There’s no such thing as a perfect bag (but I do love my GoRuck Bullet)

In my pursuit of perfection, bags are my nemesis.

I might be oversimplifying it a little, but I think about it like this:

Just like other product categories, bags can be fit for purpose or not, well designed or not. But bags ALSO have to:

• Fit your style, like a piece of clothing (which may be situation dependent)
• Fit your activity and context (eg work travel, a hike)
• Adapt to fit what else you’re carrying (which of course can vary a lot)

As a result of this, I have ended up with literally dozens of bags. Small sacoches and bum-bags in materials tactical or organic. Large comfortable hiking rucksacks. Unobtrusive shoulder bags. Laptop bags and briefcases. Camera bags. You get the idea.

While I’ve more or less come to peace with the idea of having a ‘bag wardrobe’, I’m still always on the lookout for that ‘one bag’ that hits 80% of the situations, that will be my default.

Which brings me to GoRuck, and specifically this bag, the 16 litre Bullet Ruck in waxed canvas, in Olive.

Like many people, I was drawn to GoRuck by a few things: their reputation for being totally bombproof, practically indestructible; their made-in-USA heritage; and their versatile designs that deliberately offered minimal internal organization. Also important: their stealth ‘grey man’ styling, which while a little tactical, at least promised situational versatility.

The root of the GoRuck portfolio is the GR1, a black cordura rucksack with 21 or 26 litres of capacity. I have a GR1, and it feels big (mine is also in arctic camo, so it is definitely not stealthy).

The Bullet I have owned since February ticks a lot of boxes that the core GR1 missed for me:

• Heritage styling. It’s waxed olive canvas with brown leather accents: it looks gorgeous, and in terms of fitting with my personal style, it looks killer with a tan Carhartt Detroit jacket and blue jeans, which is how I spend most of the cooler months (like this evening, on a pub trip). Basically, Joel from the Last of Us would carry this bag. Personally, I am totally over my tacticool phase of my early 20s, when I bought shit from Countycomm and 5.11. The heritage styling of this piece clicks with my current preferences much more.

• Goldilocks sizing. The 16 litre Bullet is somehow almost always the perfect size. I can take it out into town with the kids for the day and it doesn’t feel empty and saggy, yet I can shove a load of shopping and a coat in it and it doesn’t complain. This is magic.

It also keeps the core GR DNA, but in some cases refined:

• Carry handle. This is probably my favourite GoRuck feature. It is padded, stiff, and perfectly placed on the top of the ruck. It has structural integrity even when the bag is open.

• Sleek design. There are no clips, straps, pockets, bumps or other fussy design features that get in the way of the bullet shape, except for the grab handle. This is a really good thing for how well the bag handles.
• Quick access pouch. A little zip pouch behind your neck, perfectly sized for Airpods and keys and gum. I can open and use it while wearing the ruck.

• Rear laptop compartment. This is hidden behind the straps so nobody can open it while you’re wearing the pack. It holds my Macbook Pro 14, or my iPad, although I often put them in the main pouch because I’m afraid of squishing them.

• Full zip opening. The Bullet has twin zipper pulls that you can use with gloves, and the zips flow smoothly. You can clamshell the pack open all the way for easy loading and unloading.

• Comfort. The Bullet is not fancy in its ergonomics, but I can carry this thing fully loaded all day and not feel the slightest twinge of discomfort. It shrugs off weight, the straps are dense and rigid.

• Velcro morale patch. I have a funny Untitled Goose Game one instead of a MURICA flag. I like the ability to personalise my stuff in a non-destructive way.

• Indestructible build. I have used this pack for about nine months of moderate use, and it doesn’t look any different than when it arrived. I expect it to outlive me (and it has a lifetime guarantee, for what it’s worth).

• Freestanding construction. The Bullet has a flat leather base and will freestand most of the time, unless awkwardly loaded. When you lean it against a chair it will stay put.

And it still has all the same flaws of the GR1, and in some cases magnified too:

• No outside water bottle pouch. Honestly this is no big deal at all for me, but I have had a water bottle leak inside a pack before, and I always think about it. In fact there are no external molle loops, straps, pockets or anything on this bag eg to lash a wet umbrella to. That’s the downside you get for sleekness.
• Minimal organisation. Yes, there’s a slash pocket on the outside, which has no depth and is basically useless. Inside there’s a magazine pocket on the back, and two little zip pouches on the inside of the front flap. They’re OK. This is the tradeoff of the huge open main pouch: no organisation. Most of the time I am fine with it, but it can be frustrating to have half your stuff just in a pile at the bottom of the bag if you don’t use organiser pouches.

• Weight. This is not a lightweight bag, in materials or construction. Simple as that.
• No waterproofing. There’s no flap over the zip, for example. It shrugs off light rain but I wouldn’t trust it in a downpour.
• No strap keepers, but at least the strap excess isn’t too long.
• NOT made in USA. A lot of recent GRs are made in Vietnam or elsewhere. I actually don’t mind this — I am certainly not a fan of the American flag right now — but you still pay the price premium.
• Sweaty back. In the summer, having a padded lumbar strip and flat fabric back panel against you can be warm. The straps are thick and warm. This is not one of those mesh packs with air channels, or a shoulder bag that you carry away from your body.

I can pro-and-con list this bag to death for as long as I want, but it’s amazing how strong and clear my feelings for the Bullet Ruck are. It’s a bag that works for me almost all the time, from a day at a coworking space in London, to a walk in the woods with my family. It doesn’t get in the way when it’s mostly empty, and it packs a ton in without getting too big. It looks beautiful, and timeless, and it feels built to last forever. It is comfortable and easy to live with.

Every one of its flaws — the lack of external pouches or internal organisation, for example — is there by design, and I not only understand them but agree with them. It is the definition of a deliberate object: it makes conscious tradeoffs to achieve its design goals.

That doesn’t mean it’s limited; quite the opposite.

Compare it with something like the Aer City pack, with its masses of organization, modern materials, external pouches, luggage strap, hidden identity tag, airtag pocket, contrast lining, and hyper-modern styling.

I like both bags, and in the past I have raved to my colleagues about my Aer bag. But I would never use the Aer as anything but a work bag: it’s too styled as if it has a laptop inside. And despite them being similar sizes, good luck getting a few coats into the Aer — the organisation kills it. The GoRuck feels much more versatile.

So: bags are my nemesis; there is no such thing as a perfect one, because they are so situation dependent. But I won’t let perfection be the enemy of good. The GoRuck Bullet Ruck is a good bag. It’s a great bag. And it serves my 80%.

I paid $272 for this bag and picked it up from the US on a business trip. If I lost it tomorrow, I would absolutely buy another one.