Shipping Containers???

Hey guys, we have some potential gigs that could take us all over the country, California, Florida, Texas, and everywhere in between. For those of you that travel with your MK's or Multi's what do you use to transport? Pelican Case? Something similar? Where to buy for best price? Also for those that have shipped their gear via plane, what do you do with you're lipos? Ship them to job? Check them in luggage? I'm trying to do the safest, easiest, Cheapest route. Thanks for any help.
 

jes1111

Active Member
I've not had specific experience with MRs, but I have been moving photographic gear around for years. My experience has been that the Peli-style caes are only the right choice if you know that they are going to be seriously abused in transit. Yes, they are amazingly tough but they are also heavy (in their own right) and relatively inefficient at swallowing stuff (particularly if you use the foam interior rather than padded dividers). I now use good-quality "soft luggage" for shifting cameras, lights, etc. They provide all the protection that the Peli-type cases promise except for being driven over by a truck and being dropped in the sea (neither which has ever happened to my gear, not surprisingly). They also attract less attention.

Look at suppliers like ThinkTank and Lightware for ideas, even if you end up buying one of the cheaper alternatives.
 

Droider

Drone Enthusiast
I think Crash or Buzzed had some or they knew the make of the military style cases and there were loads on ebay.. its just they weigh a ton. I am looking at getting one made from lightweight birch ply for my ADX3 but have not had time to look in to it.

There again I aint got anywhere to take it on plane in the near future.. Off to Germany next week with it in the back of me van!
 

Sebbie

Member
I would suggest looking at the pelican large cases, i am fitting out the 1690 for my MK Hexa, cutting the foam etc for a snug safe fit, I feel its best for my needs. :)
http://www.pelicanproducts.us/p.Pelican.Transport.Case.1690.html
With the wheels and carry handle itl be ideal for pulling between terminals at the airports etc, but due to the size it'll have to go as luggage, they wont fit in the over head lockers, even on a A380 :)

Good luck :)
Sebbie
 

Bartman

Welcome to MultiRotorForums.com!!
eric,
instead of buying a case why not fit a seat to it and let it fly you to your destination? you won't need a case anymore!
i can recommend a good seat if you're interested. :)
 

jes1111

Active Member
Just to play Devil's Advocate - I've had a couple of 1690's (and other Peli's) in the past - that's one BIG case, and it weighs 43 lbs (19.5 kg)! That's your entire luggage allowance on most airlines. Having the wheels and handle is useful if that box is holding everything, but immediately becomes irrelevant if you have anything else big with you. With the soft cases I carry a sturdy folding "sack truck" in the outer pocket of one them - I can then stack/strap three large cases to it and a long lighting stand/tripod case. And for as long as I've been using soft cases I've never had anything damaged in transit.
 

eric,
instead of buying a case why not fit a seat to it and let it fly you to your destination? you won't need a case anymore!
i can recommend a good seat if you're interested. :)

My hexa lifts my camera gear just fine but something tells me it ain't lifting my fat ass! Thanks for all the comments guys, I'm gonna have to keep looking. It's a good point about the weight of the pelican cases. What do you guys do with Lipos in transit?
 

Buzzed

Member
Go to eBay and look for Hardigg Military cases. The military throws these cases out of airplanes so they are sturdy.
 

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Mactadpole

Member
I traveled to Ecuador with my hexa last summer. It was my first time traveling with a copter but I have been hauling research equipment to and from South America since 1997. I am usually traveling with 300-400 lbs. of research equipment and it is just me and my wife moving all this stuff. I have tried a bunch of different luggage and have found that tupperware bins with latches and duct taped closed inside of large rolling duffle bags work the best. NO WAY will I ever carry another large Pelican case or something similar. They eat up too much of the allowed airline weight.

