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Tuesday, 06 May 2008 |
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Information
Manufacturer: PRI
Product name:
Dry bag 90 or 40
Fabric: polyurethane (PU) coated nylon
RRP: £50
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These dry bags are designed to go inside a rucksack. There are two sizes available: 40 and 90 litre.
For our trial of the bags, we chose the large version for a smaller bag (Sabre 45 and a 40 litre Snugpak Rocketpak). We were going with the theory that, if required to cross rivers, the contents plus the rucksack could be placed into the bag and used as a dry, floatation system - Thankfully we didn’t need to test this theory! The dry bag sat nicely in the bottom of the rucksacks and, as there are no valves or anything complicated to remember, the closer system was relatively easy to operate – there was, however, some technique to master with the squeezing out of the air.
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Made from olive green polyurethane coated nylon material with taped seams, a roll top and snap closure fittings, the bag seems impressive and indeed, whilst testing in the real, harsh environment of the jungle, the bag did a very good job of keeping the rucksack contents dry despite multiple dunkings in the river and other general abuse. Despite the outside becoming wet, the contents were always bone dry.
Back in the UK, I decided to test the bag some more and filled the bag with water, placed it upright in the bath then, after a few minuets, turned it over to test the roll top. Surprisingly, within only a couple of minutes one of the tape seams leaked and there were a couple of pin prick holes in the actual material as well. The holes may well have been made by the abuse the bag received in the jungle so I wasn’t too worried about those but the failure of the seam certainly concerned me. However, I’m sure that an application of seam sealer would have solved both problems but I would have hoped that the seams held better in the first instance.
As expected the roll over top with snap fastening did eventually leak but, again, this took a lot longer and only allowed a small amount of water through.
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Conclusion:
Apart from the ‘fault’ with the seam, I liked this bag a lot - The design and operation were simple and the end result worked extremely well. Of course, it’s always advisable to test all your kit before any trip and, if I had taken my own advice, I would have been able to seal the seam before venturing out and the bag would have been perfectly waterproof. Perhaps I was expecting a little too much from the bag, being designed as much for the military as the civilian market, and would have thought the design to be more robust. |
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Reviewed by Mark Aspell
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The rucksack is designed to be worn over military belt pouches, which means it rides high on the back. The belt is in actually fact a waist belt rather than a hip belt and fits around the waist.
Thankfully we didn’t need to test this theory! The dry bag sat nicely in the bottom of the rucksacks and, as there are no valves or anything complicated to remember...
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