“The day finally came for me to fly to Seattle where I would meet Randy for the drive to Salmon, Idaho. As always, I fretted over sending my rifle into the belly of a plane and through the hands of people who could not begin to imagine the importance of what that hard plastic case enclosed – not just a metal and wood tool, but a connection to a heritage begun the day my Dad first hunted in his home state of Iowa. Within 30 seconds of picking up my rifle case, it was lying open and I was experiencing a release of tension as I gazed at the intact stock.” (My Dad’s Elk)
The article describing my hunt for a trophy elk in Idaho reflects only one of the times I have entrusted custom-built rifles and shotguns to the protective shell of my SKB Double Rifle Case. Some of the other instances in which the SKB case provided security from damage to my personal and review firearms included trips after elk in Colorado, Pronghorn in Wyoming, Black Bear in Idaho, predators in South Carolina and feral hogs in south Georgia.
Most recently, it protected my synthetic-stocked Remington Model 700 and my custom-built .35 Whelen Improved rifle (pictured above) all the way to South Africa. And back again.
An anecdote related to my South African safari highlights how well this case protects my rifles. Upon returning back into the warm embrace of the government employees at the Atlanta airport, I watched a beefy agent intentionally drop my SKB case from chest height onto the concrete floor.
One might think that the agent was a vegan, and thus had a right to be angry at hunters. However, judging by her physique I would surmise that she had been feeding on poor, helpless, grain-fed farm animals her entire life. But, I digress….
The rifles and their scopes were unscathed by the Terminator-like caress of Atlanta’s finest.
Though I love my SKB case, and don’t ever intend to replace it, the newest version of this case is the iSeries 5014 Double Rifle/Bow Case. The internal dimensions of the new model are: 50″ L x 13.5″ W x 6″ D. This is slightly larger than the model I own. Two rifles easily fit within my SKB case, and so they should fit even more comfortably in this new model.
If you want protection from whatever challenges traveling – including pesky officials – throws at your firearms, this is the case you want.
The case is available from sellers listed on Amazon for around $240. It’s well-worth that cost given the value — both from a monetary and sentimental standpoint — of what it will be protecting.
