Peli 1640 Review

Kieron Seth#

Author: Kieron Seth#

Published 1st November 2011


It may or may not have become apparent that I love my tech. I use it, write about it, podcast about it. In fact I think I might even start shaking and suffering from mild withdrawal symptoms if I don't have a least one item of tech near me.
That said, it's important that all my lovely techy cameras and other kit are well protected. I spend a lot of time roaming the country with cameras, mics, lights, etc and having something to pack them in is of course high on the list of must haves. With IBC drawing nearer and the need to take a camera and other kit over to Amsterdam for the tv-bay / www.broadcastshow.com filming, I was more than happy to accept the offer from Peli UK to use their 1640 Peli case to put my camera and other kit in. I was taking my tricked up EX3 camera, which has a shoulder mount system attached with v-lock battery adapter etc, and of course all the other bits: mics, spare batteries, top light and so on over to Amsterdam.
The 1640 was chosen because I could get the EX3 and all the bits I needed into just one case. The 1640 is big! Not the biggest case Peli do, but pretty darn large. I unpacked the case to find it already filled with lovely Pick & Pluck foam. If you don't know what this is, it’s basically an insert made out of small foam squares that you can Pick and/or Pluck out to make fitted recesses for your equipment. Its kind of fun drawing round your kit with a sharpie, then gently picking out the foam to make the shapes you need. To me it’s up there with popping the bubbles in bubble wrap!!
I had a number of jobs before I needed to fly out to IBC and used the Case to carry my EX3 kit to jobs all over the UK. This is where the case comes into its own. Even though its BIG it seems Peli have thought about the size of their cases. Whether by luck or design this case just fits through a standard internal door without having to turn it sideways or open other doors. A little thing you may think, but when you have a tripod in one hand and the case in the other, it makes all the difference. As with a lot of Peli cases this one is equipped with a slide down handle that can be raised and lowered easily with one hand, and of course very solid wheels at the bottom. It has six locks on it and the lid makes the reassuring hiss as the air tight seal does its job when you close it. As with any Peli case, it's a solid as a rock, and you can be confident that nothing short of a direct hit from a small nuclear missile is going to damage your precious kit inside.
Now I admit I love this case. All my kit nicely wrapped in thick foam, and encased in hard black plastic gives me a warm and fuzzy feeling (too much information??)! However a small issue arose when we needed to pack for the flight to Amsterdam. As with a lot of European flights, you tend to use the budget airline, and in this instance we chose to fly from Southampton with Flybe. Nothing wrong there, the case would be accepted and even fits on the conveyer belt so did not have to be dropped at outsize baggage. The problem is the weight. Even though I had a 40KG limit this was restricted to a max of 23KG per case. The case itself without anything in it, is pretty heavy, meaning all I could put in it for the trip was my EX3 and one battery! All the other kit that fitted so perfectly in the case had to go in mine and Emma's clothes cases. Is this Peli's problem? Well no not really, but it is a problem when you want to use these larger cases for European trips. The only other small gripe I have was with the foam. It was made up of three layers, and this is great for creating your shapes, but when taking the camera in and out I found the top layer lifting off with the camera. Solution, carpet glue! A nice layer of carpet glue between the foam holds it fast.
Weight aside, I am very pleased with the Peli 1640, having everything you need for a simple shoot in one case makes life so much easier.
Make sure you follow me on twitter @jpratchett

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