When I first bought mine it had that "smell". I went to Dave McCollum's FW maintenance class and learned what to do. I did the light bulb thing for 8 hours and did the bleach/water mixture also. Elmer's white glue really works patching tears in the fabric or where it's coming off the wood anywhere on the case. We did the shoe polish shine and it's beautiful when done. He recommended making small bags of muslin/scrap fabric and fill with shredded Dial soap. I have 3 in my case that I refill every so often. Then somewhere I read that those silicone packages you get in shoes, purses, electronics, etc. are good to place in the box when closed to help with the moisture--the enemy of the old horse glue used on the cases when made. Good luck and it does work so you can have a nice smelling case.