Harry,

I am curious how you pack two rifles and two peoples kit in a Tuffpak and keep it under the 70lb required by the majority of airlines?

Case = 17 lb
2 rilfes plus softcases clean kit ect 24 lb
ammo for two rifles 8 lb
boots & shoes for 2 people 4 lb

That takes us up to 53 lb before you start packing any clothes which leaves 17 lb for clothes for 2 people for 24 days?

Regards,

Pete

I don't really feel like bothering to look them up, but there have been posts on here about guns being damaged in a Tuffpak. If I recall correctly one broke at the grip. I'm confident that Harry read it and responded for what it is worth, so to claim that he's never heard of any damage is laughable.

BTW, I still don't know how people get as much in their Tuffpaks as they claim. It's all I can do to get 2 rifes, a couple coats and a few small misc. items. Not sure how people are fitting boots, cloths, coats, binoculars etc...

I like the product, but have to agree, for what it is, it is over priced.

Ok Ok cut Harry some slack. The guy is just trying to turn a buck to pay for his next hunt. If you got $ to burn spend the $300+ for the Tuffpak if you still work for a living try doing what I did with a SKB Golf Travel Case.
I have both ,both work but one cost me <$100

When I first packed a Tuffpak I could not get all that stuff in there either. I found that by trying multiples of times I got better each time. My wife is a wizzard at packing one.
We don't take as much ammo as maybe some but we have always had more than needed. We don't have heavy boots as we both hunt in walking shoes (New Balance). With meds and stuff we take what we need for only the days we will be gone. We tear off instruction from box, pack that and the pills etc in zip lock bags, We have three sets of shirts, pants for each of us and our "airplane clothes" we have on of course. A clean golf type shirt and undies are in the backpack just in case rest of luggage goes missing for a day. The fleece jackets we normaly have with us as we sometimes need them on the plane.
We found it is easier to travel using the Tuffsak duffel than it was before we had such a thing. Our first trip was before the Tuffsak was offered and we made it fine but it is easier to have the sak as you can get to stuff quicker if needed.
I will admit that my wife is much better at packing the case than I am.
In my daypack I have buckwheat pillow, candy, booze, binocs, camera,diary, paperback book, clean golf shirt and skivvies, the fleece jacket is over my arm as I normaly need it on the plane. Wife has used before a large lap top computer brief as a purse and she has lots of her stuff in there plus her fleece jacket and quickie change of top and undies. The rest is in the Tuffpak. We do weigh everything before we go to make sure we make the weight limits. Sometimes it is very close.
My daypack is one that Charles Helm, fellow AR member, located on Cabella's site and it is the German rucksak. I think it would hold a TV set if necessary. Has inside divider and two outer pockets with covers. Leather bottom, waist belt and padded shoulder straps. Was $15 as I recall.
GMaxson...I would like to read about the damage you claim and to see if in fact I responed. If so then I was mistaken in my statement but I do not recall damage to a firearm that can be attributed to Tuffpak. As to you not being able to not get much in I don't know how to respond to that other than don't take anything in its original packaging. Most outer packagin is a space waster and only a way to hog market space on the store shelf. We use many zip lock bags, 39 gal trash sacks to place stuff in and the fact that the bags are slick help them find a nich to ride in.
We put socks inside shoes, little things like that. We try and leave no wasted space.
If wife decides that we will need some "dressier" clothing for the time in Cape Town then she may pack the after five dress, my blazer and slacks in a small roller case (the pop up handle type) but that is only if she decideds we have to gussie up.
If that is the situation we will then have the Tuffpak, my rucksak, her purse the roller board case (which fits under seat or in overhead)and she will pull the small case and I will pull the Tuffpak.

Harry,

North Americans are lucky in that even when travelling "cattle class" they get a generous luggage allowence. The rest of the world flying outside of North America is generally restricted to 44lb plus say 10lb hand luggage..that is again cattle class..

