Plate Carrier Worn Hydration and Rucks

[kilounit]

Hello everyone, normally a lurker here but want to be more active. When I was in the Army Reserve and NG (89-98 with 4 years of AD on the border with Mexico) we wore the old LC1 harness and used the old alice packs, therefore my only experience with PC's is the one I wear at work (federal leo) which is geared more towards police work (some molle attachments and Velcro for badge and police patches). I have a separate PC for a SHTF type of scenario and have a couple of questions.


1) I am considering running an attachable hydration pouch on the back of my PC and would like to know if this interferes with the carrying of a pack and operation of the bladder?

2) I am also considering running a battle belt as well and would like opinions on whether you use a waist belt on your packs or not? I have both an Eberlestock Operator and a Mystery Ranch 7500 and properly wearing the waist strap would interfere with the use of anything attached to the battle belt. Any opinions or ideas? Thanks.

D.

[tab0013]

My preference is to not wear a bladder over armor and under a pack. It causes the pack to shift or ride off to one side. I do have a camel bak that I can wear with only armor, but if I'm rucking the bladder goes into the pack (mystery ranch crew cab) which has a bladder in it that carries my H2O when moving.

As far as the waist belt, I wear it over the gun belt. It's not nearly as comfortable as wearing the pack alone, but wearing armor, a gun belt, and a pack will not be comfortable.

[kilounit]

Thanks for the reply. Do you have any issue getting to the gear on your belt with the pack's waist strap buckled?

[tab0013]

Yes. I can draw, but its not pretty or smooth. The rest of the gear is buried under the waist belt. It can be alleviated by popping the buckle before trying to access anything but that is also one more layer to fight with when accessing gear. I also have a few pouches on the molle of the waist belt for things I use a lot.

[j-dubya]

I found that an Alice frame worked best with the application you describe. At the time, Source bladders were the best and while I had plenty of spares, there was never an issue with any of them. The newer styles I have seen in recent years are segmented inside for a more uniform water distribution as the amount of water is reduced. The older styles where all the water collects and bulges the bladder at the bottom work best with the Alice frame. The top of the pack and frame sit square on the top of the plate carrier and the waist belt sits below the rear plate on your body. As long as you don't have an overly thick and bulky carrier and armor components, the bladder should fill the open space in the frame while still allowing the pack to sit and ride as it should.. Make sure your drinking hose isn't kinked or crimped under the shoulder strap and sip away.

[kilounit]

Thanks to everyone who responded. I may just keep the bladder in the pack, as for the battle belt issue, I will have to experiment and see if I can come up with something. If anyone else has any ideas I am all ears.

[jayclimber]

I ended up purchasing a detachable hydration pouch for the back of my PC and remove it when carrying a pack! I then just insert it into or can attach to the outside of my pack and away I go! It gets used on my PC a lot at the range and for drills! Plus there is just enough room in it for a shell and extra ammo!

I always run my battle belt and have decided to remove the hipbelt off my packs when used in this application! My packs sit just above the battle belt so does not interfere with it at all! As others have stated, carrying a pack over a PC isn't comfortable anyways so keeping it simple and being able to use battle belt, PC, and pack all together or mixed and matched depending on you needs is probably best. Plus being able to quickly ditch your ruck and/or always have full access to your belt is important!
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[kilounit]

I ended up purchasing a detachable hydration pouch for the back of my PC and remove it when carrying a pack! I then just insert it into or can attach to the outside of my pack and away I go! It gets used on my PC a lot at the range and for drills! Plus there is just enough room in it for a shell and extra ammo!

I always run my battle belt and have decided to remove the hipbelt off my packs when used in this application! My packs sit just above the battle belt so does not interfere with it at all! As others have stated, carrying a pack over a PC isn't comfortable anyways so keeping it simple and being able to use battle belt, PC, and pack all together or mixed and matched depending on you needs is probably best. Plus being able to quickly ditch your ruck and/or always have full access to your belt is important!
41178 41177

Thanks for the reply. Having a detachable bladder sounds like a good idea and will have to look into it. My only concern is the pack, a waist belt is important for helping carry the weight as is proper positioning. I will have to try and find a happy medium.