How do you carry your housing?

[kevreid]

I've read the thread on how to transport the camera and strobes on the airplane, but what do you do to carry this gear onto the dive boat? Do you keep it in a case until ready to use?
I'm waiting on my new Inon strobe to arrive and don't have any kind of travel case for it yet. I'm pretty comfortable that I can fit my camera/housing/strobe into my carry-on bag, so I'm looking for advice as to what to do when getting on the boat.

Thanks.


Oly C-5050, PT-015, Inon D-2000, ULCS tray/arms

A soft sided cooler. I wrap my camera in a wet towel so it doesn't dry out between dives and keep in the soft sided cooler. After the dive, I use the cooler as my rinse tank. I found one that has velcro on the outside allowing it to be folded up flat to pack in my luggage.
I think it was Gilligan that has a photo on his website of using the kids "floaties" as padding if the cooler is too large for your rig. Pretty cool idea.

 

[getwet2]

Read the posts quickly and couldn't see the answer to my question.

If you pack your housing in your checked luggage, do you leave it open or do you latch it up tight?

 

[kevreid]

Read the posts quickly and couldn't see the answer to my question.

If you pack your housing in your checked luggage, do you leave it open or do you latch it up tight?

Latch it but without the o-rings installed.

 

[getwet2]

Thanks

 

[Scubadude]

A soft sided cooler. I wrap my camera in a wet towel so it doesn't dry out between dives and keep in the soft sided cooler. After the dive, I use the cooler as my rinse tank. I found one that has velcro on the outside allowing it to be folded up flat to pack in my luggage.
I think it was Gilligan that has a photo on his website of using the kids "floaties" as padding if the cooler is too large for your rig. Pretty cool idea.

Ahoy there !
What you do is that when boarding the dive boat you should already have your camera and strobe already setup ready to shoot. There is usually some type of container just for cameras with salt water in it. Let the camera soak in the container provided while you set up your gear. That is my routine and how I do this. There may be some who bring there cameras in cases onto the boat but that is one more thing to stow away and there is limited space on the boats. I have never really seen anyone bring a camera on board that is not ready to shoot. Just make sure that you put the o-rings in place before dunking it, if not you will have a disaster and your housing will flood. When flying take the camera and strobe and misc. items on boared with you. This is sensitive equipment and I would not check it into the baggage compartments. I also take my regs on board with me too. Well that's my 2 cents.
Good Divin & Good Viz,
George

 

[Aggie Diver]

I carry it on. Also carry on the regs. And this may surprise some folks but I also carry on my mask, thanks to a baggage handler doing a number on my bag on a hop from Maui to Oahu.

Didn't notice the hairline crack in the top of the mask until I was 100' down and water started flooding in.

 

[Scubapauly]

Just a quick note to anyone from the UK reading this thread. Be aware that on 3 of the last 4 times I've flown with dive gear leaving from Gatwick, I've had my carry on bag weighed!!!!! The baggage handlers are getting really touchy about weight. When flying to the Red Sea you are only allowed 5kg hand luggage and 20Kg baggage. One woman even went to the departure gate and re-weighed our bags before she'd let us on the plane because she thought we'd been moving gear between ourselves as we chacked in.
Having said all of that we got to Gatwick extra early on the last trip and was one of the first to check in, never got asked a thing.
Good luck.

 

[Shasta_man]

d

 

[Scubadude]

I carry it on. Also carry on the regs. And this may surprise some folks but I also carry on my mask, thanks to a baggage handler doing a number on my bag on a hop from Maui to Oahu.

Didn't notice the hairline crack in the top of the mask until I was 100' down and water started flooding in.

Good idea carrying your mask on board with you. I have seen this practiced many times. My girl and I just might do that too this May when we go to Roatan.

Good Viz & Good Divin.
George

 

[sniffette]

Hopefully people are still reading this thread...

A question for people who carry-on their camera set up: have you had any problems with TSA letting you through with any of the pieces? In particular, I can see how the strobe arms might cause a problem. If they take away a butter knife, a foot long metal rod doesn't seem like it would be allowed. The TSA website says that photo equipment is ok for carryon, but they also say that nail clippers are allowed and those get confiscated from me every time I try to fly with them.