Frag Out! Magazine
Issue link: https://fragout.uberflip.com/i/1488818
RABBIT I'm a fan of Mystery Ranch. Sometime around 10 years ago I got my first MR 3DAP and used it as an EDC and travel backpack for a few years. Then I got a smaller, civilian version, the 2DAP, and from then on it became my primary backpack. I use it primarily as an EDC, but often pack it as carry-on luggage for airplanes (passes the size check) and a „tradeshow" pack. The 2DAP is almost a 1:1 copy of the 3DAP, but smaller and stripped of a couple of elements, thus it's definitely lighter, Still, the 2DAP is not among the lightest, but it is made in the Mystery Ranch's signature rugged fashion. Compared to its military counterpart, the carrying system has been trimmed down, using a different material for the back plate and lighter, flatter shoulder straps. There is also no BVS body armor bolsters systems, and the hip belt has been replaced with a simple webbing strap. On top of that, lighter materials, lighter buckles, less fe- atures and there you go, done. As an EDC - in my opinion - the 2DAP works great, although it lacks an organizer pocket like the 3DAP - I'm substituting this with a fanny pack, a bag for ca- bles and electronics, and „bulk packs" for e.g. a flash drive. There are two pockets in the flap, but they are simply pockets - a small one and a larger one (in the small one I have small items, in the larger one I have a cap, buff and gloves, as well as a portable HDD). There are also two vertical pockets on the front insi- de (good for drinking bottles, for example), two mesh pockets on the sides at the top of the compartment (flashlight, batteries, folding scissors, etc.), a laptop pocket with access from the side (it works, a 13-inch laptop can be put in and taken out with no problem), and another similar but smaller one where the iPad travels. For everyday use, this is more than enough, and in addition (as I mentioned earlier) I pack a case with wiring and chargers, a fanny pack with documents, while for „trade show" trips or other „excursions" I still throw in a camera case or a gimbal in a trans- port case, a puff jacket and some softshell just in case. If you pack it all sensibly and squeeze it with straps, it passes the hand luggage allowance. I will also remind you of the possibilities of the three-zip- per system, which gives very good access to the contents of the backpack without having to blow everything out of the center. Still, this is MR. The carrying system, although slimmed down, is still ultra-comfortable, as it is in Mystery Ranch. One must remember, however, that the key is to properly size and adjust the whole thing. Pricewise, the 2DAP fares much better than the 3DAP. Of course, it's less durable, less fabulous, less expandable (for exam- ple, it doesn't have the option to put side wings to the hip belt, as in 3DAP, because here there is no hip pad), but it's still „almost" the same backpack. I re- commend it, although I'm a die-hard fanboy of the brand. EQUIPMENT