packing and transporting my rig

For our british readers, Dive Master Insurance in England has a insurance who is 10% of the insured value, but only for british residents!

 

This hurts so much for me also, I would be happy to pay for the insurance too!!

I've recently upgraded to an E-M1 mk II in a Nauticam housing and my backpack wouldn't do the job anymore, after happily carrying my previous E-M5 etc. So I've gone to a Pelican 1510 with Think Tank dividers and lid organizer. Here is what fits:

Camera and lens are inside the housing and macro port. Then two strobes and focus light with batteries installed, Subsee diopter, wide angle lens and port, two computers, torch, vacuum pump, and loads of spare batteries underneath stuff. There is a little space for a few more small things that I could fill on top of all the gear if well padded. The lid organizer has the spare o-rings, tools, cables, diffusers, etc. Total weight is guesstimated at 16 kg.

I'm not thrilled that the housing won't fit with the handles attached, which means dealing with 12 fiddly Allen bolts each time. I can't fit chargers, arms, floats, or clamps which must all go elsewhere. I could carry the computers in a backpack (which I have in the past) and then fit the clamps and arms, but still no floats or chargers

Anybody have a more efficient packing scheme for this kind of case?

Hey Robert

I think you have done pretty well there. I've never thought of fitting the port onto the housing and having the camera/lens in the housing. You need to leave out the housing o-ring though, eh, if you fly?

It's not clear from the photo, but the Pelican 1510 has a good lid storage fitting with all sorts of zippered pockets which can hold lots of bits n'bobs. You might have that already.

You need to leave out the housing o-ring though, eh, if you fly?

 

Or vacuum port cap.

 

Or vacuum port cap.

Indeed!

I tried various combinations and didn't find that separating the port from the housing worked any better. Maybe it wouldn't work as well with a larger DSLR housing. I guess that is one advantage of a m4/3 system.

I got the ThinkTank dividers and lid organizer, mainly because I couldn't try the Pelican Trek Pak dividers in person and was a bit sceptical that they would bend as I wanted to accommodate the housing and dome port as shown. The lid organizer is excellent, much nicer than the Pelican mesh version, and will hold a laptop or tablet:

Hey Robert

 

I think you have done pretty well there. I've never thought of fitting the port onto the housing and having the camera/lens in the housing. You need to leave out the housing o-ring though, eh, if you fly?

 

It's not clear from the photo, but the Pelican 1510 has a good lid storage fitting with all sorts of zippered pockets which can hold lots of bits n'bobs. You might have that already.

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U mean it's recommended to remove the o ring from the housing when you fly? I have never done this to be honest. Any reason why?

 

 

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Only if the housing and any attached items (ie a port) form a seal when flying. The changing air pressure can "lock" the whole assembly together making it extremely difficult to remove the back of the housing or the port. There's no need to remove the housing o-ring if, for example, you have some form of plastic port cover on the port opening of the housing. That doesn't form a seal. The problem is only when the housing is effectively sealed and air - and the varying pressure - cannot move through it.

So in the case we were talking about above: flying with the housing o-ring in place and an o-ring fitted port attached (so effectively a fully sealed unit) could well result in making it very difficult to open the housing or remove the port.

I hope that explains it better!

Worse yet, with a fully sealed housing, sea-level pressure trapped inside while ambient pressure drops may cause your dome to pop out of its seal - it's designed to withstand external pressure squeezing it in, not internal pressure pushing it out - and that may require a factory repair. Therefore, when you're taking your housing on a plane, it's best to ensure that it is not sealed - keep it open, or close it without o-rings, or dismount the port, or remove the vacuum port cap, doesn't matter what as long as it can freely equalize internal and external pressure.

Worse yet, with a fully sealed housing, sea-level pressure trapped inside while ambient pressure drops may cause your dome to pop out of its seal - it's designed to withstand external pressure squeezing it in, not internal pressure pushing it out - and that may require a factory repair. Therefore, when you're taking your housing on a plane, it's best to ensure that it is not sealed - keep it open, or close it without o-rings, or dismount the port, or remove the vacuum port cap, doesn't matter what as long as it can freely equalize internal and external pressure.

