Best Rifle Case For A Precision Rifle

[CapJack1234]

I’m looking for advice. What are the best cases to travel with a precision rifle. I’m anticipating some air travel so TSA compliant is requirement. Cost is not much of an impediment.

Apart from case recs, I’m curious whether you experienced competitors travel with scope/mount off the rifle or just check zero on arrival.

Thanks in advance for helping a newbie out!

 

[Baron23]

I’m looking for advice. What are the best cases to travel with a precision rifle. I’m anticipating some air travel so TSA compliant is requirement. Cost is not much of an impediment.

Apart from case recs, I’m curious whether you experienced competitors travel with scope/mount off the rifle or just check zero on arrival.

Thanks in advance for helping a newbie out!

Pelican, Pelican, and Pelican.

 

[Pink_Mist]

I got the Starlite before Pelican was a thing. I have around $450 invested due to purchasing the sealed bead foam inserts. Those are HD and will allow for sculpting. The latches are tight and require some buffing to smooth otherwise your knuckles will be F' up. The plastic is thicker than Pelican and is closer to the quality of Hardigg. Wheel kit is extra coin.

Peak Cases are pretty nice. Glow in the dark latches. Comes with a desiccant container. They offer drop fit for folders. My buddy has one for his Tikka. Felt covered foam. Non-modifiable. Heavy duty like Starlite. Zero flex.

Pelican is the one and done case for 90% of the shooters. You can buy see them and touch them at a retailer vs seeing only online. The foam is pluckable. They are less than $300. If I did not own the Starlite I would own a Pelican because of the price. I personally believe the Starlite is higher quality. I would chose Pelican over SKB unless you are toting a guitar.

 

[Gtummy]

Shop the Pelican in all the weird places and you can find deals.

 

[theLBC]

pelican, skb

 

[PinesAndProjectiles]

Pelican.

 

[clcustom1911]

Pelican, Pelican, and Pelican.

Pelican, Pelican, Pelican, Pelican.
I WIN
1750 double scoped rifle case or
1770 Transporter Case.

Get real locks like Master Lock or other good brand

 

[PinesAndProjectiles]

Was Pelican mentioned yet?

 

[clcustom1911]

Was Pelican mentioned yet?

Not appreciated

 

[Pink_Mist]

Does Pelican make something short and thick for folding chassis rifles?

 

[clcustom1911]

Does Pelican make something short and thick for folding chassis rifles?

1720

 

[pkt1199]

I'm a big fan of a drag bag (or soft case) inside a pelican.

When just driving to the local range I drag bag only, when throwing in the back of a truck for a longer drive or a flight the bag fits snuggly inside the pelican.

 

[427Cobra]

My Pelican 1750 has held up well, not once has anything been damaged, I fix 737s for living, and trust me the rampers hate rifle cases, but golf bags are there most hated bag.

 

[Tortuga]

I LOVE me some Pelican/Storm, but hate pluck and pull foam. It is nice in the beginning, then onesies and twosies start peeling and falling away. I have been messing around with Kaisen layered foam for our work cases and love the stuff. You can either buy laser pre-cut for your case or buy big sheets (Woodcrafters has a good selection) and cut-peel as much or deep as you need to go. Cuts really easy with a cheap snap-blade cutter. The best part is the foam isn't shredded after a few sessions or by the end of a deployment.
(Example only, not my stick.)

 

[theLBC]

^ kaizen foam also doesn't hold moisture, which is a potential problem if you use it for long term storage.

 

[TxWelder35]

I’ve had really good luck with my Apache case from harbor freight. Shockingly nice and good quality from HF.

 

[Baron23]

@Pink_Mist
I hate pluck foam personally and my Pelican 1750 does not have pluck foam or egg crate (another not on my fav list).
I’m about to buy a laser cut foam from Cobra Foam.

Anybody use them or have a better recommendation?

I have emailed back and forth w Cobra and they seem to accommodate all of my desires and concerns but would love a recommendation if anybody has one.

 

[Pink_Mist]

Pluck foam does suck.

I bought my KRG in 2013 and used to have my Remington 700 with a 20", 1.25"- 1" tapered bull barrel. I could case it suppressed, which was awesome because my can is direct thread. The harris which I have abandoned had a cutout, 10 round mags, sunshade, Dewey rod and guide. I nabbed this Seekins Havak and switched the two chassis' so it doesn't fit as snug to this barrel. I toss this in the back of the UTV and don't thing twice. Drag back when I hoof it.

If you cut your foam do not make the same mistake I did - carry the case scope up not down.

 

[Skg_Mre_Lght]

I’m looking for advice. What are the best cases to travel with a precision rifle. I’m anticipating some air travel so TSA compliant is requirement. Cost is not much of an impediment.

