I have decided to get a hard case for my shamisen, since i had already two unfortunate accidents, i realized i need to protect my instrument more, well was just browsing the bachido store, and i like the pack case. it looks compact, i can carry it on the shoulders…
does anybody have one?? any comments on the product???
how long would it take to get it in to ireland??
ta
I have one, which I highly recommend. Frankly, unless you are going to be rolling your car over your shamisen on a regular basis, I haven’t seen much reason to not get a pack case. It’s perfectly safe to put in cargo on a plane, you can carry it on your shoulders, and it’s cheaper too!
Personally, I don’t think I have any real negative comments about it (and I’m not saying that to sell product. It’d be cool if the inside pouch was bigger to fit a bachi case, but even so, it rocks hard.
Grant has one too. Our arms are so happy, as those hard cases get a bit heavy when carrying 'em all over Tokyo.
It’d take less than a week to reach Ireland, methinks.
I’ve got one and the only thing I’ve been wondering about is what to do if it starts to rain 
Simple. Stay out of the rain. 
Just kidding (well, not saying that statement isn’t true ). I would say that is it’s only flaw. However, if you’ve got a brolly, it shouldn’t be any problem.
I was actually caught in the rain with it on my back in Tokyo. Fortunately, I had just been to Katou san’s shop, and he gave me a plastic bag the length of the case.
I have a pack case, and it’s great. Sturdy enough that I don’t miss having a harder case, but light enough that I don’t see any reason to use a soft case instead. Haven’t had to test it in any heavy rain.
Simple. Stay out of the rain.
(!)
Just kidding (well, not saying that statement isn’t true
Yeah just saying that rain is the thing I see as a problem. An umbrella? The problem is that we usually have horizontal rain here 
I think it would be the same with Ireland. And I also read at a news site that Japan will be getting a storm tomorrow. Staying out of the rain may be easy in sunny California, but we’re doomed
I was actually caught in the rain with it on my back in Tokyo.
Plastic bags shouldn’t be that expensive. I would definately buy one together with my case if it was a sturdy plastic bag that leaves enough space on one side to tie together.
How do you keep yours on the back?
I’ve been in a light drizzle with mine several times and an umbrella seemed to do the trick.
Forgot to mention that I really don’t like the pouch inside of the case. It’s too small to be of use, there’s no room for a bachi case or music book.
The problem is that we usually have horizontal rain here
Oh, when I said “caught in the rain”, I meant downpour. It was going rather diagonally, but that just meant angling the umbrella a bit more.
Plastic bags shouldn’t be that expensive. I would definately buy one together with my case if it was a sturdy plastic bag that leaves enough space on one side to tie together.
I think it was the plastic bag that came with the original case, so that could always be included for free. Being a regular plastic bag, holes could form easily.
Ooh! A more durable solution would be a poncho! Some military surplus ponchos are made from rubberized nylon, and so would look and feel great as an outer case.
To be realistic, it is still a rather thick case. Even if it gets a little rain, it’s not gonna immediately soak through the entire thing.
Eric, yeah. It’d be cool if the pouch was made bigger. I can only use it for strings, cards and such. You’d think that’s something that would have been changed long ago. I mean, why the hell can’t I fit in my Mypressi??
We had a typhoon yesterday and it directly hit our area. My shamisen lesson was yesterday morning and somehow could avoid the most windy and rainy time. The storm was hardest in the evening here.
My hard case always perfectly protect shamisen but I really envy the weather like California.
Now because the hard case is very heavy, I am beginning to think of getting lighter case for a dry day.
We are entering into the rainy season and everybody in Japan except ones in Hokkaido, have to worry about how to keep shamisen skin away from mold.
Have a happy dry day!
Kyoko! Were you okay in the typhoon? Is is safe to drive and be outside?
We are entering into the rainy season and everybody in Japan except ones in Hokkaido, have to worry about how to keep shamisen skin away from mold.
It was interesting hearing a shamisen skinned in Tokyo and another skinned in Hokkaido. The one skinned in Hokkaido had a significantly sharper sound and the craftsman there said it was possible to stretch it tighter because of it being drier.
