Orca Tactical Orca Tactical Military Molle Backpack Small Army Salish 34L 1 or 2 Day Survival Bug Out Bag Rucksack Pack (Black)

After reading a lot of reviews and looking at customer images, I purchased both the 34L and the 40L Orca tactical backpacks to compare them. I ended up sticking with the 40L because I have a family and often times need to carry extra stuff for the kids. If I was single or often traveling solo, I would have probably stuck with the 34L because I think the size is the perfect balance between flexibility and space with portability. Also, the ability to use MOLLE attachments means you can add a lot of weight/storage as-needed rather than carrying an extra big bag all the time.PROS FOR BOTH:PRICE! As well as quality fabric, MOLLE webbing, and pretty good zippers. All zips are double zippers. The hip belt webbing is thick enough that even without padding it is pretty comfortable to wear. Design - the large storage compartment can unzip completely like a suitcase, very handy for accessing things in there. The quality is way above and beyond for the price.CONS FOR BOTH:I had to dig a bit but IMO there are two small things that make this a little less than perfect. Perfect to me is the quality of materials found in backpacks such as those sold at REI - which cost between $100-$200. These may not even be cons to some people.1. the padding in the shoulder straps is light-duty. There is some foam in there, probably between 1/8" to 1/4" thick. I have not loaded this with a lot of weight yet but I would guess that padding would compress down under load and you would start to feel a nylon strap pressing into your shoulder.2. The backs of these have little or no structure to them, just some of the foam padding, similar to that used in the shoulder straps. There may be a very thin layer of hard plastic in there but if so it is barely detectable. There are pockets inside and out that run parallel to the back - if one so desired I suppose you could put something in there for more rigidity.I can easily ignore these in light of the price point, but am posting just for reference.COMPARISON (see images. Tecate and Binder are for scale)While about 90% the same, there are two major differences between these packs that I could find.1. The 34L pack has a vertical buckled strap that goes vertically down the outside of the pack. The 40L does not have this.2. The 34L pack has a zippered pocket behind the padding that touches your back while the 40L has a pouch with a couple velcro tabs. I'm not really sure what you would use that pocket for anyway since it is going to be right against your sweaty back.

It fits all that I need. Great quality and an even better costumer service.

Best quality assault pack at this price point hands down.This pack is durable, well reinforced and stitched, and has excellent zippers throughout. It's actually so well constructed it's on the heavy side, it is noticeably more heavy than Red Rock's similar model assault pack. I own both packs, the Red Rock line is very popular and the Orca Tactical seem to be the new kid on the block. The Orca packs have capitalized in the areas where the Red Rock packs have received the most criticism which is primarily overall build quality and durability. Don't get me wrong, I like my Red Rock version of this pack and it has never failed me, but the Orca pack does have more attention to detail in areas that matter for long term use and abuse.To sum it up my ratings would be 4.5 stars for the Orca Tactical pack and 4 stars for the Red Rock pack. For the most part the Orca pack has some improvements over the Red Rock, but the Red Rock has some features the Orca pack does not have but wish it did. Overall, the Orca packs are slightly wider than the Red Rock packs which may be the difference between a particular laptop/tablet fitting or not.-The Orca pack has a zippered sleeve compartment for a hydration bladder along with an outlet for the drinking hose covered with a velcro tab. The Red Rock just has a drop in sleeve for a bladder.-The Orca has much thicker and wider padding of the shoulder straps with extra reinforcement the Red Rock packs do not have.-The Orca packs have a nice external compression strap for the top of the pack that the Red Rock packs omit.-The Orca packs have much better organization provisions in the main compartment such as a strap to help secure a laptop or books.-The Orca packs have MILSPEC MOLLE webbing, all of my MOLLE accessories fit. The Red Rock packs are lax in this area as some of the stitching is just too narrow to accommodate MOLLE straps.The Orca packs would be perfect in my book if they matched these two features that the Red Rock packs incorporate in their packs:-The Red Rock packs include velcro webbing that secures all excess straps. Who likes unsecured straps flopping all over the place or having to tape them? C'mon Orca, this is an easy fix.-The Red Rock packs have nice breathable mesh pad that sits against your back. The Orca packs for some reason have skipped the mesh. The mesh does help with ventilation and moisture (sweat) management. Granted the Orca packs ride comfortably, my back sweats a whole lot more because the mesh is not there.In my book, if Orca Tactical added the the mesh back pad and provisions for securing excess straps this pack is an absolute 5 star product. The Orca is a better pack than the Red Rock pack especially because it costs less, but the Red Rock pack is still useful in my rotation.

Edit- Im coming up on 2 years with this bagstill going strong and still my go to.Original post - I looked all over Amazon for a good pack that had all the features I wanted. Let me preface by saying I am a BMX rider living in Atlanta GA. I carry my 15 inch laptop with me as well as all sorts of GoPro equipment on a daily basis. I also purchased a 2.5 liter water bladder for the pack aswell and it fits nicely in the bag. The bag has everything that I need in a bag and is holding up extraordinarily well. It is with me all day everyday on and off trains and bus's getting abused on a daily basis.Why I bought this bag as opposed to others.-It has enough room in it for a weekend or more worth of clothes and camera equipment.-It has a completely seperate zippered area in the back where your water bladder goes.-It fits a 15 inch laptop.-It has a hole exiting the water bladder section leading to the top of the pack that has a velcro cover for a bladder hose.-It has a sternum strap that I always keep buckled up so nobody in the streets of Atlanta can run up and snatch the bag off my back.-It has a buckle that goes over the top of the bag I use to carry my skateboard.-It isnt too big or too small...in fact if you arnt carrying that much in the bag it has plenty of straps you can tighten down to keep the bag on the smaller side.-The shoulder straps are padded very VERY well. Not overly padded but literally just right for a bag this size.So far this bag has held up VERY well to the abuse a person like me puts it through. It looks to be made very well and not like some cheap MADE IN CHINA bags. I had my doubts about this bag because some of the pictures people were posting of the bag made it look like it was made out of very thin material like a Jansport backpack. I was very happy to see the quality of the material this pack was made of because it looks like it is tough enough to take a daily beating that I would put it through. Like I said this pack is perfect for my particular needs. If you have any doubts about buying this pack I will tell you that it looks and feels like a pack that is worth twice as much as they are asking. I would have no problem recommending this pack to family or friends. If I had a use for it I would buy another one no questions asked. I look forward to buying more Orca products in the future.I almost forgot to mention. When I received my pack it came on time and also had a business card enclosed inside the pack thanking me for purchasing the pack. It also said before I leave negative reviews contact the seller and they will do whatever it takes to make me satisfied. The pack exceeded my expectations and everything was great. They do however seem like a company who cares about their customers and the products/experience they receive.

Would buy again.