Molle Packs

M67

M67

Gold Member
Joined
Apr 17, 2010
Messages
7,197
I know a lot of us around these parts have BOBs, 3 day assault packs, TEOTWAWKI packs, zombie apocalypse packs, etc. and a lot of them have Molle straps for attaching gear and pouches to it.

I picked up a Camelbak Trizip pack at the last Indy 1500 and it's my first "pure" molle gear pack and for some reason tonight, I was thinking how strong are these straps / stitching on the straps? (I know it varies a lot on the brand, but in general)

Has anyone ever managed to tear their stitching by having pouches or gear getting caught on something? I know the military runs a lot on Molle gear so have the soldiers and veterans around here managed to do this?

I've looked around a bit and haven't found anything on this.

So, have you pushed your molle packs beyond their point?





Oh, I know this might be gear forum material, but Hogs' experiences and ideas are the best:thumbup:

Well, most of the time ;)
 
Last edited:
Have a Kifaru MOLLE Express for a few years now and it has held up very well - cant say its showing any signs of wear at all... I have loaded up Long Pockets that attach to the molle via malice clips with 15+ pounds of gear with no issues.

c7091fd3.jpg
 
Yeah, well, Kifaru is like the Busse Custom Shop of bags - of course it's gonna hold up.

;)

Conversely, I have some inexpensive Maxpedition gear and even a cheap knock-off and beat the crap out of them and load them up (stuffed is another way to put it) and neither are showing any discernible wear to the molle straps
 
The camelbak Trizip is a camelbak/mystery ranch (dana designs) collaboration. The bags are made overseas, but the quality is really top notch . I use another camelbak/mystery ranch collaboration- the Linchpin - as one of my main bags. The futura harness system they have is one of the absolute best I have ever used. To answer your question about stitching, the bag is a tough 500 D cordura, which is a tighter weave than the heavier 1000D --I have no worries about abusing the hell out of mine. Just don't go nuts and construct a bulky modular monstrosity .
 
DowntownDM said:
Yeah, well, Kifaru is like the Busse Custom Shop of bags - of course it's gonna hold up.

;)

Conversely, I have some inexpensive Maxpedition gear and even a cheap knock-off and beat the crap out of them and load them up (stuffed is another way to put it) and neither are showing any discernible wear to the molle straps
Click to expand...

What brand is the knock-off?
 
hankbarlow said:
The camelbak Trizip is a camelbak/mystery ranch (dana designs) collaboration. The bags are made overseas, but the quality is really top notch . I use another camelbak/mystery ranch collaboration- the Linchpin - as one of my main bags. The futura harness system they have is one of the absolute best I have ever used. To answer your question about stitching, the bag is a tough 500 D cordura, which is a tighter weave than the heavier 1000D --I have no worries about abusing the hell out of mine. Just don't go nuts and construct a bulky modular monstrosity .
Click to expand...

You are correct about the 500D Cordura. Despite it being "half" what a Kifaru is, the molle webbing very strong.

Love the Tri-Zip design. No more digging for things. Big Busse friendly!

DSC00002-2.jpg


DSC00006-1.jpg


DSC00001-1.jpg
 
TrailWolf said:
Have a Kifaru MOLLE Express... I have loaded up Long Pockets.
Click to expand...

You, Sir, are a connoisseur. I had been looking at the G2 MolEx but have decided it may be a bit big for short hikes. Am now thinking about the XRay instead. Glad to hear they hold up well.

Chris.
 
I have a Maxpedition Condor II that I've loaded up on MOLLE gear, great little pack that I keep as my OMGWTFSHTFBBQ bag, but it's not even close to the Kifaru or Mystery Ranch bags posted in this thread already. It (MOLLE) seems to be a really durable system, as long as the bag you're using as a platform and the packs/accessories you attach are all of good quality nylon, I'd say you're good to go.
 
to be honest I would say that the maxpedition molle is stronger than whats on the mystery ranch. I have a wolfpack system and skiritai from MR and I've used a maxpedition condor for the past 2 months carrying about 25-35 pounds of books in it monday through thursday. I also have a 40oz water bottom in a mini roly polly pouch attached to the side via malice clips that puts strain on the top 2 palls channels at all times.

The big difference between maxpedition and other brands is the their 'high tensile strength strapping' and the teflon weather treating on their fabric. The teflon makes the fabric (which may be exactly the same as kifaru's) much, much stiffer than it would have been otherwise, and the straps feel both thicker and much, much stiffer. Like, so stiff its hard to work with and it seems like it never wears in, it remains stiff after years of constant use from what I've read. The stitching I beleive is also abrasian resistant thread.

