I've been lurking a while, reading these posts helped me decide on the XL-1S I bought last week, and am currently in love with.

Bought a Porta Brace CTC-2 today. It wasn't much contest...after all, it's a Porta Brace, and chances are the thing will outlast me. My question for you is this...how do you put your XL-1 in there? What I figured was that the camera goes in the bag assembled, and the viewfinder fits into the little protected ledge on the side. It seems a REALLY tight fit when I do that, though, almost to the point where it seems to be squeezing the viewfinder and mic mount. I wonder If I'm doing it right...

While I've got you...what'd you pay for yours? I dropped $230 at B+H in Manhattan today.

Yes, you've got it right. My viewfinder cup is deformed because of the Porta-Brace. It's a small price to pay for protection for the camera. And did you notice--the zippers on the inside bottom corners to add or remove padding?

I also bought mine at B&H a few months ago (same price). I bought one a few years ago as well, and the price hasn't gone done any since then.

I've noticed the same problem with the CTC-2. I use the VF with my left eye which deforms the eye cup even more, so have resorted to either removing it while in the bag or mounting it in the other position (right eye) which deforms the eye cup less.

Also, I normally keep the MA-200 mounted on the camera and while it will fit in the CTC-2, the mic either needs to be removed or mounted backwards to fit in the bag.

If anyone wants to buy my CTC-2 (only four months old), I'll consider selling it so I can purchase the CTC-3 which is a little bit longer and should solve the mic problem.

Thanks. I found that flipping the viewfinder around backwards helps relieve the load a bit. I don't leave the MA-100 mounted, so the mic isn't a terrible problem.

And you know...I didn't notice the zippers at the bottom! Thanks for the help, guys...