Replacement foam for Pelican case

WarWagon · Post by **WarWagon** » Sun Jan 15, 2012 8:30 pm

Does anyone have a good source for a replacement sheet of Pelican foam or a suitable alternative (like the denser, closed-cell foams)? Everywhere I've looked, a single sheet of replacement foam runs about half the price of a new case! Now that I have an aluminum stock and short barrel, the existing foam cut outs won't work.

TennJay · Post by **TennJay** » Mon Jan 16, 2012 9:40 am

You might try Volunteer Foam in Livingston, TN. My Step Son had 3 or 4 inserts made for a Pelican 1750 at $7.00 a peice. The foam is whitish, but it appears to be the same stiffness, etc.

I think they normally make furniture cushions, so this may have been a one time deal, but for the difference in price, it would be worth a phone call.

Jay

jhmartin · Post by **jhmartin** » Mon Jan 16, 2012 9:57 am

Also try a shipping company ... the outfit I get our airgun trap cardboard many times has scraps they will sell at less. I have many inserts made from 2 pieces for our cases (just fit them in snugly or tape them together & then cut)

sakurama · Post by **sakurama** » Mon Jan 16, 2012 10:31 am

Cascade Foam - much better than what comes in a pelican case. Might have to buy a full sheet but call and ask about scraps or partial sheets.

http://www.toolfoam.com/

Their site shows how to cut it and if you use a different color base foam you get a nice looking cut out.

G

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Mon Jan 16, 2012 11:15 am

I have had great luck with "pick and pluck foam" which allows a high degree of customization without cutting.

I place the object I want to create a cavity for on the foam and then create an outline of the object with toothpicks. THen I remove the item and pluck out the cavity using the toothpicks as my guide. The foam has lasted 6+ years with moderate use.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/control ... Search&N=0

WarWagon · Post by **WarWagon** » Mon Jan 16, 2012 7:18 pm

TennJay - I just might have to give them a shot

jhmartin - I used to do just that. My father used to deliver to a local packing supply company back up north, and they had GREAT high density, thick foam that they let me pluck out of the scrap bin at will. Unfortunately, they are no longer in business, and I haven't found anyone local yet.

Sakurama - the problem I have there (along with many others) is that they don't have foam of an adequate thickness, and I'm not a big advocate of gluing layers together.

I have not had the best experience with the pick and pluck foam in large sheets, and prefer a solid sheet that I can cut out. I use the pins with the plastic heads to outline the object, then cut to shape.

Fortitudo Dei · Post by **Fortitudo Dei** » Tue Jan 17, 2012 2:29 am

My preference is to use Polyethylene foam (also sometimes called Ethafoam which is Dow's proprietary name for it). It is a closed cell, solid block foam (normally in white but other colours are available). It is easy (and fun!) to cut with a craft knife of box cutter and quite intricate shapes can be created. It also doesn't trap moisture in the manner that soft foams do, is chemical and oil resistant and is chemically inert itself (which is why it is used by conservators to make custom-made housings and display supports for museum objects, rare books etc). It is often used to package technical equipment and higher end computer gear so I try and grab it whenever the corporation I work for gets a new piece of kit (it's not to be confused with polystyrene which is used to package domestic grade computers etc). It often comes in sheets (about 50mm thick) which can be cut out and sandwiched together to fill up a case.

Guest2 · Post by **Guest2** » Wed Feb 15, 2012 12:39 pm

Try this:

www.thefoamfactory.com

Closed-cell polyethylene foam 1/2" to 2" in thickness available in full, half, or quarter sheets. Well priced according to my research.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Wed Feb 15, 2012 1:24 pm

for the little pelican cases (that I keep my sights in) I've had decent luck with amazon.com

Abi

WarWagon · Post by **WarWagon** » Fri Feb 17, 2012 9:58 am

Guest2 wrote:Try this:

www.thefoamfactory.com

Closed-cell polyethylene foam 1/2" to 2" in thickness available in full, half, or quarter sheets. Well priced according to my research.

Thanks for the suggestion, everything I need and pretty solid pricing there on everything from the replacement high-density charcoal foam to closed cell and the pick and pluck for smaller stuff.