Apart from case recs, I’m curious whether you experienced competitors travel with scope/mount off the rifle or just check zero on arrival.

Thanks in advance for helping a newbie out!

Pelican, of course.

I do have an SKB that came with my Barrett that I do like, though.

 

[308pirate]

Pelican, Pelican, and Pelican.

And Hardigg

 

[Pink_Mist]

Not a single mention of Boyt.

 

[J-Ham]

Well I guess I'll chime in with a SLIGHTLY different response... I greatly prefer the latches on a Storm case to the Pelican so I run a Storm iM3300 + Precision Underground Drag Mat inside. Rifle is mega secure in the truck (or plane) & once I get there, I just pull the drag mat out & head to the line. It is hands down the best setup I've used, I couldn't be happier with it.

I'll post a picture tonight... Nevermind, found the thread:

Precision Underground Drag Mat

I first purchased a case setup like this from Larue for a precision AR that I had at the time & really liked it. While I do think the cases with custom cut foam look nice, I find it too limiting for my purposes. So I called up Precision Underground & had him whip me up one of his Drag Mats...

www.snipershide.com

 

[Baron23]

I greatly prefer the latches on a Storm case to the Pelican so I run a Storm iM3300

Storm is now Pelican. They bought them, I believe. Both product lines are on their site.

Cheers

 

[J-Ham]

Storm is now Pelican. They bought them, I believe. Both product lines are on their site.

Cheers

I know, but I believe the latches are still different... I could be wrong though.

 

[theLBC]

if you don't like pluck and you don't have the money or time for cutting kaizen, you can spray the foam with plastidip to seal it and keep it from coming apart.

 

[Numb_Skull]

https://nanuk.com/collections/gun-cases/products/nanuk-995

JSTOP15 for 15% off

 

[kimbergoldmatch]

I have an Explorer case... heavy and expensive.

Sako TRG Hard Case

Sako TRG Hard Case | Only at EuroOptic.com!

www.eurooptic.com

https://www.explorercases.com/en/

 

[bassmaster07]

FYI RTIC cases seem to be back in stock on their web site.

 

[CapJack1234]

Thanks for all the replies and input!

 

[jacer961]

Check out Peak cases

 

[HUNTERVASSER]

My GAP Hospitaller rides in a pelican. So far no issues...other than maybe I need more experience cutting foam.

 

[BuLLet]

How do you lay out the cut to them? Pictures, template?

@Pink_Mist
I hate pluck foam personally and my Pelican 1750 does not have pluck foam or egg crate (another not on my fav list).
I’m about to buy a laser cut foam from Cobra Foam.

Anybody use them or have a better recommendation?

I have emailed back and forth w Cobra and they seem to accommodate all of my desires and concerns but would love a recommendation if anybody has one.

 

[theLBC]

How do you lay out the cut to them? Pictures, template?

if you are cutting them yourself, you lay out everything on the foam and trace around it.
if you have a way to position a light directly overhead, you can trace the shadow, but the easier way is to get a skinny tipped marker like this.
obviously you need a color that will show up on the foam, so you can get silver or whatever.
on kaizen foam, the marks wipe off, but i don't know if that is true for every kind of foam being used for cases.
some porous foams will probably show unless you cut just outside the lines.

 

[Baron23]

How do you lay out the cut to them? Pictures, template?

@theLBC provided some good dope on how to do it if cutting yourself.

Another thought is to lay it out backward (length wise). That is, generally you want the butt at the end where the wheels are. Lay it out the opposite and then after cutting just flip it length wise so now your butt is at the right end and any marker lines on the foam are now underneath.

A touted tool for cutting is a sharp electric knife but I have NOT done this myself so can't comment.

My understanding is that the hot foam cutters are more for Styrofoam than the kind of foam used in these cases.

If looking for professionally cut foam, the process differs just a bit from one to another. Generally, though, if you lay it out on graph paper and take overhead pics, this will work (works for Cobra at least). Some say that they don't need graph paper but only the length of the gun and I'm guessing they calculate scale from there. But rolls of graph paper are reasonably inexpensive and easy to come by.

A hit on a lot of the rolls of graph paper that I have come across in reviews is that the grid is not precise and over a given length there will be error. I plan to just put a tape measure in the pic with the rifle.

Also, I'm planning to put my binos in this case and will take pics of thickness (side view, if you will) of both the binos and the gun just to make sure that they know the depth.

Lay it out the way you want, take pic, order and send them the pics. If there are any issues/questions, they will contact you.

 

[ACard]

@theLBC provided some good dope on how to do it if cutting yourself.

