Case build in the blind (1 Viewer)

[geishboy]

Would love to get some help on a case build for my newly acquired chips. I know there are tons of threads already up but at this point its a bit of information overload for me. But that's not the biggest problem I have. My chips are 8,730 miles away from me right now and when I go to pick them up, I will only be on the ground for a few days so there wont be much time to play around with options. I'm looking to build a case that can house 600 paulson chips that I can carry back on a plane with the least amount of hassle. And because I don't have them in hand, I can't measure them first to get an accurate size.
From all the posts and some independent review, I think the Nanuk case would work best with the locking mechanism to prevent any accidents on the long travel back (and I have an unhealthy obsession with lime green). But for the life of me I can't figure out which size to get. I'd love a custom mycasebuilder cutout, but without having the chips in hand i'd be afraid of ordering something that doesn't fit, so that might have to be an option for later.
As it's my first foray into quality chips and cases any help or suggestions (cases, racks, etc) would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!

 

[geishboy]

Talking to myself here I know, but also found the Pelican Vault V200C. Looks to be a good option size-wise between the Nanuk 910 and 920. Also has locking hinges, one additional layer of foam, $1 cheaper then the 910....and it comes in that beautiful lime green.
Anyone used these before?

 

[BGinGA]

Are your chips already in racks/trays?

Most of the smaller cases by Pelican, Storm, Nanook, Apache (from Harbor Freight), etc. contain pick/pluck foam (allowing you to quickly custom fit your coniguration) and will easily handle six racks.

Search in those terms (in this Storage sub-forum) to find several threads regarding specific sizes people use and how many chips they can accommodate.

 

[ekricket]

Be prepared to take them out of the case when you go through security. I’m just saying whatever you build or modify it needs to allow easy removal in a crowded busy place. The X-ray only shows them as a solid mass, so they will want to check them - and your case - out by hand.

 

[geishboy]

Thanks for the advice @ekricket, I wouldn’t have expected that. As I’m usually traveling with kids the friendly TSA interactions over accidental food and liquids (water bottles) are inevitable. Can just add chips to the wife’s complaint list.
Would simply opening the case and showing the racks be acceptable? Or will I have to show that each barrel is individual chips?

 

[ekricket]

Thanks for the advice @ekricket, I wouldn’t have expected that. As I’m usually traveling with kids the friendly TSA interactions over accidental food and liquids (water bottles) are inevitable. Can just add chips to the wife’s complaint list.
Would simply opening the case and showing the racks be acceptable? Or will I have to show that each barrel is individual chips?

Typically they want to riffle the barrels to make sure they are not a solid mass (checking for something made to look like a barrel of chips) and they always want to remove all the trays or boxes and check out the interior of the case or bag. I’ve had them do the explosives swab a couple times, but not always.

 

[geishboy]

Are your chips already in racks/trays?

Will be ordering some Paulson racks on the advice of the member I purchased the chips from.

Just worried about the fact that I don’t have my hands on everything to measure and if things don’t fit then I won’t have the time to replace/fix things.

 

[ekricket]

But I would never put them in checked bags. I would assume they would trip the bag X-ray there, and now you have someone in a secluded location looking at your chips and possibly taking them - it’s happened to someone here coming back from Vegas.

 

[geishboy]

Paying for shipping is starting to look more and more appealing.

 

[BGinGA]

Paying for shipping is starting to look more and more appealing.

That's the ticket, unless prohibitively expensive.

 

[One Eyed Dollar]

I bought an Apache 3800 case from Harbor Freight for $30 and took 800 chips to Scotland last year. It was easy to pick out the foam and put the chips in there inside Paulson/Warneke boxes. My only complaint was that the handle is not comfortable. TSA didn't really care what they were as long as they didn't trigger one of their tests. They did pull the case aside and open it and swab stuff, but then I was on my way again after a couple minutes. I had each box taped shut and I don't think they even opened one to see what was inside.

Surprising because this doesn't look sketchy AT ALL.

 

[TexRex]

If you carry them on, yes, they are going to check them. I'd make sure it is easy for them to check the boxes.

Prior to 9-11, I carried some plastic chips in the 4x25 boxes when we flew to my parents-in-law's house. I didn't even think about the fact that on an x-ray machine, they each look a bit like 4 sticks of dynamite. They did have me open it, and they were sure it wasn't dynamite. They got a good laugh out of it. On the way back, I told them what it was. They checked to make sure. I'm not sure how that would work after 9-11. I wouldn't tape the boxes or do anything that would make it hard to open not just the case, but the chips themselves. I'm sure they would undo that.

I have a Pelican case. It's secure, easy to open, and the chip boxes could be easily removed. They come in many sizes. Mine is the 1510 -- carry-on luggage size with wheels. I have no mechanical ability, but I was able to easily customize the pick-n-pluck foam for my set up. I don't remember now whether I used a box cutter or a pocket knife.

 

[Eloe2000]

Why has the regular paper/cardboard rack boxes been eliminated as a solution? If it were me I would just use those boxes and put them in my carry on. It wouldn’t have occurred to me to even try some other more complex solution. I am a photographer and travel frequently for work. My gear can look suspicious and my bags get manually checked by TSA (or in other countries) all the time and it’s not that big of a deal.

 

[geishboy]

Why has the regular paper/cardboard rack boxes been eliminated as a solution?

Going to need a case for storage anyway and it’s a lot cheaper having one delivered to the states then pay the shipping to HK. So trying the two birds one stone approach here.