Anyone Else Wear Sling Bags?

Locutus D'Borg said:
My wife loves me using a sling bag because she notes that she doesn't have to carry my "junk" around in her purse.
Click to expand...
Funny. That’s why I stopped carrying my backpack lol.

We visited New Orleans last October. And I had my Rush (which is set up. I have everything it’s its place.) and wife wanted me to put all the souvenirs in the bag… which I did. Then she’d ask if I had wipes or something. “Yeah! I do!” I told her where they were (as I didn’t want to take the bag off) later I realized when she put them back in. She just threw them back and didn’t put them where they went. Not a huge deal. But bothered me. I have my bag set up so I know where things are when I need them. If I can’t get to it for whatever reason. I can direct someone RIGHT to where they are.

After that it started my search for a smaller bag.

I did pick up a cheaper sling bag from academy. Allen Company Lite Force if I recall correctly. I like the bag. But it’s almost too “middle ground” if that makes sense. I wanted to step the carry load down. But the bag was just a bit big for it. Either you pack it and carry the weight. Or you cut it back and it doesn’t hold shape and gets all floppy. (Very good bag for price though.)

Then I went to the Vertx cross body fanny pack. (Very similar to my 945 Industries QAPL) but I didn’t like how soft and flimsy it was. And the zipper setup made it harder to draw the CCW if needed. So I sent it back and paid double for the QAPL. And love it! More sturdy, and has a quick pull for the CCW draw. Plus it came with a kydex Velcro holster (part of the cost as well).
 
Since the weather has been hot lately, I've been wearing shorts and frequently rocking a fanny pack strapped over my shoulder and across my chest, like a tiny backpack. It holds my wallet, keys, and other EDC items. I can't really carry stuff like that in my stretchy short pockets comfortably. With the fanny pack strapped to my back, I can walk and even jog quite comfortably without saggy bouncy short pockets. It's really nice.

I keep waiting for somebody to comment on it or ask about it it so that I can tell them "it's my purse", but nobody has even said anything. It's quite disappointing. I even showed it off to somebody just to start that conversation, but he only complimented me on it, which only frustrated me. I want somebody to tease me about it.
 
Guy McVer said:
Since the weather has been hot lately, I've been wearing shorts and frequently rocking a fanny pack strapped over my shoulder and across my chest, like a tiny backpack. It holds my wallet, keys, and other EDC items. I can't really carry stuff like that in my stretchy short pockets comfortably. With the fanny pack strapped to my back, I can walk and even jog quite comfortably without saggy bouncy short pockets. It's really nice.

I keep waiting for somebody to comment on it or ask about it it so that I can tell them "it's my purse", but nobody has even said anything. It's quite disappointing. I even showed it off to somebody just to start that conversation, but he only complimented me on it, which only frustrated me. I want somebody to tease me about it.
Click to expand...
Move to the Midwest 😁
 
Hickory n steel said:
My mom had a big ass purse that we always called " the duffle bag " which she definitely didn't like, but she deserved to get teased for having such a big ass purse that was too big and too full to find anything.

Btw I actually think women do need purses more because dresses or skirts have no pockets and the ones on women's jeans are useless.
My grandmother hates to carry a purse so she wears mens jeans and carpenters shorts, she does carry a pocket knife and a flashlight though so she may be a bit if a different story.
Click to expand...
This says it all about womens' fashion. They whine about the lack of (usable) pockets, but won't buy clothes with usable pockets (because it draws attention to their waistlines), and will buy what's "in" this year, throw it out next year when it's "out," then buy it again 3-5 years down the line when it's "in" again.
 
I'm sorry, but yet another sign of the Russification of America. Men carrying purses!!!

If it doesn't fit in my pockets, it ain't gonna go. This man bag nonsense is an offshoot of the EDC ridiculousness, where some people feel compelled to carry stuff that won't be needed except on a Mission Impossible Hollywood fantasy adventure.

How did our fathers/grandfathers work though a Great Depression, then go off to fight WW2, and then come home to a normal working life raising a family in the new suburbia? I don't recall any of them carrying a man-bag or purse, or what ever you want to to call it. They had 'pocket stuff' and that was it. Men walking around with purses slung on them is going too far. :rolleyes:
 
Insulting or Rude behavior
jackknife said:
I'm sorry, but yet another sign of the Russification of America. Men carrying purses!!!

If it doesn't fit in my pockets, it ain't gonna go. This man bag nonsense is an offshoot of the EDC ridiculousness, where some people feel compelled to carry stuff that won't be needed except on a Mission Impossible Hollywood fantasy adventure.

How did our fathers/grandfathers work though a Great Depression, then go off to fight WW2, and then come home to a normal working life raising a family in the new suburbia? I don't recall any of them carrying a man-bag or purse, or what ever you want to to call it. They had 'pocket stuff' and that was it. Men walking around with purses slung on them is going too far. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...
We also don’t live in that time. Hell, our car keys are often more than your “father and grandfather” even had.

