Open question to travel divers with monsterously large housings.

[Tzetsin]

Hi folks, i'm traveling over seas for the first time with my shiny new nauticam housing. I've neve rhad the pleasure of using it yet and was wondering how other peolple transport these things both on the plane, and too and from the hotel to the dive site.

I'll be shore diving where I'm going (mactan island, Cebu philippines) and will have to transport this bulky unit and all its extras from the hotel to the dive site via taxi.

I've got a pelicain case here in Canada that I store all the good stuff in, but its freakin huge and heavy, so I don't want to be taking it on the plane with me.

Theres got to be an intelligent way to transport these things.

Equipment is:

Nauticam 1Dx housing
extention rings for 16-35mm
9" dome
100mm macro
flat macro port
4 flash arms with floats
2 flashes

 

[PatW]

I have a case with wheels for camera gear. My strobes, housing, ports, arms all go in the case as a carryon. The camera body and lenses go into a small backpack as a personal bag.

 

[Tzetsin]

How big is your housing? Im looking at my airport carryon bag and it doesnt look big enough.

---------- Post added October 5th, 2013 at 04:20 PM ----------

Actually, i just read my airline's carry on rules. 1 bag 22lbs 21 inches and one personal artical 17 inch 22 lbs. My thinktank shapeshifter bag is only 17 inches and the camera/lenses shouldnt reach 22 lbs, I put my housing and related gear into the 21" carry on wheeler and its 25 lbs without the dome, flash arms, floats and sync cable. I can put that stuff under the plane though and hope to god it makes it.

This leaves me with two bags that are easy to get in a cab and to the dive site.

Thank you for the advice I never thought in a million years that thing would fit in the carry on wheeler!

 

[Tzetsin]

Alrighty. I made it with all my gear fingers crossed i'll get a chance to use it in the next couple days

 

[ossgraphics]

Thanks for your advice and suggestions. That would fit the idea of my framework. Thanks again!

 

[cbrich]

If you have a pic of your carry on, please post it. I leave next week for Vancouver, but with a smaller housing (Nikon D7000) and 105 macro. You have a monster underwater camera system.

 

[Tzetsin]

Hi, I'm sorry i don't have a picture of the setup in the bag, but I can show you the bag I used. that bag is actually a "camera" bag, so thats why it is so expensive, but just about any "carry on" roller bag will work.

I didn't get the dome in the bag though, I put that under the plane bunched up in my clothes. it doesn't weigh much, but a 9" dome takes up a LOT of room. Your housing is a lot smaller than mine, and you're not bringing a dome, so you should have no problem getting your body, the port, a couple flashes and arms, all in one carry on roller.

Yes, my system is definitely huuuuuuuge... But it handles pretty nice underwater, and the 1Dx takes some pretty flawless images

 

[Nwcid]

I have use a Nikon D90. It is in an Aquatica housing with 8" dome port. I have 5"x8" UCLS arms holding YS-250 strobes. So this is not a small rig by any means. What I do is just fold the strobe arms over the housing, which also covers the focus light, and then used a 1" velcro strap I had as a handle. I then carried it on as my "personal" item. It fits easily in the over head. I get a few looks and lots of questions about what it is. I have flown with this or a very similar set up (previously had a D70) 3 times in the last 18 months with no problems. I do take the strobe cables off and take the O-ring out of the backdoor.

 

[doctormike]

I have a Canon 7D in a Nauticam housing and I switched the big dome port for one of the Zen 100 mm fisheye dome ports - they work great, and much easier to pack. Not as good for over-under shots, but otherwise optically excellent.

Everything (including two strobes, the fisheye port, the macro port the lenses and camera) fits well in my ThinkTank security carryon bag.

Mike

 

[rickeyf413]

One other thing to consider is weight some airlines have weight restrictions. I'm heading to the Philippines next April and I believe for domestic flights the weight limit is 15lbs.

I'm going to pack all my extensions, floats, cables, etc. in my check-in rolling dive bag to hopefully get under the weight limit.