Blue Force Gear Jedburgh Pack Review

The Jedburgh pack from Blue Force Gear is the next generation of the company's discontinued Denied Access Pattern (DAP) pack. The DAP pack gained somewhat of a cult following and was one of the first to line each compartment with loop (Velcro) panels, designed to accept a variety of "hook" backed pouches, known as dappers, for better organization of the pack.

Dappers/Organization

Dappers, or any Velcro-backed accessory pocket, allow the user to prepack them with certain items that can quickly be swapped out, depending on what items are needed that day. This gives us the ability to insert a padded laptop pouch, admin pocket and vertical pouch containing ear buds and various charging cables needed midweek for a day job at the office. On the weekends, these pouches can quickly be removed and alternate pouches can be inserted to support a trip to the range, complete with loops for magazines, a medical kit, ammunition containers and more. This pack is only limited by your imagination and can be quickly configured to support virtually any activity.

What's in a name?

Stephen Hilliard, senior director at Blue Force Gear, said the pack's unique name is derived from a military operation.

"We decided to name all of our covert or general use packs after deception operations during World War II," Hilliard said. "The Jedburgh pack was named for Operation Jedburgh; it was a clandestine operation during WWII in which personnel of the British Special Operations Executive, the U.S. Office of Strategic Services, the Free French Bureau Central de Renseignements et d'Action, and the Dutch and Belgian Armies were dropped by parachute into Nazi-occupied Europe to conduct sabotage and guerrilla warfare as well as lead the local resistance forces in actions against the Germans."

This is a fitting name given the mission this Blue Force Gear pack has been tasked with: Do not to draw attention, even in non-permissive environments.

Wolf Grey

The color of the Blue Force Gear pack shown is known as Wolf Grey. The colorway has proven to be popular with those seeking to blend into densely populated urban, suburban and industrialized environments that have low ambient colors and shadows. Wolf is essentially the color of wet concrete, closely resembling asphalt, steel and reflective glass. Certain greys, such as Wolf, are the least visible in this environment, because it's the most common color. Similarly, coyote brown works well in virtually every field environment because it's the most common shade that blends with natural tans, browns and greens. Wolf Grey is the color you want if most of your time is spent downtown — plus, it works well with civilian attire.

If Wolf isn't your style, the Blue Force Gear Jedburgh is available in three other solid colors options: black, coyote brown and OD green, as well as Multicam pattern.

ULTRACOMP

The body of the Blue Force Gear Jedburgh is constructed of INVISTA Solution Dyed 500 Denier Cordura. The base of the pack features a single piece of ULTRACOMP material that will protect the bottom of the pack from continual use on rough or abrasive surfaces, while keeping the contents of your pack clean and dry. ULTRACOMP is a proprietary material that is half the thickness of a dime and four times as abrasion resistant as air-textured nylon. It is some of the lightest, thinnest and toughest load-carriage material available that is also antifungal and hydrophobic, reducing odor and weight gain while wet. The combination of these materials brings the Blue Force Gear pack weight down to only 24 ounces.

Front Pocket

The interior of the front pocket is completely lined with loop Velcro, allowing unlimited pouch orientation within the pocket. If you'd like a magazine pouch angled a certain way, this loop panel makes that possible. I added a triple pistol magazine pouch to mine and positioned it high within the pouch. This is where I store a Glock 17 magazine with a Taran Tactical +5/6 extension, multitool and a SureFire Fury handheld light. I use the bottom of the pouch as a sort of catch-all for receipts, spare change, Chap Stick, etc. This is the compartment that I access the most, and I have it configured with items I may need in a hurry, which are readily accessible, not sloshing around in the bottom of the pocket. The front pocket is 240 cubic inches and measures 10-inches tall by 8-inches wide by 3-inches deep. For size reference, a full-size iPad 2 in a LifeProof case will fit within the pouch, even with the triple pistol magazine pouch loaded up. The front of the pocket features a laser-cut, twin-column MOLLE-compatible panel constructed of ULTRACOMP and is tailor-made to accept a double M4 magazine pouch and/or the Blue Force Gear Boo-Boo pouch.

Shoulder straps

If you own a padded Blue Force Gear Vickers Combat Application Sling, you may find the shoulder straps look familiar, which is a good thing. The 2-inch wide sleeves have been proven to be exceedingly durable and the same design has been successfully vetted in combat zones. The closed cell foam padding won't move around or separate, and BFG states it will not absorb moisture. Just like the sling, the shoulder straps are minimalistic, soft and comfortable, easily supporting loads of 20 pounds or more for extended periods. I'd say they're just right for a bag this size and for its intended use as an EDC pack. Between the shoulder straps is a nylon grab handle that surrounds two media/hydration ports coming from the interior of the main compartment.

The padded back panel has a sewn-in HDPE frame sheet for additional stability and comfort, and it helps maintain the shape of the pack. It also offers a rigid foundation for dapper placement, ensuring the pouches stay put. The color-matched zippers open the Blue Force Gear pack's main compartment in a clamshell fashion, allowing complete access to the full interior of the pack.

Main Compartment

The main compartment of the Blue Force Gear pack boasts 800 cubic inches of space (pack total is 1,040 cubic inches) and measures 18-inches tall by 11-inches wide by 4-inches deep. A 6-inch wide loop panel lines the front and backside of the pack, each stretching from the top to the bottom. I placed an Admin dapper on the upper portion of the back panel. The outside of the pouch has several slots sized to fit a standard M4 magazine pouch. These slots will also fit an iPhone 6 in a Magpul bump case, ear bud headphones, pistol mags and a surprising amount of other accessories. I store a small notebook and my wallet within the pouch with plenty of room to spare.

If using this pack as a carry on for air travel, you can place all of your restricted items in the one of the dappers and place it in your checked bag at the airport. Once you've arrived at your destination, simply pull the pouch out of your checked bag and re-insert it into your pack.

Depending on what I'm doing for the day, I can configure the interior of the Blue Force Gear pack to hold any support equipment that will fit in the pack and keep it organized. I've been searching for the perfect everyday carry pack for work and play, spending more money than I care to recollect in my search. I've finally found my unicorn in the Jedburgh pack.

As with all Blue Force Gear products, the Jedburgh is made right here in the USA and offers a limited lifetime warranty. Buy with confidence.

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