My anecdotal research of the gun industry indicates that a significant portion of the consumer population purchases guns, gear and accessories with thoughts of a protracted firefight in mind. The struggle that I — and I hope others — have is that this very functional gear either looks tactically ridiculous or is so “gun” focused that it’s worthless for every day usage.
Blue Force Gear, known for their slings and “gun” gear, debuted a line of new products at last year’s SHOT Show that I’ve been testing for the better part of nine months. Their Dapper line is meant for the gun-toting civilian, but is designed to look less “operator” without losing out on the function that tactically minded gear brings to the table.
Most impressive for me has been a tiny pouch that deserves its very own review. Meet the Dapper Admin Pouch.
I don’t engage in firefights for even a quarter of my day. In fact, I can count the number of firefights I have been involved in using no fingers at all. And I plan to keep it that way.
However, I have required the use of an iPhone charging cable, headphones, Excedrin, chewing gum and an external battery pack about six times this week alone. Prior to using the Dapper Pouch, the aforementioned items, along with other medications, various other chargers, and dental floss flopped around in my regularly scheduled backpack.
The Dapper pouch is made of a very durable Nylon, not quite as robust as Cordura, but still plenty idiot-gun-blogger-proof. Attached to the back are two heavy strips of hook Velcro, perfectly compatible with any loop Velco panels like that on the inside of Blue Force’s backpack or any number of any on the inside of competing packs on the market.
Attached to the front are two “Ten Speed” pouches that are sized for M4 magazines. I have used that feature precisely once and only to say, “Yep it does that.” The rest of the time, both pouches have securely held my twin pair of Anker battery packs. The space between the ten speed pouches is segmented for pens, but you could probably throw a chemlight or two in there as well if you were so (tactially) inclined.
Inside the zippered compartment, there’s a decent amount of room for a lot of miscellaneous junk. That is the predominant use case for me as I have on hand at any time, enough medications to deal with headaches, inflammation, and the effects of Texas’ wild humidity and temperature swings on my sinuses. I also keep some chewing gum, an iPhone charging cable, and a micro USB cable, along with at least one USB memory stick.
Should I elect to discreetly carry a gun about my person or in a pack, the Admin Pouch can easily accommodate a full sized M&P 9 and holster along with a spare magazine. For range duty, it has enough storage space for two loaded M4 magazines, a notebook, Kestrel, and some pens.
Rating (out of five stars):
Overall * * * * *
At $45, the Dapper Admin pouch is a bit spendy, but it is made here in the US and has held up to nine months of my idiotic usage with narry a frayed seam. In fact, the only wear I’ve been able find is some stretching of the elastic on the pen and M4 pockets. Both still work great, but look a little tired. Otherwise, it’s been a great way to keep all my small crap in one place that can easily be moved between one bag and another.