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Flying with Exovest


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I own Exovest with the new Steadicam Aero 30. My plan is to custom cut a foam padding for Pelican Air 1615 case fitting everything but the vest inside (attached photo), so that I have thought out. Now, the Exovest came in a cloth bag though which is great for short travels but when flying I wouldn't trust checking it in like that.

 

I was thinking about disassembling it for travels into two pieces (front and back) like vests usually do so that way it could be fitted into another mid-sized Peli case but I'm not sure if that's the best option. What solutions have you come up with for traveling with the Exovest?

post-17374-0-22997900-1479462070_thumb.jpg

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Hi Julius,

 

I have flown with my Exovest twice recently, with two different cases. To clarify I have the full size Exo, not the Exolite.

 

The first time I flew with the vest built normally inside the soft case, with that inside a Pelican Storm iM2975 case, without foam:

 

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=&sku=569099&gclid=CjwKEAiA6rrBBRDsrLGM4uTPkWASJADnWZQ4ML1GxM67RSCYzDy6tBmrCF0nbVAWYG33yFMYZEuhoBoCfHvw_wcB&is=REG&ap=y&m=Y&c3api=1876%2C92051678762%2C&A=details&Q=

 

Since I had the soft case as padding and also had clothes in the case, the vest was plenty protected. Personally I like the latches on the Storm cases because I find them easier to open with the button-release instead of just the latch.

 

The second time I used an older, small case, a Pelican 1620, again with no foam:

 

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=&sku=179144&gclid=CjwKEAiA6rrBBRDsrLGM4uTPkWASJADnWZQ4YerZLPhIh_GSw8qR9DGVns9AArtSuI7DqiprLiMzGBoCAjfw_wcB&is=REG&ap=y&m=Y&c3api=1876%2C92051677682%2C&A=details&Q=

 

This time I flew one direction with the bottom section of the vest taken off, turned around, and put back on upside-down (trying to attach a picture but having trouble). That bought me a little more room in the case, but the vest is slightly less stable that way, so on the return trip I packed it in the normal configuration. "Normal configuration" for me is a small form factor to begin with since I have a short torso and small frame, so the vest was in the smallest form it could be in to fit in this case.

 

Both ways (bottom upside-down and normal) were fine, and both cases worked great. If you're able to, find a local rental house that will let you test out a few different cases so you can find one that works for your needs before you purchase one.

 

Happy flying!

 

Lisa

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 3 weeks later...

Update - after some careful measuring, I ordered the Pelican iM2750 Storm Case (without foam) for my Exovest and received two days ago.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=email&A=details&Q=&sku=569064&is=REG So far very happy with it!

 

- The button latches on the Storm cases are a huge plus in my eyes - never a struggle to open.

 

- Does not compress the vest at all front to back (there was slight compression with the Pelican 1620). I plan to take a leaf from Chris Fawcett's book and line the inside of the case with a yoga mat for a little padding.

 

- Since I use the vest almost all the way compacted vertically, I don't have to change the settings at all in and out of the case, and there is still plenty of room for someone with a taller torso to store without having to reconfigure.

 

- Keep in mind I have the bottom section that sits on the pelvic bones fitted pretty small, so someone of a larger frame may need a different case to go in and out without re-fitting the vest every time.

 

Happy flying!

 

Lisa

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