3 gun rolling gun case

[VertigoBE]

The protrusion on the far left is from the muzzle of my carbon barreled Weatherby Carbon Ti. The circular “dent” in the middle is obviously from the gun case being rammed against a piece of pipe that Delta probably had laying on the tarmac somewhere. The protrusion on the right is from the regulating tab (which is soldered in place between the barrels of my double rifle) being slammed into the end of my case. I raised hell with Delta and they got the Delta manager to come and tell me that “we don’t cover dents” ! I told him I wanted his business card and he said he didn’t have one on him. I said, fine, I’ll just take a photo of your employee ID tag on your neck. That’s when he wheeled around and covered it up. This pic is all I have of “Barry” from Delta Airlines at SeaTac. I am writing all of this because some of you wanted my opinion on this case after I used it a bit. I believe the case did its job well and I doubt that a polymer case would have contained the rifle barrels as well as this aluminum one did. Some of you were concerned that the protruding wheels would be fragile. I did not find this to be an issue after two safaris. However, On my recent safari to TZ, Qatar airways did find a way to grind a flat spot on one of the wheels so now it sounds like a boxcar rolling down a dilapidated track when pulling it through the airport. I added a picture of “Barry” from Delta at SeaTac just to give him some Exposure.

View attachment 636353

This is infuriating.

Accidents can and do happen. But at least the airline should stand behind their customer service and provide a solution.

However with the looks of that impact, I fear this was not an accident. That is a very considerate amount of force applied.

The idiot in the picture, should focus more on taking responsibility, rather than getting fake tans.

 

[BeeMaa]

(2) If you ask nicely, Kalispel may be able to repair your case. Otherwise, I am told, repairing dented aluminium is quite easy: it apparently just requires heating and it will pop back into place. (I 'know' this from an insurance assessor who told me that it is how you repair an Aston Martin's bodywork.)

Heating up a sheet of aluminum will remove the temper, making it more ductile (softer) and susceptible to bending more easily in the future. I would advise against this method.

Aluminum repair is tricky. There is a reason there are automotive body shops that are “aluminum certified”. That said, this repair isn’t a major one.

I’d start a conversation with the case manufacturer about the repair and ask if you can have a certified auto shop do it and split the cost with them to save shipping.

It would most likely involve cutting out the damaged area and welding in a new piece.

@widetrackjack - Sorry this happened but glad the rifles didn’t sustain any damage.

 

[Altitude sickness]

This is infuriating.

Accidents can and do happen. But at least the airline should stand behind their customer service and provide a solution.

However with the looks of that impact, I fear this was not an accident. That is a very considerate amount of force applied.

The idiot in the picture, should focus more on taking responsibility, rather than getting fake tans.

I agree, there is nothing in the baggage handling process that would produce that dent. And your muzzles to Protrude into the outside. Looks intentional to me.

The muzzles need more protection. So next time the case is dropped on its end from 30’ in the air the muzzles can’t slide into the aluminum. And look into higher quality foam.

 

[Altitude sickness]

Can you rivet some straps to the bottom to secure the rifles from sliding into the exterior. And add more dense foam at the ends. The type used on quality running shoes should be dense enough

 

[widetrackjack]

(1) Barry looks to be a (very obvious) homosexual.

(2) If you ask nicely, Kalispel may be able to repair your case. Otherwise, I am told, repairing dented aluminium is quite easy: it apparently just requires heating and it will pop back into place. (I 'know' this from an insurance assessor who told me that it is how you repair an Aston Martin's bodywork.)

In any case, good luck. It is teeth-grindingly infuriating that these gorillas have smashed up your case, but - thank God - at least the rifles are ok.

I’m pretty sure Barry is as queer as a three dollar bill. He was very rude and came very close to aiding me in getting my first felony assault charge. I haven’t called Kalispel yet because I wanted to wait until I got back from my recent safari. I’m sure they can repair it. I guess this is just “the cost of doing business” when you travel around the world with firearms etc… ‍

 

[Inline6]

Well, It’s been almost a year since I posted pics ect. of my 3-gun Kalispel case I purchased for my first African safari. I thought I would follow up with some pics and comments now that it has traveled to the dark continent twice. My safari last Oct/Nov with Ernest Dyason couldn’t have gone any better! My flight home on Delta was fine other than my gun case didn’t make the flight. (I suspected that it didn’t because I put an Apple AirTag in my gun case and the last location showed that it was still in Atlanta.) I checked with the lost baggage department and they said it was on the next flight. After waiting 2.5 hours in the SeaTac parking lot I went back in to check on my case. The attendant told me she would have it rushed to the oversize baggage department. Upon receiving my case from the Delta baggage department this is what I received. View attachment 636333

You are not going to heat that up and it magical pop out. That metal has been stretched. If it were mine, I would hammer the bottom flat. I would get a piece of 1.5"X1.5" aluminum angle, i would rivet that to the box to cover it up and reinforce it at the same time. Even if you need to use a 2"X2", it would still look good.

JMHO on an easy fix.

 

[steve white]

Looks like the round indent of a hammer head to me....

 

[widetrackjack]

Can you rivet some straps to the bottom to secure the rifles from sliding into the exterior. And add more dense foam at the ends. The type used on quality running shoes should be dense enoughView attachment 636498

Internal straps could potentially help keep them from traveling inside the case.

