Finnish M05 GP Pouch, Small

This company is a good company. The materials, fit n finish and overall price is very good but the shipping? That was insanely fast! If I had a complaint it would be a lack of removable belt. The Jaakari M is a good bag.

These are probably the most expensive pouches you can ever buy for a rucksack. There's a reason for that though. They're tough, really tough. They're well made, solid and give one the impression that they will never fail. I chose these over the newer open coil zip ones, because the zips on these are covered. We get a lot of rain in Britain . . the last thing you want is water ingress onto your packet of sausages and oatcakes. I added some paracord pulls to the zips, so as to make them easier to access in the cold and wet, and whilst they were initially quite rough feeling, a wee bit of rubbing a soft pencil over the 'teeth' (no, not my teeth . . the zip's teeth) and a quick zipping session had them moving well. Inside, the small pocket halfway down is fixed to the side of the pouch; its for holding notebooks and stuff apparently, but is slim and side-hugging, so it really doesn't impede anything should you wish to shove your water bottle in here. They hold just short of two litres of stuff - that doesn't sound like much and they look initially quite small, and yet some little experiments prove otherwise: Proper Old School US GI Poncho - Folded in the correct manner, this fits in with room to spare for a pack of sausages or a pair of ski socks. British Army Goretex Bivvy Bag - current issue - you might be surprised, but with a bit of cajoling it fits. When it is in its own stuff sack the zips are straining, but take it out of that and push down on the bivvy and the zips close - maybe not comfortably, but they do close. British Army Osprey Water Bottle Pouch with water bottle inside - fits easily In other words they'll hold a lot more than you think - just excellent. My one criticism, is that the colour is just SLIGHTLY different from that of the Jaakari S rucksack - it's not a vast difference, but it is there - but then again maybe that's my sample. This being said, the Olive used by Savotta is PROPER Olive, not that ghastly 'off' Forest Green that a lot of manufacturers claim to be Olive. As such, you blend into the general greenness of the great outdoors beautifully. As I said though, they're really expensive - a pair will set you back as much as a decent daypack. Are they worth it? Yeah, I think they are - they look great on a Jaakari S, and expand its capabilities to nearly 30 litres, yet still weigh very little - all in all, a thoroughly excellent addition to the Jaakari system.