What bugs me is that many airlines allow golf clubs and similar in addition to your luggage allowence ( ie free) where as they "offically" treat gun cases as part of the allownce.

I say "offically" because my gun case was not weighed when I travelled with Virgin earlier this year and I have had other folks report the same, but "officially" they could include it and with excess luggage being charged at somewhere around $15 per lb each way, a hunter could have a nasty shock at check-in!

Regards,

Pete

Pete, I am with you and how about surfboards, windsurfers, snow skis, etc. I get hostile when they want to treat a gun case (any gun case) as something different from the rest of the above.
I never saw a gun case take up the room a wind surfer does.

quote:

Originally posted by Harry:
GonHuntin

Next...I failed to see / hear and would like too...any instance where there has been damage to a firearm in a Tuffpak. I have sold (excuse me...pimped) many of them and I am in the Tuffpak booth at Dallas, Houston and Reno and I have yet to have a person come by and tell me of one instance where damage was done to their firearms while using this case. Quite the opposite in fact. I have had many people tell various horrow stories of Tuffpaks being run over by trucks, dropped off the loading belts while being loaded into the belly of the plane, thrown out of the baggage train and laying in the rain on the runway etc. etc. Not ONE firearm was damaged.

Oh REALLY????

Took me just a few second to find this one? Notice, you responded to the thread...... Desert Ram shows photos of the rifle stock broken while in his TuffPak and Mike Smith tells of having his scope tube bent while his rifle was in a TuffPak.....

rifle damaged in Tuffpak

Her's another one, you posted on this thread too!:

rifle damaged in TuffPak

Dr. Duc
one of us

Posted 16 March 2005 08:16
My hunting buddy had his Tuffpak really smashed in transit by SAA handlers last year. The front sight was knocked off a Ruger 77 and the top of the pak was crunched. He pryed it out enough to use it and I think the company replaced the top-at least they offered to. This rifle was in a soft case and padded by dirty clothes. It took quite a whack.

I STAND CORRECTED and I see where I did respond to two of the messages. In the broken stock Sako post I will still stand by my post there. I blame the stock and not the Tuffpak. I think that stock would have broken sooner or later no matter what case it was packed in.
As to the other bent scope tube I have no idea how that could happen.
Most likely the front sight missing was in fact due to damage to the case although in my years of gun dealing both pvt. and retail I have seen more than one front sight (ramp and all) come off from "things" much less that what punishment this case must have taken. I once had the whole front sight come off a Sako Mannlicher stocked rifle as I was pulling the bbl. band over while removing the stock. It cost me a re-blue job. That sight just flat fell off...not so evidently in on the Ruger.
I have opened up a well known American made rifle new in box to show a customer and found the front sight laying loose in the foam.
I also noted that none of the cases were unusable after the abuse...that is something you can not say about most cases taking that kind of abuse.
YOU WERE CORRECT AND I WAS WRONG. Now what?
I will make the comment that that is 3 known incidents out of thousands of cases sold to date and or hundreds sold to AR members alone.
Please accept the invitation to stand in the booth at any of the shows and hear the un-solicited comments from customers stopping by.

Harry, I by golly swear I cannot afford to pay the airlines for all of the extra stuff that I can get in my TP. I am leaving 9/6 for Zim but because I live in Alaska and must overnight in Atlanta before continunig on (trip not in the same day) I do not get the 70 lb weight allowance for an International flight. I am stuck with 50 lbs. out of Juneau. I have weighed & re weighed my two pieces of luggagee and have it down now. I like my TP period. If done/packed poorly anything can fail. Some of the detractors feel like they are on a roll of nortority, personally I will enjoy my trip, post NO pictures and continue on with my life. I have been reading this wire for several years now and in my very humble opinion it is headed on a down hill angle. Too many Experts with little or no compassion for the lesser or "ignorant" soles that don't understand others standards! Steping down now off of my high horse, I love the space of the TP.