Topic: Gear Bags and Cases

[Brian Skalinder]

I gleaned most of this information from posts to the Oade Brothers and TapersSection forums.  Thanks to all the contributors - there are far too many to list individually.  Please contact me via PM here at TS.com or directly (bskalinder@yahoo.com) if you find any inaccuracies or have information to add.  Of course, I cannot guarantee information accuracy, so use at your own risk.

GEAR BAGS / CASES


Gotta schlep all that gear around somehow, right?  I used to use a Pelican case, but grew tired of lugging it around, plugging and unplugging my gear before and after every show to fit it into the smallest Pelican case possible.  Nowadays, I'm thrilled with my MountainSmith Cairn lumbar pack setup.  While my Cairn isn't super cheap, it also is less than 1/2 as expensive as some of the field recording specialty bags and in my mind just as functional.  Compact, reasonably protective, easy to schlep!  Some popular options:

Complete Gear Bags and Cases

Targus  (http://www.targus.com/)
RakGear
RakGear Kickflip

LowePro  (http://www.lowepro.com/)
Various camera bags suitable for our needs

Pelican  (http://www.pelican.com/)
1400  |  13-3/8"   x 11-5/8"  x  6"
1420  |  15"       x  8-1/2"  x 10-1/2"
1450  |  16"       x 13"      x  6-7/8"
1500  |  18-1/2"   x 14-1/16" x  6-15/16"
1520  |  19-1/8"   x 15-7/16" x  7-9/16"
1550  |  20-11/16" x 17-3/16" x  8-9/16"
1600  |  24-1/4"   x 19-7/16" x  8-11/16"

MountainSmith  (http://www.mountainsmith.com/)
Cairn lumbar pack
Blaze lumbar pack

Sonic Sense  (http://www.sonicsense.com/)
SoniCase

PortaBrace  (http://www.portabrace.com/)
Portabrace

Kata  (http://www.tiffen.com/kata_index2.htm)
SunDo
Koala

Promaster
Various SLR camera bags which are suitable for our gear
MIC CASES


Tupperware  (http://www.tupperware.com) (or equivalent)
Add foam from your friendly neighborhood crafts store.

Pelican  (http://www.pelican.com/)

Toothbrush Holders (no joke!)

[Stumptown Matt]

So I went to the link posted above and they have good prices on stuff so I thought hey I'll get some replacement foam for my pelican 1150.  So the foam costs $7 so I go to check out and the cheapest shipping is UPS ground for $7.60 .  Now how much can foam weigh.  I hate companies who only offer UPS or Fed Ex.  3 day priority mail through the post office is less than $4 (at least for foam).  UPS ground is almost twice as much and takes twice as long. WTF?
Alright I'm done ranting.

So after searching for a while and repeatedly finding rediculously high shipping costs I checked B&H photo and they had the foam for $5.67 with Fed Ex 3-4 day shipping $4.95 so now Matt is a happy boy

[greenone]

Just picked one of these up for $35 at a local camera store and thought I'd recommend them:

http://www.promaster.com/bags.html

I've got the Promaster 740, which is enough to hold a V2, a D8, a D-cell sled for the D8, a 12v Eco-Charge gamma, mics, shock mounts, cables and all the miscellany that goes with doing what we do. There's a zippered pouch on the front, a small mesh pouch on the right side, and a zippered mesh pocket on the inside of the lid. It's subdividable with velcro walls (though I took everything out) and is deep enough to hold the V2 standing up with the cables coming out of the back and still close snugly.

--Dave

[blu666z]

http://www.otterbox.com

They don't sell anything directly, but they do have links to people you can buy them from.

-Kevin

[Tim]

FWIW I just picked up a new bag...

I now own the u89s and a DAP1 too so my little FOB bag wasn't going to cut it. I went out and picked up a Tamrac camera bag. I got the Tamrac Pro System 10, model #610. This is a pretty durable bag, waterproof and holds everything in place. The minime lays down lengthwise in transport and stands up when it is ready to go. The P1 and my 2x6v batteries fit perfectly horizontally in the bag. There is plenty of room left over to fit the mics inside the main compartment. I can lay my windscreens across the top and once I get my new shockmounts I'll let ya'll know where those fit in.

On the front are two smaller pouches with inner mesh pouches as well. Perfect for clamps, t-bar, tapes, light etc. Between those pouches and the main compartment is a big zippered pouch which holds my 15' mic cables perfectly with plenty of room left over for extar cables. On either end of the bag there is a smaller and reinforced pouch which will be perfect for blank tapes.

I really like this bag for non-stealth situations.

www.tamrac.com/610.htm