Patrol Packs....Opinions

[Titan]

Looking at the following:

Patriot performance small assault pack
Eagle Patrol Pack
RAID Pack (or its new little brother Cobra, but that one is 10 weeks out at ATS tactical)

Besides airsoft use, also will use for hauling personal gear to and from work on bus/ train.  Some light hiking use etc.

Drop some wisdom

[TimW]

PPM's SAP is expandable. That's all I know about it.  PPM makes good stuff...from folks I know who have them, a great value for the money.

Eagle Patrol Pack - smallish at about 1300 c.i., it's also got a pocket to put a ballistic plate in.  No separate nooks/crannies/pockets for gear separation, unless you add pouches to the outside.  I have one each in Black and OD on sale...go to the 'clearance/sale' tab on my website.

RAID pack - friends who have this indicate it's not a pack for carrying a lot of stuff a long way.  Framesheet helps, but a Kifaru Marauder would be a better choice for someone wanting to carry some serious weight, since it has a real frame and waistbelt.  The RAID pack offers a lot of modularity options with all the PALS webbing.

[Sergeant First Class Keenan]

My Favorite 3 day pack is ironiclly, T.H.E. PACK by spec ops. http://www.specopsbrand.com/ProductDeta ... oductID=12 I think everything else spec ops makes is crap, as far as long term use, but my favorite 3 day pack of all time is this back pack, I've used it for 3 years now everyday, field use to working here in recruiting. its just a good bag. Oh and you can get a frame for it if needed. And all the molle webbing makes it nice cause you can attach a ton more stuff to it.

the vast majority of troops overseas would agree, when T.H.E. PACK just works.

[Ganef]

Owned A RAID pack for a long time and loved it, I did hike with it (after a few in house modifications) and it worked great.

Eagle PP is awsome though I found the straps uncomfortable.

THE pack is cool and works, they just didnt take much ergonomics lessons when they made it.

IT realy depends what you are going to do with this pack and where you are taking it. I used to love taking a patrol pack on trips in airports but after a long conversation with guys in St. Louis on the way back from Irene, I am done with .mil packs around sheep.

[Elbows]

I love my Maxpedition Condor II...but I haven't used it extensively to testify about it. I fly with it, use it for work sometimes...but its a nice pack - dont know if its big enough for what you're looking at.

[azsarge]

I have owned just about every brand of assault pack over the past fews years.  SOE, Eagle, Spec Ops Brand, Camelbak, LBT, DBT/BattleLab, CoyoteTac, Kifaru, et al.

Operationally, I have used Kifaru, USGI, Diamondback Tactical, Coyote Tactical, and LBT bags in Afghanistan.

The Eagle FSBE II Patrol pack (if that's the eagle bag you're talking about) is nice, but too expensive for what you intend it to do.

The RAID is nice, but I found the Kifaru Marauder to be a much better panel-loading bag.  Loaded with external pouches, the RAID makes a well-organized stay-put bag.  The Marauder does everything the RAID does, but can actually be worn on the move comfortably with up to 50 pounds.  I don't know about the newer RAIDs, but the Eagle one I had had no internal PALS.  It's one thing I love about the Marauder.

I've never used a TAS, er, PPM bag.

Believe it or not, the MOLLE II Assault Pack (Universal Pattern) is one of my favorite bags.  It's well compartmented, has a plate pocket, and is just the right size for overnight outings.  I keep mine packed as a Grab-and-Go bag for 1-2 days trips in case someone else flies into a mountain.

Since you're going in public with it, I suggest something a little more low-vis than the bags you listed.  Black is best, and I promise no one will make fun of you if you bring it to the field. :lol:

Rather than run on with what I know about bags, how about you answer some specific questions, and I'll answer them the best I can.
-What are you going to carry in it? (Most Important)
-Do you need a frame or framesheet?
-Will you be attaching pouches to the outside?
-Do you need a waistbelt?

I know there are alot of cool bags out there, but I didn't really find packs that suited my needs until I put what looks cool out of my mind and concentrated on my specific needs.  

That's the main reason I have 7 packs with me over here!  I need a bag to keep my Aircraft Recovery tools in, and sometimes I need to hump all my shit in it for 7 miles.   Different packs for different jobs.

You have to realize that there are military bags designed to carry commo equipment, M18 smokes, and a camelbak, then there are bags meant to haul laptops and books.  It sounds like you need the latter.