Mud & Splashproof case for rough ATV ride

[DeadPixel]

Howdy All,

I've been invited on an early spring ATV trip in northern Michigan by some co-workers and of course.... I'd like to bring my T3i with a few lenses because they tell me it's beautiful up there.  They warned me that it will likely be muddy on the trails and that I should expect to get pretty wet and dirty.

Currently the only bag I own is a cloth one that would be totally insufficient for protecting my gear and I'd like some recommendations to house my camera and a couple lenses.  Protection from the elements as well as the rough trail would be the main idea.  The ATV has a rack on the front and back that I could tie my gear down to in order to hold it. 

Looking through some old threads I found some fans of the Pelican style cases, and even found a few that looked like they might work on pelican-case.com.  Does anyone else use other brands that work well or have a different recommendation on how I might protect my equipment on a trip like this?  Or is it just a bad idea to subject my gear to this trip?

Any input is appreciated!

Thanks,
DeadPixel

[D_Rochat]

As someone who owns a few pelican cases, I highly reccomend them. I can not comment on off brand cases as I have no experience with them. Pelican can get a little pricey if you buy new, but these things are bomb proof. You won't be disappointed if you go with Pelican.

[Seanlucky]

Pelican Pelican Pelican. They're simply the best. And they really follow through on the lifetime warranty if something breaks on your case. As in they'll ship you a new case almost every time.

[kubelik]

guns and cameras alike belong in pelican cases.  go with them and you won't have to worry about if your gear is up to the task or not.  NATO trusts their gear in these, so I'm pretty sure an ATV ride will be just fine.

[mws]

Pelican for sure. They can get a little spendy, but are next to indestructible. REI sometimes stocks a random assortment (no rhyme or reason to which ones) of them if you happen to be close to one. The larger cases can get expensive, depending on how much you need to cary it might make sense to get a few smaller ones.

[kubelik]

Pelican for sure. They can get a little spendy, but are next to indestructible. REI sometimes stocks a random assortment (no rhyme or reason to which ones) of them if you happen to be close to one. The larger cases can get expensive, depending on how much you need to cary it might make sense to get a few smaller ones.

I believe B+H also stocks them and has a little bit more comprehensive supply than your local REI probably does...

[jcns]

a less sophisticated and far cheaper option is to use your current bag and put it in a dry sack.
They are waterproof and cheap.

[epiieq1]

Fully agree with the above posts.  I have an F-stop backpack for when I'm carrying my gear around, but when I'm traveling via truck, ATV, etc. I've got several pelican cases for both types of shooting (photo and firearms) and they have never let me down.  I've looked at, and even tried once, an off-brand, and it just didn't work the same.  It didn't hold up like a Pelican case, and I've made the commitment to only buying the best now.  The best way to figure out which size is to look at Pelican's site, gauge which one you need, and then look on B&H or Amazon.  I have a larger one (the 1510) with the internal camera dividers and top organizer and it's worked perfectly and I've never had any damaged gear in my travels with it.

[Seanlucky]

If you're in the states, check out Nalpak.com as they seem to have some of the most competitive pricing. While you're on there, also pick up a Streamlight ProTac flashlight. Haha this is the best flashlight I've owned. After destroying one a month, I bought one and it lasted me through tons of damaging stuff, until it finally broke. Thankfully the lifetime warranty is replacing it for me.

Sorry, back to pelicans. Padded dividers seem to be the best way to go (though they were way better when Lowepro made them for Pelican...). The Pick and Pluck foam is a great idea, but in practice it tends to detoriate and fall apart over time.

[mws]

Pelican for sure. They can get a little spendy, but are next to indestructible. REI sometimes stocks a random assortment (no rhyme or reason to which ones) of them if you happen to be close to one. The larger cases can get expensive, depending on how much you need to cary it might make sense to get a few smaller ones.

I believe B+H also stocks them and has a little bit more comprehensive supply than your local REI probably does...

Just if your not in NY and want to look at them REI is probably a little closer

[DeadPixel]

Wow, that was overwhelmingly in agreement on Pelican! 

jcns, appreicate the dry sack suggestion, but my current bag doesnt have enough padding for me to be comfortable with it riding on an ATV rack. Suppose I could always put some padding inside the sack though.

Seanlucky, I had been thinking pick and pluck foam but that isnt so good long term huh?  Thanks for the nalpak link too, never heard of them before. 

epiieq that is one beast of a case!

How well do the dividers work?  Is it just like a standard camera backpack/velcro to the sides type configuration?  Does the black foam in the lid tend to shed particles or not really? 

What I'd plan on taking in the case is my T3i, EF-S 15-85, 70-300, 100mm macro and EF 50mm.  Laying it out on my pack it easily fits inside the 14.62" x 10.18" x 6.00" of the 1450 case.  http://pelican.com/cases_detail.php?Case=1450

I see theres a little lock tab too - realistically it can be easily carried off making it moot - but how much security does that afford for keeping the case closed?  Will the latches stay shut if it bounces off a moving atv?

In terms of color, am I better off to get a silver/yellow one so that it stays cooler in the sun for future purposes or doesnt it really matter?

Thanks a lot for all the input on this!

DeadPixel

[DeadPixel]

Well the trip is over.  Turns out I didn't have to worry about mud, just dust!  We rode 91 miles in one day in the dustiest trails I've ever seen!  Even following 50 yards behind the person in front of you it was nasty.   

Honestly, I shouldn't have brought my gear - this was a group that wanted to ride, not stop and take pictures.

Picutred below, is my case strapped down to the front rack and the gear sat tight.  Just wanted to say, the Pelican was a great choice. 

[dturano]

http://www.betashell.com/