No one is prepping for “Hollywood Mission Impossible”? I carry my CCW Pistol, spare magazine, Benchmade Bugout, small Streamlight Microstream, phone, car keys, bandana, wallet, Bic lighter, and a small Chums wallet that houses a few minor first aid things. That’s not a lot by any means.

On my person at any time is wallet and bandana (back right pocket), phone (back left pocket), flashlight and Bugout (front right pocket) and keys on a clip on my right side belt loop. Everything else is in a 945 Industries QAPL. It’s a secondary carry for a reason. If I’m making a quick run, it may stay in the car. If firearms are not permitted, then it stays in the car. There’s nothing in it I NEED. But have quick access to if I do.

Funny you mention Great Depression. I can’t tell you how many real pictures I’ve seen with men carrying briefcases, bags, or numerous layers of clothes with pockets. Are you implying they didn’t carry more in those manners?

WWII, do I need to even talk about that? You’re right. You’re right. Not like they carried bags and bags of gear. Oh… wait…. They even MADE THEIR OWN BAGS out of supplies to carry extra gear. From extra magazine pouches, to extra bags to carry more grenades. I am in no means a WWII veteran. But I am an Afghanistan War veteran. 2012-2015. And I know for a fact our packs were a lifeline. I was almost never a few feet away from my pack.

And I’ll add one your father and grandpa were most likely in, but you didn’t mention. Boy Scouts! You know, Be Prepared is their motto. A popular BSA Slogan Do a Good Turn Daily? How many times has someone next to you needed a bandaid, or a Tylenol. Someone crying or bleeding. Oh. I have a bandana, take that.

It’s not about gearing up for war or mission impossible as you claim. It’s about making life easier on you or those around you. And I get it’s not everyone’s cup of tea. And that’s just fine. But with your dated views you probably just spend your days in a dark Speakeasy or your 5¢ bubblegum general store.

But to each their own. Carry it or don’t. This post was asking if or what people carry. Not what some guy with a stick up his @ss has to think about it.
 
Last edited:
jackknife said:
I'm sorry, but yet another sign of the Russification of America. Men carrying purses!!!

If it doesn't fit in my pockets, it ain't gonna go. This man bag nonsense is an offshoot of the EDC ridiculousness, where some people feel compelled to carry stuff that won't be needed except on a Mission Impossible Hollywood fantasy adventure.

How did our fathers/grandfathers work though a Great Depression, then go off to fight WW2, and then come home to a normal working life raising a family in the new suburbia? I don't recall any of them carrying a man-bag or purse, or what ever you want to to call it. They had 'pocket stuff' and that was it. Men walking around with purses slung on them is going too far. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...
I grew up in mining country in West Virginia. It wasn't unusual to see men carrying a miners powder bag in the woods or around the farm.
I carry in layers I wear cargo shorts or pants. Either a good heavy duty pocketed T-shirt or button up shirt I always have a knife, lighter, wallet keys small light and phone with a gun and extra mag on my belt. I have a 5:11 Moab 6 sling bag that is usually close. Decent first aid kit, pad and pen titanium cup with the stuff for tea , spork salt and pepper. Better flash light. I consider this a comfort bag . I have the biggest 5:11 sling bag that I consider my travel bag. It has a serious first aid kit power bank back up knife better flash light. Etc.
Any EDC bag I have I add a condor 4x4 pouch on the outside that I carry wet wipes and hand sanitizer in to clean hands without having to get in the main bag.
I also have a titanium cup spork salt and pepper and a small stainless steel saucer. The cup and saucer get used often when my wife and I eat carryout away from the house. We are in our sixties we've split a bowl of soup or stew into the mug or fries nuggets can be put on the small plate. It's also a clean place to set stuff. A washed 20 oz Powerade bottle makes a cheap light water bottle to get water from a fountain or hose bib. Since I am a plumber there is always a 4-way hose bib key in the vehicle
 
jackknife said:
I'm sorry, but yet another sign of the Russification of America. Men carrying purses!!!

If it doesn't fit in my pockets, it ain't gonna go. This man bag nonsense is an offshoot of the EDC ridiculousness, where some people feel compelled to carry stuff that won't be needed except on a Mission Impossible Hollywood fantasy adventure.

How did our fathers/grandfathers work though a Great Depression, then go off to fight WW2, and then come home to a normal working life raising a family in the new suburbia? I don't recall any of them carrying a man-bag or purse, or what ever you want to to call it. They had 'pocket stuff' and that was it. Men walking around with purses slung on them is going too far. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

I really want to encounter someone like you while I'm wearing my fanny pack on my back so I can swing it around in front of me like a tiny handbag, dig for my chap stick all dainty-like, and then slowly put it on like lipstick while my other arm is pressed up against my ribs with my hand hanging down limp-wristed and my hip is sticking out to one side. And then when I'm done putting on my chap stick I'll make a "pop" sound with my lips, just to be extra obnoxious.

