For those spending a day at the range, or working in a little long distance rifle work, the Range Bag by Grey Ghost Gear (GGG) offers a mid-sized bag that will allow you to carry all the daily essentials, protected and compartmentalized for your use.
Exterior
Introduced in late 2018, the Range Bag represents the GGG’s efforts to provide a utility bag in terms of size, while focusing explicitly on supporting a shooter’s needs for a day on the range. The 9” (H) x 20” (L) x 7” (W) Range Bag provides for 20.64 liters of storage and is made from 500D Cordura and is padded on all sides for maximum protection. All pull tabs are a neon green 550 paracord for high visibility.
On the front, the Range Bag has two zipper-secured pockets on the front of an envelope-style pocket that runs nearly the length of the bag and is secured via 1” slide-release buckle.
Both sides of the Range Bag feature an exterior, zipper-secured pouch for accessories, hearing protection, ammo and more.
The rear of the Range Bag has a three-sided zippered pocket on which the opening lays flat for an impromptu workspace. The interior of the pocket (or the workspace) has a vinyl surface with a rare-metal earth magnet stitched into the center of the field to retain smaller metal parts during maintenance. In two corners are smaller zipper-secured pockets for small parts or cleaning supplies. The back side of the pocket (above the workspace) are seven elastic cuffs for storing magazines.
At the top of the Range Bag is a three-sided, zipper secured lid that allows for immediate access into the interior. On either side of the lid are two plastic D-rings (for the shoulder strap) secured via nylon loop and stitched into the interior fabric. Oppositely, two carrying handles are anchored into either side of the opening, and have a rubberized section of material mid-way for improved grip. The removable shoulder strap features plastic hardware and is contoured for comfort. The shoulder strap is padded mid-way with closed-cell foam then wrapped in a rubberized, non-slip material to ensure comfort and control.
The bottom of the Range Bag features two bands of rubberized, textured material to aid in gripping surfaces as well as provide some level of layered protection on the high-contact surface area.
Interior
The main compartment of the Range Bag is accessible from the top, and runs the entire length of the bag. The interior has six large (female) hook-and-loop fields that allow for the removable (male) hook-and-loop divider to be customized based on any need, equipment, or purpose. Also included with the Range Bag is a small mesh bag for collecting spent brass and can be anchored to the interior using the corresponding (male) hook-and-loop panel on one side of the bag.
The GGG Range Bag is available in Grey (featured) and Coyote.
Product Evaluation Scores:
- Cost – Average (3/5): With an MSRP of $175.00, the GGG Range Bag is one of the more robust designed personal range bags available. With its size and pockets the bag brings together all the components necessary for a day’s worth of training, or at a local shooting match. Obviously the size, volume of materials, and reinforcement stitching play a factor into the price of the product. The closest market comparator would be First Tactical’s Recoil Range Bag ($99), 5.11’s Tactical Range Bag ($99), and Propper’s Range Bag ($59.99). In each example, the differences in quality reflect the price with more inexpensive bags often sacrificing on design or the type/source of materials. In the case of the Range Bag by GGG, what accounts for the cost increase is a number of additional features that are included into the design that others simply don’t account for. However, much like their competitors, the Range Bag is manufactured overseas and QC/distributed from GGG’s headquarters in Washington. Thus, the price point of the Range Bag is appropriate (or average) for its overall design, and left to the consumer to determine if the cost is affordable.
- Comfort – Good (4/5): From a comfort aspect, the padded shoulder strap made bearing the weight of a loaded Range Bag comfortable for short distances. It’s non-slip material also made sure that the weight didn’t pull the shoulder strap over or down. Similarly, the non-slip rubberized material on the handles felt comfortable in the hand, although it would have been a nice improvement had there been a cuff to bind both handles together when the bag was being carried. Otherwise when loaded, the bag felt evenly distributed and secure. All the genuine YKK zippers moved smoothly and did not bind. Moreover, the paracord pull tabs provided a good anchoring point when moving the zipper shuttle around the openings.
- Durability – Good (4/5): A lot of attention has been paid to reinforcement of the Range Bag; with bartack stitching that anchored the carrying handles and shoulder strap loops, to box/X-pattern reinforcement stitching on the hook-and-loop fields on the interior. While most YKK zippers showed double-line stitching, the divider and interior liner had a single, continuous stitch line showing that most of the durability of the Range Bag’s design went into ensuring integrity of compartments and high-stress contact points. The 500D Cordura exterior also held up well against abrasion and hard-angle contact points. As often the case, more inexpensive range bags are intended to only carry a single pistol and limited ammunition. Anything more risks compromising the stitching. But with GGG’s Range Bag, we were able to test its load-bearing capacity by using multiple loaded magazines for both rifle and pistol (with range accessories) that far exceeded other competitor’s ability to carry. The only minimal point of improvement for durability would be for GGG to swap out the plastic hardware to the shoulder strap and anchoring points with metal for improved strength/durability.
- Functionality – Excellent (5/5): Functionally, the Range Bag has a number of features that set it apart from its noted competitors. From the integrated workspace with rare-earth magnet (that held in springs and pins), to the innumerable three-sided pockets that opened fully for shot timers, ear pro, pasters and more. The internal divider proved easily customized to account for a variety of different sized contents. Even the YKK zippers were the weatherized type to prevent moisture penetration along the zipper line. But two big features stood out as the most prominent for its design; the rubberized bottom of the Range Bag and the magazine storage capacity. On the bottom of the exterior are two bands of non-slip rubberized material that help reinforce the bottom of the bag that will experience the most abrasion, but also limited moisture penetration should you place the bag on a wet surface. It would have been an improvement had the entire bottom been covered, but still a nice feature to see that other vendors often don’t consider. Elsewhere and throughout the bag, there was also the ability to secure 13 double-stack pistol magazines (seven on the exterior and three on each side of the internal divider). This validates that the Range Bag was designed from the beginning to carry more than the usual single pistol capacity. The only notable element for improvement to future designs for GGG, would be to use an offsetting, high-visibility interior lining as the bottom of the main storage compartment proved to be very deep and difficult to see the bottom of for small parts or tools.
- Weight – Excellent (5/5): For its weight of 2.10 pounds (empty) the Range Bag by GGG proved to be very lightweight thanks in part to its 500D Cordura material and choice of hardware. With its capacity to add enough contents that dramatically increased the carried weight, at no point during evaluation did the bag show sign of strain or failure. In comparison, the ranges bags by First Tactical (4.4 pounds), 5.11 (6.2 pounds), and Propper (3.55 pounds) were similar in size and offered similar features that would be of benefit to civilian shooters (gun mat, magazine loops, etc.). The weight differential also reflected the use of polyester nylon in some market competitors v. true Cordura nylon. For those who want a dedicated daily range bag to accommodate all the necessities, then they would be well suited to consider the design offered by Grey Ghost Gear.
Overall Rating – Good (21/25)
Product Link: https://greyghostgear.com/collections/bags/products/range-bag
I am reviewing this product as a courtesy to the manufacturer and via STL Shooting Enthusiasts, so that I can evaluate it and provide my honest feedback. I am not bound by any written, verbal, or implied contract to give positive reviews. All views are my own, and based off my personal experience with the product.
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