Another thought is to lay it out backward (length wise). That is, generally you want the butt at the end where the wheels are. Lay it out the opposite and then after cutting just flip it length wise so now your butt is at the right end and any marker lines on the foam are now underneath.

A touted tool for cutting is a sharp electric knife but I have NOT done this myself so can't comment.

My understanding is that the hot foam cutters are more for Styrofoam than the kind of foam used in these cases.

If looking for professionally cut foam, the process differs just a bit from one to another. Generally, though, if you lay it out on graph paper and take overhead pics, this will work (works for Cobra at least). Some say that they don't need graph paper but only the length of the gun and I'm guessing they calculate scale from there. But rolls of graph paper are reasonably inexpensive and easy to come by.

A hit on a lot of the rolls of graph paper that I have come across in reviews is that the grid is not precise and over a given length there will be error. I plan to just put a tape measure in the pic with the rifle.

Also, I'm planning to put my binos in this case and will take pics of thickness (side view, if you will) of both the binos and the gun just to make sure that they know the depth.

Lay it out the way you want, take pic, order and send them the pics. If there are any issues/questions, they will contact you.

Which foam cutting service have you used, any you can recommend?

 

[ACard]

on another note this appeals to me for a soft case, anyone have any experience with them?

Specialist 55

This line of our Specialist bags are thoroughly designed and tested specifically for the type of shooter that will appreciate the detail and thought put into it. Features on this long range precision (LRP) bag are tailored to hold everything required to make it a successful outing. Main Features...

www.saviorequipment.com

 

[Baron23]

Which foam cutting service have you used, any you can recommend?

hahaha...I haven't. Matter of fact, I opened a thread the other day ask the same sort of question. The one case I have with laser cut foam came with the gun so I have no contracted for this directly.

Laser cut foam source for Pelican Rifle Case

HI guys - I have one case that I got from a fella where the foam was cut by, I believe, US Case in N.C. https://www.uscase.com/foam-fabrication.html But, I'm thinking about using Cobra Foam to make a custom foam layer for a another rifle case...

www.snipershide.com

But, I have done a bit of research and I'm going to go with Cobra Foam

Custom Foam Inserts, Custom Cut Foam Inserts, Replacement Foam Inserts

Cobra Foam Inserts offers replacement foam inserts, custom foam inserts, custom cut foam inserts & custom case foam inserts for protective cases and dry boxes.

www.cobrafoaminserts.com

Cheers

 

[Diver160651]

Pluck foam does suck.

I bought my KRG in 2013 and used to have my Remington 700 with a 20", 1.25"- 1" tapered bull barrel. I could case it suppressed, which was awesome because my can is direct thread. The harris which I have abandoned had a cutout, 10 round mags, sunshade, Dewey rod and guide. I nabbed this Seekins Havak and switched the two chassis' so it doesn't fit as snug to this barrel. I toss this in the back of the UTV and don't thing twice. Drag back when I hoof it.

If you cut your foam do not make the same mistake I did - carry the case scope up not down.

Nice looking; but for the life of me, I can not figure out why so many people put the scope mounted rifle; scope down in the case. These cases get bounced on every side, but especially on the sides opposite the handles. The handles are generally considered to top, and the side opposite is most often where the get tossed hard in the ground. That few square inches of foam must then try to support the entire rifle weight before the turret hits the case..........

Baron23
The cheap turkey carving knife indeed works best on Polyurethane foam. That said if you can practice first, do it. Often you'll cut the outline, thinking it is the bottom, only to discover it is way easier to get the shape you want on the outline side. Any tilt of the knife, the opposite side will really magnify your errors. Mark it tight, cut outside the line from the side you want facing up, usually produces the nices look when using the electric knife.

Jt

 

[theLBC]

cutting foam yourself and the tool you want depends a lot on the kind of foam you decide to use.
i like kaizen layered foam for a few reasons.
1. although you can get it in different thicknesses if you want to cut through entirely, you can cut only to a certain depth and pull it out.
2. it is a closed cell foam so it will not absorb liquids like a sponge. this might be important if the rifle and other gear is stored in the case.
3. it is easy to cut with an utility knife and relatively inexpensive (if you need to try more than once).
4. because it is relatively soft, you can squeeze it into cases rather than having to have a perfectly cut insert (it needs to be close, not perfect).
5. the softness also allows you to cut the holes on the small side if you want certain parts to fit snugly and not fall out even if upside down.
* i should note it does not like heat. something as hot as hot melt glue melts right through it like acid.
** i have no personal experience with other kinds of foam.

there are tools for staying at a certain depth, and keeping the blade vertical. i don't have one.

 

[theLBC]

on another note this appeals to me for a soft case, anyone have any experience with them?

