mercop
10-17-09, 12:33
The SoTech Go Bag Mini is the hybrid of it's big brother the Go Bag and a traditional waist pack. The day I took receipt of it the first thing I thought was that there was a lot of thought put into this relatively small pack. It just so happened that the following day I was attending a festival with the wife and would be able to put the bag through it's EDC paces.
The need- my SoTech Mission Pack is never more than a room away. The problem is that when you are trying to have a casual family day there is no need for me to carry it since it is usually 50% empty without mission specific gear. Since it is not that big of a pack to begin with, carrying smaller backpack does not make a lot of sense. Enter the Go Bag Mini- Here is what I packed comfortably in the pack for the day.
32 Oz stainless steel water bottle
Trauma/Boo Boo Kit (OD Eagle Industries Shaving kit bag with Red para cord pulls in pictures)
2 Stick Otter Box Cigar Caddy
Cigar Accessory pouch containing punch, cutter, and lighter
Camera
Keys
Blackberry Curve
Sunglasses
The top of the Mini features a gusseted zippered pouch with flap that Velcros shut over it. This easily held my Blackberry Curve in it's Body Glove armor. There is enough room on the Velcro for a name tag. The front of the bag features two rows of MOLLE webbing. To the right of the main compartment of the main bag is a small zippered pouch that I found to be perfect for my car keys. Just to the right of the pouch is the ITW Nexus Fastex buckle of the waist / shoulder strap.
Starting on the other end of the main compartment is drag handle for grab and go situations. This is at the top of the wide and contoured shoulder/waist strap. The strap sports just the right amount of padding. Also featured on the shoulder pad is three small rows of MOLLE webbing.
Over the course of the day I found myself carrying the bag three different ways-
By the drag handle
Over the shoulder
Sling carry
Waist carry in the rear
Most of the day was spent wearing the Mini as a butt pack. I hate fanny packs for guns and did not carry mine in the bag, however you could fit anything in there. The look and configuration screams camera, not gun, at least to me. The wide waste band made the Mini very comfortable. It actually put pressure in the small of my back making it feel better than usual. When I needed something I would spin the bag or have my wife hand me what I needed.
I spent about 8 hrs working out of the bag. Let's talk about the main compartment. It is quite cavernous for a bag of this type. The top features a large zippered mesh pocket. This pocket is mirrored by a non mesh pocket just beneath it. These pockets are great for smaller items that can otherwise get lost in a pack. Sewn inside the front of the pack are six large elastic loops that would would be perfect for holding Kerlix and other sundry items if using the pack for a medical kit. Another unique feature of the Mini is the ability to access the main compartment from both the top and the bag of the bag by utilizing another set of zippers. This allows you to place the "belly" of the back on the deck and work from the back without spilling your contents all over the place.
All the zippers on the Mini are YKK. Exterior zippers feature heavy duty, plastic, over molded pulls. Interior pulls use gutted parachute cord and ITW Nexus Zipper Pulls.
I really like this bag. It would not suit me as an EDC however but I see two distinct roles for it where the citizen is concerned. First and foremost it will be the bag that I put my essentials in when traveling on foot on day hikes and sightseeing, when carrying my regular bag would be a waste of energy. The other is a a dedicated medical bag subloaded to fit my family specific needs.
For LE/MIL use the uses are limitless including, breaching, medical and SERE. If you are looking for a small bag with a wide variety of possibilities then the SoTech Mini is for you.
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j22/mercop/PA140196.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j22/mercop/PA140195.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j22/mercop/PA140168.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j22/mercop/PA140172.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j22/mercop/PA140180.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j22/mercop/PA140185.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j22/mercop/PA140188.jpg
The need- my SoTech Mission Pack is never more than a room away. The problem is that when you are trying to have a casual family day there is no need for me to carry it since it is usually 50% empty without mission specific gear. Since it is not that big of a pack to begin with, carrying smaller backpack does not make a lot of sense. Enter the Go Bag Mini- Here is what I packed comfortably in the pack for the day.
32 Oz stainless steel water bottle
Trauma/Boo Boo Kit (OD Eagle Industries Shaving kit bag with Red para cord pulls in pictures)
2 Stick Otter Box Cigar Caddy
Cigar Accessory pouch containing punch, cutter, and lighter
Camera
Keys
Blackberry Curve
Sunglasses
The top of the Mini features a gusseted zippered pouch with flap that Velcros shut over it. This easily held my Blackberry Curve in it's Body Glove armor. There is enough room on the Velcro for a name tag. The front of the bag features two rows of MOLLE webbing. To the right of the main compartment of the main bag is a small zippered pouch that I found to be perfect for my car keys. Just to the right of the pouch is the ITW Nexus Fastex buckle of the waist / shoulder strap.
Starting on the other end of the main compartment is drag handle for grab and go situations. This is at the top of the wide and contoured shoulder/waist strap. The strap sports just the right amount of padding. Also featured on the shoulder pad is three small rows of MOLLE webbing.
Over the course of the day I found myself carrying the bag three different ways-
By the drag handle
Over the shoulder
Sling carry
Waist carry in the rear
Most of the day was spent wearing the Mini as a butt pack. I hate fanny packs for guns and did not carry mine in the bag, however you could fit anything in there. The look and configuration screams camera, not gun, at least to me. The wide waste band made the Mini very comfortable. It actually put pressure in the small of my back making it feel better than usual. When I needed something I would spin the bag or have my wife hand me what I needed.
I spent about 8 hrs working out of the bag. Let's talk about the main compartment. It is quite cavernous for a bag of this type. The top features a large zippered mesh pocket. This pocket is mirrored by a non mesh pocket just beneath it. These pockets are great for smaller items that can otherwise get lost in a pack. Sewn inside the front of the pack are six large elastic loops that would would be perfect for holding Kerlix and other sundry items if using the pack for a medical kit. Another unique feature of the Mini is the ability to access the main compartment from both the top and the bag of the bag by utilizing another set of zippers. This allows you to place the "belly" of the back on the deck and work from the back without spilling your contents all over the place.
All the zippers on the Mini are YKK. Exterior zippers feature heavy duty, plastic, over molded pulls. Interior pulls use gutted parachute cord and ITW Nexus Zipper Pulls.
I really like this bag. It would not suit me as an EDC however but I see two distinct roles for it where the citizen is concerned. First and foremost it will be the bag that I put my essentials in when traveling on foot on day hikes and sightseeing, when carrying my regular bag would be a waste of energy. The other is a a dedicated medical bag subloaded to fit my family specific needs.
For LE/MIL use the uses are limitless including, breaching, medical and SERE. If you are looking for a small bag with a wide variety of possibilities then the SoTech Mini is for you.
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j22/mercop/PA140196.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j22/mercop/PA140195.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j22/mercop/PA140168.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j22/mercop/PA140172.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j22/mercop/PA140180.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j22/mercop/PA140185.jpg
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j22/mercop/PA140188.jpg