One of the most often asked questions asked to me is about a cheaper alternative to a GR1 for GORUCK events. Everyone wants a bag that is tough enough for a GORUCK event but not everyone wants to pay $295 for one. The Shadow rucks were released in October, 2013 and were priced from $95 (for the SD15) to $125 (for the SD25) depending on the choice. GORUCK has since reduced the price of the Shadow rucks to $60 to $70 ($48 – $56 if signed up for an event) making them even more affordable now.
Over the next few months I’m going to use the SD25 as my everyday carry bag and then at the end of February I’m going to use it in the GORUCK Light portion of the ABSOC down in San Diego. I’ll try and write this review out in two separate sections so that people who want it for a traveling pack and people who want it for a Challenge pack can get the information that they need out of it.
Shadow Ruck SD25 Everyday Carry
My first impression of the SD25 was that it is incredibly light and very easy to fold up and store away. I went and picked it up from the GORUCK warehouse and was able to fold it up and stuff it into my GR1 for transport home. The SD25 weighs slightly less than two pounds (1.93 lbs) and you can really tell the difference between this and the similarly sized GR1.
Right off the bat the major difference I noticed is that there is no internal or external webbing. This gives the ruck a slicker, more work-appropriate, look which many people have liked.
The same internal and external pockets present in the GR1 are also present in the SD25. The main difference between these two rucks in the area of pockets is that the SD25 has no dedicated pocket for a laptop. However, if your laptop isn’t too large, you can utilize the internal magazine folder area for it… which is what I’ve been doing for my work laptop.
The zipper pulls all feature the heat shrink over paracord which is standard with the GORUCK packs. I generally don’t like to leave things as they are for too long so I may be changing out some of these pulls but I’m still glad they came standard.
I’ll continue to post up my thoughts on the ruck as I keep using it for my EDC.
Shadow Ruck SD25 For Events
My first thoughts when deciding to use is for a GORUCK event was that there is no internal or external webbing. This means that you won’t have webbing on the shoulder straps to tie your bladder hose down… which will be a pain. I’m going to work on a carabiner setup so that the hose doesn’t go flying all over the place so hopefully that will help. The webbing also poses an issue in that you won’t be able to attach your bricks high up in the ruck. Keeping your bricks high in the ruck makes the GORUCK experience much less painful… something you’re not able to do with this ruck.
In addition to the lack of webbing the carry handle is not reinforced like the GR1. You can expect that during some point in the event you’ll lose strap privileges (which means you can no longer wear your ruck) and the lack of the reinforced handle makes me think that the SD25 will not be much fun to carry during that.
There’s also no holes at the top of the ruck for your hydration hose to come out of. If you’re going to use this for an event you are most likely going to have to run the hose out of the zipper area which means you won’t ever be able to fully close the main compartment.
GORUCK SD25
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Quality
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Design
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Usability
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Value
Summary
Pros
- Spot on sewing and stitching
- Standard (excellent) GORUCK quality
- Looks great, visually appealing
- Made in the USA
Cons
- Due to lack of frame backpack won’t stand unassisted
- No laptop pocket
- Doesn’t hold shape when full
Used For: Every Day Carry (EDC)
Tested For: One Month
Conclusion: Great book bag and budget piece of GORUCK gear. However, we found ourselves wanting to grab our GR1 instead.
Does anyone have some shadow rucks for sale by chance? They stopped making them and my wife and I need some solid day packs for a New Zealand trip we’re taking.
I’d check out either Ruckmall on Facebook or the weekly Buy/Sell/Trade posts on the GORUCK sub-reddit on Reddit. Every now and then you see them show up there.
How much clothing could you fit in the sd25? Would it make a good travel bag?
Thanks
I’ll need to get back to you on that but it’s a pretty small(ish) bag. I’m guessing 2 pairs of jeans, 1 pair of shorts, a few shirts, socks, etc. and you’d have it filled up.
