[Leica] Lead boxes for X-rays

[Van Barletta <van@theramp.net>]

Some of you frequent flyers may find this little exchange I recently had
interesting:

When I fly I carry my film on board (never check it) in solid lead-lined
boxes.  They're called FILM-SAFE X by PHOTOCO in Germany, and each box
holds four 35mm or two 120.  Anyway, I was leaving Phoenix on a midnight
red-eye and I guess things were slow, because the x-ray attendant stopped
me and asked to look in my bag. She said there were a number of items that
weren't showing up on the x-ray, and I showed her where all the film safes
were in my bag. 
"Oh, how about that," she said, when she saw them.  "Those really work."
"You sound surprised."
"Well, most things, like those foil bags with lead in them?  You can see
right through them.  But not these things," she said, opening one of the
boxes.

Since I've been in airports where they refused to hand inspect, even in
plastic bags, it's nice to have an alternative that's been "professionally"
confirmed to work, at least at US x-ray levels.

Van