The vacuum port cap is a very good idea. Certainly with the Vivid Sentinel removing the vacuum port dust cap would give you access to the valve seal which, even if disaster struck, should move and allow pressures to be re-equalised and the housing to open.

I came horribly close to this unhappy state of affairs with my first housing, a Subal for the Coolpix 5000. I had no idea of the potential problem and arrived on my first dive trip with the gear having flown with the port attached to the housing (and why wouldn't it be?) and REALLY struggled to get the housing open. Talk about panic attacks! It was only by finally getting the port to move and then disconnect that I resolved the situation. By then I was soaked in sweat.....

I think u can put more things if you pack better. I think the torches can stand straight.

 

 

Only if the housing and any attached items (ie a port) form a seal when flying. The changing air pressure can "lock" the whole assembly together making it extremely difficult to remove the back of the housing or the port. There's no need to remove the housing o-ring if, for example, you have some form of plastic port cover on the port opening of the housing. That doesn't form a seal. The problem is only when the housing is effectively sealed and air - and the varying pressure - cannot move through it.

 

So in the case we were talking about above: flying with the housing o-ring in place and an o-ring fitted port attached (so effectively a fully sealed unit) could well result in making it very difficult to open the housing or remove the port.

 

I hope that explains it better!

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A few years back Lufthansa, which was my main carrier from Europe to Asia, started to charge extra for my divebag despite the total weight being under 23kg. So I bought the biggest sturdy, but light weight suitcase I could find (120 liter Antler) and stuffed all the dive gear in one half and clothes together with non breakable camera gear (floaters, clamps etc.) in the other half. Then I would pack my carry-on with the kitted camera as I currently only own a 60mm macro lens, strobes and wet lenses. If someone complains about the carry-on weighing 15kg I show them the gear and I've always been allowed to take it into the cabin despite it being packed to the brim.

Now, I'm looking into an upgrade which could mean 1-3 lenses and 1 dome more and I don't see how that could fit in the current space so something need to change.

For those of you who use wide angle with a bulky dome, do you send two kolli in the haul, sneak in two "carry-on" in the cabin or how do you manage?

A few years back Lufthansa, which was my main carrier from Europe to Asia, started to charge extra for my divebag despite the total weight being under 23kg. So I bought the biggest sturdy, but light weight suitcase I could find (120 liter Antler) and stuffed all the dive gear in one half and clothes together with non breakable camera gear (floaters, clamps etc.) in the other half. Then I would pack my carry-on with the kitted camera as I currently only own a 60mm macro lens, strobes and wet lenses. If someone complains about the carry-on weighing 15kg I show them the gear and I've always been allowed to take it into the cabin despite it being packed to the brim.

Now, I'm looking into an upgrade which could mean 1-3 lenses and 1 dome more and I don't see how that could fit in the current space so something need to change.

 

For those of you who use wide angle with a bulky dome, do you send two kolli in the haul, sneak in two "carry-on" in the cabin or how do you manage?

Yeah, those big domes are tricky especially if you have to manage with the usual 20/23kgs baggage allowance on European flights. No clothes is my usual policy (well, swimmies and a couple of t-shirts). Pelican roller box in the cabin with all fragile u/w gear jammed into it - plus a camera bag with cameras and lenses. Everything else into my dive bag: arms, clamps, BC, wetsuit, blah blah.... It's usually 23 kgs. And I wear any extra clothes I might need! I've hand-carried the 230 domeport a good few times (in addition to the Pelican box and camera bag) and, thankfully, no-one bothered. Usually though it's in the hold-loaded bag packed inside a home-made, polystyrene-lined envelope (a big envelope!) wrapped inside my wetsuit.

I have been thinking I might end up not packing my BC and fins and renting them. That's a cheap enough option, they are heavy-ish things and items which are not as personal as, say, a reg, wetsuit or mask.

