a smelly Case

[Michael Walls]

My tenor horn case, being rather vintage has a distinctive aroma of essence of Foist, does anyone know of a way to remove same, I think I may have to replace the lining of the case.
michael

 

[2nd tenor]

Replacing the lining might be possible but how easy it is to do, what skills are needed to do it and what suitable material is available to recline it with I really don't know. If the case belongs to your Band then they would need to be OK with that work being done to it too.

The problem isn't that unusual in that I've read about it before but on another forum and some years back. If you use the advanced search function on the Trombone Forum looking for the key words 'case' and 'smell' in thread tittles then it does throw up some suggestions for you to consider. Set Search Parameters.

As a start the simple thing to do would be to leave it open outdoors (or maybe in a greenhouse) with the sun shining into it for some days, but perhaps you have tried that already.

 

[Accidental]

Upholstery cleaner with Febreze and lots of fresh air.....

 

[Michael Walls]

Thanks. Will give those a try, its my own so I can try what ever might help.its made of ply, not the old compressed cardboard, so as its basically sound I would like to restore it

 

[4th Cornet]

Hi Mike. I've just Googled 'how to get rid of musty smells' and found lots of advice. There's probably something there that would be suitable for your case. It seems that Alex's suggesting is good.

 

[Michael Walls]

Thanks will have a look
Michael

 

[Hsop]

Hi Michael

I refurbished the interior of a Besson cornet case recently. I removed all of the old fabric and replaced it with a similar dark brown velvet material that I purchased reasonably inexpensively from a well known online auction site. I used strong industrial type, double sided tape which holds the fabric to the wood shell casing securely. There was some remains of glue after removing the original fabric which I used a small sanding tool to remove. It is relatively time consuming but nice to have the original case looking as new.

Regards

 

[Michael Walls]

Hi Michael

I refurbished the interior of a Besson cornet case recently. I removed all of the old fabric and replaced it with a similar dark brown velvet material that I purchased reasonably inexpensively from a well known online auction site. I used strong industrial type, double sided tape which holds the fabric to the wood shell casing securely. There was some remains of glue after removing the original fabric which I used a small sanding tool to remove. It is relatively time consuming but nice to have the original case looking as new.

Regards

Thats really encouraging its just what i will do, I want to preserve the original which is in good basic shape thanks for for help
Michael

 

[Michael Walls]

Hi Mike. I've just Googled 'how to get rid of musty smells' and found lots of advice. There's probably something there that would be suitable for your case. It seems that Alex's suggesting is good.

Have looked on google and have now filled the case with cat litter, ( dont have a cat but i got a big sack of litter ,as a sockfull on your dashboard stops condensation)on top of plastic sheet, and closed it up and left in garage for a aday or 2 see what thats like, then in with fabreeze
Michael

 

[Jack E]

Cat litter - now there's a thought, Michael - but it makes sense. Anything that can overcome the smell of cat pee has to be pretty potent stuff! Please let us know how you get on.

Jack

 

[Michael Walls]

Cat litter - now there's a thought, Michael - but it makes sense. Anything that can overcome the smell of cat pee has to be pretty potent stuff! Please let us know how you get on.

Will do. I will probably have to replace the velvet inside.
My son bought a lot of instruments off ebay last year to equip his school band
All the cases had this smell some worse than others. Strange how metal seems to aquire the odour.
Michael

 

[Michael Walls]

The odour so far
Does not appear to have diminished
I think it will be necessary to remove all the old lining and start from there

 

[Stanley Accrington]

Michael. You refer to your tenor horn case as being rather vintage. I'm presuming it's old enough for the outer part of casing to be of compressed wood/paper or if really old, wood construction. If this is the case then maybe the odour issue is partly due to the hard casing and not just the lining. If lining is "furry" (not cloth) then a can of foam cleaner could be sprayed onto/sponged into lining. Leave to dry then hoover off excess with hoover attachment.

 

[Stanley Accrington]

Going a little off topic folks, but the case of the BBb Bass that a local band has so kindly lent to me smells of beef dripping, bleach and a hint of germolene. I quite like it because it reminds me of my late mother. Her 'pinny' always smelled of those odours/products.

 

[Michael Walls]

Michael. You refer to your tenor horn case as being rather vintage. I'm presuming it's old enough for the outer part of casing to be of compressed wood/paper or if really old, wood construction. If this is the case then maybe the odour issue is partly due to the hard casing and not just the lining. If lining is "furry" (not cloth) then a can of foam cleaner could be sprayed onto/sponged into lining. Leave to dry then hoover off excess with hoover attachment.

Hi
Yes it is a wood case so you are probably right I will try that treatment next.I think it has diminished in strength but I do not put the horn in it at the moment
Mike