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When it comes to an everyday use bag, there’s not a whole lot of overlap between what you need for an office excursion versus a battlefield exercise. When it’s just your commute, all you really want is a way to carry your laptop, water bottle, and maybe your gym gear comfortably during your bike/train/bus/walk/drive to work. But if you’re heading out on a 24-hour overnight patrol, the requirements list grows dramatically.
In a collaboration with nylon gear company Tactical Tailor, Milspec Monkey has produced the Adapt Pack — a bag that’s suited for hard-use civilians, active-duty service members, and everyone in between.
The Adapt Pack is based on an existing Tactical Tailor bag design, so it features the same 500 Denier Cordura nylon construction of many of the brand’s products. It’s also sewn in Washington state from American materials, meaning the pack is fully compliant with the Berry Amendment, which regulates textile products intended for use by the military.
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At just over 1100 cubic inches of internal space, the Adapt Pack has plenty of room for the essentials. The main compartment can easily accommodate a laptop with up to 15-inch display and still have room for anything you need to lug to the office or the classroom. Also inside the main section of the bag are two stash pockets, each capable of holding a water bottle, canteen, or thermos. The front compartment features loop velcro, allowing you to customize it with organizational pockets for chargers, cables, pens, and any other stuff you need to get at quickly. The front pocket is also zippered on both sides, so you won’t have to dig for your gear. The outside of the pack has plenty of options for personalization, with a velcro field for mounting tacticool morale patches, standard PALs webbing for adding additional pouches, and shock cord rigging for carrying bulky items like a jacket.
Part of what makes this pack so versatile is the strap system. The standard setup is a regular backpack configuration, with waist and sternum straps for added stability. But combine part of the waist strap with one shoulder, and you have a sling bag perfect for those who spend a lot of time pedaling a bike. The sternum strap has an extra buckle allowing for a support strap to be used. This configuration lends itself to quick access to the pack while you’re still wearing: Simply pop the support strap buckle, swing the pack around to the chest, and you can easily access either compartment. With a velcro-mounted holster system in the front compartment, the Adapt Pack is well-suited for those interested in a off-body concealed carry option.
The Adapt Pack really earns its name when you begin to consider options for various military and law enforcement missions. The bag can carry enough extras for a 24 to 48-hour patrol, depending on how spartan you are with sustainment equipment. A padded sleeve behind the main compartment will comfortably accommodate a three-liter hydration bladder. The velcro real estate provides easy mounting option for grenade and mag pouches in addition to the traditional PALS webbing, useful for a more direct-action focused role. It’s even possible to fit a helmet inside the front pocket with a little cajoling.
But the best feature is the huge number of ways to integrate the Adapt Pack with other gear. The pack features industry standard ITW buckles, so the shoulder straps can replace the straps on many popular chest rigs and panels; this setup especially works well over standalone body armor. The pack also comes with a buckle kit allowing you to attach the bag directly to plate carriers, rucksacks, or any other load-bearing gear with PALS webbing. Stash the straps inside the hydration pocket and run the pack slick for a “go bag” configuration, ideal for a law enforcement active-shooter response kit.
The Adapt Pack is available a variety of colorways. There’s the usual solid shades of black, coyote, ranger green, and foliage, as well as the latest tactical cool craze, “wolf grey.” For those with a duty-related requirement, licensed Crye Multicam is available. There’s also a urban color scheme of red, grey and black, designed to mimic traditional civilian hiking pack for those wanting to downplay the tactical look. And finally, if cool futuristic camos are more your speed, Kryptek’s typhon and mandrake patterns are also an option.
The Adapt Pack is one of the more affordable pieces of U.S.-made kit, coming in $99 (slightly more for camo patterns) and available from a variety of tactical gear retailers as well as direct from Milspec Monkey.
The sheer number of possible options the Adapt Pack offers the user, coupled with the competitive price and simple but smart design features makes it an easy recommendation. Whether it’s in the office, on the hiking trail, or in the gunfight, the Adapt Pack absolutely lives up to its name.