Mystery Ranch Unisex Urban Assault 24 Backpack (pack of 1)

Product Information

I found the Urban Assault 24 exceptionally comfortable for day hiking. The water beaded off the fabric in light rain and my camera always stayed bone dry.

Decades of experience and deep connections in the everyday carry industry give us a unique viewpoint on the market to inform our product recommendations. We have the depth of information for thousands of products that have come before and an extensive eye on the market to see what's new and trending for each piece of gear. The result is a buying guide that we feel is informative and useful for EDCers of every trade, industry, and budget. What is Everyday Carry? Unlike the smaller Urban Assault 21, the 24 has a compartment with direct exterior access. That saves a whole lot of digging around when you’re on the move. The slimmer profile and streamlined exterior make it great for both everyday use and travel—it even fits under an airplane seat. Plus, the unique 3-ZIP gives you full access to your stuff without needing a clamshell opening. Mystery Ranch Urban Assault 24 Under Airplane Seat Pulling on the top cinch straps allows you to adjust the height and fit of the harness system. Sternum strap Bernard is known for bringing everyday carry out of obscurity and into the mainstream, having been published or featured in various publications such as GQ, TIME Magazine, The New York Times, VICE, HYPEBEAST, Outside, and many others. He has also played a part in curating, designing, and developing digital and physical products, resulting in successful crowdfunding projects or limited edition collaboration products with established softgoods brands. He stays on the pulse of the EDC industry by attending trade shows, participating in online interest communities, and actively engaging with fellow gear enthusiasts on social media.Speaking of zippers: this is the first Mystery Ranch bag we’ve tested that features their 3-ZIP closure, but more on that shortly (we promise). Useless fact of the day: 1 Denier is based on the weight of a 9km(5.59 mi) long strand of natural silk. The “ D” in “500D stands for”Denier.” It’s a standard unit of measurement in the textile industry for measuring the weight of certain fabrics.

This bag is more of a hybrid between urban and outdoor use and style, but different colorways bring out different vibes. The more muted shades fit the citified aesthetic, while a colorway like Wood Waxed or Coyote feels more outdoorsy. Of course, what you choose all depends on your preferences! Mystery Ranch Urban Assault 21 Material and Logo Something to note: adjusting this harness system does take a bit of getting used to (it was weird at first), but once you figure it out, you’ll be traveling in comfort. Mystery Ranch Urban Assault 24 Shoulder Straps In Use Last, and probably least, is the top handle. It seems like an afterthought. It’s a plain nylon strap with no structure or padding. Some of that dense foam from the shoulder straps (and you thought we moved on) would have been nice. Or folding the handle material in half and sewing it together—which we’ve seen other companies do—would at least give the illusion of padding. Alas, Mystery Ranch could not be bothered. Mystery Ranch Urban Assault 24 Top Handle Plus, the laptop compartment is sealed with one of those YKK AquaGuard zippers we were talking about earlier. Although this compartment is not waterproof, we like the added weather-resistance for our laptop.There’s no way around it—this bag is comfortable. The super-adjustable harness system lets you customize your carry, regardless of body type. It feels like Mystery Ranch gave a lot of thought into how this bag rides over long stretches. Mystery Ranch Urban Assault 24 The bag’s sternum strap is secured to nylon straps on each shoulder strap and can easily be moved up and down to wherever it offers the most support. The sternum strap’s hardware is also equipped with a bungee cord you can use to secure the hose of a water bladder so it’s not flailing around as you walk. Heading down the rest of the straps, you’ll find a thin row of PALS-like webbing which gives the sternum strap a few different adjustable heights. Now, as you probably know, we prefer when bags have a permanent attachment point for the sternum strap—we’ve had too many fall out in transit. The folks at Mystery Ranch seem to have thought about this issue and used wider hardware that feels more secure than the thinner stuff we’ve seen on other sternum straps of this style. Mystery Ranch Urban Assault 24 Sternum Strap Webbing Moving on to the rest of the exterior features…unless you want us to keep talking about the shoulder straps. Yes? No? Got it.

There are also small nylon tabs located at the end of each zipper that you can hold onto with one hand to keep the bag sturdy, while you use the other to glide the zippers open and closed. We like this thoughtful addition and have found that it helps make for an effortless zip every time. Plus, you can use those nylon tabs to fasten additional gear with a carabiner in a pinch. One thing to note in this compartment: you can really see and feel the curved frame sheet. It’s flexible enough to pull out of the way when accessing your tech gear, but we have noticed that sliding a laptop in and out can feel a little cumbersome. Mystery Ranch Urban Assault 24 Curved Frame Sheet Next to each zipper, you’ll find nylon tabs that give you a place to hold while opening and closing the zipper. They’re a small but thoughtful touch that really helps when yanking on these stout zips. Although it is slim it reaches the full depth of the bag. I’d suggest using a document folder to prevent bent document edges when you put the bag down. Bonus: Hydration Bladder Compatible Durable, well-design products are painstakingly developed over time and multiple production cycles. They are refined through systematic testing and careful incremental improvements.

🍪 Privacy & Transparency

Toyota does this, and the Urban Assault 24 is an example of this process at work as well. It’s roots are in the 2 Day Assault BVS and a further refinement to Mystery Ranch’s bestselling Urban Assault 21. I think the Urban Assault 24 is a significant improvement over the 21. A bag that's too heavy to carry will be highly uncomfortable for you to EDC. And when weight is restricted, like on an airplane, a bag with a higher initial unloaded weight means you can fit fewer travel goodies inside before paying extra fees. Capacity Even if the Urban Assault 24 was completely emptied, flipped upside down and shaken you would never find this cool little stash. Although not purpose-built for a stash, I discovered this neat hiding spot while doing a close inspection of the laptop compartment for this Urban Assault 24 review. Plenty of thought has gone into the Urban Assault 24’s design. For instance, to remain stealthy, the Urban Assault uses paracord zipper pulls instead of noisy metal tags. Also, every zipper has a webbing loop sowed to the ends to serve as counter-grips to grab onto while zipping and unzipping. Benefits of the 3-Zip Design Mystery Ranch’s Signature 3-Zip design

The design itself is very serviceable too. Even the internal frame sheet can be removed for deep-cleaning or replacement. Features of the Urban Assault 24 500D Cordura Fabric 500D Cordura The Urban Assault 24 is an upgraded version of the popular Urban Assault 21. Along with the signature 3-Zip design, it adds more capacity, a direct-access laptop sleave, oodles more organization and external water bottle holsters. Cordura” is a nylon fabric brand originally developed by Dupont and widely respected as an industry-standard in ultra-durable nylon fabrics ( source).We’ve still been comfortable enough keeping our laptop inside as is, given the support from the frame sheet and the significant suspension of the sleeve from the bottom of the bag. The laptop compartment has a nice false bottom. Both of these features keep our tech protected when it’s getting shuffled around on our commute or if (when) we accidentally drop it. The Urban Assault 24 makes a light and nimble “go bag.” It sits high and snug and there is no need for a hip belt. While researching thousands of durable products here at WellRigged.com one thing has become abundantly clear. Let me put it this way… At the top of the straps, you’ll find load lifters. But these aren’t just any ordinary load lifters. These load lifters (how many times can we say “load lifters” in one paragraph?) are adjustable in two different places, which adds to the customizability of this harness system. Mystery Ranch Urban Assault 24 Load Lifters