TESTCENTRE
Keep your bag up!
OMS Roller Bag
COMPANY: BEAVER SPORTS PRICE: £ 219 TEL: 01484 512354 WEB: WWW. BEAVER
If you do a fair amount of travelling whether that’ s at home or abroad, then transporting your kit safely and securely is obviously important. If you’ ve got a big 4x4 or estate car, then chucking your gear in a suitable plastic box will do for sure. Otherwise, if you’ re flying or if space is at a premium in your hatchback, then a receptacle that keeps all that gear together is a must. That’ s when a dive bag and the wheeled variety in particular make the perfect partner.
The OMS high-capacity roller bag offers a massive volume of 145 litres, large enough as I discovered, to squeeze in everything I’ d require for a UK dive or alternatively, two full sets of warm-water equipment. Manufactured from 840 denier nylon / polypropylene, the bag is classic divers black with a retro-looking yellow piping and vintage-style OMS logo.
At first glance it appears to be a bog-standard dive bag with a single strap on the top for pulling it along, two at the side, one below and a pair of strong heavyduty wheels. But that’ s not the half of it.
Cleverly-concealed behind a zippered section on the rear of the bag is a pull-up, rigid telescopic handle and beneath it a pair of similarly-hidden, padded shoulder straps. The bag itself opens up to a cavernous 79 x 45 x 41cm.
Two separate internal compartments are located on the inside of the front panel, suitable for the likes of clothes, undersuits and towels. Fins, drysuit, undersuit, BCD and regulators were accommodated with no drama at all, followed by gloves, rock boots, my reel / SMB, a torch, towel plus my save-a-dive box of spares.
A sturdy zipper opens the main compartment while two quick-release compression straps ensure that the contents are secure if under capacity; they assist in keeping it compact if you’ re cramming it to the limit.
At under 4kg, the bag will make a small impact on your airline allowance, while its robust build quality will defend against the slings and arrows of outrageous baggage handlers. On my last trip abroad, I had almost every type of terrain to navigate and my bag of many years’ service was found wanting. With only the tiniest wheels, it was of little use on anything other than pavement or tarmac. With no extending handle, I often found myself tripped up and the lack of shoulder straps left me dragging the thing along uncomfortably by a side handle.
By contrast, this OMS bag has mini treaded‘ off-road’ wheels capable of dealing with more challenging surfaces. If their useful range is surpassed then conversion to a back pack takes seconds while the side handles are perfect for humping the bag in and out of vehicles and boats.
SCUBA SAYS
This vintage-style bag from OMS is a wolf in sheep’ s clothing, converting from an innocuous-looking dive bag into a cavernous, 145 litre volume gear-gulper in an instant. Wheeled, carried or backpacked it will keep your kit on the straight and narrow.
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