A Road Worthy EDC
Trying to remain as objective as possible, but its hard to when these folks make such great stuff, especially at this price point. I recently took the Recon 20 to a 3-day conference and used it as my "tech bag". Inside I had my iPad Pro 10.5 in the secondary pocket secured on the internal molle (this was inside the iPad Pro EDC Kit, which was also full of cables, chargers, Apple Pencil, pens, notepads, etc), my bible and notebook in the iPad Pro EDC Note Case in the main compartment, and still had plenty of room for cables, batteries, chargers, headphones, snacks etc. in all of the other pockets. The straps were comfortable, but I still noticed some soreness after a full day, most likely due to the amount of weight I was carrying. The YKK zippers are durable but could be a little smoother, however there is a ton of great organization so I never lost anything in the bag. After three days of being sat/drug on floors, hung from chairs, sat/drug on sidewalks and roads to access the compartments and thrown in and out of vehicles it still looks brand new with not a hint of scuffs or tears. The bag is compact but expands nicely, but it would be great if there were a few compression straps to keep the profile smaller for when you're not carrying a larger load. This is something I may try to add in the future on my own. I also wish there was side molle for adding an external bottle holder or pocket. I think it would be nice also to have a rigid insert for when you're not carrying a laptop and perhaps a cutout for a hydration straw/charging cable/headphone cord. It would also be great if both zippered compartments were full clamshell, but they still open far enough to access whatever you may need and it is obvious a lot of thought went into the design. However, these are only wishes and do not affect the overall review. As for longevity, I think with the materials Cargo-Works chose for the exterior and interior should hold up to anything. The only minor issue I noticed was hearing a stitch "pop" when dragging the full backpack out of a high vehicle and letting a single shoulder strap bear all the weight as it fell toward the ground. There was no visible damage, but it has made me a bit more cautious about weight and how I carry it. Overall I am very pleased with the Recon 20 and think they nailed the use cases for this bag. It is my new EDC and I am in love with the size and functionality. Cargo-works has become one of my favorite brands and I am excited about what the future may hold. In the meantime, if you are looking at this bag for EDC of your tech gadgets and gear, don't hesitate.
