Maxpedition 6x9 padded vs. 5.11 6x10 vertical (pics)

[Last Visible Canary]

I got the maxpedition 5x7x4 pouch for the side of my vulture pack by them and was disappointed by it's size. Since you can't really fit 2 of the 5x7x4's on the side of the pack I wanted to get soemthing that used the space a little better. There are a few manufacturers of 6x10 (or longer) vertical pouches, but the easiest to get at is the 5.11 6.10 vetical. I was able to grab one on ebay for 8.50$ total after shipping. having handled it I think it was a good deal, but I still wish maxpedition would make a comparable non-padded version.

the 6x9 pouch is said to be 6x9x3 and the 6.10 vertical is said to be 6x10x3.5. On the front the main difference is the presense of the velcro patch. If I ever used that for anything it would be for a velcro i.d. card holder.

Maxpedition uses open zippers where 5.11 uses the storm flap type (?). I trust the maxpedition to keep water out more than the 5.11 because the 5.11 will soak the water up through the bag, regardless of their zipper set up, where the maxpedition will keep the water out longer due to it's weather treatment.

The maxpedition opens farther down the bag which is nice, especially with how stiff their fabric is. The side loops are very different when you put your finger through them, the maxpeditions is stiff and solid where the 5.11's is really flat and floppy.

Maxpedition put a line of webbing under the bottom the pouch. i don't know what the intended purpose of it was, but I use it as a drag handle to pull it out of wherever I've stowed it (locker at work). It's a nice feature that doesn't add that much weight to the bag.

The biggest difference between the two feature wise is the attachment system. Maxpedition only pals'd half of the back with full webbing, where 5.11 pals'd 3/4 with only 3 rows of complete, the rest being staggered. Maxpedition doesn't supply any attachment devices with their gear, in this case I'm using malice clips from tactical tailor. I'd honestly rather be using the maxpedition tacties, I just bought a load of malice clips before I knew the difference. The tacties are nice because they are fully adjustable where the malice clips are... annoying. they are stiff and you have to work around whatever size your using. I have the shorter 3" clips but I don't use them because they are too tight for me, it's hella difficult to weave them into the 3 rows allowed.

5.11 has their own patented "slickclip" system. basically 2 layers of webbing with a snap on one end threaded through a 1" plastic loop with another peice of webbing sewn to the end so it doesn't slip through. sounds cool, but it's not adjustable at all. you have to use it on that column, if your pack only has 2 columns available too bad. you'll have to use a malice clip or tactie. and if your bag only has 3 rows or less you'll have a pack that can slide up and down (which probably isn't that big of an issue). needless to say, I may end up cutting them off.

I've got the maxpedition attached to a 2" plastic loop and a drop down belt strap I stole from something else (I think a utg holster (TERRIBLE quality, but the hardware was solid))

the 6x9 padded has a strip of velcro on the bottom, I have no idea why. The attache cases use this as a divider platform, where the divider has velcro sewn to the bottom. in this case ???

5.11's is just open canvas

 

[Last Visible Canary]

aside from just using as a pouch to attach to the side of the bag, these can be used as edc man-bags. I've purchased a proteus and a sabercat to see how they work, but I doubt I'll actually edc them because of the need to put the belt over my actual belt. I'll probably end up putting the proteus on the front pals platform on my vulture and just storing the sabercat.

I've tried several options for edc bags, in this picture is a blackhawk omega medical drop leg pouch, the maxpedition 6x9 padded and niteize pock-its. The blackbawk medic pouch wasn't padded and it was a bit small for the stuff I carry, and the pock-itz required you to carry it at belt level. That meant either threading your belt through it, or putting it's belt over your normal belt. It was annoying not being able to get to my pockets, having two belts riding on my waist, and having my shirt pulled up over it all the time.

It worked, it just wasn't ideal.

enter the 6x9 in a drop leg setup:

It isn't pleasant to hike with in this format because it's not tied down to the leg. it tends to rub back and forth a lot when you walk, so I tend to have my hand on it to keep it steady. you can thread a leg belt through it, but I have it set up to ride REALLY high for that, the belt would end up in my crotch. Since the molle row's only go to the 50% mark on the back, you can't really belt it any lower than the top of the bag. I could put an extendor in between the belt loop and the bag to lower it, but I don't like having it ride that low. It sways even more even with the leg belt and it's way more noticable. looks less like a fanny pack and more like a military set up.

I could switch to a versipack or one of the other drop leg bags from maxpedition, but all of them have the belt-over-belt problem.

This is what I carry in it (plus 3 sets of nitrile gloves not shown):

Whats present:
-panasonic lx3 in a lowepro case (magnets removed)
-rx sunglasses
-surefire g2
-2 edgepro sharpening stones (220 and 1000 grit)
in the maui jim case:
---county comm led
---county comm maritac 3 way aa led
---extra 123a batteries for g2
---extra aa battery for maritac
---lens brush for lx3
---3 pairs nitrile gloves for first aid
---mini-cpr mask for first aid
in mini game case:
---2 extra lx3 batteries
---extra 4gb sd card

I have a maritac xl eod bag that rides in my car full of medical supplies, I cut down what I carry on my person at all times down to gloves and a cpr mask. I should probably throw a bandaid in there... the idea is just to minimize what I carry while maximizing necessary utility and function.

The maui jim case has a flat top, so it rides int he bottom of the bag with everything else on top of it.

For 8.50$ the 5.11 was a steal, at 20$ it's still a good pouch. However, I don't like the static position of the slick clips and I would prefer a weather treated cordura like maxpeditions. If maxpedition made a non-padded version of their 6x9 I'd go with it hands down on every single feature.

I don't want to lump 5.11 with other low end manufacturers but really they are at the same level as condor, maritac extreme and voodoo tactical. The only difference between 5.11 and them is that you'll find a few less loose threads - their materials are identical. Maxpedition stands out from the crowd because of their weather treatment, thicker stronger thread, and stiffer webbing. It makes for a bag that feels (and is) higher quality across the board, every inch of it.

 

[Last Visible Canary]

okay... it now has 2 sets of nitril gloves, 2 large bandaids, 2 small bandaids, 2 butterfly closure bandaids, a cleaning pad and triple antibiotic. All of which rides in the top lid of the maui jim case.

It's kind of weird to think of an eyeglasses case as an edc or bugout pouch, but they are very functional. These are molded semi-hard cases that are completely enclosed and can be attached to anything (including molle) via the clip. The rattle around a bit, but if you have a cynch stap over it would be pretty stable. With it's flat top, it stows very nicely at the bottom of a bag without eating up to much space.

 

[Waldganger]

good write up mate

 

[dialton]

Maxpedition is great stuff but I too have some 5.11 gear depending on its use. Good write up.