Today we are exploring and comparing night vision storage options that we have used over the last eight years. Since our first device, we have used four different options for storage and we have learned a lot about what works for us and in what situations we would use one over the other.

We will not be providing our in-depth reviews on each of these pouches as a comparison will be best suited to convey our experiences and the differences between the options we have tried.

(From left to right: ONSC POD Pouch, Woven Apogee Node Pouch, Tactical Tailor Night Vision Pouch – Photo Credit: The Kit Kobold 2025)

What we look for in night vision storage options

Night vision devices are expensive and owners want to be able to protect their investment both at home and when transporting. This necessitates considering what criteria makes a storage option suitable for the task. It is often repeated in the night vision community that night vision devices are designed to be used by clumsy 18 year old grunts and should be able to take plenty of abuse and devices should not be baby’ed. While we agree, keeping your own device that you paid for, in good condition makes sense. We think the most relevant criteria for storage options are:

1. Security/Padding;
2. Design features;
3. Lack of abrasive interiors;
4. Volume; and
5. Profile.

Our night vision storage options:

Pelican 1120

(Pelican 1120 with binocular device- Photo Credit: The Kit Kobold 2025)

The first storage option we purchased years ago was a pelican case. There are various sizes, but we have found the smallest one that fits both monoculars and most binocular devices is the Pelican 1120. One size larger may be considered for larger devices. This was our go to for our first few overnight outings with night vision. We soon learned it looked ridiculous pulling it out of a pack as it is bulky and not form fitting. It takes up space and does not fit into any convenient area of a pack that we use. Nevertheless when we first got night vision it gave us comfort that the device would be protected from the elements and impact on our adventures.  We have since retired the case from outdoor usage and mainly use it to store our devices at home. It has extra space for batteries and other accessories like a clip on camera. It might not be large enough to have a binocular and a COTI though.

It should be noted that some industry experts have indicated that storing a device in something like a pelican case long term is not ideal as it traps moisture and is not breathable. We trust their experience and insight, but we have stored devices in pelican cases for years, even after use in humid and wet environments. We take steps to make sure our devices are dry before storage and have not run into any issues. 

Tactical Tailor PVS-14 Pouch

The second storage option we got was a surplus PVS-14 pouch from Tactical Tailor. Tactical Tailor’s website appears not to sell it anymore but there are plenty of them available on the surplus market.  The reasoning behind our purchase was that we wanted a soft pouch that could fit into more places in our pack and could be attached to various load bearing equipment. It fits into something like a Mystery Ranch Daypack Lid which makes keeping the device with us when we are away from our pack not an issue. The pouch does a reasonable job of protecting and transporting devices and accessories. We really liked that we could attach it to packs, belts and chest rigs. Although we personally do not attach it to belts or other tactical nylon as our adventures often has us falling over and we are concerned we would fall onto the pouch. Even if that did happen, the pouch probably would mitigate impact damage as the pouch is designed for front line warfighters but is not as high speed and low drag as other options.

The amount padding and security offered by the pouch is nothing remarkable but in line with probably what a grunt would require. The pouch features some netting inside for organization and storage of things like sacrificial lenses, batteries, cleaning clothes and other accessories. We are concerned that the netting can be abrasive and may scratch glass. To mitigate this we used a sock (my wife’s sock) to encase our device before putting it in the pouch.

It also features a drainage hole and double zippers. If you have read our previous posts, you will know that double zippers are really important to us as it helps with redundancy if one of them fails.

The brick shaped nature of the pouch makes it a decent choice for tetrising gear inside a pack.

We have mainly used the pouch with a PVS-14. The most novel feature of this pouch is that the padding can be adjusted via velcro to be more form fitting around the device. This makes sure the device is cradled and does not rattle or bang against other items. While the pouch felt a little large in terms of volume for a PVS-14 we are pleased to report that the pouch is able to fit most articulating binoculars due to the adjustability of the padding. 

The size and footprint of the pouch is too large to fit into our helmet. This may be relevant for users who wish to cushion their night vision pouch by using the helmet like a baby seat.

The pouch unfortunately does not provide an material padding at the top or bottom of the pouch. This would correspond with the eyepiece side and the objective side of devices.

Pros: Soft, in use by war fighters, feature rich, adjustable padding, and organizational items. It can be a one pouch option to fit either a monocular or binocular/ Has MOLLE on it so you can attach more things if you wish.

Cons: Larger than it needs to be if only being used for monocular, netting inside is not soft and can be abrasive. Not a lot of colour options. I think it only comes in Coyote Brown which suggests it may be US marine issue. It may be out of current production. No padding at the top or bottom of the pouch.

 

Woven Apogee Node Pouch

 

(From left to right:  Woven Apogee Node Pouch front, MOLLE, fit into helmet, internals – Photo Credit: The Kit Kobold 2025)

 

We jumped at the chance to purchase a third pouch when our friends at Woven Apogee made their night vision pouch – the NODE and NODE  XL a few years back. We have the standard NODE pouch. The pouch is low profile and was what we were looking for – a pouch that would take up even less room in packs.  This is the smallest pouch we have for night vision devices.

