Direct Action Dragon Egg Tactical Backpack 25L - Military Grade MOLLE Rucksack for Hiking, Airsoft & Outdoor Adventures

This backpack just replaced four existing backpacks. It's an excellent design with excellent materials and workmanship.I am around 5' 11" and weighs at a heavyset 230 lbs, and I wear size 38 jeans. Finding the 'right' pack for me is akin to a Knight on a Grail quest. I want to get a low profile EDC pack (literally to be carried daily to work, in trains and buses, to the mall, for the grocery run, to the coffee shop, to my day hikes, on air travels, urban exploration, exploring cities during travels, and etc. you get the idea). Ultimately, it will need to serve as my Get Home Bag (GHB).I need a bag that is tough as nails, and will last through the Apocalypse, and serve me like how the certain Oakley pack served the protagonist in the Book of Eli during the post-apocalyptic age. At the same time, a pack that will still look stylish enough to bring to work. Please don't judge me - I am a gear hound, and the right backpacks are surprisingly difficult to find and be content with. I want a 'tactical' bag for its obvious durability, but a balance of subtleties to not make me stick out like a sore thumb in urban settings.I digress. I have tried packs from Tactical Tailor, CamelBak, Maxpedition, 5.11 Rush24, SERT/SneakyBags/Alpha-One-Niner, Vanquest, Tom Bihn, and one or two packs I do not remember anymore, or have been traded or sold to friends. Some would fit nicely on my body but lacks organization. Some looks good, but are uncomfortable, or are too tactical looking. It is really difficult to find a bag that strikes the right balance. Until now..LivingSurvival made a good review on YouTube for the bag, and a few other well-known YouTuber like Black Owl Outdoors and HarleyWood made review on other bags by Direct Action. When I received the bag, it is smaller than expected, but surprisingly spacious with the plethora of organization and compartments. I really could not fault the construction of the bag. Sewn in Vietnam from Invista Cordura 500D material, WooJin (Korean) hardware, and YKK reversed zippers this pack's quality and build is immaculate, especially at the attractive price point. It is a really well-made bag. I was really tempted to get the bag in Kryptek Highlander, but settled for Coyote Brown colorway for urban and outdoor use. Black would seem too moot for me, but YMMV.I love the laser-cut Molle/PALS panel as it is really unique, and I received compliments for it. I love how the side pockets are really low profile, is Molle compatible, secures with Velcro but unzips to bellow out and accommodate full-sized water bottles. A 24 oz. CamelBak bottle fits nicely, and I can even fit my 32 oz. Nalgene bottle if I want to. The paracord drag handles are unique to this brand, and I love it. In a pinch, the handle can be unraveled to gain two 2.5 meters of paracord, but I hope I wouldn't have too, as I may not know how to re-tie it to the same design, if I did.The pack should be able to carry two separate hydration bladders in two separate compartments. However, the hanger may not fit certain brand of bladders unless you get creative with how the bladders are hooked. My 100 oz CamelBak Antidote fits like a glove in either compartment, with the Coyote Brown tube insulator being a perfect match to the color of my Dragon Egg pack. I intent to attach an MSM Small Pouch Panel to add more real estate for my morale patches and nameplate.Finally, the tote bag that it came with is a nice touch, along with a thank you card in an envelope. My only slight niggle is that I do not receive a Direct Action morale patch with the pack. Watching the reviews, seems like the reviewers got one with their pack. No biggie though.All in all, this is an excellent pack for the money. If you manage to read through this review, and are still on the fence, don't be. Pull the trigger and get one!This has been an honest, unbiased review, with the pack purchased personally by yours truly.This backpack is very well made, and I wouldn't hesitate to take it on deployment, except for the fact that it doesn't have very much room inside, and when you set it up for an overnight trip, that's about all it can handle. It's literally just a patrol pack and that's it. It can't hold nearly as much as a standard type 3 assault pack, so really unless you need nothing more than food, water, and a few odds and ends, you'll need a much bigger pack than this.After a long search of many packs( prob about a dozen types) this is the winner. I love it.Pros-Not too big or small, straps sit well, good amount of pockets, zippers smooth as butter to open. Good handle on top. The slim laptop pocket along your back is rare in packs, but I love it. I snipped the top of the molle on the front and now I have a slip pocket for tissues or trash. The padding on straps and back is second to none. Some Osprey packs were close to being the top choice, but Osprey has the absolute worst water bottle side pouches. This pack keeps my water bottle in place and doesn’t fall out.Cons-Price is pretty high for a non-frame pack.Tactical/military colors and patterns onlyThere are a lot of reasons someone might not like this, and a lot to like. It will all depend on what you use it for.It has one huge negative, the retaining straps for the shoulder straps, little velcro holders to neatly roll up the excess strapping, it's surprising sharp/scratchy and will actually scrape my arm as I am putting it on, it doesn't hurt much but the next day I will have small surface cuts from it. I have had to adjust the way I put it on to avoid it, my plan is to try and take a lighter to melt and round over the sharp pointy parts.The egg shape is a really nice feature because when you don't have a lot packed it really slims it down, but when you want to pack it, it can handle it.The paracord handle is really cool, feels robust, but at this point, I think I might prefer a normal well-shaped handle. This one isn't uncomfortable, it's just not ideal.The laptop sleeve is on the back portion, if you use a hydration pouch it might get crowded and possibly water in your laptop. I find it a plus because I don't ever use a pouch.I like the color scheme a lot, and it has a good selection of pockets.Got this after doing a lot of research. Had this for a few weeks now and I'm more than happy with it.Went with this bag to use for both work and travelling (its carry on luggage size) and the colour means that its smart and doesn't stand out in crowd.The bag itself is well made and the organisation it has is well laid out and appropriate.Hoping it's going to last me many years to come.Only downside for me is the size of velcro patch, but I'm getting a molle panel to improve that.Excellent backpack, got spade for everything I need and more. Wonderful quality in terms of stitching and fabric and everything is where you expect it to be. Superbly packaged by Military 1st as well which is always nice.Great bag with lots of compartments to keep you kit organized when traveling. Would have been 4 star but the urban grey they sent is green and nothing like the picture. Backpack is a little on the heavy side but it rugged and looks like it weather a lot of wear and tare.....time will tell.Great daysackVery well made a Littel small but I am very happy with the product would recommendwhat a great pack. It's a lot f money to pay for a backpack and I had to convince myself that it would be worth it. I'm glad I did. it feels incredibly well made, very strong and well designed. you really get what you pay for which is why I didn't go for the cheaper options.I'm very pleased with it and would recommend.