Specialist 55

This line of our Specialist bags are thoroughly designed and tested specifically for the type of shooter that will appreciate the detail and thought put into it. Features on this long range precision (LRP) bag are tailored to hold everything required to make it a successful outing. Main Features...

www.saviorequipment.com

that looks like a nice case, and there are probably several threads covering bags.
being one of the poors, i like this combo bag and shooting mat. comes with padded backstraps...

 

[AllenOne1]

Pluck foam does suck.

I bought my KRG in 2013 and used to have my Remington 700 with a 20", 1.25"- 1" tapered bull barrel. I could case it suppressed, which was awesome because my can is direct thread. The harris which I have abandoned had a cutout, 10 round mags, sunshade, Dewey rod and guide. I nabbed this Seekins Havak and switched the two chassis' so it doesn't fit as snug to this barrel. I toss this in the back of the UTV and don't thing twice. Drag back when I hoof it.

If you cut your foam do not make the same mistake I did - carry the case scope up not down.

Just pull your foam out and spin it around 180 degrees and drop it back in. Unless it is glued in tight it would take no time at all to change it around.

 

[AllenOne1]

How do you lay out the cut to them? Pictures, template?

I turned my foam over so I'm looking at the back side laid my rifle and other gear out the way I wanted, traced around it with a sharpy marker and cut it out with a fillet knife holding the knife as close to 90 degrees as possible. It was way easier than I thought it would be. It isn't laser cut but it looks pretty good and holds everything securely in place.

 

[Baron23]

on another note this appeals to me for a soft case, anyone have any experience with them?

Specialist 55

This line of our Specialist bags are thoroughly designed and tested specifically for the type of shooter that will appreciate the detail and thought put into it. Features on this long range precision (LRP) bag are tailored to hold everything required to make it a successful outing. Main Features...

www.saviorequipment.com

I have two Savior Urban Warfare (stupid name, eh?) soft bags and love them. I got the version in Camo as compared to the solid colors its 1000D versus 600, more padding, YKK zippers instead of ....well, zippers on the other Saviors have been reported as one of the soft spots in these cases, and of course the price is much higher.

So make sure to read the details on their page for which ever case you decide on.

Also, it was cheaper on Amazon than direct from Savior.

But I'm quite happy with my two Saviors.

 

[AirborneOkie]

Pelican for me!

 

[rfcompton]

Pelican/Storm cases with custom foam. Have several and they are great.

 

[Tortuga]

I know, but I believe the latches are still different... I could be wrong though.

You are correct, the Storm line has different latches. Center button that makes it easier to latch/unlatch.
Edit...My new im3200 came in so I can fit out my Bergara B14r.

 

[oniak]

Nice looking; but for the life of me, I can not figure out why so many people put the scope mounted rifle; scope down in the case. These cases get bounced on every side, but especially on the sides opposite the handles. The handles are generally considered to top, and the side opposite is most often where the get tossed hard in the ground. That few square inches of foam must then try to support the entire rifle weight before the turret hits the case..........

Baron23
The cheap turkey carving knife indeed works best on Polyurethane foam. That said if you can practice first, do it. Often you'll cut the outline, thinking it is the bottom, only to discover it is way easier to get the shape you want on the outline side. Any tilt of the knife, the opposite side will really magnify your errors. Mark it tight, cut outside the line from the side you want facing up, usually produces the nices look when using the electric knife.

Jt

I always wondered the same thing about people putting the scope side down.

 

[ACard]

I have two Savior Urban Warfare (stupid name, eh?) soft bags and love them. I got the version in Camo as compared to the solid colors its 1000D versus 600, more padding, YKK zippers instead of ....well, zippers on the other Saviors have been reported as one of the soft spots in these cases, and of course the price is much higher.
View attachment 7422560
So make sure to read the details on their page for which ever case you decide on.

Also, it was cheaper on Amazon than direct from Savior.

But I'm quite happy with my two Saviors.

Very nice, thanks for the solid info!

 

[Pink_Mist]

Just pull your foam out and spin it around 180 degrees and drop it back in. Unless it is glued in tight it would take no time at all to change it around.

Lol I did last night after I posted the photo

 

[Pink_Mist]

I turned my foam over so I'm looking at the back side laid my rifle and other gear out the way I wanted, traced around it with a sharpy marker and cut it out with a fillet knife holding the knife as close to 90 degrees as possible. It was way easier than I thought it would be. It isn't laser cut but it looks pretty good and holds everything securely in place.

Lay out the rifle and place some bright green 2” auto body tape under the edges until you have enough coverage to trace the rifles edges. If there are straight lines then use a yard stick. You’ll get better cuts. Next get a retractable razor. But multiple widths. Make shallow cuts but make sure you are perfectly 90 degrees otherwise you’ll get waves.