If you're looking for a strong bag that you can jam everything you'll need for a day at the range into, this definitely looks like it would fit the bill. It has excellent materials from fabric to zippers, and the build quality is fantastic. It has a bunch of excellent features and well thought out pockets, however it does have a few oddities and a couple of flaws.
What I like:
- There's a small slim pocket on the back that's perfect for slipping a cell phone into.
- The included MOLLE is a nice touch, and I sometimes attach a sunglasses case to it.
- The addition of the Velcro patch panel is another nice touch.
- I love the locking top compartment, and I use it for storing my wallet and keys in there. They suggest ammo, but other than a couple of loaded magazines, it is quite awkward to put a bunch of weight in there.
- The main compartment is large enough to easily hold my hearing protection, cleaning supplies, a few boxes of shells, tape, etc.
- I like the target pocket, it keeps them flat and the hi-vis ones from getting scratched up.
- I mostly like the bottom gun storage compartment. The built in locking feature is great, but unless you lock it from inside the main compartment with your own lock, it isn't secure. That said, you'd have to go through the bag contents to get to where you could unzip it.
- The side carry handles are nice and I've used them a bunch.
What's odd:
- The inclusion of the side compression straps is an odd choice for a bag that's designed to maintain its structure. The bottom strap is on the gun compartment, and on the inside of the gun compartment other than guns, are stiff plastic panels Velcro'd in place. You realistically can't use these straps for anything other than attaching something to the outside of the bag, I slip a light jacket in there because sometimes indoor ranges can get pretty cold.
- The main compartment does not have a built-in locking feature like the other two, nor does it offer locking zipper pulls like the one in the bottom of the main compartment.
What I don't like:
- Unless you lock the zipper pulls together on the bottom of the main compartment, you can access whatever firearms are locked in the bottom compartment by going through the main compartment. This is a critical point to make because unless you add you own lock to the inside, this compartment is not locked at all.
- The backpack straps feel almost like an afterthought. They're OK, but they're not the level that they should be for a bag in this price range, or one that is designed to carry a lot of weight, such as that of several firearms and boxes of shells. I added a photo of a similar priced bag's straps for comparison.
- I wish it had a few more dividers for the bottom compartment. Two isn't enough and it is a huge area for a sidearm to be bouncing around in, look at the vendor photo for an example. When set to the right size (see attached with remote control for demo), you can really only carry two with a big empty area next to them. Right now I put a few boxes of shells in there instead.
Overall, this is a good range bag that has a few issues. It has a good high-quality build and excellent materials throughout. All of the zippers operate smoothly, and I have never had any issues with them. There are great locking compartments, though you do need to add a lock of your own to the gun compartment or it isn't locked at all. It only takes a moment, and it isn't too big of a deal to address, but it is worth noting. Also worth noting, I see that the vendor has uploaded a video showing the zipper pulls for the bottom compartment as being accessed from the bottom compartment. That may be if they've redesigned the product, but that's not the case with the one I got, see attached photo and video.
Honestly though my biggest issue is the price, as there are significantly tougher bags with better more comfortable straps in this price range with locking zipper pulls, but that being said they won't have the features this one does either. I think with some updates this would make the perfect range bag, and the price wouldn't be a problem.
Minimum recommended updates for the vendor:
- Get rid of the zipper access to the locking bottom compartment by going through the top compartment, it's honestly not necessary and only adds a needless security risk.
- Add a built-in lock for the main compartment as well, or at the very least change the zipper pulls to the kind you can add a lock to yourself.
- Beef up the backpack straps. There are tougher and thicker ones on my kid's school backpack.