar and not getting a case....

And boy, the prices for an ASAT these days!
Sorry to rant.

I agree too.

Funny thing about perception. I associate "comes with a gig bag" with "cheapo" guitars.

When the knight is given an oaken box, which upon opening, reveals a shiny sword bedded in a form fitting crimson cushion: it screams something about the quality of the sword.

Now picture that same knight getting a sword wrapped in a pillow case. That more or less describes how I feel about new guitars coming with a gig bag.

Hi Guys
I just purchased a USA Fallout bass. It never occurred to me that you couldn't buy a factory case for this bass unless it came from the custom shop. Such is life, lol.

I've since learned a Epiphone Embassy Pro bass case will fit the Fallout bass. Guess I'll be carrying my D&L bass around in a Epiphone case. Good thing I love my Gibson's, lol

Hi Guys
I just purchased a USA Fallout bass. It never occurred to me that you couldn't buy a factory case for a D&L Fallout bass unless it came from the custom shop. Such is life, lol.

I've since learned a Epiphone Embassy Pro bass case will fit the Fallout bass. Guess I'll be carrying my D&L bass around in a Epiphone case. Good thing I love my Gibson's, lol

This is not true, you can order a USA Fallout Bass as a Build To Order model. The Deluxe Case will be an Option to get it.
Reference post: 6/1/2023-present Build To Order Specifications & Options.

Hope this helps.

Yeah, but I've already purchased the bass, new, from a G&L dealer on Reverb.

Yeah, but I've already purchased the bass, new, from a G&L dealer on Reverb.

Did you order a Build To Order Fallout Bass or a Fullerton Deluxe Fallout Bass?
If you ordered as a Build To Order Model, contact the G&L Dealer and ask them if you can add the Deluxe Case Option to your order.

I believe the dealer ordered a few "build to order" basses. Mine is Vintage White with a Mint colored pick guard. I don't think those colors are standard on the current production USA Fallout basses.
I'll send them an e-mail.

Thanks

I’m back to ordering the Epiphone HSC.
No help from the dealer. It’s all good!

I reached out to Shon Kornfeld (apparently no longer a G&L employee according to his LinkedIn) when they announced the gig-bag for everything but custom shop earlier this year. I was told that the G&G hardshell case would be about a $100 dealer upgrade.

Fast forward to last month when I bought a new ASAT Classic from Specialty Traders. I asked about buying a case and was told they didn't have any. I reached out to G&L on their Facebook page and got no response. The don't sell cases on the Webstore anymore either. I suggested to G&L that if they aren't going to sell cases, they should just shave that 2 inches of wasted headstock off the guitars so they fit in a standard Strat/Tele case.

I reached out to G&G and they don't sell G&L or G&L sized cases direct, and they aren't taking custom orders.

Bottom line: If you want a case for a new G&L, you are on your own. They are pretty much unobtanium at this time, and G&L doesn't seem to be honoring the "upgrade at time of purchase" promise they made when they switched to gigbgs.

I ended up returning the ASAT I bought because the bridge was installed crooked from the factory...and I couldn't get a case for it.

I emailed G&L also, inquiring about a case for my Fallout bass. I never got a response. I also inquired from the dealer I bought it from and ...... they were of no help.

There is a photo from a product review on Sweetwater showing a Fallout bass fitting in a Epiphone Embassy Pro bass case. I've ordered one, it has to be better than the gig bag!

Last edited by Bruce Peter on Wed Sep 06, 2023 9:03 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Deluxe G&L cases come standard with the CLF Research models and Custom Shop models (with a special Custom Shop Deluxe case).
The Build to Order models beginning in 2023 come standard with the G&L Gig Bag or optionally you can Option order the Deluxe G&L case.
All Fullerton Deluxe models come with the G&L Gig Bag.

From a G&L contact, I asked if the G&L Deluxe cases would be available in the G&L On-Line Store and he said:

As for the cases, there has been a shortage and we’re only using our cases for dealer orders right now.

Hope this helps.

Deluxe G&L cases come standard with the CLF Research models

Not all of them do, at least not according to the stock currently available at Sweetwater. The Espada and S-500 CLF now come with gigbags. I suspect all CLF Research models are headed that way by 2024.

