Sorry to hear you lost your expensive gear when passing through my Island, but it can happend anywhere.
I lost my bag when I traveled to Haiti on '91, they just didn't unloaded it from the airplane. Since that experience, I allways insure my expensive equipment if not carry-on, you may consider this option in the future.
Back to the question at hand, I don't see nothing wrong with splitting the gear in diferent bags to meet the weight requirements and if posible carry-on your expensive gear.
just my $0.02