Airline Approved Gear Bags

My husband & I have travelled with all our gear in our Pelican case for years -- the past few years it's been getting more difficult and more expensive! It's considered overweight AND oversized resulting in an extra $80 (or more) each way depending on the airline -- and some of the smaller planes just refuse to carry it! I have been researching new gear bag options but here are my concerns:

1) since most travel results in changing flights part way -- I like checking-in our gear so we don't have to cart it around during a layover.
2) since we all know the great care airline employees take in delicately transporting and storing our expensive gear as we travel, I really prefer a hard case (which I know results in additional weight)

What are my options? Are there super-strong, puncture resistant cloth bags?? What are other divers using???

I'm in the same boat (no play on words intended) !! I have a large hard shell case but for this last dive trip (liveaboard in Belize) we bought 2 of the big wheeled canvass bags and checked them. One was from REI and had a rubberized/nylon bottom and the other was from EMS and was just thick, high strengh cordura.

Ironically, the REI bag came home with some pretty sizeable puncture wounds on the bottom. I took some bicycle patch material and sealed up the slits.

The other bag was dirty and showed signs of abuse but the bag itself was intact and everything inside was undamaged. By the way ...we got the TSA approved locks and secured the zippers to keep the handlers honest. We discovered that one lock had been openned when we got to Belize but there was note inside from TSA explaining that they had done a manual search and then relocked the bag.

I'm still thinking of carrying some sort of hard shelled case on board with my camera stuff but it seems like the large canvass wheeled bag has become our choice for checked luggage.

'Slogger

We quit using gear bags a few years ago. Now I carry my reg, script mask, bathing suit, extra change of clothes and my UW camera in my carry on and we use regular luggage for our gear. It's less of a red flag too that there is gear inside. We also use colored zip ties on the luggage, put them on at home if we are not going international, or after they go through customs search if we are going International.

Well, most bags designed for dive travel are fabric if that tells you anything, though I would suggest a mainstream bag without dive logos. (Opinions differ on whether these will attract more attention, I figure might as well avoid it.) I think best is really semisoft, some sort of rigid bottom, which most bags with wheels will have. More structured and durable but still squash down for storage on a liveaboard or wherever.

I put reg/mask/computer with a few other things in carryon, all the rest in a wheeled duffel. (We have these.) Fins on the bottom or sides, heavy stuff towards the bottom, BC and misc gear near the middle, wetsuit toward the outside, clothes whereever works. Pack carefully with soft stuff to pad anything that needs it, I've never had anything damaged nor punctured in many trips. The fabrics in bags intended for travel are plenty tough. (Bending rather than breaking is often an advantage.) I used to use a hard suitcase and had more trouble with that.

Search for luggage or duffel here and you'll find lots of suggestions.

Wow Damselfish ...those are NICE bags. Ours are the same general idea but not nearly as padded and ballistic looking and I think we paid around $70 for each of them (on sale).

We put everything inside but the camera and a couple small backpacks with personal stuff. BCD slightly inflated on the bottom with everything stuffed inside and the waist band fastened. Fins around the outside and then all the other stuff (mask, snorkel, lights etc.) in the top zip pocket.

'Slogger

Yeah, we love those bags. Not cheap but I did get a decent deal someplace. They're not actually padded, that's just the way they have it stuffed for the picture.

For years we used some inexpensive wheeled canvas duffles we got for like $29. They actually did pretty well but were starting to wear. And they only had a handle sewn on the end opposite the wheels rather than a built in cart, and no structure, so they were sloppy and awkward to haul around. Before that we used hard sided suitcases we already had that did not like being stuffed with heavy damp gear.

Husbands camera gear goes in a carryon size generic hard case.

DH and I both own a Tusa BP-2. Plenty of room for BC, fins, snorkel, misc equipment. (The up front fin compartment is slightly short for hubby's fins, so he puts his inside the larger compartment with BC). There is enough room for the above equipment plus other packing needs such as clothing. I like to put some of my clothing behind the BC to pad it. We carry our regs, computers and camera equipment with us. The bag has very comfortable backpack straps should the need arise. ie: down stairs, across beach/sand, or rocky areas. Otherwise, the rolling wheels work great. The bag is within airline requirements and has no logo that is obvious. We always have a personal inspection before we put our own tie wrap and locks on. Sue

worktodive:

My husband & I have travelled with all our gear in our Pelican case for years -- the past few years it's been getting more difficult and more expensive! It's considered overweight AND oversized resulting in an extra $80 (or more) each way depending on the airline -- and some of the smaller planes just refuse to carry it! I have been researching new gear bag options but here are my concerns:

...

What are my options? Are there super-strong, puncture resistant cloth bags?? What are other divers using???

Click to expand...

Lighten up! <G>

My daughter and I, and a few friends, can travel for 2 to 4 weeks of diving with carryons - a 21 or 22 inch rollabaoard and a shoulder bag weighing less than 45 pounds total. Keep essentials in the shoulder bag and check the rollaboard if you like/must.

A woman on a 3-week touring and diving trip in Egyypt and the Red Sea about a dozen years ago motivated me to lighten up; she did it, including a Nikonos 5 and strobe and all he dive gear except weights and tanks, with a rollaboard and shoulder bag.

Cynde:

We quit using gear bags a few years ago. Now I carry my reg, script mask, bathing suit, extra change of clothes and my UW camera in my carry on and we use regular luggage for our gear. It's less of a red flag too that there is gear inside. We also use colored zip ties on the luggage, put them on at home if we are not going international, or after they go through customs search if we are going International.

Click to expand...

That's what I do too. The rest of the gear gets put in a large duffel with wheels or regular light weight luggagethat was made to carry only clothes. What I do is pack all my clothes around the rest of the gear I can't or don't have room to carry on. Good luck, we are all going through this!

I was watching that show, "Made in America" the other day on TV and the Pelican company was the feature of that segment. Really cool company and some nice products but I kept thinking that they must be taking a big hit since the 50 pound limits went into effect.

As for lightening up, that is harder these days. In another thread I mentioned that the last few times I flew, the airlines had full flights and were being VERY strict and making passengers with even small rollaboard luggage check it at the gate.

One thing I do is force myself bring only half the clothes I think I will need. I never run out of clothes and if I do, I simply have my laundry sent out to be done, hey it is vacation! Easier for guys of course as we only wear a bathing suit most of the day on a trip to say Bonaire.

Shameful Oceanic | AERIS Plug

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Both Oceanic and AERIS have a wheeled carry-on bag just for this purpose - fits a full set of warm water gear and weighs just over 20 lbs (with Travel BC - large, reg, hoseless computer, full foot fins, mask, snorkel, and 3mm jumpsuit).

I have gone to carrying my gear on the last two trips - I will never go back.

OCEANIC AT-PAK 4: http://www.oceanicworldwide.com/p_bags_atpak.html

AERIS NOMAD: http://www.diveaeris.com/p_bags_nomad.html