Hazard 4 is a California based company that specializes mainly in high quality packs and bags but has also branched out into ponchos and clothing to name a few of their products. The company had a large number of products on display but what specifically interested me was some of their rifle bags and a camera bag. Other than these specific products, the company just seems to have put alot of thought into the design process of their bags, thinking of things like a texture that will glide across clothing or exposed skin when worn for example. Or the fact that all their outside velcro patches are actually sew into a bottom layer of the material, and another layer covering the extremities of the patch. This It seems like alot of gear companies these days sew some Cordura together, slap some MOLLE on it, and call it a product. Hazard 4 doesn’t seem to be the case.

The first product I really liked was the Smuggler, a One Strap AR/Kalashnikov length case. The case had a number of neat features like multiple pockets, thickly padded handles, tension straps, a fold-out divider that could double as a shooting mat, etc… But it incorporated a One Strap! When I saw it, I couldn’t imagine why more rifle case companies aren’t incorporating this. I’ve always had issues at a range where I’m either banging my traditionally slung case against my side as I walk, or switching out the case from one hand to another. A single strap case would be absolutely ideal for transportation on a range, between vehicles, walking within a mile, etc… The rep at the company mentioned that some customers were complaining that it wasn’t good enough for long transportation, to which I think they completely missed the point in that it isn’t a drag bag that Scout Snipers use, it’s an ease of transportation strap.

The company also had this low visibility set up. I liked their approach with the light grey color, much better than some other “Low Vis” bags out there. It looks like something I could buy at an Apple store and not a tactical accessory. However my biggest gripe is that the branding and style of all these “Low Vis” set ups still reek of the tactical companies they are made by. I mean, do we actually think the criminals aren’t reading the same gun blogs, magazines, and Youtube videos as we (the legal) are? Either way, just some food for thought. It would be more interesting to me to see instead of a complete bag, but a sort of insert that one could purchase and fit into a specific Nike or Addis gym bag.  

Then there was this product, a tactical rifle guitar case! How neat! It might actually fit a guitar!

Their camera cases though, I really did find interesting. The outside has a hard fixture that protects the internals, in addition to various attachment points on the outside where lights or anything else can be fitted to. Excellent for cycling at night, with beacons on.

A separate compartment for a laptop as well.

Then this poncho… a tactical poncho, complete with zelcro, and a large pocket on the front, excellent!