Most of the wear and tear you'll see on molle packs isn't from bags hanging off the molle, it's from abrasion eating away the fabric. Either they were set on top of sharp rocks and it ended up cutting the top part of a strap, a piece of slag (or cigarette butt) landed on it and burned a hole through, a knife put a nick in it and it frayed, or various other direct forms of damage. If you buy one of the name brands like maxpedition or mystery ranch/camelback, it's unlikely you'll ever have the molle fail from general use (though your attaching strapps/clips might depending on what your using). I've owned condor, 5.11, maratac and a few others - some of those I would question. The webbing and stitching thread is.... not so high strength, and not so consistent.
 
I have an Eberlestock Halftrack. The thing is built like a tank, nothing I could mount to the molle webbing could cause it to fail.
 
DowntownDM said:
Yeah, well, Kifaru is like the Busse Custom Shop of bags - of course it's gonna hold up.
Click to expand...

I never heard of Kifaru before this thread, did a little research and....uuu...... DAMN!! :eek:

They're pretty pricey, but I like the built one at a time feature.

hankbarlow said:
The camelbak Trizip is a camelbak/mystery ranch (dana designs) collaboration. The bags are made overseas, but the quality is really top notch
Click to expand...

I've seen many places, even Camelbak's website, that they (or at least the trizip) is made in the USA, which one is right?

ridgeline said:
great little pack that I keep as my OMGWTFSHTFBBQ bag
Click to expand...

:D Nice :thumbup:





So, has no one been able to break their stitches or their straps?
 
Last edited:
CPC said:
You, Sir, are a connoisseur. I had been looking at the G2 MolEx but have decided it may be a bit big for short hikes. Am now thinking about the XRay instead. Glad to hear they hold up well.

Chris.
Click to expand...

Why thank you!

Had a G2 Xray and sold it - too small for the weight.

Honestly the G2 Mollex is still a VERY slim package and perfect for day hikes. I have also been able to go for 3 nights over the summer with my long pockets attached.

GO FOR THE MOLLEX!!!!
 
I've seen many places, even Camelbak's website, that they (or at least the trizip) is made in the USA, which one is right?


"In 2007 we partnered with CamelBak® to produce a line of packs that would be more readily available than our Mystery Ranch line. CamelBak® licensed a selection of our designs and manufactured them in their production facilities in the Philippines. We were directly involved in the production and inspection process and guarantee all CBMR products with the same lifetime warranty we place on our Bozeman Built packs. CBMR packs are perfect for those looking for Mystery Ranch designs at a lower price, or for those who are placing quantity orders. Mystery Ranch is currently the sole distributor of the CBMR products."
 
M67 said:
I've seen many places, even Camelbak's website, that they (or at least the trizip) is made in the USA, which one is right?
Click to expand...

camelbacks trizip series as well as the camelbak branded NICE frame and NICE frame packs are a company collaboration with Mystery Ranch. Mystery ranch basically has 3 branches for public purchase, the core brand, "The Works" version, and camelbak. The core brand, "Mystery Ranch" is made in america as custom tailored packs. "The Works" is manufactured in asia to cut down on costs. The Camelbak branded items are like the works, made in asia for cost saving reasons.

I don't know about any of the other Camelbak gear.
 
Last Visible Canary said:
camelbacks trizip series as well as the camelbak branded NICE frame and NICE frame packs are a company collaboration with Mystery Ranch. Mystery ranch basically has 3 branches for public purchase, the core brand, "The Works" version, and camelbak. The core brand, "Mystery Ranch" is made in america as custom tailored packs. "The Works" is manufactured in asia to cut down on costs. The Camelbak branded items are like the works, made in asia for cost saving reasons.

I don't know about any of the other Camelbak gear.
Click to expand...

Oh well, it would have been nice for it to be made in the USA, but for 100 (compared to 200 or more online) bucks and pretty much all very positive reviews, I'm happy with it.

As long as it survives the zombie apocalypse.
 
M67 said:
Oh well, it would have been nice for it to be made in the USA, but for 100 (compared to 200 or more online) bucks and pretty much all very positive reviews, I'm happy with it.

As long as it survives the zombie apocalypse.
Click to expand...

And really, isn't that what's really important?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top