Thank you for confirming G&L is no longer selling hardshell cases to the public. The G&L Premier Dealer I bought my ASAT Classic from had no stock and no ETA on stock, so I don't think dealers are getting them either. It seems quite shortsighted to make a guitar that won't fit most standard cases and then not offer a case for it. Even if it's not included in the price of the guitar, cases should be readily available from companies the size of G&L.

With all the manufacturers who have abandoned G&G cases in the last 24 months, I'm struggling to believe there is still an industry-wide case shortage. G&G has to have lost 1/3-1/2 of their business to gigbags. There are at least 7 different brands of hardshell cases in stock and available for sale at Sweetwater currently, but most won't fit a G&L.

I have a large G&L collection, >50 guitars and basses, and I have a stash of old SKB G&L molded cases in the garage. Those cases don't fit many of the newer guitars either. Right now the only case I have confirmed that fits most current production G&Ls is the Road Runner RRBTWE case from Musician's Friend. It fits even the extra-long G&L Skyhawk and Fallout models as well as all non-offset Tributes (which are even longer than their Fullerton equivalents). It's a decent quality case on par with the Fender Classic Series G&G knockoff case.

Curiously, the G&G / Fender Jazzmaster case does not fit the Doheney even though the G&G Doheney case has EXACTLY the same inner and outer dimensions. The Fender version includes a pad at the headstock that causes the case to be too short for the Doheny. The Doheney does fit quite well in the Fender Classic Series Jazzmaster case. Nothing is more sad than a mulit-thousand dollar G&L in a cheap Fender knockoff case, yet that is where one of my Doheney's currently resides.

This year I've passed on a few G&Ls I would have normally picked up had they come with cases.

I have no experience with this business, but maybe it would work for you...

https://www.accessbagsandcases.com/product-category/access-cases/

Also, Calton will build beautiful custom cases, but about $1500 on their website.

Deluxe G&L cases come standard with the CLF Research models

Not all of them do, at least not according to the stock currently available at Sweetwater. The Espada and S-500 CLF now come with gigbags. I suspect all CLF Research models are headed that way by 2024.

Thank you for confirming G&L is no longer selling hardshell cases to the public. The G&L Premier Dealer I bought my ASAT Classic from had no stock and no ETA on stock, so I don't think dealers are getting them either. It seems quite shortsighted to make a guitar that won't fit most standard cases and then not offer a case for it. Even if it's not included in the price of the guitar, cases should be readily available from companies the size of G&L.

With all the manufacturers who have abandoned G&G cases in the last 24 months, I'm struggling to believe there is still an industry-wide case shortage. G&G has to have lost 1/3-1/2 of their business to gigbags. There are at least 7 different brands of hardshell cases in stock and available for sale at Sweetwater currently, but most won't fit a G&L.

I have a large G&L collection, >50 guitars and basses, and I have a stash of old SKB G&L molded cases in the garage. Those cases don't fit many of the newer guitars either. Right now the only case I have confirmed that fits most current production G&Ls is the Road Runner RRBTWE case from Musician's Friend. It fits even the extra-long G&L Skyhawk and Fallout models as well as all non-offset Tributes (which are even longer than their Fullerton equivalents). It's a decent quality case on par with the Fender Classic Series G&G knockoff case.

Curiously, the G&G / Fender Jazzmaster case does not fit the Doheney even though the G&G Doheney case has EXACTLY the same inner and outer dimensions. The Fender version includes a pad at the headstock that causes the case to be too short for the Doheny. The Doheney does fit quite well in the Fender Classic Series Jazzmaster case. Nothing is more sad than a mulit-thousand dollar G&L in a cheap Fender knockoff case, yet that is where one of my Doheney's currently resides.

This year I've passed on a few G&Ls I would have normally picked up had they come with cases.

That's too bad. I'm not in the market for a guitar at the moment but no case could be a deal breaker for me in the future.
They should definetely be stocking cases for those that want to upgrade.

Just as an update,

I just received a "Epiphone Embassy Pro Bass Case" for my G&L Fullerton Fallout bass. It fits pretty dog gone good, just a bit long (by a 1/2" or so) in the body section but, the neck supports hold the bass where it should be and there is plenty of clearance on the headstock end.

There is a lot of soft padding on all sides of the instrument and this case will provide protection that is legions better than that cheap gig bag it comes with.

Kudos to G&L for building such a sweet bass and, SHAME ON YOU G&L for skimping/not providing/selling, sufficient protection for the instruments you build.