Custom Lens pouch

SteveH

Senior Member
Hi All,
Its been a long time since I last posted - I hope you're all well!
When I was recently carrying my Sigma 150-600 in it's black pouch, I hit on an idea - The side pouches from my old Army backpack are about 150-600 size, and have an attachable yoke meaning I could have a mini back pack split into two separate pouches - One for the 150-600, and the other for what ever.
M042-PLCE-Yoke-Olive-wspockets2.jpg
I have measured the pouches, and a 150 - 600 will easily fit with padding, so my question is this - Can anyone recommend where to buy the foam, and what name / grade / density is the foam padding that comes in the Sigma pouches? I should be able to cut that fairly easily to line the pouch and have a much more versatile lens pouch.

Ta in advance!

Steve
 

Horoscope Fish

Senior Member
... Can anyone recommend where to buy the foam, and what name / grade / density is the foam padding that comes in the Sigma pouches? I should be able to cut that fairly easily to line the pouch and have a much more versatile lens pouch.
Based on the feel and density, I think the foam used in the Sigma lens pouches is neoprene. And while lots of places will sell you neoprene in varying thicknesses, you will probably discover you'll have to buy waaay more material than you'd want for such a small project -- as in 2' x 4' sheets or something along those lines. FoamByMail (dot) com is one such place. They'll have whatever you want but I don't think they sell small quantities.
 

hark

Administrator
Staff member
Super Mod
Contributor
My suggestion would be to look on sites like ebay where people might sell camera bag inserts. Sometimes bags or backpacks get broken zippers, but the inserts are still usable.
 

Bikerbrent

Senior Member
Great idea. Hope you can find the suitable foam. Another option might be to make some straps that would allow you to attach the Sigma pouch to the back pack harness.
 

SteveH

Senior Member
Update!
Ok so, I cut a deal with the Conservation dept at the museum I'm working at, and blagged some free packing foam - Just enough to put double layers in one of my rocket pouches.

So, I have cut the foam to size and it works perfectly - I'm going to use it a few times to make sure I'm happy, then I will glue the layers together to stop them moving about. Getting the foam for free has certainly kept the cost down - So far this project has cost me..... £0.00. If anyone else fancies doing a similar thing, the pouches + yolk are used by both the UK & US forces (Also a lot of other countries I would think) and can be bought from online surplus stores for £14 - £20 depending on condition.

Pouch with 150-600mm....
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Yoke with both pouches, one empty for other gear, waterproofs, beer etc
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