Tru Spec Ranger Rac & Pouches

This is a fairly inexpensive coyote brown chest rig designed by Tru Spec that I got from Brigade Quartermasters. I hesitate to say cheap because it seems to be of very good quality (1000 denier ballistic nylon). The rack itself consists of a "cumber bun" and attached "bib", which can be folder down out of the way (behind the cumber bun). It has 3 rows of PALS/MOLLE webbing on the bib and 3 on the cumber bun. The waist can adjust from 32" to 65". The extra leftover straps had to be taped up after adjusting due to the elastic that holds them being too weak. Behind the cumber bun and bib are mesh pockets to hold documentation, maps, etc. The buckles on the rack and the grenade pouches were black....I painted them OD green with spray paint and also broke up the solid coyote brown with some OD, tan, and brown spray paint.

The mag pouch that I got with this is also made by Tru Spec. It is a one piece single that has 3 pouches on it, each designed to hold 2 M16 magazines. The magazines fit all the way into the pouch, so having a magpull attached to the magazine to help remove it from the pouch isn't a bad idea. Although, I didn't find it at all difficult to remove the magazines. The mag pouches also seem to be large enough to hold at least one AK47 mag, but I don't have any to test this out. This shingle comes with a shoulder strap that can be attached to the D rings on the top of the shingle and used over the shoulder. I used these D rings along with 2 zip ties to help hold the pouch to the rack. The pouch seems to be slightly loose at the sides when attached to the rack...so attaching these D rings helped greatly. I believe this is because the MOLLE straps need to be moved to the outside of the pouch a little more. You'll also want to be sure the snaps are snapped when going prone or running, especially when the pouch only has one mag in it, to keep the mags from coming out.

The Smoke canister pouches I got are also Tru Spec. They only came in ACU at the time so that's what color I got. The web page doesn't have a picture of them, so look here for a picture before ordering. These pouches can be used as a utility pouch as well and have an adjustable opening (with a elastic cord and cord locks) so that the top can be folded into the pouch and the opening exposed. The buckles on a couple of the smoke pouches stick a little, but seem to be loosening up. The MOLLE strap on the back could be better sewn, but has held up so far.
Overall I think this is a good piece of gear for it's cost. I would trust it at the range, for training, and for some light tactical work. I got a professionals discount from Brigade and the total cost with shipping for these items was around $75.

Update: October 2010

My younger brother uses this same Tru-Spec Ranger Rac but in Multicam for airsoft and for training in the civil air patrol. He puts it to good use and has held up well, except recently on of the quick release buckles snapped on it. See the below picture...