- Joined
- Feb 7, 2012
- Messages
- 424
Hey guys, I'm not sure where this goes but I think it will work here if not, mods do your thing. I received the Mil-Spec Monkey (MSM) Adapt Pack for Christmas and have been using it exactly a month. I took it on a road trip along with a duffel, I've gone on day hikes with it, I've used it as a school bag,and as an EDC bag. Now I will be doing a long term review at the end of the year and let y'all know how it help up. I have been looking to down size and simplify my pack after two unsuccessful attempts at larger, more "technical" packs. As ya'll know, if there is a pocket in a bag, it takes incredible disciple not to fill it. So when I saw the equip to endure review on the pack, I thought it would fill my needs nicely. So I put it on my Christmas list and my family was sweet enough to oblige me.
First thing is that compared to most day pack/book bag/assault packs, this bag is small. 1178 CI or just over 19 liters, rather than the typical (at least for me) 30 to 35 liters. That's not a bad thing. With three main pockets and very little compartmentalization it lets you get use out of every last space.
i can fit my 15 inch laptop, 400 notebook pages, a bag with chargers, headphones and the like, and a 21 ounce hydro-flask with enough room for a hat or some other small item just in the main compartment. That is plenty of space for a college kid. The back panel is separate from the main body with a small slot to put a tablet or in my case a Kindle which holds the vast majority of my text books. This separation could also be used with a hydration bladder, I used a Camel pack and don't recommend using an unstructured bladder as there is no frame sheet, just close cell foam. I have not tried it but the osprey bladders with a structure would be a good option if they fit in the slot. It it didn't and you had room in the main compartment you could route the hose through wire ports near the loop handle.Also, if you chose to use it as a sling bag(more on that later) the extra straps and hardware slide into the slot.
As you can see I have a lot of stuff in the front pouch, a first aid kit, a pouch with a bunch of tea and drink mixes, a scarf and some hoo-ah wipes. I keep them in this pouch because I use these items fairly often but I don't want them to take up space in the main pocket. If you want to off body carry a pistol, this is the pocket you would use. The panel closest to the wearer is lined with loop Velcro so you can place any Velcro holster you use and in sling bad configuration you can get to your weapon with relative ease.
As I mentioned you can use this bag as a sling bag. As I am not as slim as I used to be and am broad chested for my height at the best of times I'm not a fan of the sling or 1 shoulder bag. This bag does give you all the hardware and stowing points to use it as such if you prefer. It does carry flat and square which is nice if you do use it as such because that is the main complaint I see for bags like this is that they bulge or sag and pull the weight away from the wearer.
In backpack mode it carries high and squarely between your shoulders making it very comfortable even after 5 or 6 hours. Like I said before the only structure in this bag is closed cell foam, making it light but it does pay to have your pack weight set up properly. There is MOLE on the sides of the bag as well as the front as you can see I have a tactical tailor pouch with a notepad and extra EDC and writing stuffs, and on the other a old US GI issue canteen and pouch (without the cup). MSM does sell a lighter carry option for common water bottles that I would like to get a set of but this works fine for now. The MOLE on the front of the bag come covered by shock cord that takes a fleece or light jacket very well. I tried having the admin pouch on the front of the pack but the weight pulled the pack away form me and I moved it down and balanced it with the water bottle. There are two elastic bottle keepers in the main compartment but they making it impossible to get notebooks in which is why I don't use them.
The pack is 99 dollars before shipping and is available form the MSM website in black, coyote, foliage, ranger green, urban, and mulit-cam.
Overall this pack is very well thought out and awesome for those that want more volume then the sling bags or fanny packs give us or a student that doesn't have to carry many text books. The few improvements I could think of would be to add a few rows of MOLE to the panel nearest the wearer in the main compartment so you could place a admin kit or radio or other heavy items in a good spot both for accessibility and weight distribution, and to add a HDPE frame sheet to the foam.
Oh and the pack is also configurable to place it on a larger pack or on a MOLE vest, and it includes hardware to do so.
First thing is that compared to most day pack/book bag/assault packs, this bag is small. 1178 CI or just over 19 liters, rather than the typical (at least for me) 30 to 35 liters. That's not a bad thing. With three main pockets and very little compartmentalization it lets you get use out of every last space.
i can fit my 15 inch laptop, 400 notebook pages, a bag with chargers, headphones and the like, and a 21 ounce hydro-flask with enough room for a hat or some other small item just in the main compartment. That is plenty of space for a college kid. The back panel is separate from the main body with a small slot to put a tablet or in my case a Kindle which holds the vast majority of my text books. This separation could also be used with a hydration bladder, I used a Camel pack and don't recommend using an unstructured bladder as there is no frame sheet, just close cell foam. I have not tried it but the osprey bladders with a structure would be a good option if they fit in the slot. It it didn't and you had room in the main compartment you could route the hose through wire ports near the loop handle.Also, if you chose to use it as a sling bag(more on that later) the extra straps and hardware slide into the slot.
As you can see I have a lot of stuff in the front pouch, a first aid kit, a pouch with a bunch of tea and drink mixes, a scarf and some hoo-ah wipes. I keep them in this pouch because I use these items fairly often but I don't want them to take up space in the main pocket. If you want to off body carry a pistol, this is the pocket you would use. The panel closest to the wearer is lined with loop Velcro so you can place any Velcro holster you use and in sling bad configuration you can get to your weapon with relative ease.
As I mentioned you can use this bag as a sling bag. As I am not as slim as I used to be and am broad chested for my height at the best of times I'm not a fan of the sling or 1 shoulder bag. This bag does give you all the hardware and stowing points to use it as such if you prefer. It does carry flat and square which is nice if you do use it as such because that is the main complaint I see for bags like this is that they bulge or sag and pull the weight away from the wearer.
In backpack mode it carries high and squarely between your shoulders making it very comfortable even after 5 or 6 hours. Like I said before the only structure in this bag is closed cell foam, making it light but it does pay to have your pack weight set up properly. There is MOLE on the sides of the bag as well as the front as you can see I have a tactical tailor pouch with a notepad and extra EDC and writing stuffs, and on the other a old US GI issue canteen and pouch (without the cup). MSM does sell a lighter carry option for common water bottles that I would like to get a set of but this works fine for now. The MOLE on the front of the bag come covered by shock cord that takes a fleece or light jacket very well. I tried having the admin pouch on the front of the pack but the weight pulled the pack away form me and I moved it down and balanced it with the water bottle. There are two elastic bottle keepers in the main compartment but they making it impossible to get notebooks in which is why I don't use them.
The pack is 99 dollars before shipping and is available form the MSM website in black, coyote, foliage, ranger green, urban, and mulit-cam.
Overall this pack is very well thought out and awesome for those that want more volume then the sling bags or fanny packs give us or a student that doesn't have to carry many text books. The few improvements I could think of would be to add a few rows of MOLE to the panel nearest the wearer in the main compartment so you could place a admin kit or radio or other heavy items in a good spot both for accessibility and weight distribution, and to add a HDPE frame sheet to the foam.
Oh and the pack is also configurable to place it on a larger pack or on a MOLE vest, and it includes hardware to do so.
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