Sadly, nobody seems to care if I'm wearing my fanny pack. It's no fun at all. It's practical though. It's better than stuffing everything in my shorts and walking around with saggy pockets swinging all over the place.
 
jackknife said:
I'm sorry, but yet another sign of the Russification of America. Men carrying purses!!!

If it doesn't fit in my pockets, it ain't gonna go. This man bag nonsense is an offshoot of the EDC ridiculousness, where some people feel compelled to carry stuff that won't be needed except on a Mission Impossible Hollywood fantasy adventure.

How did our fathers/grandfathers work though a Great Depression, then go off to fight WW2, and then come home to a normal working life raising a family in the new suburbia? I don't recall any of them carrying a man-bag or purse, or what ever you want to to call it. They had 'pocket stuff' and that was it. Men walking around with purses slung on them is going too far. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...
It's a valid thought. That said, I do have a counter.
For my grandfathers, each had a pickup that was everywhere they were, every tractor and implement had a toolbox which would do the minor repairs to get things back to the shop. Where I grew up anyone younger than my grandparents who didn't pass driver's ed could get a 40 or 80 km limited license (so that far from home quarter address) So they would still have some vehicle. We all had dirt bikes and quads in summer and snowmobiles in winter (each with a tool kit and a bottle of redbird strike-anywheres, and if you missed dinner, a search party).
My mom's dad was killed in a car wreak when I was little, and my dad's dad passed when I was a few years out of high school, but had been sickly his whole life (he never knew why a born deaf kid wasn't an instant entrant for the artillery corp) and my Mom's dad was established enough when that war broke out that he was disallowed from joining, his farm was more valuable. But both had an EDC that was stashed over several hundred acres. Neither traveled all that much, my mom's dad had family in Kansas, so he would go once and a while, but my Dad's folks stayed within a 50km radius of where their parents had settled coming over the pond. They also lived on a time scale that I could never achieve, I count minutes, my grandfathers worked in +- an hour at the best (apart from sunday morning) and even then, ducking out of a family event because there was a cow in the barn was normal, here I can't take a half day to get a medical procedure done.
I know that you would easily forgive any excess carry "for a good reason" so I'm not really making that argument. My dad kept a change of clothes in his truck until his mid 30s because he'd missed one, and then got several opportunities for jobs that were "leave now, and you have very well paid work for the next week" and at least could sort everything else out later, in fact it was part of the reputation he built, even if later on it wasn't fun. If my boss tells me that my next job is a day away, I'll do alright, but I also have a full rig ready to load up if I need to take my food for a week with me (I don't really do restaurants) But I know I can do a day or two if I have to, with a grocery store. In a week I'll load my car fridge and live out of a hotel for a week doing a remote job in a very small town that has one reliable grocery store (I'll be able to get some veggies I think) But the core of my rig is a phone battery, a cutting board, an opinel, and some compressed cleaning cloths. That takes a backpack, because despite what I'd like, I still need at least one meal of food, and where I live, it's not a promise I can buy it on arrival.
So I get it, I carry stuff I'll use if I need it, and I live life so that if the boss says "can you?" my response is yes. But I live a world and an ocean away from where I grew up. Do some guys carry stuff they know they will never need, or worse, will hesitate to scuff the finish on if they think they might be in trouble? yeah, but who cares? I've done a full days work on the snacks in the bottom of my backpack, I'm happy to make sure I have them. So do I have some silly shit in with my laptop work bag and my normal walking around backpack, yeah, I do, but even all you have is in your pockets, you are allowed 1% of fun at least, right?
 
Midgetje93 said:
We also don’t live in that time. Hell, our car keys are often more than your “father and grandfather” even had.

No one is prepping for “Hollywood Mission Impossible”? I carry my CCW Pistol, spare magazine, Benchmade Bugout, small Streamlight Microstream, phone, car keys, bandana, wallet, Bic lighter, and a small Chums wallet that houses a few minor first aid things. That’s not a lot by any means.

On my person at any time is wallet and bandana (back right pocket), phone (back left pocket), flashlight and Bugout (front right pocket) and keys on a clip on my right side belt loop. Everything else is in a 945 Industries QAPL. It’s a secondary carry for a reason. If I’m making a quick run, it may stay in the car. If firearms are not permitted, then it stays in the car. There’s nothing in it I NEED. But have quick access to if I do.

Funny you mention Great Depression. I can’t tell you how many real pictures I’ve seen with men carrying briefcases, bags, or numerous layers of clothes with pockets. Are you implying they didn’t carry more in those manners?

