Pelican 1624 (1620 case w/ 1625 Padded Dividers) Black Case Review

joedotbrown wrote in post #7863453
Thank you so much for this review. I've read it through several times and I went ahead and ordered a Pelican 1624 OD (Olive Drab), and decided against the lid organizer. I won't receive the case for another few days (BandH), however I saw it in a store yesterday and I was so disappointed that the handle wasn't as comfortable as other Pelican models. The lower (15XX) models have a rubberized piece that makes the grip more comfortable and bigger. On the 1624, there is just the hard plastic (thin) along with the ridges that make the grip unpleasant. Oh well. I know it's a heavy beast and that I'm not going to be carrying it, like you would on the smaller versions - but still. My purpose is primarily for home storage, and taking all of my gear on a trip, in the trunk of the car.

Yea I didnt like that the handles werent the nicer ones either, but like you said this is not a really a hand carryable case. At 60lbs+ and as big as it is I never use those handles anyway.

Great review.. I have been beatign myself between a 1624 or a 1614... The 1624 is the maximum allowed size for Checked Baggage so the 1654 is not an option since I do not want to pay extra every time I travel with my gear... Have you tried using this one for carrying strobes?

telles75 wrote in post #7885309
Great review.. I have been beatign myself between a 1624 or a 1614... The 1624 is the maximum allowed size for Checked Baggage so the 1654 is not an option since I do not want to pay extra every time I travel with my gear... Have you tried using this one for carrying strobes?

I dont own any strobes sorry to say.

telles75 wrote in post #7885309
Great review.. I have been beatign myself between a 1624 or a 1614... The 1624 is the maximum allowed size for Checked Baggage so the 1654 is not an option since I do not want to pay extra every time I travel with my gear... Have you tried using this one for carrying strobes?

Rafael, I have the 1614 (for my Ranger outfit), and from looking at the specs, the 1624 is only 2 inches deeper than the 1614. This does not look like enough room to stand an RX600 on its end inside the 1624 (there is definitely not enough room inside the 1614, and the 1624 does not look deep enough either). So, if you're looking at Pelican cases 1624 or smaller, you would have to lie the strobes on their side (even the 1650 is shallow, actually slightly shallower than the 1614). You will easily be able to fit two RX600 plus cables, some reflectors and accessories, etc, inside a 1614.

Cool! Thanks Rudi.. So I guess not a real space advantage from the 1614 to the 1624? I am curious to see how your gear fits on the 1614 on the other thread.. Hope you have the time to post some pics in the next couple of days

Will post pics as soon as I have them. How many lights are you planning to carry inside the Pelican, Rafael?

I have 2 DLites which I will replace soon for 2 600RX but by the end of the year I hope to have 3 600RX. I want to see if the Pelican can hold them instead of buying the case from Elinchrom since they are almost the same price and I trust Pelican better

telles75 wrote in post #7885819
I have 2 DLites which I will replace soon for 2 600RX but by the end of the year I hope to have 3 600RX. I want to see if the Pelican can hold them instead of buying the case from Elinchrom since they are almost the same price and I trust Pelican better

The 1614 will easily hold three RX600 plus cables, Skyports (if you have them), sync cords, etc. I actually have the Elinchrom case that holds three strobes (got it with my RX600 kit), so I can snap a pic for you to see the size difference. Believe me, the Pelican 1614 is more than enough! The Pelican is about an inch shorter in one dimension, but is larger in the other two dimensions, and will have more room inside because of the padded dividers (the Elinchrom case has moulded foam, which is much less customizable).

Well the Pelican 1610 plus foam is $192 (B&H) and the Elinchrom case is $216 (B&H) so for $22 less I think the Pelican is a better case (and a tiny bit bigger too). That will be amazing if you could post pics of your strobes in both cases, will help me so much making my mind. I know you have the 1614 so the dividers might look different than using foam, but will really give me a good idea how they will fit. Thanks in advance for your help Rudi

I will post images with the Ranger packed inside in a couple of days or so, but for the time being, here is the Pelican 1614 alongside the Elinchrom hard case. These photos show you the difference in size between the two, but what you cannot see is the difference in build. As I put it in a conversation with a good friend of mine, the case is typical Pelican - it *looks* like it could kick sand in the Elinchrom case's face, eat its lunch and beat up its father, all with one hand tied behind its back. You can tell by all the dust on top of the Elinchrom case that it doesn't get used much...

Here they are, side-by-side:

BTW, I'm going to take back something I wrote previously. I just took all padding out of the 1610 case and the RX600, with only the protective cap attached, fits vertically inside a naked 1610! Only just! No room to spare. This would indicate that it will fit inside a padded 1624, but it might be a really tight fit with the padding! The only way to tell would be to try it (or find someone with RX600's and a Pelican 1624.

Rudi wrote in post #7886209
BTW, I'm going to take back something I wrote previously. I just took all padding out of the 1610 case and the RX600, with only the protective cap attached, fits vertically inside a naked 1610! Only just! No room to spare. This would indicate that it will fit inside a padded 1624, but it might be a really tight fit with the padding! The only way to tell would be to try it (or find someone with RX600's and a Pelican 1624.

Thanks Rudi..I appreciate a lot your time doing this

Awesome review!! I am getting ready to place an order for the 1624, but I am waiting for a response since we want green and do not see it on the web site we are ordering from.

I looked at some of the other models and posted the reason I am discarding them from the purchase...

1630:
*This case has internal wheels and/or a handle wells that will reduce usable area.
*Also, storage dividers don't appear to be small lens friendly like the 1625.

1640:
*This case has internal wheels and/or a handle wells that will reduce usable area.
*Square shaped

1650:
*This case has internal wheels and/or a handle wells that will reduce usable area.
*Not deep enough

1660:
*This case has internal wheels and/or a handle wells that will reduce usable area.
*Weighs almost twice as much as the 1620.

I laid out the dimensions of the 1620 & 1660 on the ground to really see the difference between the two regarding length and width. The 1650 is definitely a monster and proves it with the weight of 42lbs The 1624 will serve my g/f and I well for a while. We will just purchase a 2nd 1624 when we are getting ready to out grow the single case. Ah, his and hers Pelican cases... just one of the many reasons she is a keeper!!

JJD, they all have "internal wheels and/or a handle wells that will reduce usable area". It's not an issue, since they are just small wheel wells in the bottom two corners of the case, but worth mentioning...

Rudi wrote in post #7934948
JJD, they all have "internal wheels and/or a handle wells that will reduce usable area". It's not an issue, since they are just small wheel wells in the bottom two corners of the case, but worth mentioning...

Oh ok, thanks for clearing that up. The printout for the 1620 was the only one that didn't have "internal wheels or handle" printed on it.

Hopefully hear back tomorrow regarding the green case and place an order. Thanks again for the info