Review: Pelican 1600 Case

Pelican 1600 open | filled

Product Details Details at a glance Waterproof, dustproof and crushproof 54.4 x 41.9 x 20cm Available in Black, Silver, Orange, Yellow, Green and Tan We clicked with Ultra tough, waterproof, airtight. Shots in the dark Very expensive in the UK, heavy and awkward to carry Links More Pelican information www.pelican.com

The Peli 1600 is a workhorse of many professional photographers in the US and it's easy to see why - it holds a ton of gear, it's tough and it's designed for putting in a plane's hold.

What's not to like
I'm going to spin this review around and deal with the bad stuff first. There are a couple of reasons why a Peli 1600 may not be the case for you - let's look at those before talking about why it's a great case.

1. 1) It's heavy. Like, really heavy. Empty it weighs 6.5 kilos. It's so large that it encourages you to put LOADS of kit in it and that can bring the weight right up. The specs say that it will float in salt water with 35 kilos of gear in it and it's not hard to imagine getting it to hold that much gear. In the shot above it has swallowed up a couple of D2Xs, a 30D, a couple of flash guns and some lenses. There is plenty more room inside. This is not a case to carry long distances (or at all really).
2. 2) In the UK they are relatively expensive. This is true for lots of things but it annoys me to hear of US pros happily buying Peli cases to hold everything and wondering why the rest of the world doesn't do the same. A US website is advertising a Peli 1600 with dividers for $162.90 (about £87 at today's rate). Best UK price I can find online is £224.43. That's nearly 3 times the price.

That's it, that's everything I don't like about the Peli 1600 - on to the good stuff.

What makes them worth it
Peli cases are tough. Not tough like a slightly reinforced carry case but military tough. They are classed by the manufacturer as “unbreakable” - if you break one then they replace it. That would be no consolation if your gear inside was trashed but they are guaranteed because they are tough. There are pictures on the web of landrovers driving over them. I tried jumping on one and I didn't even mark it. A couple of years ago I dropped one full of cameras off the back of a pickup truck (an accident, not a test…). The case rolled down the hill and came to rest in mud at the bottom. I hosed it off and it was fine.

They are waterproof. Again, not showerproof - throw them in the sea and they will be fine. As I mentioned above the 1600 will float in salt water with 35kg of kit in it. I have happily left one out in torrential rain for a couple of hours with cameras inside. The rubber O ring seal is similar to that used in diving equipment - lock the 4 latches and stuff inside will stay dry.

They are airtight. Fly with one and you'll find out this is true. The Peli will come out of the hold with all the air sucked out of it. Open the latches and the cases will stay closed because of the air pressure. There's a small pressure release valve that you will have to use before you can open your case.

Foam or dividers?
Peli cases come in 3 offerings: empty, with foam and with dividers. The one we tested had padded dividers that you can position with Velcro. If you've used a Lowepro bag it's a very similar system. The dividers are great because you can reposition them wherever you want to store the maximum amount of kit and give it plenty of padding. They are also very expensive. A 1600 with dividers costs £90 more than an empty one. (Yep, the dividers cost more in the UK than the case with dividers costs in the US). A 1610 (basically a 1600 with wheels) costs an amazing £148 extra for the padding over the empty version.

You can save a fair bit of money by just buying the foam but there are a couple of things to watch with this. Firstly it's a one off procedure - measure up all your kit, pluck out the foam and you will have a case with ultimate padding for your equipment. Nothing will move at all and it will be cocooned in thick safe foam. However, when you change the gear you want to put in the case you will either have to get very creative or buy some more foam. Secondly, some people are concerned about the amount of foam they get near their digital cameras. Since DSLRs are subject to dust it makes sense not to store them in a sealed environment with lots of foam fragments.

Our Verdict

If you want to fly with a lot of gear or take cameras into the great outdoors then just get a Peli. It's that simple - there's nothing that will give your gear more protection whether you are putting it in an aircraft hold or throwing it in the back of a 4X4 or taking it out in wind rain and storms. However, these cases are not for casual use - they are tough and tough means heavy. I really wouldn't want to carry a 1600 full of gear more than a dozen yards to a waiting 4X4. It's also worth stressing the price again. Pelis are quality kit - there's no mistake about that and as such I can understand the premium price charged for ultimate protection. However, I just can't understand why a plastic case would cost 3 times as much in the UK as the US. If they were available at US prices then I would own one - probably several. As it is, well I'll be sorry to see it go when this one goes back but I won't be rushing out to buy one.