65ltr Travel FIFO Multi-function Backpack

One bag for the whole swing, and three ways to carry it.

A fortnight of kit does not go in a daypack, and a hard case gets flogged the moment it goes down a bus hold or across a lay-down yard. So you end up running two bags, or one bag that has split at the base by the third swing.

This is a soft-sided nylon bag that carries three ways — on your back, over one shoulder on a padded detachable sling, or by the top grab handle. Heading for the airport it is a backpack. Coming through camp with a crib box in your other hand, it is a shoulder bag. The main compartment opens flat like a suitcase, so you are not digging down a tube for a clean shirt at four in the morning.

One thing straight up, because it is where people get caught. The supplier's own artwork calls this a 50 litre bag. The title says 65. Another seller of the same bag says 60, and further down its own page says 56 to 75. The outside measures 600 x 320 x 210 mm, and a box that size holds about 40 litres before you allow for fabric, seams and curved corners. We have put the millimetres in the Specs tab so you can measure your own gear against something real instead of picking a number off a title.

What It Does

• Carries three ways: backpack harness, single-shoulder sling, or the grab handle across the top — and the sling clips off when you do not want it.
• Opens flat: the main compartment folds open like a suitcase lid rather than loading down a hole, and two internal dividers split it into three sections.
• Takes bolt-on gear: MOLLE webbing runs across the front and both sides, so a bottle carrier, a radio pouch or a first aid kit rides outside instead of eating your packing space.
• Cinches down half full: two webbing compression straps with side-release buckles stop a part-packed bag rolling around in a hold.
• Sheds a shower: the nylon carries a water-resistant coating that will see off spitting rain across a car park. It is not sealed and it is not rated — see the Limits tab.

Key Features

• 600D nylon shell: stated on the supplier's own fabric panel and corroborated by another seller of the same bag. A third listing claims 900D Oxford — we have published the lower figure, because two sources beat one.
• Measured 600 x 320 x 210 mm: height by width by depth, with a stated manual measuring tolerance of 10 to 30 mm. Three separate sources give the same three numbers.
• Detachable padded sling: a wide shoulder pad on a webbing strap, clipped to D-rings at both ends.
• Honeycomb air-mesh harness: open-cell mesh on the back of both shoulder straps, with an adjustable chest strap on a sliding buckle.
• Six separate spaces: main compartment, one front zip pocket, two side zip compartments, one flat zip pocket on the back panel, plus two zip mesh pockets and a strap-down organiser panel inside the lid.
• Twin zip sliders: the main compartment runs two sliders on cord pulls, so you can open it from either end or padlock the two together.
• Hook-and-loop patch panel: a blank velcro field on the front for a name tape or a crew patch.
• Drain grommet: one eyelet in the base of the back panel, so a wet bag can let go of the water.
• Nine colourways: black, khaki, green, ACU, CP, black camo, green camo, woodland digital and desert digital.

Limits

It is not cabin baggage. At 600 mm tall it is over the 560 mm height that Qantas and Jetstar publish for an overhead bag. The 320 mm width and 210 mm depth are both inside their limits — it is the height that puts it out. Pack it as checked baggage and do not plan on walking it onto the plane.

It is not waterproof, and we are not going to call it that. The supplier's artwork prints the word over a photo of beaded-up water, but there is no IP rating and no hydrostatic head figure anywhere on the product or on any listing we could find. A coating is not a seal. The zips are plain, not welded, and the seams are not taped. Treat it as a bag that handles drizzle and a wet ute tray, and put anything that must stay dry in a liner.

It is not PPE and it is not site approved. It is a bag. It carries no standard, no certification and no site rating, the camouflage patterns are a colourway and nothing more, and it makes no claim about the gear you put inside it. Your hard hat, boots and hi-vis have their own compliance, and this bag does not extend it.

The litre figure is not settled. Four different numbers are in circulation for this bag and not one of them comes with a measurement method. The dimensions are the only figure three sources agree on, so that is what we have published.

There is no laptop sleeve and no trolley pass-through. Neither is fitted, neither is shown in any supplier image, and neither appears in any listing. The flat pocket on the back panel is unpadded. If you want a laptop in here, it needs its own sleeve.

No hip belt and no internal frame. This is a travel and transit bag, not a multi-day hiking pack. The load sits on your shoulders and a chest strap, so a long walk in under a heavy load is not what it is built for.

The empty weight is unconfirmed. Sellers of the same bag state 1 kg, 1.3 kg and 1.4 kg. We have not weighed one, so we have published the disagreement rather than pick a number out of it.

Q & A

Will it go in the cabin as carry-on?

No. It is 600 mm tall and the overhead limit Qantas and Jetstar publish is 560 mm, so it is 40 mm over on height. Width and depth are both under. Some carriers are stricter again, and most also cap you at 7 kg, which an empty bag already eats into. Plan on checking it.

So how much does it actually hold?

Honestly, we do not know in litres, and neither does anyone quoting one. What we do know is the outside is 600 x 320 x 210 mm, which is about 40 litres of external box, and real usable space is less than that. If you pack by volume, measure what you carry now and compare. If you pack by feel, it is a bag that swallows a fortnight of work clothes, boots and a toilet bag with room over.

Will a hard hat and steel caps fit?

The supplier does not publish internal dimensions, so we will not tell you yes. What we can tell you is the outside is 600 x 320 x 210 mm, and the main compartment opens flat rather than loading through a top hole, which is the layout that makes bulky rigid gear easy to get in and out. Measure your hat across the brim and compare it against the 320 mm width.

Can I leave it out in the rain?

No. The fabric has a water-resistant coating and it will shed a shower, but there is no rating behind it, the zips are not sealed and the seams are not taped. Left out in steady rain it will wet through eventually.

Is the shoulder sling any good with a full bag?

It is a wide padded sling on a webbing strap that clips to D-rings at both ends, and it comes off completely when you would rather use the backpack harness. For carrying a loaded bag any distance, the harness and chest strap will treat your shoulders better — the sling is for short hops through a terminal or across camp.

What is the difference between the camo patterns?

Colour, and nothing else. Same bag, same fabric, same layout across all nine. Black and khaki are the two that do not announce themselves in a camp car park.

Specs