Birds move south for the winter to stay warm. So if anyone in Japan wants to migrate to Santa Cruz for the winter, I have nests available!
Thank you for your consideration, Kyle. We are quite fine and yesterdays typhoon is gone. Another typhoon is coming, though.
Last night we could not get out of the house.The whole family was
Packed in the house safely.
Would like a migration over the ocean!
Buy the case. It’s the best overall you could purchase. Great for travel, sturdy, and has plenty of room (slightly less than a standard hard case).
The clips that connect the straps at the bottom both broke on mine, which I consider it’s only weakness. I replaced the clips with key rings, and it’s holding together good-as-new.
As far as water goes, you should have a 3 bags over your shamisen to protect it from moisture, as well as your case. Paper, plastic, and cloth. I have packed mine this way since the day I got it, and even through the rain in CA and Japan, the skin lasted over 10 years.
If you are going somewhere during a downpour, then you should invest in a poncho like kyle said if youre serious about staying dry. The plastic bag came over mine too, but I didn’t keep it unfortunately.
I’m not sure there are ponchos that will fit it. I mean you have a hole for the head and all. If the case gets a little bit wet I’m sure it will eventually suck up some moist which will be inside the case until properly dried.
Three bags, man you are serious! It will be interesting to see how long mine holds as I only use the two first bags. Do you tie a ribbon around the bags or not? I do this and it feels like it should pick up the moisture enough. Definately something to consider when travelling though.
But people should buy the case. You can most likely get custom made heavy duty hard cases that will survive a tank driving over it. These kinds of hard cases are used by serious musicians. However they come at a much higher price and will be much more heavy. They are more or less designed for the tough life of being in a tour bus.
As for the little pocket inside, I still find it useful although I agree that it could have been bigger. I might try to modify mine to hold the bachi and Kyle’s book. Right now I have my two komas, my yubikake and should I travel also my spare strings in that pocket.
thanks guys you have convinced me, I am getting パックケース. it is perfect for me. Even-though in Ireland its rainIng nearly everyday, many times, we get rain, sun, rain and lovely rainbows all the time…its raining now…
my shamisen has synthetic skin, so i am not so worried about the rain, i just dont want to break it anymore… twice was enough, first time, the day of the concert and the second time the day before… wonder, what will happen next?? perhaps i should just smash it during the performance…
No i wont, would have no shami then…
and will definitely change those strap clips, cause thats whats failed last time…
i am surprised there is no place for bachi. i don have a bachi case, have got very nice bekkou bachi made of horn thou but only put the cover, for the very tip, from my nagauta wooden bachi on it.
i use a wooden koma from my old shamisen, want to order new comas as well … was reading about komas in another thread, and i think i need to hear it, Zouge and Bekkou koma? still dont know the difference…
was reading about komas in another thread, and i think i need to hear it, Zouge and Bekkou koma? still dont know the difference…
Episode 6 of the Bachido Blogcast is all about koma. I think you’ll be able to hear the difference in tone.
Cool profile pic Sid. I’m confused though, is that an old pic or did the skin break again?
i have two shamisens, an old jiuta one with broken skin, i play it at home sometime, put a pencil instead of koma and place it so the sound is completely muted and i can play in the night, cant play with the bachi thou, use a guitar pick and practice the left hand… i also have tsugaru shamisen, the one that got broken twice, have really nice bachi from hibiki so can be trashing smashing,
which koma do you prefer and use yourself???
the picture was taken yesterday
i want to buy new koma, have wooden jiuta one, and plastic tsugaru, have a fright of breaking or loosing one… need more, and perhaps can improve the sound of my shamisen a bit too, dunno, what to order thou… was thinking of getting one bekkou and one zouge koma and see what its like…the blog is great but it feels like every koma is different…
Zouge for sure bro
Personally, I’m a fan of Zouge. Initially, it was because my shamisen skin was stretched so loose, it was a major way I could get a sharp-ish sound.
I thought that might change with my newest shamisen, but zouge makes it sound even better!