Recently I got around to building a 270mm "Robocat" quadcopter chassis I bought a few years ago that sat on the project pile. It's an interesting time to be building quadcopters that are going to weigh over 250g as now these require registration and insurance, both of which I have. However as a knock on it means that there are a lot of bargains around in terms of accessories for larger quads as people move towards lighter ones. Notably larger slightly older fpv cameras etc can be had for bargain prices. Another area where bargains abound is cases. As I have this up and flying I wanted to be able to store it and also walk it in to nice flying areas. Looking around for a suitable backpack and I came across the Lowe Alpine range of DroneGuard packs. The CS400 is a larger one in the range and a few years ago was a flagship case for them.
It's made from that kind of semi rigid material which wouldn't survive me standing on it but would survive a heavy bag being chucked on it or indeed being dropped a short distance. It has a stack of attachment points on the outside (similar to a molle system) and an outer slim pocket, not much can go in there, a phone maybe. Inside is where it gets interesting, all the internal panels and small bags can be removed and repositioned, the panels and bag have velcro that can adhere to any part of the internal case so it's very reconfigurable to its contents.
In the lid side is a small thin - I'm going to call it a briefcase - which has an excellent organiser section on the front for holding small parts, tools and cables. This briefcase can be removed which leaves the lid to act as a great area for working in when in the field as it's steep sides mean you aren't going to lose a screw or clip in the grass.
Whilst we have only walked around a km with this laden, it's pretty comfortable to wear as a rucksack, and the straps have a clever latch system that allow them to be removed. You can connect the straps together to make it more of a shoulder bag type carry.
Finally, the best bit! Remember I said that these where a flagship product a few years ago? Well it seems the original RRP could be up at £130, I got this one online, brand new and delivered for £28. It should give good service for the quadcopter, but I can also imagine using it a lot for rocketry stuff and other maker events carrying all kinds of kit, well protected, into cool places.
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