Tesco Rucksack for £9.50 is it any good !

I needed a mid sized rucsack to use as carry on flight luggage for my trip to Canada.

 

It needed to big enough to hold my laptop and all my goodies, but still be small enough to meet the airline size regulations.

 

I spent a week looking at various packs around the 35 to 45 litre size and to be honest none of them suited my needs or pocket, what with some of them hitting £50+

 

So.....walking around Tescos with food on my mind I came across the reduced section and found this gem of a bag that had been reduced from £18.50 to £9.50

 

Now if I had the chance and money to ask someone to design the ultimate 45Litre rucsack for my needs, then this was or is the pack for me.  It's loaded with features, it's strong, nice looking, cumfy to wear and for £9.50 it's pocket money priced.

 

I loaded this pack with the following:

Laptop + leads + psu

eTrex GPS

Camera + spare batts

Meds + firstaid

Fleece jacket

Snacks 'n' sweets

Pens, paperwork, passport, money, etc....

I had plenty of room left in it and had not used the side pockets.

The only limmit was the weight regulations or I could of got more gear in if needed.

 

I bounced it around three airports, took it on three flights and in the boots of two cars, sorry one was a trunk as I was in Newfoundland by then ;-)

 

It feels as cumfy fully loaded as it does empty. The padding on the straps and the ventilated back system do the trick just like they should on a pack £80+

 

I Looked hard for faults but can't find a single one, I even love the way that they've lined the zipped pocket that holds the rain cover, so if you put it away wet it will not be against your gear.  I also like the fact that the zip on the top pocket faces the back of my neck, making it harder for Mr Naughy to get at my goodies while I'm stood with my back to him.  The Ice-Axe/Walking Pole hoops are not mentioned in the discription, and under close inspection they're tuffer than they need to be so that's another bounus.  I do like where they have the D rings on the straps, my two way radio fits on the one in a perfect place to use without having to remove it, and the same can be said of putting my GPS on the other strap, it's just where I need it.  The chest strap is also very cumfy and incorperates a very loud whistle.

 

Seven weeks of abuse and it's still going strong.

I would of been happy to of paid more for it.

 

Go out and buy it.

 

Specs:

45 Litre Rucksack

600D Polyester with diamond Ripstop trim
Easy access vertical zip
Padded shoulder straps
2 bellow side pockets
2 side mesh pockets
2 quick release adjustable compression straps
Neoprene carry handle
4 compartments
Bright orange rain cover (elasticated)
ventilated back system
Hydration compatible

Dimensions L32 X W17 X H49cm
1.3kg empty

 

Ray Mears and the BBC iPlayer

Just went onto the the beebs iplayer to watch the two episodes of Ray
Mears Northern Wilderness and see a few nice changes, mainly in the
form of not having to be online to watch missed program. You can now
download the programs you want and they will remain watchable on your
computer for 30 days. As soon as you start to watch a program it's
state changes and you're only alloeed to watch that program as many
times as you want in the next seven days. Anyway it's a nice touch if
you want to download and take your viewing with you. I was also happy
with how fast the programs downloaded. I had thre programs all of
630mb on the go and got them all in just over 20mins.

Have fun watching Mr Mears.