WWII, do I need to even talk about that? You’re right. You’re right. Not like they carried bags and bags of gear. Oh… wait…. They even MADE THEIR OWN BAGS out of supplies to carry extra gear. From extra magazine pouches, to extra bags to carry more grenades. I am in no means a WWII veteran. But I am an Afghanistan War veteran. 2012-2015. And I know for a fact our packs were a lifeline. I was almost never a few feet away from my pack.

And I’ll add one your father and grandpa were most likely in, but you didn’t mention. Boy Scouts! You know, Be Prepared is their motto. A popular BSA Slogan Do a Good Turn Daily? How many times has someone next to you needed a bandaid, or a Tylenol. Someone crying or bleeding. Oh. I have a bandana, take that.

It’s not about gearing up for war or mission impossible as you claim. It’s about making life easier on you or those around you. And I get it’s not everyone’s cup of tea. And that’s just fine. But with your dated views you probably just spend your days in a dark Speakeasy or your 5¢ bubblegum general store.

But to each their own. Carry it or don’t. This post was asking if or what people carry. Not what some guy with a stick up his @ss has to think about it.
Click to expand...
J jackknife I've read your threads long enough to know that this is not your point, and our friend here is new-ish. But I can bet that well within your "pockets" and your knowledge, you solve almost all of what he plans to carry just as an incidental. And I'll also guess that his combat pack is besides your point. So to counterpoint my big post of how my grandfathers worked, I do think I still understand how you think. If I could walk out the door with nothing but my pockets, I'd be a happy man, but that's just not how my life worked out. Have a good day friend.
 
One warning issued for insults.

Opinions are like belly buttons. We all got them and none is better than another.
 
Yesterday we went to my inlaws with the pooch and took my packable raincoat and some dogfood to my NorthFace purse.
I should have ofcourse just stuffed them to my pants like real man or take the rain and not whine like communist.
 
Last edited:
Insulting or Rude behavior
jackknife said:
I'm sorry, but yet another sign of the Russification of America. Men carrying purses!!!

If it doesn't fit in my pockets, it ain't gonna go. This man bag nonsense is an offshoot of the EDC ridiculousness, where some people feel compelled to carry stuff that won't be needed except on a Mission Impossible Hollywood fantasy adventure.

How did our fathers/grandfathers work though a Great Depression, then go off to fight WW2, and then come home to a normal working life raising a family in the new suburbia? I don't recall any of them carrying a man-bag or purse, or what ever you want to to call it. They had 'pocket stuff' and that was it. Men walking around with purses slung on them is going too far. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

Okay grandpa, time to take your medicine again!
 
Thanks to all for your replies, even the negative ones. On the boardwalk along the nearest beach, I don't think I saw a single person, male or female, without a sling bag or small knapsack. Maybe because it's California, IDK.

FYI, I carry my billfold, phone, wipes, & car keys. That's it. I wear my knife clipped to my pocket. No point weighing down my pants with that other stuff.
 
Hickory n steel said:
I just use this cheap $20 EBAY POS.

It works and the zippers have heald up, but this thread is making me want to look for something better.
It's bigger than I need, so I'll probably see if maxpedition has a smaller pack of some kind that will limit me to only carrying just what I need.
Click to expand...
I got the same one in OD. I mostly just use it to tote stuff to and from the truck. It's handy to have for a multitool, extra phone charger and small stuff and you can fit a 32 Oz Nalgene bottle in it if you don't zip it closed. Trying to dig stuff out of pants pockets while driving is a PITA.
My wife jokes it's a purse too. I told her it's not because there's never tampons in it.
That's the thing that makes a purse a purse -you have a feminine hygiene product in it. Every woman with a purse has one or more in there and if you doubt that ask some.
Theyll even share them with other women with no expectation of it being returned and that's not happening with my stuff. You can borrow my Leatherman but I want it back.
 
Last edited:
SimplyMinded said:
My wife jokes it's a purse too. I told her it's not because there's never tampons in it.
Click to expand...

🤣

SimplyMinded said:
That's the thing that makes a purse a purse -you have a feminine hygiene product in it.
Click to expand...

That seems like an arbitray place to draw the line. So what happens if and when your wife asks you to carry "a feminine hygiene product" for her? Does your bag transform into a purse?

SimplyMinded said:
Every woman with a purse has one or more in there and if you doubt that ask some.
Click to expand...

*clears throat*

"Please excuse me, madam. Would you happen to be carrying a feminine sanitary cloth tampon?"




There is no reason to be so hung up over a word. If it's a purse, then it's a purse. Just own it. Purses were developed primarily for men, and they were adopted by women. The same goes for fancy wigs and high heeled shoes, in case you didn't already know.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top