I have slowly picked up some of High Speed Gear Inc.'s products this year. It started with a few of their well-known and loved Taco Mag Pouches. Then I picked up their net dump pouch on sale. I have never been a fan of dump pouches, but I said, "Let's try it". I rounded up my now HSGI variety pack with their SureGrip padded battle belt and the newer Soft Taco pouch. Yep, I now have plenty HSGI in my life.

Okay, now for my first impressions on the company and quality of their products. It is safe to say that even before getting any product I was incredibly impressed with HSGI. The first items I got at stores but then the battle belt and Soft Taco came from HSGI themselves. They redefined excellent customer service in my book. Talk about raising the bar, order received and shipped within just hours of payment. You place an order with great companies and expect the product to most likely ship within 24 hours but, with HSGI my order was on the way by the same afternoon I ordered it. That is a big deal for guys on a time crunch who need a critical piece of kit sent out fast.

All four products from High Speed Gear Inc. are made in the USA with quality you can count on to last. I have stretched, pulled, dragged and dirtied up their gear but they just keep going. The SureGrip battle belt is well built with strong stitching that can take being loaded up end to end. Both the Taco mag pouches and the Soft Taco are well built with strong Nylon and long lasting bungees that can adjust as needed. HSGI's net dump pouch is ruggedly built with a tight netting that does not fray or strip easily. Some might worry about it catching but not really the issue. Overall A+ on quality of construction.

Now for a close look at each item and how I use them.

First, we have the well known Taco Mag pouches, beyond the obvious is a very versatile piece of equipment. I love my gear to be able to do a lot more than just one job. The Taco Mag pouch can hold a lot more than just mags. I use these great pouches to hold radios, smoke grenades, and all kinds of banger simulators. People have gotten crazy with their specially designed Kydex smoke or banger holders when HSGI has had the best answer all along. Rather than buying a specialized pouch that only takes one specific item, you can use a Taco pouch that is ready to take any smoke or banger as needed. A+ in my book with such versatility.

Next product I looked at was their SureGrip Battle Belt. This battle belt already has a great reputation with the confidence put into it by everyone who uses it. I decided that what I needed to know was, is it really a "sure grip" around my waist? To know if it could hold up and stay snug, the best thing to do was overload it and not use suspenders. So, I loaded up every bit of MOLLE all around the belt and weighed it down. After running and gunning with it for a day, sure enough it held. It took a few long runs to start getting it to shift but in the short combat sprints and low crawls through the bush it held. I definitely did not expect for it to go the distance so well. I will give the SureGrip Padded Battle Belt a solid A+ , find a belt to fit inside the battle belt and load it up.

Now, we have the HSGI Mag-Net Dump Pouch to look at. I am definitely no fan of dump pouches because they seem overused in the wrong ways. But, I found this one on sale I said let's try it out. Well-built and easily made, compact for out of the way storage on your battle belt. Not the smallest dump pouch or most compact store away but a good medium. If you get ones that are really compact you use lighter materials that could sacrifice strength. The netting and flexible frame around the opening mean a solid product. Some worry about netting dump pouches getting snagged on branches or bushes. I did not have this problem since I kept the dump pouch way back behind me and the construction of the netting is heavy duty with little spacing for sticks or shrubbery to catch in it. If I had a complaint about it, I would say the slit opening is not my favorite. The pliable framing that makes up the top of the pouch and runs on both sides of the opening are great for keeping things in but can still make dropping mags in tough. Other dump pouches are completely open topped or have a round bungee hole. Not great either since they come with their own problems. If I could change the HSGI net dump pouch I would put heavy thick bungee instead of that harder frame on either side of the slit entrance. Makes it simpler to blindly push mags in and still secures them in well. Since it hurt the functionality a bit I have to give this product a solid B.

Last, but not least, is the HSGI Soft Taco Pouch. I was very excited to play with this product because it waves that versatility flag I love so much. Its basic purpose is as a water bottle holder to keep you hydrated without needing a Camelbak like on a day at the range or short Airsoft games where you have easy access to water in the field. This can be a nice accessory. Now, it does not just hold one specific size. You can stretch out this pouch pretty far and fit almost any water bottle found in stores. But if that was it then I would not be won over so easily. It is also great for holding several extra rifle mags of several different varieties. The pouch is ideal for the bigger radios that some guys like to carry around. The one thing I didn't test out was if it could hold a small HPA tank for you Polar Star fans. I will let you guys try that one out. Overall being rugged, holding any bottle tight, and versatile makes it hard for me to give this product anything other than a solid A+. 

There is no doubt in High Speed Gear Inc.'s quality in construction, customer service, and ingenuity of product. Great American made products that keep impressing all their users, both real steel and Airsoft. The only thing I still have problems with is their malice clips. These are just not easy to work with and install on your gear. Some people are good at it and there are plenty of YouTube videos to help. So it is not the end of the world there.

Thanks HSGI for making great products that can be relied on day in and day out. I am hooked and happy to keep buying more.

Just one grunt's opinion.

Javier "Darkhorse"

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About The Author

Javier "Darkhorse" Franco, formerly from This Week In Airsoft, runs his own Airsoft Blog on Facebook called "One Grunt's Opinion." This article has been posted here with the author's permission.