This case was recommended to me by Ken Volpe of Transposure.com. It is a rugged case that just fits into the current maximum legal carry on size. This means that if you fly with camera gear you can carry it on board and keep it in your sight (probably). It is also lockable so you can get TSA locks. It has wheels and a handle.

Coincidentally the same week I began contemplating the Pelican 1501, I ran into this quote by Galen Rowell on page 170 of his book "Mountain Light":

The greatest risk to my equipment is not that I may drop a camera off the side of a mountain or that it will get plugged with desert dust, but that it might quietly self-destruct because of the steady vibrations of motorized transportation. Unless a camera is packed inside padding, tiny internal screws tend to loosen themselves as the camera jiggles under the set of an airplane or on the floor of a car, especially if it has been previously opened for repairs. I have had enough experience with loose screws in cameras and lenses that I now sell my cameras and buy new ones every so often rather than have them opened up and cleaned. The cost is not much greater, and the risks are reduced.

You have a number of choices as far as how you set up the inside of the case.

Padded dividers

They excel in convenience, but do not offer as much protection as other options. If you are basically an urban photographer and just want a way to carry your gear securely in car trips to wedding shoots, they would be fine. I am looking for a way to put my gear in a truck an bounce over miles and miles of dusty rough dirt roads.

The military (which does the kind of thing I describe), uses custom cut foam in pelican cases to transport and protect sensitive gear. So I find myself leaning towards some kind of foam for better protection. Just for the record though, one fellow says:

I used my Pelican case (1600) on a whitewater rafting expedition for 10 days through the Grand Canyon. My 5D, 20D and several lenses and accessories all stayed dry and securely cushioned. Everything stayed in place. Properly cofigured dividers can hold things as tight as foam

"The pick and pluck foam starts to disintegrate almost immediately."

You can buy a Pelican 1519 "lid organizer" and some people are irritated when they find this is not included as part of the case. You actually do not want this if you are really concerned with protecting your gear. It replaces the layer of foam in the lid, which means that there is no layer of foam above your gear. If you want to sacrifice protection to gain convenience, it is your dime. Just be clear on what you are giving up.

The following thread dicusses foam versus dividers:

• 1510 foam versus dividers

Trek Pak

• Trek Pak.

See these reviews:

• Trekpack 1510 review
• Trekpak Overland review

One of the reviewers says:

The TrekPak system also holds my gear much more tightly and offers more protection than the old divider set ever did.

Someone asked them about an "Industrial version" of their inserts and received the following reply in March of 2013:

Thank you for the inquiry Paul. We are currently working on the Industrial line which is much thicker than our Performance line inserts. Unfortunately we do not have an ETA on release of the Industrial line at this time. For the Pelican 1510, the Industrial line will take up a lot of the available space.

The performance inserts are 3/8" thick and the Industrial line is 3/4" thick. With the perimeter and one divider, you would be losing 2.5" inches of space.

Regarding individual dividers, we are working on divider kits. These should be available later this spring.

Pick and pluck foam

I was going to go with this, before I was won over to the Trek Pak system. This is an option available from Pelican. The foam is prescored into a myriad of cubes.

A suggestion is to spray the foam with "plasti-dip" to stabilize it once you get it set up the way you want it, the plastic soaks into the foam, sealing up crumbs and keeping it from tearing apart.

• Plasti-Dip

The word is to leave at least 2 layers of cubes between items, otherwise the foam entirely looses its integrity. You can buy the foam inserts separately as the Pelican 1511 foam set, which sells for about $43. This is polyurethane foam, which will degrade in time. A concern when it does degrade is that it will begin to crumble and produce particles which will find their way into inappropriate places in camera gear.

Custom cut foam

Another option is to find a local shop that custom cuts foam for cases and have them do the foam for your case. This would almost certainly provide the most protection, but you better get everything right the first time.