Experiences of Wet Gear having NOT used a Pack Liner or Dry Sack

[Five Tango]

I normally carry my puffy in a nylafume bag for quick easy access.Found a pin hole in it with the inflation method last night.The problem is when I tested my other bags I can only effectively test about half the bag by the time I get it inflated and twisted down to compress the air etc.So I'm going back to my OR pack liner which weighs a whopping 3.8 oz but considering the alternative it could be priceless.

[CalebJ]

Couldn't you inflate the bag by mouth to test? To be clear - I haven't tried this and don't have a bag handy at my desk to give it a shot at the moment. Just thinking aloud.

[Five Tango]

Couldn't you inflate the bag by mouth to test? To be clear - I haven't tried this and don't have a bag handy at my desk to give it a shot at the moment. Just thinking aloud.

Actually,you're reading my mind as I have thought about using a piece of tubing to blow into the bag and pinch a minimal amount of material around it to make the seal.However,this only proves you're starting your day with a good bag,if not I suppose a tenacious tape repair would tide you over until you could get another one.

However,since my roll top pack liner weighs in at 3.8 oz and a contractor bag weighs roughly two ounces I will just take OwenM's advice and roll with the extra two ounces.I like lightweight nylafume bags and will continue to use them in addition to a real pack liner on future excursions.I tested my pack liner last night and it looks like it offers a lot of engineered protection for the slight penalty in weight....

[LoneStranger]

Those nylofume bags are a lot tougher than you are giving them credit for. I have one that is still in service after three years of heavy use. It has been patched with clear packing tape in a couple of spots but is still useful on short trips. Bought three at the time and have another one I use on longer trips because it hasn't been patched and a third that has not been used at all. Don't believe in telling other folks what to do, but they work for me.

Here is the review I did on them a while back for folks not familiar. They are just bags made for protecting stuff during house fumigation, but water tight and smell proof too. https://www.trailspace.com/gear/othe...s/#review40138

[Five Tango]

Yep,nylafume is my favorite type of bag.Got some from Litesmith.Because of the stakes involved of any sort of bag failure I have always double bagged everything.So right now I am using the somewhat heavier Osprey pack liner as my outer bag and nylafume variants on the inside.Add to that a pack cover by Dutchware Gear and sometimes an over the top Snugpack Enhanced Patrol Poncho.I also carry a nylafume bag to put wet clothes in at night.

Foghorn Leghorn kept all his feathers numbered as you may recall.I just wanna keep mine dry.........
It's not a bad idea to test any sort of gear bag though.I took a hard piece of tubing and pinched around it with the bag to pressure test for leaks as it's easier than trying to than simply blow into it.I also test my water filter before departure as well.

[nsherry61]

. . . It's not a bad idea to test any sort of gear bag . . . I also test my water filter before departure as well.

You guys are so much more dedicated than me. Most of the time, I just use my gear until if fails. Then I deal with it in the field. That way, I'm highly motivated to make sure I have backup/alternative solutions for my critical infrastructure. That way, I also get to play with my gear, learning how it fails and then gain confidence in managing field failures. . . but yeah, on a longer or "more critical" trip, I'll double check and test stuff.