 

The pouch features the main compartment, loops for storing batteries, a double zippered lid and a drain hole at the bottom. We really liked that the profile of the pouch was a smaller brick shape because it fit into smaller compartment of bags with ease and left more usable room for other things. We have used this pouch for years to transport a PVS-14, a night vision recorder, batteries and lenses.

 

The backing of the pouch is MOLLE compatible but does not include any MOLLE straps. This is a welcome addition for us as it saves weight and we seldomly MOLLE night vision pouches. 

 

The padding is nothing remarkable and may be slightly less than on the tactical tailor pouch. This is not an issue for us as we do not keep the pouch on the exterior. Notably though there is padding on the top and bottom of the pouch protecting the objective and diopter side of devices. 

 

The zippers appear to be more weather resistant than other options we have, although we don’t think this pouch is best at being an exterior facing pouch being subject to elements.

 

It can fit an articulating binocular but leaves no room for other toys. The NODE XL would be more suited for binoculars and COTIs.

 

The pouch is now currently out of production, but there may be a spiritual successor coming soon.

 

Pros: The pouch is the most low profile option one we have. It fits great into compartments. It is light weight. Great zippers.

 

Cons: It has the least amount of padding. It does not reliably fit a binocular with an accessory at the expense of being low profile. Not a one pouch option if you have binoculars and monoculars + other accessories. Consider the XL for binoculars.

 

 

The ONSC POD (MINI)

 

(From left to right: ONSC POD Pouch, Woven Apogee Node Pouch, Tactical Tailor Night Vision Pouch – Photo Credit: The Kit Kobold 2025)

We picked up our most recent pouch when we purchased our NVG-ALPHA. The POD pouch is designed by our friends at OPFOR Night Solutions and comes in a standard and mini configuration. The pouch features a main compartment and a lid compartment for accessories. It also has a organizational mesh pocket along the back side of the interior and another mesh separating the two main compartments. It has double zippers for both compartments. The interior mesh pockets are single zippered. There is padding on all sides.

 

The main compartment on the mini does not leave room for accessories like a LPMR or a COTI if it is housing a articulating binocular but there is space for maybe one of them turned on their side in the upper compartment. Our mini fits a PVS-14 with room for a COTI or LPMR in the main compartment.

 

The pouch also features MOLLE straps at the back.

 

We were disappointed that the pouch does not have a drainage hole. We do not expect our pouches to be drowned with water, but it would be prudent to have especially if it is designed to be worn on LBE. We are informed that this is to mitigate dust and other debris from entering the pouch.

 

This pouch is the most padded pouch we have. The walls feel thick and al-dente and the main compartment is well sized to fit binoculars in a form fitted way with no room rattle or move.  The best way to describe it is that the pouch has more structure than the other pouches previously mentioned which can be a pro and a con. We have seen these pouches out in the wild many times and they are often mounted on belts, hip and gear. We think the thick and structured padding would do a good job of mitigating impact damage but we still would not want to dive on the ground with this pouch attached to our hip. If we had to, this would be the pouch to do it. If we had to wear a pouch on plate carrier, chest rig or belt, this would be it.

 

While the thick padding and rigid structure gives good confidence for protection, the rigidity of it feels a little awkward when placed on a chest rig or belt when moving our arms around because it feels hard and dense. This is not an issue by itself as there are plenty of instances where it is acceptable for hard objects like kidney shaped canteens protrude off the body. Nonetheless, I am wondering could it be made even more comfortable to be worn on kit?

 

The shape of the pouch is not as easy to tetris in a small pack when compared to other options. This might be due to the shape of the pouch which is molar shaped rather than brick shaped.  Having said that the rigid and thick pads makes placement of this pouch much more forgiving, we don’t need to find soft areas to surround the pouch.

 

Pros: Has the most padding out all the pouches we have, has the most structure, has two compartments, has organizational meshes. Plenty of colour options. Likely the most protected pouch we have.

 

Cons: The shape makes it harder to tetris inside packs. There is no drain hole. It feels higher profile due to the rigidity of it. Price is also a factor. This is the most expensive pouch out of all of these items at around $125 CAD.

Final Thoughts

(Pouches – Family Picture – Photo Credit: The Kit Kobold 2025)

We haven’t made any of our pouches redundant dammit! We have not found our one pouch do it all. Hopefully our comments will help others explore the options available.

The pelican case is great for home for storage, it does that job fairly well and offers the most protection. I don’t think I would even consider it for travel as it is too bulky.

We like the Tactical Tailor pouch. It both a monocular or an articulating binocular. It has adjustable padding to help lock in the device. It is larger than we would like for storing inside a pack. It has less protection than we would like for exterior use on a LBE.

The NODE pouch is the lowest profile and but has the least amount of padding. It works well when cushioned amongst other things like inside a helmet or inside a pack.

The ONSC POD Mini fits both monoculars and articulating binos and has the most padding and structure and is what we would use if we had to wear a pouch on LBE.

Links:

1120 Pelican – as an Amazon Affiliate, we earn for qualifying purchases.

ONSC POD