OhCripes.com

I recently purchased a new digital video camera after a really bad customer service experience I had with the manufacturer of my previous one when the dv cassette drive started seizing up. This time around I bought an entry level Samsung which has all the features I want and is at the complete opposite end of the price point spectrum of my former Sony dv camera. I had briefly looked at cases when I purchased my new camera but didn’t really find any that I was terribly impressed by. After a week or so of playing around with the camera and trying out the various functions I decided to finally get a case. This however got me thinking about an aluminum padded tool case which I already own. I had purchased this a while back from one of my favorite budget tool stores Harbor Freight; and mainly just used it for carrying cd’s and computer tools.
Let the project begin.

Needed

Hard case such as the one I bought. This case roughly measures 12″x8″x5″ $12.99

Dense packing foam of the variety used to pack computers (free)

Hot Glue and Gun (already own so mostly free)
A means to cut the foam such as a scissors, exacto or my choice: bandsaw.

Let’s get started!

Step One

Layout the camera, tapes, adapters or any other accessories you would like to put in the case.

Step Two

Next you will want to cut the foam to a more manageable size. Now I must point out that I didn’t measure any of the pieces I cut. I simply used the old eyeballs and made the cuts. If they were too large I simply trimmed them a little more. I will however provide the measurements for those who simply must know. (I measured the pieces after the fact, also they will be different for you depending on your camera.)

Step Three

Cut the right side. 7″x1.5″x2.5″

Step Four

Cut the back. 5″x1.5″x2.5″

Step Five

Cut the front. 5″x1.5″x2.5″

Step Six

Cut the Left side. 7″x1.5″x2.5″

Step Seven

Next I cut a thin layer for the bottom. 5″x3.5″x.5″

Step Eight

Remove all the foam and hot glue each piece together on the seams working from right to left. I did not glue the foam to the case itself so it is removeable yet will still stay snug as it is slightly compressed.

Finally I cut 5 pieces of foam for the lid of the case so that they came flush with the edges. These were cut out of remaining scrap pieces which were also just large enough so that they would stay in the lid due to being compressed. (2)-4.5″x3.5″x2″, (2)-4.5″x3″x2′, (1)-2″x7″X2″ I know that I could have just cut up a bunch of large 2 inch thick strips but I wanted to use up the smaller scraps I had left over.

Here is the result of all that cutting and gluing.

So for very little money and about an hour’s effort I now have a custom fitted case that will definately handle any abuse that it might receive.