It would be just a weekend travel bag so it would be big enough. Thanks
Any thoughts on how to secure the bricks in the SD25? I just got one and I’m thinking about doing a light. Hate the thought of buying a 300$ GR1 but maybe I’ll have to.
The only thing I can think of would be to fill up the empty space with light weight items. (Yoga block on the bottom, foam knee pad against your back, and maybe a dry bag full of clothes with the bricks sandwiched between these things. This is how I secured my Radio ruck (24 liters) for my first Light, and didn’t use any of the internal MOLLE webbing.
Hope that helps!
Great advice, thanks. How did the light go? Where and what time of year did you do it?
No problem! The Light I was in had a whole lot of good livin’ – it was in July, but in Seattle (so summer weather is arguable).
Brian was right there with me!
Did the SD25 perform ok on your light? Do you wish you had a GR1? Also how did you hydrate? Bladder, water bottles just curious? Thanks for your advice.
I actually used a Radio ruck for that light, but the foam knee pad should more than compensate in the SD25. I’ve actually never used the internal MOLLE to strap my bricks down. I used the typical Source bladder (the wider, low profile one) and I usually just layer my loadout. Foam knee pad, bricks, dry bag of clothes, water bladder.
A major benefit to the light is that you’re also only trying to fit 2 or 4 bricks in the ruck. A little more space that way for other stuff.
Weather is always iffy in Seattle but it was a blast!
My advice is to listen to what Ryan said in regards to the setup then, since you already have the SD25, put it together and go on a training ruck. Practice push-ups, sit-ups (ruck on chest), flutter kicks, bear crawls, crab walks, hydrating, and anything else you can think of.
Hopefully that helps!
Looking to pick one up to use daily for college; I’m noticing that there’s no padding in the back, how uncomfortable do you think it will be when carrying notebooks/textbooks? also would the bag sag at the bottom due to the weight of the books?
My wife is still in law school and has a ton of books so I can load it up and take a picture or two tonight. As for how comfortable it is it’s definitely less comfortable than the GR1. Having a laptop in the magazine pocket gives you some structure but I think this backpack really shines when it’s not carrying a heavy load.
thanks! i’ll look forward to seeing the pics. really love the aesthetics of the bag but trying to refrain from dropping too much money for a school bag.
I had my wife take this picture this morning. The backpack had 5 of her ~200 page paperback books in it. It doesn’t sag down too much but it doesn’t hold the shape the same as the GR1.
awesome, thanks for the pics. im most likely going to be picking up the sd20 for school
I’ll be doing a light in March with the SD25, with my wife by my side using the SD20.
I’ve had some thoughts about using foam to give some extra padding to the bricks. I will update you once we’ve done some more training with the rucks and find out what works for us.
Thanks! Looking forward to hearing your feedback on it. I think it definitely needs something between the bricks/gear and the wearer’s back and some foam would probably do just the trick.
I’ve actually used a rectangle garden knee foam pad and place it between my bricks and ruck (Radio). I’ve done that for a Light and Challenge so far, it has worked well!
That’s a great idea! I’m actually headed to Home Depot tonight to grab some sand for a sandbag… I’ll make sure to check in on one of those as well.
Nice write up. I have an SD20 which I bought mainly to fold into another bag when traveling and just want a basic bag for carrying around town and light hiking. I also use it for a gym bag on days when leaving from office. I haven’t done a Light or Challenge yet so will have to wait for your follow up. I personally would not consider it for either due to items missing from it which differentiate it from a GR0 or GR1. I do support your willingness to take the hit for the rest of us.
I couldn’t agree more! This bag is great for carrying around town and as a gym bag. From my week of use I’d say that using this in a Challenge or Light would be idiotic. There’s just one sheet of Cordura between your back and the bag’s contents (unlike the GR series) which means you’ll feel every brick in there. I am still considering doing it so that I can 1) say I did it and 2) definitively say it is a terrible idea.