Black box technology: Pelican’s plan to protect you and your gear

OK, so you’d rather spend your hard-earned cash on the latest camera, not the box it goes in. But did you know a new road case can save not only your equipment but the cash in your wallet as well?

Enter the new Pelican Air case: 40% lighter than previous models, but just as sturdy. That means less weight on your arm as you schlep gear from set to set, but it also means a real reduction in shipping costs if you have to FedEx your gear around the country.

So how did Pelican manage to cut the weight so radically without affecting the protective strength of the case? According to the company it was use of a new polymer resin with a greater flexibility combined with  a honeycomb infill to reduce weight while increasing resilience. So, nothing you’ll notice when you look at the case, but something you’ll immediately feel when you pick it up.

As anyone who’s been at this for a while knows, the outside of a case is only half the battle. It’s how snuggly things are organized inside the case that  ensures your gear arrives unscrambled. To that end, Pelican offers two different kinds of inserts in addition to the cuttable foam: padded dividers and their TrekPak system.

Now padded dividers will work, but as time goes on they always seems to get displaced and disorganized. The TrekPak system will set you back just a few extra bucks but the sturdiness is worth it. It mixes the benefits of custom foam fitting with the flexibility of dividers. The divider panels can be cut to specific sizes and are then clamped together with U-pins. This make for a solid and secure fit, but allows you to add or remove dividers as your configuration changes (something you can’t do when cutting foam).

All the other conveniences you expect from a good road case are there: extending handle for wheeling, solid latching, automatic air pressure adjustment and a water-tight gasket.

So while you’re taking out a second mortgage to pay for that new Alexa, think about the case it’ll spend its life in. The Air case could save you a few bucks on shipping and in the long run, thousands of dollars in expensive back surgery.

The full range of Pelican Air cases are available now at Filmtools.com