Continuing to advance its line of minimalist and durable tactical pouches, Blue Force Gear (BFG) recently released its Stackable Ten-Speed M4 Mag Pouch. This “stackable” pouch includes an outer band of laser-cut MOLLE material that allows for adding pouches, such as BFG’s Ten-Speed Single/Double Pistol Pouches. Combined with BFG’s newest PlateMINUS V4 plate carrier, the overall system is an extremely lightweight and functional option.
Stackable Ten-Speed M4 Mag Pouch
Introduced in late 2019, the Stackable Ten-Speed M4 Mag Pouch builds on BFG’s line of minimalist Ten-Speed Pouches and includes a single row of MOLLE on the front to stack additional pouches. Made from the same Ten-Speed 500D military-grade elastic as other Blue Force Gear products, Stackable Ten-Speed pouch is made to hold three M4 style magazines (or other similar sized items). It provides a secure and weight efficient pouch, that has a minimal cross-section when empty. It uses TEX 70 bonded nylon thread throughout to ensure all stress points maintain their durability.
The rear of the Stackable Ten-Speed pouch has BFG’s proprietary Helium Whisper MOLLE mounting system made from ULTRAcomp laminate, giving it a threaded strength greater than 1000D nylon while reducing overall weight by up to 60%. The ULTRAcomp from the back of pouch is extended around to the front of the pouch, and forms a single column of laser-cut MOLLE compatible to all MOLLEminus™ slots. This feature adds one MOLLE column per magazine pocket, and increases the abrasion resistance of the pouch’s bottom edge.
The Stackable Ten-Speed M4 Mag Pouch is available in several size and color options; for single, double, or triple (featured) magazine configuration and in either Multicam (featured), Coyote, or Black.
Specifications:
- Dimension, Single Mag: 5.5” (H) x 3.5” (W)
- Dimension, Double Mag: 5.5” (H) x 6.5” (W)
- Dimension, Triple Mag: 5.5” (H) x 9.5” (W)
Product Link: https://www.blueforcegear.com/stackable-ten-speed-m4-mag-pouch
Ten-Speed Single Pistol Mag Pouch
The Ten-Speed Pistol Mag Pouch was introduced circa 2017 and is intended to hold either a single or double stack pistol magazine. Much like other Ten-Speed Pouches, the Pistol Mag Pouch use military grade elastic combined with ULTRAcomp to create a minimalist pouch that is lightweight and lays flat when not in use.
The rear of the Pistol Mag Pouch features BFG’s Helium Whisper attachment system that is compatible with any MOLLE platform.
Specifications:
- Dimension, Single Mag: 4″ (H) x 2” (W)
Product Link: https://www.blueforcegear.com/ten-speed-single-pistol-mag-pouch.html
Product Evaluation Scores:
- Cost – Excellent (5/5): Price for the Stackable Ten-Speed pouch varies based on configuration ($34.95 – Single Magazine, $44.95 – Double Magazine, or $54.95 – Triple Magazine), with a minimal cost offset based on thread color. Likewise, the Ten-Speed Single Pistol Mag Pouch (sold separately) is $22.95 regardless of color. Considering the unique ULTRAcomp and military-grade elastic, with the adaptive MOLLE’s ability to expand its functionality, the cost is appropriate for the materials used. In comparison to other market alternatives for AR magazine pouches; such as Esstac’s M4 Triple Wedge ($65), Ferro Concepts ADAPT KTAR pouch ($90), or HSGI’s Triple Taco Shingle ($102) they all demonstrate BFG’s Stackable Ten-Speed Pouch is well below the market average thanks to its minimalist design while keeping magazine retention. The same was demonstrated for single pistol magazine pouches; such as First Spear’s Pistol Magazine Pocket ($37.81) or HSGI’s Single Pistol Taco ($27.00). While the list of market alternatives did list cheaper pouches for both triple rifle and single pistol, they were often of lesser quality with lower denier nylon, excess material, or of overseas manufacturing.
- Comfort – Excellent (4/5): The Stackable and Single Pistol pouches were made to the same minimalist standards as other Ten-Speed products by Blue Force Gear, and held the same level of comfort. When empty, the pouches kept a low, collapsed profile and expanded to accommodate magazines when necessary. Attaching the Stackable Ten-Speed pouch and the Single Pistol pouch via the Helium Whisper system was relatively easy and maintained almost no excessive movement. The elastic nylon material retained all magazines through the drills and movement and at no point loosened or stretched. The band of MOLLE material on the Stackable Ten-Speed pouch did aid in re-holstering, as it gave the opening some structure against the magazine. The only negative was on the Single Pistol pouches as the elastic material did hang up some on magazines when re-holstering and is a consistent issue noted to other soft Ten-Speed pouches.
- Durability – Good (4/5): The Stackable Ten-Speed and Single Pistol pouches were made dominantly from BFG’s proprietary ULTRAcomp™ laminate, which has an amazingly high degree of abrasion resistance (stronger than 1000D nylon), minimizes materials needed, and maximizes flexibility. During evaluation the Stackable Ten-Speed M4 Pouch was attached to a PlateMINUS V4 plate carrier, and used during rifle drills and stressors (pushups & burpees). In addition, the Single Pistol Pouches were attached to the band of MOLLE material (appears to be the same ULTRAcomp material from the rear) to expand functionality and the evaluation. These pistol pouches were then pulled on a number of times to evaluate the strength of the MOLLE and mounting systems. The bartack stitching was noted at key stress points to prevent separation between materials or tear. At no point did the pouches tear or fail to retain the magazines, and the Helium Whisper system maintained a secure connection to the carrier. Some minimal fraying along the opening edges of the pistol pouches was observed, but not the rifle pouches. This most was likely attributed to the Stackable Ten-Speed’s band of MOLLE material which gave those pouches added reinforcement along the outer edge.
- Functionality – Good (4/5): Functionally, the Stackable Ten-Speed and Single Pistol pouches accomplished its intended means of securing magazines by being reliant on the full-pouch, elastic 500D Cordura material. While other vendors often supplement rifle pouches by including shock cord or hook-and-loop over the top of the magazine, the Ten-Speed material retained its elasticity over the entire height of the pouch despite continued holstering/drawing of magazines. However, on the pistol pouches and because of the soft, elastic Ten-Speed material, it was sometimes difficult to drive the magazines home with the edges getting hung up. As noted in Durability this was notably less of a problem with the Stackable Ten-Speed M4 Pouches because of the band of MOLLE material. The top tab of the band of MOLLE material also served as an impromptu point of positive control when holding the pouch open as well. Over time, some minimal fraying was noted along the edging of the magazine pouches, but that was comparable to other Ten-Speed items through persistent use.
- Weight – Excellent (4/5): For this evaluation, the triple magazine configuration for the Stackable Ten-Speed was used and weighed 3.6 ounces (without magazines), while the Single Pistol Mag weighed 0.6 ounces each (again without magazines). This felt amazingly light for a minimalist setup in comparison to more traditional and bulkier variants of the magazine pouches. For example, the HSGI’s Triple Taco Shingle (9.5 ounces) and its Single Pistol Taco (1.28 ounces) were both well above the weight of BFG’s products. But this disparity again came down to differences in design, amount of materials (i.e. nylon) involved, and overall design. Blue Force Gear’s Ten-Speed products are intended to provide the end-user with a minimalist approach, while sacrificing little in the product’s function or durability.
Overall Rating – Good (21/25)
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