Released in 2021 as a minimalist chest rig for a day out on the range, the Day Rig by T3 Gear is for any shooter in competition, on the range for a day, or looking just for something to carry the essentials.
Made dominantly from 500D, solution-dyed Cordura nylon, the central feature of the Day Rig is its kangaroo-style front pouch that allows the user to carry up to three 5.56 magazines. These magazines are held inside the pouch via an elastic nylon insert, with hook-and-loop material on the exterior that mates to corresponding material inside the kangaroo pouch for retention.
On the pouch’s exterior are three bands of nylon webbing stitched into segments to create a MOLLE field. This enables the end-user to attach additional pouches or accessories that they may also need while on the range.
Moreover, the rear of the kangaroo pouch uses a hook-and-loop attached backer that is removable and has open-cell foam padding to increase ventilation and minimize abrasion of the overall rig against the torso. The bottom of the Day Rig includes two drainage grommets should it be needed, or for lacing shock cord through for a field-expedient tourniquet holder.
At the shoulder harness, the Day Rig has 2.0” wide shoulder straps with open-cell foam padding that (combined with slide-release buckles at the front and sides) allow the 1” nylon straps in the back to maintain a fixed hybrid H-style configuration. Elastic bands on both shoulder straps enable for the passage and retention of hydration tubes or communication cables. This minimalist design makes it ideal to integrated the Day Rig with a backpack or similar pack for a day’s training.
The Day Rig is available in Coyote (featured), Multicam, Ranger Green, and Black.
Product Evaluation Scores:
- Cost – Excellent (5/5): With its list price of $98.99, the Day Rig is made almost exclusively of 500D Cordura, a nylon well known for its abrasion resistance. The result is a solid foundational chest rig with rifle magazines and plenty of MOLLE for growth and customization. In contrast, the same Micro Fight Chassis Mk4 setup ($138.85) from Spiritus Systems, or the Low Profile Chest Rig ($225.74) from London Bridge Tactical, and the Ten-Speed M4 Chest Rig ($93.95) from Blue Force Gear all illustrate that the Day Rig is at an excellent price point for the materials and design amid the current market.
- Comfort – Good (4/5): Comfort-wise, perhaps the biggest aspect to the Day Rig was the two-part shoulder harness (which consisted of the padded shoulder yolk and the actual front pass-through straps of the hybrid H-style harness) that distributed the weight of a fully-loaded Day Rig evenly and securely over the shoulders. By having the cross section of the rear shoulder harness be a hybrid H-style (somewhere between an X and H pattern), it provided the broadest range of motion around the arms and ensured there was sufficient space in the rear of the neck so as to avoid abrasion along the neck. The bottom straps also helped to ensure the front weight in the kangaroo pouch and mounted accessories didn’t flop around. Added elements, like the hook-and-loop padded backer, helped ensure that the Day Rig remained overall comfortable and secure as a chest carrier or if separated and utilized as a plate carrier placard. Perhaps the only minor recommendation to T3 for improvement to the Day Rig would be the sliding adjustment loops that are part of the chest straps, as they were somewhat difficult to get a hold of while worn (especially when wearing bulkier clothing like a vest or jacket). A simple, short segment of paracord or a longer loop would make reaching them easier.
- Durability – Good (4/5): From a durability aspect; the review of the Day Rig was divided down into two main elements, the fabric and the stitching. The majority of material in the Day Rig was from solution-dyed Cordura nylon with a denier rating of 500D. This meant that the fabric had consistent edge-to-edge color consistency, fiber strength, and resistance to UV (sun) light that would otherwise cause deterioration in lesser fabrics. Where the 500D fell into place, was the fabric’s ability to resist hard edges or the abrasion that comes with regular use in the field or on the range. The denier rating of the fabric was/is pretty standard within the tactical gear market as 500D offered the best balance between flexibility and durability to the overall product. Noted elsewhere throughout the Day Rig, at key stressor points along the shoulder straps, kangaroo pouch, and MOLLE field there was extensive bartack and X-pattern reinforcement stitching to help ensure strength and longevity in the product.
- Functionality – Good (4/5): Functionally, the Day Rig did an excellent job at doing what it was intended for. It provided a basic chest rig, with enough carrying capacity for short stints on the firing line, but still retained enough flexibility to add to the chest rig’s MOLLE field more pouches if more was needed out of it. So the Day Rig may be a simple chest rig for carbine, but it had the added ability to add additional pistol or rifle magazine pouches, a radio wing pouch, or even added in some admin pouches for a longer patrol or hike. Whatever the short-term use was, for a light day on the range the Day Rig was able to be readily utilized, easily donned and then removed. Perhaps the only area of recommended examination for T3 would be to look at the elastic magazine insert, as inserting magazines would snag the opening/top lip of the band and cause it to bunch and thus make driving the magazine home difficult. Kydex insers should resolve this problem, or simply adding a band of nylon along the opening edges may prevent it from folding over so easily.
- Weight – Average (3/5): Weighing in at 14.3 ounces, the Day Rig was made principally from 500D Cordura nylon with little in the way of excessive hardware to keep the overall weight down. The harness’s design, with a hybrid-H cross pattern, helped to keep the weight of the mags and MOLLE-attached contents even on the shoulders without pulling on the neck, and avoided chafing exposed skin. In contrast, the Micro Fight Chassis Mk4 setup (15-22 ounces depending on final configuration) from Spiritus Systems, or the Low Profile Chest Rig (24 ounces) from London Bridge Tactical, and the Ten-Speed M4 Chest Rig (11.3 ounces) from Blue Force Gear all illustrates that the Day Rig is at an appropriate (or average) weight within the current market of alternatives and materials.
Overall Rating – Good (20/25)
Product Link: https://www.t3gear.com/t3-range-day-rig/
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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