Varusteleka’s Särmä Assault Pack
I bought this along with the Särmä Large Assault Pack during COVID. This will run you
$62.99 CAD at Varusteleka. It is, as they describe it, a good quality and affordable compact 20-liter (1220 cu in) day ruck. The molle is solid and you can certainly add external pouches to up your capacity.
On that point I will say this, it is a small day ruck. I wasn’t entirely sure what I was planning on using it for, so that’s fine. It has been relegated to day hikes with the wife, and I usually just use it for water, food, and rain gear. It works great for that. It’s not going to carry much more than what you could realistically load onto webbing, but for a little day ruck or a small go bag it’s perfect. In fact, it would be an ideal get out of trouble bag for the back of the truck. It is also great for someone of a smaller stature, my wife is tiny (4’11) and it fits her extremely well. This would also make it good for a kid.
The bag will roll up super small so you could toss it into a larger ruck for a secondary. The shoulder straps are really nicely padded and comfortable the fact it has not only a sternum strap, but a belt as well is a really nice touch. This makes it extremely comfortable to wear around all day. The belt is also completely removable, which is cool if you wanted to do that, I personally like having it. This also has and upper and lower compression straps on the side as well as two along the bottom which helps lock everything down and also allows you to throw something on the outside of it quickly. On that point, every strap on this bag has a stitched in velcro capture strap to tie up all the loose bits of extra strap which is another really nice touch.
Another nice feature is that despite its small size this has an internal pocket for a water bladder and a small port underneath the top handle to run the tube out of. I also really like that the zippers run all the way down then main bag so that it folds open all the way. That is how all bags should be made in my opinion.
The front pockets don’t have any sort of organizing dividers but that’s not something you really need with pockets this size. My one complaint, which is more for the large pack than this is the decision to go with a full velcro panel for the upper pocket instead of velcro molle, which I would personally prefer. That said, for the small bag that’s a pretty nitpicky complaint and it would be more functionally useful on the large bag.
I suppose I am not telling you much so far that isn’t already on the webpage so I will say this; the quality is excellent. I have taken this out on a few little day hikes and found it very comfortable and extremely durable, that’s the main point I would make, it looks like a lot of other bags out there but the quality on this is top tier.
Like many things this is really going to come down to your personal ambitions for the bag but for a smaller framed individual or as a go bag or day it’s a great option. I highly recommend it based on quality.
Feature Photo: Varusteleka’s Särmä Assault Pack. Photo: Chris Murray, 2024
Inset Photos: Varusteleka’s Särmä Assault Pack. Photo: Chris Murray, 2024.