How do you pack your dive gear for travel?

[Troporobo]

I’ve learned a lot from the threads on packing camera gear, and now have several solutions that I’m happy with.  Thanks to those who have contributed. 
 

Now, how about your SCUBA gear?  I’m specifically looking for recommendations on the best checked-in container (duffel, hard shell, burlap sack, etc) for a short trip to tropical waters.  Just a light wetsuit, fins, boots, back-inflate BCD, regulator, mask, and the usual miscellaneous bits and pieces.  Bonus points for solutions that incorporate strobe arms and floats and other durable photo gear.  Extra bonus points for rugged durability, portability, and security from the plane to the boat. No need for it to incorporate camera gear or anything for topside as I will always have a separate small carryon trolley and photo backpack. Full disclosure: I haven’t needed to fly to dive for 20 years but am about to start up again.
 

I’m sure this has been covered on ScubaBoard but I like this crowd and feel that traveling photographers are better at optimizing space and weight. TIA

[fruehaufsteher2]

Really like and have this one:

https://www.ortlieb.com/de_de/duffle-rg+K12201

 

Rock solid, even longfins fit in.

[Giancarlo M.]

After years of travelling with soft bags for diving equipment, I switched to classic hard luggage this year. Obviously the weight is extremely important, I found a good solution with the American tourister suitcase that weighs only 3.6 kg.
Unfortunately I always travel with 2 suitcases plus camera backpack and housing bag.
I can simply tell you that I am very happy with the choice, because during transfers I am much more comfortable with suitcases that have 4 wheels.
Also you are more anonymous at the check-in counter than with a diving bag.

[Chris Ross]

I'm using a Beuchat dive bag at the moment - it's OK, does the job, but the hardware is getting rusty and looking generally beat up.  The answer I think depends on whether you are likely to have to pack away wet gear on the return trip. 

 

The zippers on the dive bag are still good, but I used another standard carry on bag for my dive camera, including hauling onto dive boats where it was exposed to salt water.  Those zippers are in poor shape and have seized up a couple of times and the zips on the outside pockets are totally stuck.  So that may be a risk for standard luggage used to haul wet dive gear.

 

On the topic of wheels, I prefer the 2 wheel versions, the 4 wheel bags are nice strolling through the airport, but get onto uneven terrain like the footpaths in many Asian cities and the 2 wheel bags are easier to handle, the wheels are also better protected than the spinner wheels.  I'm looking at the Stahlsac bags for my next dive bag seem to get OK reviews, though they are 5 and 6 kg empty.

[ColdDarkDiver]

I just use a North Face Base Camp XXL duffel and then inside it I put a Cinebag XL Grouper bag that gets all the camera bits and bobs (float arms, battery chargers) and anything I want more protected (reg setup/ couple masks). Plenty of room for fins and the rest of the stuff needed, plus clothes etc. next to the Cinbags which can be fully stuffed and still fit in the duffel.  I think the system is a good balance of weight vs ruggedness.  Then I use the Cinbags on site to move the camera around to the location, etc.  Like the OP, housing and all the rest of the stuff goes in my carry on. I do like wheeled duffels and bags, but tend to go through them pretty quick or the initial weight is enough that I easily clear the max weight for the bags.  

[RVBldr]

I've been happy with a Stahlsac Clipper bag Wheeled Dive Luggage: Stahlsac Clipper Roller Bag Luggage and it's been to Chuuk, Hawaii a bunch, FL, Maldives, Indonesia, etc. It fits the general dive gear (3 or 5mm suit, reg, BC, fins, booties, and other misc items like float arms and my CCR Breathing hoses, then clothes for a week or so, coming in at about 45 lbs. So far the bag is holding up well including zippers.

[canislupus]

In the search to reduce the weight of the suitcase itself as much as possible, in my last trip I used a very cheap Decathlon bag, 100 liters. I used also for moving the wet equipment once there.

The cons are that it has not any zip and that is very easy to open, but nowadays anything could be opened…

 

Decathlon bag

Edited August 14 by canislupus

[bghazzal]

19 hours ago, canislupus said:

In the search to reduce the weight of the suitcase itself as much as possible, in my last trip I used a very cheap Decathlon bag, 100 liters. I used also for moving the wet equipment once there.

The cons are that it has not any zip and that is very easy to open, but nowadays anything could be opened…

 

Decathlon bag

This one's nice, thanks for sharing - big fan of Decathlon  120L/100L trekking bags as well here, but  nice to see new products that would do the job!

The ones we have now are the  2x 120L FORCLAZ bags



Lightweight, and built like a tank, and worth successors of the Quechua 120L trekking bags which we'd bought in 2014 (we still have one 100L), which have on small dinghies in remote areas of Indonesia, the works. It does have backpack straps, but with 23 to 32kg in there trying to carry it on your back is not a good idea...
Last time I did that was from Sorong's old airport to the main drag to catch our early morning ride to the harbour, lesson learned, never again... 😅

Unfortunately, the new products in Decathon's Forclaz range are nowhere as good, so happy to see this Subea bag pop up as an alternative !

Edited August 15 by bghazzal

[stillviking]

On 8/15/2024 at 12:45 PM, bghazzal said:

This one's nice, thanks for sharing - big fan of Decathlon  120L/100L trekking bags as well here, but  nice to see new products that would do the job!

The ones we have now are the  2x 120L FORCLAZ bags



Lightweight, and built like a tank, and worth successors of the Quechua 120L trekking bags which we'd bought in 2014 (we still have one 100L), which have on small dinghies in remote areas of Indonesia, the works. It does have backpack straps, but with 23 to 32kg in there trying to carry it on your back is not a good idea...
Last time I did that was from Sorong's old airport to the main drag to catch our early morning ride to the harbour, lesson learned, never again... 😅

Unfortunately, the new products in Decathon's Forclaz range are nowhere as good, so happy to see this Subea bag pop up as an alternative !

 

But these bags being big, don't they have to go in the hold of the plane? It seems to me that there is a risk of breaking the material.

[bghazzal]

1 hour ago, stillviking said:

 

But these bags being big, don't they have to go in the hold of the plane? It seems to me that there is a risk of breaking the material.

Yes of course, these 3 bags go in the hold with our dive gear, wet suits, clothing, cooking ustensils and the like - wife and I have been fully nomadic (as in no home-base to come back to) for over 8 years now, so while we do stay as minimalist we do have 3x 23kg checked-in bags.
 

Fragile things like electronics, lenses are kept in cabin luggage, using utility jackets with multiple pockets to pass the dreaded 11 to 7 kg cabin luggage weigh-in.

For this it's backpacks and an ultralight 2 wheel roller-case (which is the one most likely to get weight-checked.

Edited August 21 by bghazzal