I come to you with a conundrum, I’m getting ready to deploy again to Afghanistan. I need a pack for patrols that fits nicely against IOTV/Plate carriers. For the time being I’m an AG, meaning I have to carry a minimum of 400 rounds of linked 7.62mm aside from my own gear. Here’s the catch, I’m heading for a very hot part of the country (OPSEC) and may be on the ground away from the trucks for an extended period of time with unlikely chance of resupply, so my personal requirements for the pack would look like 12 M4 mags and 800 rounds of linked 7.62, hydration pack, water purifier and a few other goodies. Would anyone know anything along these guidelines without going full blown rucksack?
Try Mystery Ranch, their packs fit over the plate pretty good and are durable, the straps are pretty comfortable too. Are you saying 12 mags total or on top of your basic load? Either way your gonna be humping too much shit…
Well, your 7.62 ammo load-out alone is 45lbs. Add 12 lbs more for the M-4 mags and then hydration, you are looking at in excess of 65 lbs in a Patrol Pack. Not to mention the plates that you are carrying the weight for on your shoulders.
No effing way! Get a frame pack and put that load onto your hips.
If your going to be humping all that gear your going to want something like this. My brother has been using this pack in A-stan going on his second deployment. He says It’s the best pack he has ever used.
I have the Mystery Ranch 3 Day BVS, I wear it over an LVT-6094 plate carrier. Unless it’s a short raid, I carry a 117G with all types of extra batteries, a satcom antenna, 6-9 liters of water, and some stripped MREs.
Unfortunately, I have decided that I fucking hate it. The BVS thing is apparently sized for medium plates or something because it doesn’t straddle my large plates like it’s supposed to. The straps wrap way up into my armpits where the QD links will some times bite into the corner of my chest so hard it bruises and even drew blood once. The straps do not keep the pack “high” either, and unless I route the sternum strap under my sling (single point on chest molle) the pack falls down my back. The sternum strap actually comes across my neck if I don’t anchor it down to something on my vest it sits so low. Because of the armor, it’s impossible to get the straps “tight” enough for the pack to sit right. I’m not a bad rucker, I do 12 milers right under 3 hours, but this setup SMOKES my upper back in about 3.2 seconds. I really hate it.
The Y-Zipper is the dumbest goddamn thing ever too. There is actually a lot more room in the back than it looks like there would be, but you can’t get anything in that space because of the retarded zipper.
All the above are great options. Price point wise, Eberlestock can’t be beat if you do it through promotive.com. The Terminator is very versatile and I’ve been having good luck with it.
My unit was doing some testing for Mystery Ranch a few years ago. I was able to use a variety of their bags in both pre-deployment training and in the mountains of Afghanistan. If you go the Mystery Ranch route, stay away from the BVS. The non-BVS frames were pretty much universally preferred. As RTO / FO bags, the mystery ranch 3 day packs worked out relatively well. The new 117G fits nicely into the 3 day pack. For the AB/AG’s and Mortar guys, not so much. The configuration of the pack just didn’t facilitate comfort, nor easy access to the load.
Also stay away from the larger mystery ranch bags. When not filled up they tend to get sloppy. Weight transfer to hips was also less than ideal.
The solution? Kifaru and Granite tactical. Almost everyone came to prefer these two brands. My personal favorite is the Granite Tactical CHIEF that can be found here…
…It proved to be rock solid, COMFORTABLE, and solidly transferred the load to my hips. Easy Access, plenty of storage, and most importantly, flexible. Putting a small load into the back and cinching it down was practical and it didnt’ look like a “bag of fu**” even when carrying a small load that would have fit into a small assault pack. Yet it can be packed full of 100 pounds of the lightest shit ever made and still perform.
The most I ever had to carry in it was 125 pounds, give or take. It was by no means comfortable, but I was in WAY less pain than the guys with other packs.
Many also chose various Kifaru packs, and they were all quality as well. I didn’t carry one personally so I can’t comment, but I never heard a bad thing from any that did.
You can fit 100+ rounds of 7.62 link into each. A couple of these attached to the waist belt of your pack, and that’s 200+ rounds of instant access to hand off to your gunner. The rest can be stored inside the pack. This increases comfort, ease of access, and storage space for items other than ammo inside the pack.
I did see that and I wanted to try it, but I’m trying to stop spending so much of my own money on gear and at this point by the time it got here I wouldn’t use it much.