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Rear view showing backpack harness attachment points
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Front view with attachment points for optional pouches
Front view with attachment points for optional pouches
Front view with attachment points for optional pouches
$143.00

E976 — XXX-Large Lens Pouch

Probably the world’s smallest 500mm case! It is useful for those desiring a ultra-compact case for air travel or for general around town shooting. If you are looking for a case for the Nikon 200-500/5.6 plus a body, choose the C850 instead.

  • Designed specifically for a Canon or Nikon 500/4, 500/4.5 or 200-400/4 lens (including the tripod mount, Arca-swiss plate & hood attached and reversed) without a body attached.*
  • Tight fit for “old” Canon 500/4 I.S. II (see field report below)
  • Will hold 300/2.8, Canon 400/4 DO, Nikon 200-500/5.6 with the hood in the shooting position (measure your rig to make sure).*
  • Side-walls are constructed of 12mm (1/2") closed-cell foam and the bottom features our rugged 12mm PolyCore™ stiffener.
  • A Kinesis padded harness (H255 + H130 adapter) can be attached to this case, converting it to a mini backpack.
  • Two single-wide or one double-wide pouch (A257 Body Pouch or M330) can be attached to outside.
  • An unpadded hand grab strap is sewn into this case, but an “across the chest” shoulder strap is not included (Y515 recommended).
  • Sized as a carry-on for U.S. domestic airlines
  • Our tripod carrying pouches (T164, T314 or T317) cannot attach to this case as it does with the L-series cases. 

*Camera Bodies That Will Fit

Although this bag was not designed to hold a lens and a big camera body together, it will fit a “small DSLR or mirrorless body” with a lens attached with just enough room to lift the body and lens out. Larger bodies (Canon 1D, R5 etc. Somy A1 with a vertical grip or Nikon Z9, D3 etc. series) will also fit, but it is very snug, and to remove the camera body you must pull it out with the camera strap as there is little room to slide your hand down the sides of the camera body.

Field Report for E976

Sony A1 & FE 200-600 f5.6-6.3 and the Olympus OM-1 & 150-400 f4.5 PRO combos each fit in the E976 almost perfectly while fitted with short Zemlin hoods in the shooting position. (November 2023)

Nikon 200-500/5.6: “I shoot a lot with a Nikon 200-500 zoom on a Nikon D850, in many different environments; wildlife, offshore, the whole gamut. I hate having to disassemble anything to stow it and move safely to another location. Finally, I have what I need. The whole rig, with lens hood still in place, fits inside, is snug and happily away from the elements.
And it's made in the USA. Happy days!!“ (April 2020)

Tamron 150-600 with the hood in the shooting position mounted to a regular-sized DSLR (no vertical grip) or mirrorless-sized body should snuggly fit according to preliminary customer feedback (March 2016). If you have a full-sized body, then choose the L511 instead.

Nikon 200-400/4: “I'm glad I waited for the E976. The height is just the right size for a Nikon 200-400 VR with hood reversed and D300 body attached [no vertical grip on body, but with a Really Right Stuff LCF-14 replacement foot and a Op Tech hood hat]. Also, the Op Tech hood hat is slightly more compact than the Nikon OEM “sock,” but the OEM Nikon hood also fits. The fit is snug, but there is no bulge and the zipper closes without any tension.” (March 2013).

Canon 500/4 I.S. II: “This foot is slightly longer than the original 500 I.S. and makes inserting into the E976 very tight. In fact, I have to put the hood on top of the rear part of the lens as it won’t fit in the normal reversed mode” (April 2015).


We recommend an aftermarket foot. If we get more reports like this, we may retool this pouch, making the diameter slightly larger.

Field Report for E970 (discontinued)

The E970 is now out of production and was a slightly shorter version of the E976.

Canon 500/4 IS will fit in this case with the following after-market adaptions...LensCoat™ neoprene cover, Don Zeck Lens cap, Op/Tech 3XL Hood Hat (fits over the LensCoat) & 4th Generation Adapter Plate (a low profile Acra-Swiss plate) (Jul 07).

Nikon 600/5.6 D-ED (circa 1990) will fit in this case with a Op/Tech Hood Hat (Aug 07).

Nikon 500/4 VR fits in OK with the hood attached and reversed (Jan 09).

Specifications

Double-wide allotment on belt (twin buckle, not KATS)

U.S./Imperial
17.5h** x 6.5" dia* I.D.
18.1h x 8.5" dia O.D.
Vol = 677 cu in
Weight = 18 oz.

Metric
44.5h** x 16.5cm dia* I.D.
46.0h x 21.7cm dia O.D.
Vol = 11.2 lit
Weight = 495 g

*The I.D. is the maximum diameter of the front element and/or lens cover that will fit inside this bag without distorting it. A lens with an approx. 17.75cm (7") diameter will fit, but it will bulge out the flat side of the pouch. The circumference is 64cm (25.2") which measures the entire inside perimeter of the "D" shape of the case. It is larger than 3.14 times the diameter to allow extra room for the lens tripod foot.

**The inside height of this case is measured from the base to the edge or brim of the side wall. A lens up to 46.5cm (18.6") can fit inside this case, but the rear lens cap will cause the lid to bulge up a little.


Designed and Crafted in USA

made in usa