Dive Bag to Carry on All Gear

[Damselfish]

We travel a fair amount, often through Miami, and have never had anything stolen from a checked bag. We had luggage delayed for a day once going someplace and once coming back. It might sound like a good idea to carry on the gear but in reality I think very few people do, and you're definitely making compromises. If you really want to do this, instead of find just the right bag (a carry on can only get so big) you could concentrate on the gear itself, minimizing size and what you take. For example, look at some of the shorter fins.

[Wick00311]

I just bought the armor #94 Island Hopper bag from Scubatoys. They don't have it listed on the website yet, but they have it in the store. Here is the picture of the bag: http://www.armorbags.com/images/bags...and_hopper.gif
I got my BC, REG, Computer, Wetsuit, Two Masks, Snorkel and little things to fit very comfortably in the bag. It has cinch straps on the side to hold Fins if you don't check them. Also, it comes with a detachable bag to hold personal stuff with you at your seat. The bag also can be a roller bag or backpack. This is really a versatile bag that holds alot, and is pretty cheap. I think Scubatoys has it for $78.

[No Misses]

This is just a thought. I often travel for work. I need to carry a lot of electronic test equipment. I ship the test equipment to my hotel up to a week prior to my arrival. That way I do not have to carry it all through the airport. JM2c

[bubbletrubble]

I don't want to hijack the thread here, but several people have mentioned that they are forced to pack their fins in checked luggage. If the goal is to fit ALL of your gear in a carry-on and you're having difficulty fitting those big, heavy fins into 22" rollaboard luggage, you may want to look into getting some lightweight, shorter traveling fins. I've been quite happy with the APS Mantaray fins, which are vented paddle-style fins. They definitely aren't as fast as my Tusa X-pert Zoom splitfins, but they are much more maneuverable. I can do frogkicks with them, and they perform much better for wall diving and holding precise hover positions over a reef. An added benefit is that their large foot pockets allow me to wear them with my wetsuit or drysuit boots. The owner of the company is a San Diego local who allows people to try out the fins over at Catalina Island in the summer. Check out his website at:
APS Mantaray Home Page
My APS Mantaray XL fins are only a shade over 19.5 inches long. According to the dealer specs, they weigh 1.7 pounds total.

[azdiver]

What about just packing most of your gear and clothes in a regular 22" carry-on suitcase and packing your fins and a few other goodies in a mesh backpack. Depending on your gear and the amount of clothes you need on a trip you should be able to meet airline restrictions for a carry-on and a personal item.

[Jaymeany]

For the people who packed carry-ons and were rejected: what happened? Did you have to gate check or did they catch you early and you had to do a regular check? for example can I just pack a bag that is a little too big and gate check it so I don't have to go through teh hassle of waiting to pick up my bag at teh luggage claim? If you have done this how big/what bag did you use.

[azdiver]

I've never had a bag rejected as a carry on at the gate when I used to be able to fit everything in a rolling cabin size luggage and small duffle. However that was when my bc was a seapro travel pac. When that finally disintegrated I began checking everything but my regular and camera equipment through in a cheap 28" rolling suitcase!

[DRNightdiver]

A dive buddy has the Armor #89 and he loves it. I will be purchasing one very soon. It's very strong, large enough for all his gear and it looks good.