The Recycled Firefighter Battalion 24 HR backpack is a 21 liter pack made by Recycled Firefighter in the USA. It features USA hardware, a bright interior, and a sleek exterior.
Unboxing the Battalion 24HR
When this pack showed up I videoed the unboxing to capture initial impressions and run through it quickly. Here’s that as well as a full run through of the pack!
The Recycled Firefighter Battalion 24HR First Look
Don’t like watching videos? No problem because there’s plenty of pictures here. Starting on the outside you can see there’s a zipper that runs the vertical length of the pack. This is the “Tactical Grey” version of the pack which seemed like a good color for everyday carry.
I bought the Kryptek Typhoon version of the Battalion 12HR which is definitely a more unique color. When it comes to everyday carry bags (like the 24HR) I like to go with something more traditional. When it comes to grab-and-go packs (like the 12HR) then the more unique colors can be fun.
Quickly looking at the base of the pack there’s not much to see. Just some nice 1000 Denier Cordura.
Checking out the zippers on the outside you can tell (based on the “U”) that they’re made in the USA. Always nice to see high quality USA made hardware on a USA made pack.
The Front Pocket
Moving to the outside of the pack we’ve got that solid vertical zipper. When it’s at the top it’s zipped up which means you can use gravity to help you open it up.
Inside the exterior pocket there’s a very, very bright orange interior. You’ll see more of this color in a little bit.
The pocket features three internal pockets which is great for organization. The bottom pocket takes up ½ the space while the top two pockets each take up ¼.
Be careful with what you put in here if you’re traveling or staying somewhere with thieves. That vertical pocket can be opened quick, thanks to gravity, and the contents could spill out.
The Outside
Moving to the side of the pack there’s nothing much to look at. No side webbing, no pockets, nothing. It’s a very slick look which some people will like and others won’t.
Making our way to the back we finally get to check out the shoulder straps and laptop area. You can see that the laptop area is a vertical zipper which gives you complete access through the side.
The inside of the laptop pocket has that same bright interior we saw on the inside of the front pocket.
While we’re at it we might as well fold this thing in half. There’s no frame sheet in the backpack but, thanks to the 1000d Cordura, it still holds its shape.
The shoulder straps have some decent padding on them. The Recycled Firefighter “The Chief” was severely lacking in padding in this area.
There’s a D ring on each shoulder strap which I’m sure you can use for something. If you’ve got ideas I’d love to hear them in the comments!
Looking straight down on the pack you can see how the top handle is sewn in.
From the side we can tell that there’s not too much padding on this handle. It’s a piece of webbing sewn over on itself. Great for grabbing and moving but probably not ideal for extended carrying.
The top of the bag also features the only branding on the pack. Recycled Firefighter: Made in the U.S.A.
Lift the logo up and we’ve got the hydration port exit hole.
The Inside
Now let’s get into the inside of this pack! The first thing you’ll probably notice is more orange! It’s hard to describe just how bright this bag is. It’s really, really bright. I’m guessing this will come in useful when I’m reaching around trying to find something in the bottom of the pack. It’s infinitely easier to find something in the bottom of a bright pack than it is in the bottom of a dark pack.
Here’s the hydration port exit area from the inside.
Here’s the bottom of the bag.
The other side of the bag has two mesh zipper pockets which mark the only internal organization on the pack.
Here’s a closer view on the zippers for those two internal pockets.
If you couldn’t tell from the pictures this is a clam shell opening pack. I love being able to open packs up, get my gear, and zip it all up. After moving towards clam shell packs I have a difficult time using packs that don’t fully open.
What’s Next?
What’s next for this pack? I’ve got a 30 lb ruck plate tossed in there and I’ll be putting some miles on it to see how it holds up. I’ve used it a bit for everyday carry and it’s performed very well. At $169 it’s very cheap for a well designed pack built in the USA.
Have any questions about the pack or want me to try anything out with it? Leave a comment and I’ll do my best to help out!
Have you just kept the ruck plate in by itself or did you prop up with a yoga block or put in a frame sheet or any other mods? With weight, how do the backpack straps compare to GORUCK?
I just threw the weight in the laptop area with no mods or anything. It was fine for rucking around but if I were going to use it for PT or at an event I would put some foam on the top and bottom of the plate. The last thing you need is a plate hitting you in the head during bear crawls 😬
How did the 24Hr hold up with the ruck plate?
It held up fine for rucking around! So far I’ve put roughly 30 miles on it and it’s a nice pack. I much prefer the Rucker for rucking but I’ve heard of people actually using these at GORUCK events.
Cool. Thanks for your input. Good to know the RF holds up to as much abuse too :)