For the hexa I found a long short bin at the container store that the hexa would fit in with the props off and arms folded. I lined the bin and wrapped everything in my clothes for the trip. My transmitter and lipo charger also fit in this bin along with props and other bits. The bin fit perfectly in a bag similar to this one: http://www.rei.com/product/747916/rei-wheely-beast-rolling-duffel-35. I look for the biggest bags I can legally check on the plane and when I went to buy the tupperware bin I had the measurements of the folded hexa and my roller bag to make sure everything would fit. I carried on about six 3s Lipo's (2200-5000mah) inside lipo bags in my laptop backpack. I never even got asked what they were.

This is the best way I have found to not waste weight on luggage that I need for equipment while protecting the equipment at the same time. I have traveled with this setup on every type of transportation imaginable and the only time a piece of equipment has been damaged was when the bags were thrown off the top of a bus. One of my gps units would not turn on after this. They have also been exposed to the pouring rain and as long as everything I don't want to get wet is inside tupperware and duct taped shut it stays dry.

Shawn
 


matwelli

Member
I would think a dual layer box made out of corroflute would also tick the boxes, with some plastic angle stuff around the edges, it could look quite respectable, covered in droidworx, MR, whatever stickers.

Light, strong and space efficient

a couple of internal angle aluminium rails for strength, and a convenient place to use bungies to tie everything in place
 


RTRyder

Merlin of Multirotors
I haven't measured one, but it might be possible to use a large drum case to fit a Hexa/quad/tri into and I don't think they weight nearly as much as a Pelican case. If you know a drummer you might ask if he has any or knows how big they make them.

Ken
 

I haven't measured one, but it might be possible to use a large drum case to fit a Hexa/quad/tri into and I don't think they weight nearly as much as a Pelican case. If you know a drummer you might ask if he has any or knows how big they make them.

Ken

A bass drum case is a great idea. I'll have to look into it.
 

MombasaFlash

Heli's & Tele's bloke
There is some possible overseas work coming up and this means getting transport cases organised. With MR's being such ungainly shapes there are very few off-the-shelf solutions. All-in-one road cases are available but they are made with regular music gear road case materials and will weigh a ton.

So I decided to make my own using as lightweight materials as possible, hopefully without compromising their primary purpose i.e. protection. I wanted to avoid the unmanageable dimensions of an all-in-one case and I don't want to have to do a full dismantle and rebuild every time with booms being removed, or even loosened off and swung in line, because quite apart from the sheer aggravation, things will start to wear and get loose. So I have decided to live with a partial dismantle with the AD-8 split into two: airframe and skids/mount.

The airframe case is still pretty large, being just shy of a metre square, but with the reduced depth it is at least manageable.

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R_Lefebvre

Arducopter Developer
That's fantastic. Are the plywood or? Where did you get the aluminum strip?

FWIW, you can use a good quality truck bed liner on plywood to create a really tough, and fairly professional looking surface. You certainly can't see that it's just plywood.

I actually got some wood cut to make a case for my 600 heli last year, but never go around to assembling it.

Jes, I have the same opinion about Pelican cases as you. Something else I'm into is "expedition" type off-road trucks. Most of these guys have a SERIOUS Pelican case fetish. They use them for everything, and it's really unjustified. I've seen them put firewood in them. (gotta keep it dry!).

Pelican actually has an add in one of the magazines where they claim their cases are "rollover proof" if you put things in them on the roofrack. I keep thinking "Well maybe if you didn't have 100's of pound of stuff 7 feet up on your roof rack, you wouldn't rollover so much." I only put lightweight stuff up there in drybags. If I rollover, my sleeping bags getting squished is the least of my worries!
 

MombasaFlash

Heli's & Tele's bloke
Other than the primary objective to have a case to transport and protect the gear the main aim was to keep them as light as possible. It is not plywood. It is a plastic sandwich - much like the corrugated cardboard of a regular cardboard box only in plastic. It is 40% lighter than the equivalent thickness (4.5mm) of ply and much easier to work with.

It probably won't stand up to really serious abuse but with the lids on they are stiff and strong.

All the materials came from an outfit in Germany that supplies all sorts of mainly music related gear, Adam Hall
 

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