Grit PX4 Pro Series Hockey Bag

[marka 526]

Howdy,

Figured I'd do an initial review of this Grit PX4 Pro Series Carry Bag.

This is the 32" version, with listed dimensions of 32" wide, 16" deep, and 20" height.  They also have a 28" version which is 28"/16"/16" respectively.  These are pretty standard "Pro Style" dimensions, which is the number one thing that attracted me to this bag.  I'm coming to this bag from a Pacific Rink Player bag that was 35"/18"/18" and I found the extra length annoying on the floor of a crowded locker room.  It was also annoying when going through doors or stacking next to another bag in the back of my car.  Coupled with that, the center divider in the Pacific Rink bag meant that I had to fold over my pants/girdle to get it to fit on one side of the divider and even had to sorta jam my shin guards in.

After giving the Pacific Rink bag a shot over 25 games or so, I decided to go back to a bag with pro style dimensions.

I'd previously had a Warrior Pro style carry bag and I liked it quite well except for a couple things... I didn't like the zipper down the center of the bag vs. a U shaped zipper/top and after a couple years of pretty heavy beer league use (on the ice three or so times per week year round) all of the internal mesh compartments had seams ripped out on the bottom (compartments on the long side) or on the sides (both skate pockets).  There were also some 'minor' holes worn in the corners of the bag and rips on the mesh vent slots, but nothing big enough that things would fall out.

I'll be comparing this Grit bag to both of those.

I went with the Grit PX4 bag out of all of the pro style bag choices because it had a U shaped top opening, skate pockets on each end, and 3 mesh pockets on the long side.  The pockets were basically identical to the Warrior Pro bag, with the addition of a U shaped opening.  The cost was also right in line with the other Pro style bags (including the Warrior), at $90 retail.  This, of course, is MUCH cheaper than the Pacific Rink Player bag which retails for $220.

Handling the Grit PX4 showed some immediate differences to the Pacific Rink bag.  First, when the Grit bag is empty, it has no structure.  It flops basically flat on the floor and you have to hold it up to put things in it.  The Pacific Rink bag has much more internal structure due to both stiffer materials for the side of the bag as well as a center divider that provides more stiffness.  The Grit bag is floppier than the Warrior bag as well.  Warrior uses a plastic-y coated material for the outside of its bag and that material is stiffer than the Grit bag.  The Warrior bag is a little more floppy than the Pacific Rink bag since there's no center divider support, but it still has significantly more structure than the Grit bag.  The Grit bag's lack of structure annoys me a little, but its fairly minor in the overall scheme of things.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/w6XcK5Fugy6xULTA7

The lack of structure also shows itself in terms of how well the mesh pockets keep things in them.  This is particularly true of the middle pocket on the long side of the bag, which has the longest opening.  Because there's not much structure, the top/opening of the middle pocket sags into the center of the bag quite a bit.  Any thing you put in that pocket that has any height at all (like a spare jersey in a ziplock bag) ends up in the center compartment of the bag.  The other mesh pockets have some of this behavior as well, but because their openings aren't as wide the issue isn't as pronounced.  The Grit bag's lack of structure also affects how easy it is to stick a skate into the skate pockets.  Its a two hand thing, where your off hand needs to hold part of the bag to provide some structure so that you can slide the skate fully into the pocket.  Pacific Rink is much better here, with the Warrior bag somewhere in the middle.

The mesh pocket construction looks to be very similar to the Warrior Pro bag.  I've used the Grit bag twice now, so I have no idea what the durability of seams and such will be like, but I'm not expecting a lot here.  We'll see how it goes.  Both pale in comparison to the Pacific Rink pocket construction which is made of sturdy fabric.  The skate pockets are additionally padded quite well, while the accessory pockets have zipper openings and even reinforced inner slots for "pokey" things like screwdrivers you don't want working their way through the bag's fabric.  

