Aqua Quest 30L dry-bag day-pack review

[Liamy77]

I recently bought this bag from ebay for about the $90-130 mark.(no other link to me) It had what i thought was potentially some really useful features.The original description is at this link:

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/100-DRY-Drypack- ... 45f48dcfb0

the bag (thanks to our global postage service, not the seller) arrived in a "speedy" 3 months!! but it did arrive in good condition, with a promise from the seller that it would be resent once non-delivery was confirmed by canada-post... but it got here just in time for summer?!

i love the drainage pocket for your outer rain shell storage although it does sacrifice a little of the internal dry storage, it is very well designed. the stitching and material used is solid ripstop and as the waterproofing is on the inside it should wear well and be patchable if needed. i do wonder if there will be de-lamination issues when the bag gets on in years - time will tell, but a liner bag will fix that and get more use out of the pack later on.... The small zip pocket is not truely waterproof, although it has been made with a laminated zip ("waterproof" zip like on some modern rain gear) it is shower proof but not submergable. Also the roll top can stick up a bit and could get caught on scrub - a flap cover would fix this, and could be added later by someone with a sturdy sewing machiene.. but not really needed.

the bag remained completely waterproof upright in rain (simulated in my shower on full for half an hour , and it reuses water for the environmentally conscious)

but if submerged completely, it does leak slowly at the roll top seal (about 50mL in 1 hour), so for full waterproofing it still needed to be used with my 50L top flight dry bag (silnylon). or have a towel packed at the top near the opening if you are swimming a river (maybe once the floods have reduced?!) this top seal leak may be able to be fixed with some seam seal where the clips are stitched to the opening, all other seams are water tight already. but some redesigning on later bags could help here... this only leaked when i started actually squeezing and moving the bag under water, if it was just sitting in water it would be waterproof in all but the worst conditions - where a solid plastic case might be better anyway - or secondary dry bags for sensitive gear.



it is a true 30L bag, being big enough for an overnighter if you travel with minimal gear, or a great day pack otherwise.
If you buy it as a stand-alone !00% submersible dry bag you may be dissapointed. As a day pack - rainproof on steroids it is great!! apart from the slight rolltop leak it would be spot-on submersed too.the weight is about what they stated (i measured it at 852grams) the padding does absorb some water, but not nearly as much as i expected it would, it dried out properly overnight and it is well padded and comfortable to wear.
I am hoping to put it to the field test within the year when i finally tackle Scotts Peak and maybe Mt Solitary as well.... but for now despite delayed shipping, the service was great, and the product has conquered my bathroom , kitchen scales, and my initial expectations - this kind of product definately deserves a thought when your current day-pack finally dies! for now a great bag so far I think!Some images to come soon....
Liamy77