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Pack Review - 5.11 Tactical RUSH 24 2.0 Backpack
If you’ve ventured into the world of tactical backpacks, then I’d bet you’re familiar with the company, 5.11 Tactical. 5.11 started out making pants suitable for rock climbing and from there, they have ventured into the world of military, law enforcement, and everyday gear for the prepared civilian. With a reputation for high-quality products, their flagship backpack line, the RUSH series is one of their best sellers.
5.11 RUSH Series Overview
The RUSH backpack series now includes four backpacks, two sling bags, and a duffel bag. While we cannot speak for any pack in this series besides the one we’re talking about today, that being the RUSH 24 backpack, we are optimistic that the other packs in the series live up to the same quality and durability we have experienced with the RUSH 24.
Understanding the sizes of the four backpacks in the RUSH series can be a little bit confusing. The four backpacks in the RUSH line are the RUSH 12, 24, 72, and 100. These numbers may seem like they relate to the size of each pack in liters, however, these numbers indicate how long 5.11 Tactical thinks the contents of the bag can keep you going before needing to resupply.
So, for example, the RUSH 24 is essentially a 24-hour, day bag, while the RUSH 72 is a larger, three-day pack. The pack sizes are listed below but as the title suggested, this is a review of the RUSH 24 backpack so let’s get into it!
As listed above, the 5.11 Tactical RUSH 24 is a 37-liter day pack that sells for $130 on 5.11’s website and comes in multiple different colors including black, dark earth, olive green, 5.11’s “double-tap” color, and Multicam camouflage for an extra $40. The pack we are reviewing is the 2.0 version of the RUSH 24 backpack. The 2.0 version of the RUSH packs came out in 2020 and that is the only version you can purchase from 5.11 right now. The 2.0 has some improvements from the original version that we will get into later.
5.11 Tactical RUSH 24 Features and Layout
The RUSH 24 has MOLLE webbing all over the pack which makes it great for adding more pouches and customizing the pack to do exactly what you need it to. With that being said, the pocket layout on this bag has created a new standard for tactical backpacks. The RUSH 24 sports one large, main compartment, and within it, there are two mesh, zippered pockets, and one non-mesh zipper pocket at the bottom.
On the backside of the pack, within the main compartment is a sleeve that can fit a 15’ laptop or anything else you can fit in there. When using this as my camping pack, I keep my fold-up grill in there to keep it from clanging around when hiking and from cutting or catching on other items.
Returning to the outside of the pack, there is a pouch on the backside of the pack that when unzipped, offers up many different small admin pouches to store smaller items. One feature that is new on the 2.0 version is that in-between the large, main compartment and the smaller admin pocket, 5.11 included their Velcro concealed carry pouch where you can store your concealed handgun or shove a matchet, ax, or just about anything else you could fit in there.
Moving up the pack, there are two small side-by-side pouches that when unzipped may seem like one bigger pouch, but they are two separate pouches with a zippered mesh pocket and a fleece-lined pocket inside each. I was originally disappointed that this wasn’t one big pocket, but after a lot of use, I have grown to like the separate, smaller pockets.
Some other key features of this pack are the compression straps on either side to keep the bag tight, adjustable shoulder straps with a chest strap, MOLLE attachments, and 5.11’s yoke design for extra comfort when carrying more weight.
Also, multiple Velcro areas for attaching your favorite patches, one thin, nameplate area at the top of the pack and one, larger area at the center of the pack for any other patches you may want to add. A very comfortable, padded backplate rounds out the great features of this pack, and coming in at 3.84 pounds, this pack has a lot to offer.
Is the 5.11 Tactical RUSH 24 a Good Pack?
So now to the good part, is this pack worth it. Well, the words that everyone hates to hear…It depends. we personally bought the 5.11 Tactical RUSH 24 in the dark earth color to be our camping/range day/1-to-3-day hunting bag and for all those purposes, this bag has done exactly what we expected it to do.
Some of our favorite features that really allows this pack to shine and extend your trips in the great outdoors is all the MOLLE space you have to add on more storage. That is huge. we’re also a huge fan of the webbing on the bottom and top of the pack. This allows you to strap not just one of your bigger items to the bottom, but also another one to the top and free up even more space inside the pack.
Another great feature is the attachment points for a waist strap. While this pack doesn’t come with a waist strap (the RUSH 72 and 100 do) it comes with attachment points that allow you to purchase an aftermarket waist strap and use it with this bag. we did this and it was a great purchase. Be sure to get a 1.5-inch width waist strap though, as that is the correct size for the built-in attachment points.
We’re also a fan of the durability you get out of this pack for $130. While you could spend double that amount on a nice mystery ranch or Elberstock pack, for the money, the 5.11 Tactical RUSH 24 is built to be tough in bad conditions. We have purposely been hard on zippers, camped out in the rain, and put this pack through some rough times and it has held up very well.
Overall, we have been impressed with the 5.11 Tactical RUSH 24 backpack so far. The 37-liter size allows you to have a regular day pack but with all of the customization options you have, you can easily extend this bag’s field time to use past just a day of being In the woods. At this price point, we can see why the 5.11 RUSH series is one of the most popular tactical backpacks on the market today.
