Pelican Case Question

Hey all -

Well, it's time I used something other than an old tater sack to carry my Mamiya C330f kit. My search of the APUG forums found no answer to my question.

I'm thinking of getting a Pelican case, 1520 or 1550. To those of you who use Pelican cases - which would be the better interior for a camera case, the "Pick-N-Pluck" foam or the adjustable padded dividers? I'm hoping that at least one of you has used both, and can describe why one would be preferable over the other. It will be used for storage and ground transport only.

The company I work for uses lots of Pelican cases, but we only buy them with the foam. I've never seen the padded dividers for myself. Pelican's web site has no detailed information about the dividers, even though model 1510 with padded dividers is often promoted as a camera case.

-Thomas

I bought a few cases with the foam. I have replaced the foam with the dividers. I found the case with the foam limited storage space. It also locks you into one configuration. Plus the foam deteriorates a bit as you take equipment in and out. What I have found with the 1510 roller case is the insert pulls out and easily transfers to a Kelty backpack. So I can have the Pelican case for transport and move it to a hiking pack for when I get to my destination.

I suspect the foam will protect the equipment better if it's being tossed around an airport, but with care you can pack the divided case well too.

I have several and prefer the foam. It holds better when getting bounced through the airport or on a dusty road in the bad lands of Utah. The one downfall of the foam is that if you want to change things it may be best to get some new foam. But that being said, I have never had the need to rearrange the foam or get a new block, just have needed to buy more cases.

I have a Peli 1510 wheelie case and it's great for travel but I carry a soft case for when I reach my destination. With the Peli dividers (comes with foam in the lid) I can fit in 3 Mamiya 7 bodies, 5 lenses and a Sekonic meter and a few bits, so lots of gear. This wouldn't fit in a case with foam. The dividers are very similar to what you find in Lowepro and other soft camera cases. They won't protect as well as foam but you can fit more in the case. I have a B+W case, similar to a Peli, with foam and bits fall out with regular use so gear isn't held quite as snugly after a while. The 1510 is also small enough for carry-on on many airlines but if they decide you can't carry on it's sturdy enough to survive going in the hold. Dave

I have neither. I have a Lowepro Omni Trekker case that fits snugly inside the 1550 ( in fact they were till fairly recently sold together as a unit). As soon as I got to a destination the Omni Trekker came out of the Pelicase and I had my shoulder bag ready to go in maybe ten seconds. Sadly I think Lowepro discontinued the Omni series though they might still be pockets of new stock available, or used. Must confess i bought a second when I heard of their discontinuation.

I have several Pelican cases, some with foam and some with dividers.

The advantage of foam is that it is more secure. The disadvantages are several though. It is rather bulky so you cannot fit as much gear in the case. The foam is more likely to ear out or break off with frequent use. The foam does not get along with water very well should it be expsoed to rain when opening the case. The foam requires that you get everything right the first time when trying to arrange gear and the foam makes no allowances for future changes in gear or taking different gear on different trips.

The advantages of dividers are that the foam cures all of the problems of foam listed above. The only disadvantages of dividers are cost and slightly less support. In some of the cases with wheels, there is a plastic hump that intrudes into the interior of the corners of the case that is not covered by the divider padding. So that could cause problems if your gear is getting banged around so I try to place some padding, or a darkcloth, in that area. Also, using the dividers means that you might have more empty space than with foam. For example, placing a relatively small lens in a space might result in some wiggle room. I compensate for that by packing my socks in the dead space or packing some microfiber cloths, or stuffing a darkcloth in there. You don't want to leave room for rattling around if you are travelling by plane, train, bus, etc.

So if I am going to carry things like film holders, or a laptop (not for photography!), then I buy the foam. For camera gear and lenses I get the dividers.

Thanks for all the responses. They pretty much confirm what I was thinking about foam vs. dividers.

We occasionally end up with some sizeable leftover blocks of the "Pick-N-Pluck" foam at work when we have large items to put in Pelican cases. I think I'm going to go for the adjustable dividers, and add foam where needed - a hybrid solution. I hope that works the way I'm envisioning it.

-Thomas

I just recently bought a 1510 case with the padded dividers. I'm storing my lighting gear and backup camera body. I had some experience with foam but I knew that I might want to change my gear around and the dividers made it much easier.

That being said, I do noticed that the padded dividers do not offer much padding, especially near the wheel area. It's thick enough to be rolled around the parking lot, and stored in a truck of the car, but I wouldn't feel confident transporting an expensive camera as there's wiggle room for jarring. As a possibility you could wrap the camera bodies in bubble wrap or a cloth wrap, just to take up the extra space.

Also they sell a kit that adds pockets to the lid. I almost bought this until I started to think about loosing the top foam protection. As when you add the pockets, there's no lid padding anymore.

BTW you can find some used cases on KEH.

robscomputer said:

That being said, I do noticed that the padded dividers do not offer much padding, especially near the wheel area. It's thick enough to be rolled around the parking lot, and stored in a truck of the car, but I wouldn't feel confident transporting an expensive camera as there's wiggle room for jarring. As a possibility you could wrap the camera bodies in bubble wrap or a cloth wrap, just to take up the extra space.

Click to expand...

Thanks for that. I was wondering just how much padding the dividers provided. Sounds like some camera wraps might be in order, like those carried by Freestyle.

robscomputer said:

Also they sell a kit that adds pockets to the lid. I almost bought this until I started to think about loosing the top foam protection. As when you add the pockets, there's no lid padding anymore.

Click to expand...

I was considering a lid organizer until I realized it would replace the eggcrate foam in the lid. I'd rather have the extra padding of the foam. I'll find another place to stow the miscellaneous bits and pieces.

robscomputer said:

BTW you can find some used cases on KEH.

Click to expand...

Yeah, I took a look at what's currently in stock at KEH, but I think I'm going to need something just a little larger than what they have.

-Thomas

I use the Pelican 1510 with dividers. I like the dividers as they can be configured each time as to what I may need at a gig. One important thing I like about the 1510 is that it fits in most overhead storage bins on commercial airplanes. When I do destination photography, I like keeping my cameras in a carry on. Once though I had to take a small plane to my final destination and had to check the case. I took out the expensive stuff and kept it with me. A pain but I like being careful rather than sorry.

Hope this helps you.

David Henderson said:

I have neither. I have a Lowepro Omni Trekker case that fits snugly inside the 1550 ( in fact they were till fairly recently sold together as a unit). As soon as I got to a destination the Omni Trekker came out of the Pelicase and I had my shoulder bag ready to go in maybe ten seconds. Sadly I think Lowepro discontinued the Omni series though they might still be pockets of new stock available, or used. Must confess i bought a second when I heard of their discontinuation.

Click to expand...

Pelikan now sel thier own case that fits the 1550 (and also the 1510 I think) as a replacement.