Guest Config: Taylor – Magpul & Carryology

Taylor is a beard ambassador. Well… maybe not officially, but he is one of the reasons Pack Config really took off. If you like what we’ve done with the place, know that this guy deserves your attention.

1. What is your current go-to pack?

Honestly, I wish I could say I have 1 specific go to pack, but I simply don’t.

Lately, the rotation has been between; Triple Aught Design FAST Pack Litespeed v1 (that I attached 8 Cobra buckles to), Triple Aught Design FAST Pack Litespeed v2, Mystery Ranch ASAP, GORUCK GR1, Bedouin Barbary messenger bag, and a backpack prototype I can’t really talk about. I really enjoy switching things up, as I learn something new about each pack and its purpose every single day. Some other packs also make the rotation, but these are the primary bags that have been getting a lot of repeat use lately. Then again, sometimes I’ll just grab my Swiss military WWII rucksack or USPS mailman messenger bag to use if I’m randomly feeling it.

2. What items can always be found in your pack?

As you can see above, my pack changes… sometimes 5 different packs in a week. Yes, I’m a crazy person when it comes to bags. I quickly learned that trying to keep certain items in each pack wasn’t working. When I would switch over from one pack to the other, I’d always forget my pen in that organizer section or my flashlight in a zippered accessory pocket. Even if I went digging through every single pocket in the pack to make sure I didn’t overlook something, I always would. And it would always be the one item I needed the most!

So I wanted a quick grab kit or pouch that I could swap out from one pack to the other, containing everything I could want for an EDC kit. Grab and go. I searched long and hard for the perfect pouch for my EDC Kit, and I’m confident I’ve found the best one out there.

Just a few of the items that are in my EDC kit, GORUCK GR2 Field Pocket;

• Leatherman Charge TTi
• Leatherman bit kit/driver/etc
• Bic lighter wrapped with Gorilla tape
• Zip ties
• Altoids mints
• Field Notes (Expedition series)
• Big Idea Design solid titanium pen with space pen insert
• Sharpie marker
• White wax pen (for patterning)
• Retractable tape measure
• Anker braided nylon iPhone cable
• NomadPlus wall charger/backup battery
• 128GB USB in Barrett Alley kangaroo leather coin pouch
• FENIX LD12 flashlight (with Energizer Ultimate Lithium, plus one spare)
• Business card case
• A hidden $100 bill
• Copies of identification/medical cards, and many many more items (but I’m starting to ramble)

They all fit very neatly in the Field Pocket in a organized fashion. I have the same system for a small medical pouch (in a GORUCK Shadow Pocket, small). Additionally, I also have a GORUCK GR1 Field Pocket that is almost an identical twin to the contents of my GR2 Field Pocket EDC pouch. I use this pouch specifically for domestic and international air travel.

Most of the items in these two kits are exact duplicates, except I’ve omitted some of the sharp items that airlines aren’t fond of (no Leatherman TTi, etc). Sure, it was nearly double the cost to build the same kit, albeit a little smaller, but it is worth it so if I’m scrambling to pack for a flight to Asia for 1 week with 24 hours notice (like this trip… I’m currently typing this from The Philippines), it makes it much easier to grab the Travel EDC Kit and Med Pouch, leaving the larger EDC Kit behind. Plus, then I don’t have to worry about any of non-airline-approved items getting taken, or worse, getting taken in for questioning myself. For what it is worth, each of the three GORUCK pockets has a Velcro panel on it, so I attach a different patch on each for easy and quick visual identification.

*Pack Jedi – Some disorder, but the precise location of every item is known to you. Maximum flexibility.
*Scientific – Systematic and catalogued order. Zero flexibility.