Pile O Pelicans

It has been some time since we saw a pile 'o pelicans here - about 5 years ago we had the great Ziggurat Of Storm cases and we used to sacrifice slow-paying customers on top of them until the council stepped in and complained. Now we just sell the waterproof cases to photographers.

They go mostly to people who take their delicate equipment into horrible conditions. Whale watching, fishing boats, oil rigs, snow fields, Queensland...wherever water, snow, oil vapours, sand, or dust would attack the cameras or lenses. The Pelicans are absolutely waterproof and solid enough to withstand being hold baggage on anything short of a B-24.

I use one to stand on to get above crowds at dance shows. I weigh 70Kg and haven't shot through the top of it yet.

You can get them in al sorts of sizes and with either foam or divider interiors. They have snap latches and provision to put padlocks on them.

Have a look at the heading picture and see if there is one that would suit you. Pelican-Storm have a good website that will quote interior dimensions as well.

Serious Snooping With Leica - The APO Televid 82

I suppose most of the people who will use the Leica Apo Televid 82 scope will be watching birds - or animals. Some few more might regard it as the ultimate luxury for peering downrange when doing target shooting. Yet others might watch through barbed wire and dragon's teeth at the local demilitarized zone.

Whichever pursuit you intend to follow you can be assured of the best of German optics:

Water and dirt repellent exterior coating. Padded to absorb vibration and sonar beams from Soviet submarines.

Waterproof to 5 metres, like Soviet submarines.

HDC multicoated lenses.

Flouride glass.

25x - 50x variable zoom eyepiece.

Dual-focus system - a coarse wheel separate from the fine wheel.

Iron ( plastic...) sights for general orientation.

Rock-solid tripod support foot.

Leica warranty.

This is a supremely bright scope that is not at all fatiguing to the eye - you can use it for careful scientific observation hour after hour. It is not inexpensive, but Leica quality optics guarantee that your money is well-spent.