Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

The major claim that Vitchelo makes about this dry bag is that it is 100% waterproof and will keep gear dry. To test this claim, I loaded the bag with a 14 lb bag of baking soda to weigh it down and also a roll of toilet paper (if it leaked then it would be obvious as soon as I took the TP out). I headed over to my pool to do a proper submersion stress test (to simulate a kayaking mishap), which you can watch in the video I posted. Since the bag was quite heavy, I was expecting that it would not be too difficult to submerge it. However, even though the bag was fairly heavy, it was actually incredibly buoyant, because of the size and the air trapped in it, and I had to struggle to really get it submerged. You can push out some of the air when you close and seal the bag, but I wanted to test it the way I usually use my dry bags. Air is not heavy, and having the dry bag to be very buoyant can make it easy to retrieve if it falls in the water, not to mention that, in a pinch, it can be used to help you float (in case you had a hard time swimming because of shock or injury). I pushed the bag underwater, rolled it around, and pushed it underwater upside-down to test the area where I thought it would have the greatest chance of failure. When I opened it up, aside from a few drops that clearly got in the bag from the process of me opening it (and not from failure) the inside was completely dry. Having performed this test, I now feel confident relying on it when I take it on a real kayak trip in the future. I didn’t actually swim with the bag on, but seeing how buoyant it was with a decent amount of weight inside, it seems very likely that it would be fairly easy to transport it across a body of water (if you were to fall out of a canoe and had to swim to shore). Aside from the bag being legitimately waterproof, I really like the padded shoulder straps. I have another dry bag with no straps at all, and it’s kind of a pain to carry around. This bag can function as an actual backpack, if needed. The padded straps are fairly comfortable, and there is a strap that connects across the chest to help keep the weight distributed well. In terms of interior storage space, if you roll it up properly to make it submergible, then you will have to sacrifice some interior storage space. However, if you are not taking it on a boat, but will be on land and mainly just want to protect your gear from rain, then there is an alternate way to close it that will maximize internal storage space (you will likely also be sacrificing a really good seal if it goes completely underwater, but it will still keep the interior safe from rain). The last claim is that the bag is made of “double-stitched ultra tough non-rip material, sealed seams and scrim-reinforced vinyl bottom to ensure maximum water resistance.” Even though I can’t verify what the material is made of, after closely inspecting it, it does look extremely durable and easily passed my underwater stress test. This bag looks and feels heavy-duty, and when I brushed it against a bush (nothing thorny, just a regular bush, to simulate walking on a trail) there was no damage.This bag looks like it’s built to take abuse and last. I will update this review in the future as I regularly post updates on products after I’ve used them for a long time. The only negative is that when it arrived, it had a very strong chemical smell. I kept it outside on my deck for a week, thinking it might be off-gassing. After a week, it still smelled so strong that when I brought it into my living room for a few hours to inspect and pack it up, it made the whole room smell and I had to open up the windows and air it out. Even when I was walking around with it on my back, the smell bothered me, although less. I returned the bag back outside to continue airing out. Since I know that PVC products (not sure if this bag is PVC, but it is made of vinyl) take about a month to complete off-gassing, if the smell disappears in the next few weeks, I will raise the rating from 4 to 5 stars, because without the smell, this is a 5 star product. Also must be said that I’m quite sensitive to smells, other people might not be bothered by this, especially since it’s supposed to be used outdoors. If you found this review helpful, please consider clicking yes below. UPDATE 10/01/16: after sitting on my screened patio for 5 weeks, the smell is almost entirely gone, which is definitely good news! I have noticed that several reviews I have written on items purchased through Amazon have had the "Verified Purchase" removed incorrectly and as a result are no longer visible, which is likely happening to other people as well. When you read reviews, be sure to sort by 'All reviews' since there is obviously a bug in the system and many helpful and detailed reviews are now hidden.