Hyperlite Mountain Gear Dyneema Duffel Bag
Stated Features:
- Constructed from Fully Woven Dyneema ®/Cuben Fiber hybrid material
- Removable handle attachment
- Removable shoulder strap
- #10 Waterproof YKK Zipper
- 1/8″ Rigid closed cell foam padded bottom
- Internal compression straps for assisted closure
- Two zippered pockets on both ends
- Two full length daisy chains
Specs:
- Length: 40″ (101.6cm)
- Circumference: 50″ (127cm)
- Diameter: 16″ (40.6cm)
- Volume: 8543 cu in. (140L)
Stated Weight: 2.61 lbs (1185g)
Blister’s Measured Weight: 2.62 lbs (1188 g)
Days Tested: 14
Locations Tested: Travel to and from New Zealand, Travel in eastern Montana & Idaho
Intro
Hyperlite Mountain Gear (HMG) describes their Dyneema duffel as, “an ultralight, ultra durable, minimalist expedition-style bag,” and goes on to ask, “Why count every ounce of your climbing or packrafting gear, and then put it in a heavy, overbuilt duffel?”
While I haven’t had a chance to use the Dyneema duffel for any intense expeditions yet, we did find another testing ground where low weight, large capacity, and good durability are all at a premium: Blister’s annual ski review trip to the southern hemisphere.
Wrangling gear for a normal international ski trip is difficult, but Blister’s trips take “over packing” to a whole new level. We took something like 400 lbs of gear with us to NZ last August (in checked baggage alone), and every ounce wasted in luggage construction is an ounce of gear we can’t bring to test and review.
Between tight connections and cramped rental cars, we also subjected our luggage to a lot of abuse, dragging it across parking lots, throwing it into cars, and dumping it off trollies. For all these reasons, the description of Hyperlite Mountain Gear’s new Dyneema Duffel sounded promising.
Materials
HMG says the duffel is constructed out of a “fully woven Dyneema / Cuben fiber hybrid material.” That’s quite a mouthful, but HMG’s Blog has a post breaking down what that actually means. If you don’t care for in-depth, scientific-y descriptions, just know that this is a really cool material and skip on down to the “Features” section. Otherwise, read on…
Many of HMG’s products are made out of Cuben Fiber. Cuben Fiber is a heavy duty, waterproof, high-performance laminate that’s significantly lighter and stronger than carbon fiber and is highly chemical and UV resistant. While this is a very impressive and useful material, HMG decided to step it up with their new line of Dyneema hybrid products, which includes this duffel.
Dyneema is an ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene fiber, that, like Cuben Fiber, is incredibly strong and lightweight, with a strength-to-weight ratio somewhere around 8-15 times higher than steel. It’s often used in bullet-resistant vests, high-performance sails, and fishing lines. By laminating woven Dyneema to Cuben Fiber, HMG says they’ve taken their durability, strength-to-weight ratio, and fabric suppleness to the next level.
Of course, to the casual observer, not much of this is really evident. At first glance, when I got the bag (and before I researched its materials), this HMG Duffel looked slightly dirty and crumpled, and didn’t have the awe-inspiring, hi-tech appearance I expected.
However, in use I found that the unspectacular outward appearance belied the bag’s high performance nature.
Features
The duffel is simply laid out and constructed. The cavernous main pocket is bookended with surprisingly large compartments on each end, with plenty of room in each for a pair of shoes and some socks or underwear.
Two full-length daisy chains run along the sides, and the main pocket also has three adjustable interior compression straps. The side handles connect with a velcro and snap closure, and the shoulder strap is adjustable and features a dyneema pad.
NEXT: In Use, Who’s It For?, Etc.