Btw, just above the skate pocket on the Grit bag you can see the mesh airflow opening.  There's one of these on either side of the bag and they look to provide significant airflow.  Pacific Rink has a similar thing tucked under a flap on one end of their bag, but unless you go looking for it, you'd never know it was there.  Hard to imagine that there's any significant airflow on the Pacific Rink bag.  The Warrior Pro bag has two mesh 'slots' across the top of the bag that provide airflow.  After a couple years of use, those mesh slots showed some wear and tearing and we'll have to see if the Grit bag's mesh airflow areas end up with the same type of issues.  Hopefully not, since small things can more easily fall out the sides of a bag, vs. the top.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/a6ZaYoiZ3XiJHDxc7

https://photos.app.goo.gl/LzsvHbphktcPFmEZ6

Like the Pacific Rink bag, the inside of the Grit bag is a fairly 'bright' grey color, to help make it easier to see things inside.  My black Warrior Pro bag's inside is straight black, which I suppose can hide things a bit more.  Having said that, I can't recall ever not being able to find something in my Warrior bag that was actually in the bag, vs. left at home.

Handles are next...  The Grit bag comes with main handles that are a good length to put the bag over your shoulder, as well as grab handles on either end.  This is basically the same setup as both of the other bags, except that due to the mesh airflow sections, the grab handles on the Grit bag are at the very top of the bag vs. being set down the sides a bit.  I slightly prefer the handles that are down the sides a bit, but its a pretty minor thing.  In terms of the shoulder handles, the Grit bag has one sewn on "handle combiner thingy" that you can Velcro around the other handle.  I can count on one hand the number of times I've done that and generally dislike them (I removed a similar one that was sewn onto the the handle of my Pacific Rink bag), but giving a bit of credit, you can use the handle combiner as something to slip the other handle over the top of when the bag is on your shoulder, giving the outside handle a bit more resistance to falling off your shoulder (this may not be a factor for you hockey players that actually work out and have muscles in your shoulders).  The Grit bag's non-combiner-thingy shoulder strap has the "carry area" folded over and sewn as well.  I anticipated the result of this to be straps that dug into my shoulder a bit, but I've been pleasantly surprised that it wasn't the case, at least on a normal "parking lot into the arena locker room" trip.  No idea what it would be like going from one end of an airport to the other...  The Warrior bag just has flat straps here btw, while the Pacific Rink bag has the fancy addition of length adjusters for the carry straps.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/K6k8UqeHjG6bJAAs8

https://photos.app.goo.gl/WS5y2uG66xyiU9sw9

The last thing to mention is something that's missing as compared to the Pacific Rink bag... "real" shoulder straps.  The bottom of the Pacific Rink bag has a zippered slot that hides backpack style shoulder straps that you can remove from one end and clip onto the other end, converting the bag into a real two strap backpack.  This is one of those edge case things though... I never used them and can't see a situation where I would, but if you're walking long distances with your bag that feature alone might make the Pacific Rink bag a must have.  For me, the only two times those straps were out of their slots were when I first got the bag and when I was taking pictures to sell it.  Otherwise they were just dead weight to me and I don't expect I'll miss that feature on the Grit bag.

The next big question, of course, is durability.  And I can't answer that one yet.  The construction seems heavy duty and reasonable, but that doesn't mean a whole lot without actual usage to back it up.  I'll try and update this review in a year or two to see how its going.  

So far, outside of maybe wishing the bag had a bit more stiffness / intrinsic structure, this bag is exactly what I wanted.  My big priority was getting back into something with standard Pro player bag dimensions and this does exactly that.  The U shaped top opening is easier to work through than my old Warrior bag.  I miss the really nice pockets in the Pacific Rink bag, but not enough to want to deal with the sub-optimal dimensions of that bag.  Locker room and cargo area floor space is precious, much more so than height, and I can carry this bag through doors easier.  If Pacific Rink made a Pro dimensioned bag I'd want to take a hard look at it because I like the Pacific Rink construction better than the Grit bag, but until that time I'll be happy to save $110 on a bag that works better for me.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/Vh3qDqYATdf1x98D6

Mark

[marka 526]

Howdy,

A few more months in and the Grit bag is holding up great.  No detectable wear at all.

Definitely recommended, if you want a Pro shape bag and don't mind it being a little "floppy".

Mark

[marka 526]

Howdy,

3 more months and the Grit bag still looks identical to the pictures above.  No QC problems at all.

Living with the bag, I still sometimes get a little annoyed that it doesn't hold its shape a bit better, but that's it.  I've given up trying to keep my spare jersey in the mesh pocket and it just lives on the bottom of the bag in a ziploc.  Both issues are extremely minor.

Otherwise the size is exactly what I wanted, its been holding up great to playing 3 or so times a week, etc.  Recommended, if you want a "Pro Bag" with internal pockets / modern features.

Mark