But, nope, it's never easy

A few years back Lufthansa, which was my main carrier from Europe to Asia, started to charge extra for my divebag despite the total weight being under 23kg. So I bought the biggest sturdy, but light weight suitcase I could find (120 liter Antler) and stuffed all the dive gear in one half and clothes together with non breakable camera gear (floaters, clamps etc.) in the other half. Then I would pack my carry-on with the kitted camera as I currently only own a 60mm macro lens, strobes and wet lenses. If someone complains about the carry-on weighing 15kg I show them the gear and I've always been allowed to take it into the cabin despite it being packed to the brim.

Now, I'm looking into an upgrade which could mean 1-3 lenses and 1 dome more and I don't see how that could fit in the current space so something need to change.

 

For those of you who use wide angle with a bulky dome, do you send two kolli in the haul, sneak in two "carry-on" in the cabin or how do you manage?

I have a Manfrotto D1 aviator backpack within the weight limits (almost), + a very small shoulder bag for lenses + a so called "banana bag" (the one you strap around your hips. So i disguise 16kg.

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I tried various combinations and didn't find that separating the port from the housing worked any better. Maybe it wouldn't work as well with a larger DSLR housing. I guess that is one advantage of a m4/3 system.

 

I got the ThinkTank dividers and lid organizer, mainly because I couldn't try the Pelican Trek Pak dividers in person and was a bit sceptical that they would bend as I wanted to accommodate the housing and dome port as shown. The lid organizer is excellent, much nicer than the Pelican mesh version, and will hold a laptop or tablet:

 

I am thinking about a new case for my rig, and while looking up these Think Tank dividers, I discovered that they have a line of hard cases. Any thoughts on these:

https://www.thinktankphoto.com/collections/skb-hard-cases/products/skb-iseries-3i-2011-7dl-case

https://www.thinktankphoto.com/collections/skb-hard-cases/products/skb-iseries-3i-2011-8dl-case

Thanks.

You would have to check it in most likely, keep that in mind. I would never dare checking my babies in and leaving them to the mercy of the airlines for hours and hours. I use a thinktank backpack and enjoy it altho it's seriously heavy haha.

 

I am thinking about a new case for my rig, and while looking up these Think Tank dividers, I discovered that they have a line of hard cases. Any thoughts on these:

 

https://www.thinktankphoto.com/collections/skb-hard-cases/products/skb-iseries-3i-2011-7dl-case

 

https://www.thinktankphoto.com/collections/skb-hard-cases/products/skb-iseries-3i-2011-8dl-case

 

Thanks.

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You would have to check it in most likely, keep that in mind. I would never dare checking my babies in and leaving them to the mercy of the airlines for hours and hours. I use a thinktank backpack and enjoy it altho it's seriously heavy haha.

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Hmmmm, it is about the same size as my current Pelican case, which I use as a carry on, and they state that it is "Airline carry-on approved size" so I was hoping that it would be able to stay in the cabin with me. Like you, I really hate checking my gear (have only had to do it once so far - coming back from the Red Sea, the airline personnel in Jordan were quite unreasonable).

I could probably continue to use my current Pelican case, but would need to get new foam or dividers for it anyway, so I thought that perhaps I would get a case with wheels (like the 7 series above).

Thanks.

 

 

Hmmmm, it is about the same size as my current Pelican case, which I use as a carry on, and they state that it is "Airline carry-on approved size" so I was hoping that it would be able to stay in the cabin with me. Like you, I really hate checking my gear (have only had to do it once so far - coming back from the Red Sea, the airline personnel in Jordan were quite unreasonable).

 

I could probably continue to use my current Pelican case, but would need to get new foam or dividers for it anyway, so I thought that perhaps I would get a case with wheels (like the 7 series above).

 

 

Thanks.

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Weight is more of a problem with these hard cases in my experience, they tend to get weighed. But if you're usually getting away with a hard case then I say go for it! Don't really have any input on the hard cases u mentioned tho, but thinktank is great!

 

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Hand carrying it, and pretending that it doesn't weigh much seems to help ;-}

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