Gear Review: Condor Urban Go Pack Review

Up for review is the Condor Outdoor Urban Go Pack. A spacious pack, this item is feature rich, with a large capacity; 48 L in fact.

I tested out this pack over the course of about 8 hours, and as many miles in the Georgia mountains, loaded out with between 20 and 40 lbs each hike.

Let’s go over the features first.

Complete with two cinch straps to make the pack smaller or larger depending on your loadout, it also comes with a chest strap and waist belt. In the waist belt, you can keep your ID, hunting license, or other important documents you need quick access to (see above.)

The pack has padding on the back itself, along with a padded laptop sleeve (seen below). It does offer a significant amount of protection for the laptop, and one can also insert other long, flat items into it for safekeeping. While the chest strap does not come with a whistle integrated into it like other field packs, it is secure.

On the face of the pack, and also along the sides, it is equipped with standard webbing to customize your pack or lash kit to it. In addition, it has a trio of secure drag handles, and this pack and be moved or even thrown around. This is great if you intend on using it with some SGPT workouts, where we require you to do exercises with the pack itself. The center handle is covered in a neoprene like material; however, this does present it’s own issues, which I will get into later.

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As far as cargo space, this pack has it in spades. The top front pocket has an internal organizer for keys, pens, documents and the like. The top pouch, right by the patch velcro, is an electronics pocket, with a soft interior soas not to scratch up your gear. The two side pouches are significant, and can easily hold extra kit, ammo, a first aid kit, or something similar. These also have MOLLE type webbing on them, allowing you to attach any number of elements to it. The bottom pouch has 2 mesh pockets which can be used for a number of things as well.

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As you can see in the picture, I attached a SOG SEAL Strike to the pack. Overall, the pack has potential – it is capable of carrying a variety of gear, and keeping it organized. It would make a fine range bag, camping pack, or “Go Bag” to keep in your trunk or by your door loaded out with the essentials. It’s got quite a bit of versatility, complemented by the webbing all over it. With a plethora of pockets, you can load this pack up with a whole lot of gear. The main compartment also has mesh pockets to further allow you to organize your loadout.

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The cons are few, but significant: It is not hydration compatible, which isn’t a HUGE deal. However, and this could just be me, I found the pack rather uncomfortable when loaded out. The center grab handle digs into the cervical spine when loaded out with 20-40lbs as I tested it. I tried manipulating the cinch straps for the shoulder, and tightening the waist belt, but this did not stop it from being uncomfortable when loaded out over many miles. Also, the shoulder straps could use some padding.

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However, all this being said, if you are looking for a mission ready pack with tons of storage for day to day stuff: school, to trek stuff to the office, or just to occasionally use on day trips, it is completely serviceable.

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Looks – **** A little hefty, it still looks pretty damn cool.

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Versatility – **** You can load this pack up with a ton of stuff, it has a lot of pockets, and plenty of organization. However, it is not hydration compatible, so it loses a star.

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Comfort – *** I tested this loaded out with 20-40lbs of sand “bricks” and it was not very comfortable a few miles in. However, if you load it out with a laptop, some clothes, maybe some gym gear, it’s fine for that. I personally wouldn’t opt for this pack on a long mountain ruck.

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Capacity – ***** For its size, you’d be hard pressed to find another 48L pack with as many pockets and storage options. Add to that the electronics pouch and laptop case, and for an urban setting (commuting, running around a city, going to work/class), this is a great pack for those applications.

UPDATE December 2017: I’ve had this pack for several months, and retired it from rucking. Not because it can’t hold the weight, but for previously mentioned issues RE the neoprene webbing digging in. However, this package does serve as a Get-Home Bag as well as a range back when I need it for extra gear. It’s very well put together, with solid stitiching and ample capacity. When loaded as a Get Home Bag, this pack is topped off with clothes, MREs, maps, ammo, and E&E gear. It’s a rugged, well made pack for such loadouts.