VANQUEST CARBIDE-12 Sling Pack (REVIEW)

Pandemics are done and we are back in the world and that means meetings, offices, coffeshops and hotdesking. It means leaving our homes and venturing fourth by trains, planes, ubers and bicycles in an effort to put bread in the table and a buck in the pocket. It means stepping out and taking our gear with us, gear for work, gear for the journey, gear for the just-in-case and gear to get home. And to do all that and still look slick and cool is a challenge for any bag but the VANQUEST CARBIDE-12 Sling Pack can do that for you, all day long with bells on.

OK let me tell you why I think that’s the case.

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This is a slick looking pack in both senses of the word.

Slick in that there’s no MOLLE, excessive straps, buckles, zippers or pockets and there’s no hook ’n’ loop on the outside of this pack at all!

THAT'S A REAL LEATHER PATCH.

But also slick in that the CARBIDE is rapped in 400-D UrbanBlend nylon poly fabric, reminding me of a fine, tailored, Savile Row suit and that embossed VANQUEST patch upfront, is real leather!

The back of the CARBIDE has a padded, ventilated mesh panel for a comfortable carry especially in warmer months, even in a suit.

MAIN GRAB HANDLE.

There’s three nice carry handles, left, right and one at the top, in the middle.

SLIDE 'N' LOCK SHOULDER STRAP BUCKLES, NICE.

CHUNKY SLICK CLIP SHOULDER STRAP ATTACHMENT.

The shoulder straps are made from 1.5” seatbelt webbing with really nice slide and lock buckle adjusters. They’re attached using chunky SlickClips and integrated webbing loops at the four corners of the pack. This makes them ultra configurable so you can carry as a rucksack, a sling pack or as shoulder bag and of course you can configure for left and right hand carry and which ever your preference, zipper access to the CARBIDE-12 can be configured to match.

STRAPS REMOVED.

This really is another great pack from VANQUEST they’ve thought of everything including left and right hand carry.

TWO OF THE THREE SECTIONS

A PACK OF THREE.
The VANQUEST CARBIDE-12 has three sections that are accessed via chunky YKK dual, lockable zippers all with Spartan zipper pulls. This is configured as two section to the front of the grab Handle and another section behind and to the back.

PLUSH LAPTOP COCOON.

1 - LAPTOP SECTION.
Starting with this section, I would describe as a laptop pocket, big enough for a 13” model. It’s completely hook ‘n’ loop lined which offers a lovely plush protection for your computer and also a lot of room for customisation with hook ’n’ loop accessories, although there’s no capacity so you’ll have to be creative with the gear and tools you stash here if that’s the way you decide to go.

MAIN SECTION.

MAIN SECTION LOADED.

2 - MAIN SECTION.
I think this section’s been designed by the boffins down in the VANQUEST R&D labs as the section that your most bulky and/or heavy gear can be carried as it’s directly under the main carry handle and gives a nice balance to the pack when carried in that way.

On the interior it’s actually quite simple. To the back is a large padded and well engineered pocket with its own integrated protective base. You could carry an old bulky 13” laptop in this, along with a couple magazines and a note book or more bulky times like clothing for instance. To the top of this pocket there’s a heavy duty elastic retention tab to keep things in order. The exterior of this pocket is hook ‘n’ loop.

DUAL ZIPPERS WORKING HARD SO YOU DON'T HAVE TO.

2.2 - STILL ON THE MAIN SECTION.
To the front of this section are two really well designed pockets, stepped one up, one down. They’ve left and right hand access via dual zippers, so you can access the top pocket and leave the bottom closed, or close the top and open the bottom or open the both and this can be operated both sides to accommodate left and right hand users. They’re both gusseted so have some generous capacity and are constructed from the VANQUEST, ripstop, translucent nylon so you see content.

FRONT SECTION DUMP ALL POCKET.

3 - FRONT SECTION.
To the back of this section is where the fun is. To the top is a good sized dump-all pocket made from VANQUEST’s signature 210-D Ripstop nylon. It has capacity so plenty of room for what ever you wanna dump and is closed with a single zipper with Spartan zipper pull.

FRONT COMPARTMENT LOADED.

Below this is an admin section of two large pockets, big enough for phones, power packs and hip flasks and two large pen loops, large as you can fit, maybe two Sharpie sized pens in each. The interior of the large stiffened flap that encloses all this is hook ‘n’ loop ready for your CCW or a Stick Cube maybe?

VANQUEST STICK CUBE FOR FIELD NOTES AND KEYS... HAD TO TRY IT AND YEP IT WORKS.

VANQUEST FASTab for super quick access.

To the very top of this is the FASTap quick access tap which works OK for its intended use but also as a keychain retainer, although I don’t think the designers would approve of that : )

THE VANQUEST CARBIDE-12 JUST A VERY COOL LOOKING EDC PACK.

IN CONCLUSION, WHATS IN A NAME.
So what is CARBIDE? basically it’s a super hard synthetic material, made of four atoms of Boron and one atom of Carbon, it’s used on cutting tools, tank armour and nuclear reactors! (Really like that). The VANQUEST CARBIDE-12 like its namesake, is small, it’s tough, fits in everywhere, while keeping you on mission what ever that mission might be. It’s a fantastic EDC Sling pack and given it size vs it’s capacity the VANQUEST CARBIDE-12 really does punch above and beyond it’s weight.

VANQUEST CARBIDE-12 - EDC GEAR LOAD-OUT.

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