 

[widetrackjack]

Just got off the phone with Fritz from Kalispel Case and he said they would fix my case for free since they are LIFETIME GUARANTEED! I just have to cover shipping. Now that’s what I’m talking about!

 

[widetrackjack]

How much did the case and all the contents weigh?

67#

 

[widetrackjack]

To all who are following this thread. I can’t say enough about the Kalispel Gun case company! Check out the screenshot of my most recent correspondence with Kalispel.

 

[BeeMaa]

To all who are following this thread. I can’t say enough about the Kalispel Gun case company! Check out the screenshot of my most recent correspondence with Kalispel.
View attachment 636514

Good for you!

 

[VertigoBE]

To all who are following this thread. I can’t say enough about the Kalispel Gun case company! Check out the screenshot of my most recent correspondence with Kalispel.
View attachment 636514

Awesome customer service!
And this will get a lot of views for sure. Well done Kalispel!

 

[Mekaniks]

Just got off the phone with Fritz from Kalispel Case and he said they would fix my case for free since they are LIFETIME GUARANTEED! I just have to cover shipping. Now that’s what I’m talking about!

Perfect!! that's awesome.

 

[mgstucson]

Great case. Great report. Thank you so much. This has been informative in so many ways. I think I will stick a couple layers of 3/8" polyethylene (plastic cutting board) into the ends of my rifle case under the foam to protect the rifle muzzles and the case in the event of a drop. I think if anyone was trying to break into the case, they would have hammered the lid, not the base. Some anti-gun or anti-hunting type person might have damaged it for spite, or it could have simply been jammed onto a protruding pipe somewhere on accident. The fact that the rifles inside dented the case indicates to me that it was moving at speed, either dropped from height or moving on a vehicle (luggage transport trailer between flights) and then made a sudden stop on the end of a pipe. Probably just a fluke thing. Great testament to the quality of the case and the necessity of using a quality case. Typical poor service from airline I am afraid, and GREAT service from Kalispel.

PS. I use multi-gun cases like this with a square profile instead of a flat profile, and I put golfing stickers on the outside of the case. It discourages people from damaging or stealing the case because they think it has guns in it. It looks like golf clubs. I am working on putting a fake round top on one end of my cases, the end where the muzzles point, so that discourages the case being stacked that end down. It also adds to the disguise of making people think it is a golf bag.

I know, I know, I probably have too much time on my hands.

 

[wvfred]

Kalispell has some of the best customer service that I have encountered.After seeing the pictures on this thread and seeing the pictures of the wheels on the case I decided I would like to have a set for my two twenty plus year old cases.I called and asked if they would sell just the wheel they told me they would just send me a set and the extra handle for each case with rivets for all for the cost of shipping.I told them I would be glad to pay for them and she just said no.I would definitely buy their case if I ever need another but I think these are going to outlast me.They have been to Zimbabwe twice one trip to Zambia and one to Alaska not counting all the travel in the US.GREAT COMPANY!

 

[coreydb]

Great case! That is a go-to case for sure on longer combo hunts. My last hunt I went DG, plains game and bird hunting. I looked like a 12 year-old going to summer camp for the first time

 

[pc3]

I have a tuffpak ill be taking to SA in July...with 3 rifles (one is my sons). I have used it in NZ already and it performed well and is light. I think it is probable that the aluminium case will dent again, I wonder if the tuffpak material is better for this purpose ?

And each rifle will be in its soft case.

 

[mgstucson]

I

I have a tuffpak ill be taking to SA in July...with 3 rifles (one is my sons). I have used it in NZ already and it performed well and is light. I think it is probable that the aluminium case will dent again, I wonder if the tuffpak material is better for this purpose ?

And each rifle will be in its soft case.

I think Tuffpak cases are great UNDER NORMAL CIRCUMSTANCES. I have an engineering background and have studied shear, tension, compression, and torsion forces and how they effect strength of materials. I can tell you that Tuffpak case will stand up pretty well to being dropped off a cart or even off an airplane on the tarmac, or having stuff in a luggage compartment stacked on it. These are mostly compression forces. Where these kinds of polymers are not great is where shear, torsion, or tension forces are applied to them. The object that dented that aircraft grade aluminum case applied great shear force that would easily destroy a Tuffpak case. I think if a Tuffpak case took a shot like the aluminum case took to cause that dent, at very least the object would have penetrated the case, and more likely would have destroyed the end of the case. Everything in the case would then be at risk of damage, loss and/or theft. I think you are right, the aluminum case would just dent again, but everything inside would be safe. That is kind of the whole point.

I think 99% of the time the Tuffpak case will work fine. It is the 1 time in a hundred that the aircraft grade aluminum case was made for. The problem is no one knows how many of their 99 times those gorillas at the airport already used up before they get to your case, especially since they handle hundreds if not thousands of cases per gorilla per day.

 

[Javaman]

I have a tuffpak ill be taking to SA in July...with 3 rifles (one is my sons). I have used it in NZ already and it performed well and is light. I think it is probable that the aluminium case will dent again, I wonder if the tuffpak material is better for this purpose ?

And each rifle will be in its soft case.

Pc3 - trust but verify, we’ve been told on multiple trips (including by Gracy Travel) that we cannot share a gun box - each owner must have their own for their respective guns. This could be correct, or not, or maybe sometimes … in any event, we’ve each had our own Tuffpaks (love them), YMMV.