TESTCENTRE
Tardis of dive bags
Equipage 250 Diving Bag
COMPANY: SEAC PRICE: £ 59.95 WEB: WWW. SEACSUB. COM
Diving kit bags come in all manner of shape, size and capacity. From cavernous wheeled carriers to backpacks and compact bellows-style bags. The Equipage 250 from SEAC is a bag in the latter category. Manufactured from a tough 600 denier polyester, it doesn’ t break the scales at a lightweight 1.4kg. The capacity of bags is almost universally measured in litres and the Equipage 250 is rated for 110 of them. Unfortunately for us, scuba gear isn’ t liquid, so‘ litres’ doesn’ t really compute as a practical assessment of volume. So, to really assess a bag’ s carrying capacity there’ s no better way than seeing exactly how much kit you can physically cram in there. The bag rolls neatly for storage, held tightly together by its supplied shoulder strap. When opened and fully unfurled, it expands into a 75x40x35cm. There are a pair of handles located on the top, so it can easily be shoulder or hand carried, according to your preference. Externally, there’ s a large side pocket which extends the length of the bag. Secured by a large quickrelease buckle, this was ideal for fin storage. No rummaging at the bottom of your bag with this setup, simply unclip and pull them out. There’ s also an internal, waterproof pocket, accessed via an outer zip, which offers storage for wet or dry clothing, along with anything else you may want to get hold of in a hurry. Computers, torches and other accessories can all be safely cushioned within. The underside of the bag is home to a pair of drain holes plus four hard rubber‘ feet’ which protect the underside from wear and tear. So, how much did I manage to squeeze into this lightweight, inexpensive gear-gulper? A membrane drysuit with matching thick undersuit, a dry-glove system, BCD and weight pockets, regulators, a mediumsized torch, large dSMB and reel... plus a man-size towel. Tidy! My thick rubber jet fins slid into the roomy external compartment, while a change of clothes and footwear were accommodated in the waterproof section. That was just under 18kg of kit combined and still a fair amount of room to potentially squeeze in a second suit or BCD without going to too much trouble. NH
Our photos reflect the fact that this bag was subject to real world rigours during the test
SCUBA SAYS
SEAC’ s Equipage 250 dive bag has a TARDIS-like capacity. It may look small from the outside but it’ s more than capable of coping with a full UK-style compliment of kit. If you’ re travelling to warmer waters with a more pareddown configuration, there’ s plenty of room to add everyday wear and other essentials to the mix.
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