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102K views 123 replies 81 participants last post by  Trooper2221 
#1 ·
I'm wondering what people recommend and why. I'm leaning towards MOLLE, but I see many people here recommending ALICE. I don't see any reason for it, and no one really gives a reason. I like MOLLE because of all the pouches that can be connected. I just want to know why a lot of people pick ALICE.
 
#2 ·
Some dude in Army Acquisitions wanted to make a name for himself so he came up with a new acronym. MOLLE is really IALICE - Improved All-purpose Lightweight Individual Carrying Equipment.

MOLLE = Modular Lightweight Load-carrying Equipment
ALICE = All-purpose Lightweight Individual Carrying Equipment

MOLLE is the new better stuff.
ALICE is the old has bin stuff that you can get cheap.

I have both.
 
#10 ·
Someone needs to come up with MOLLE webbing on a ALICE pack. Best of both worlds.....
There really is no need for it.

1. Standard Molle strap equippped items, malice clips, or tac-ties will secure an item to the alice attach points on an alice pack with a "little" sloppines. How much "slop" depends on the item and the owners tollerance of it.

2. Molle webbing is nothing more than a 1" nylon webbing sewn onto a piece of cloth that anyone who owns a sewing machine can install within minutes. It can be ordered in 100' rolls for around $50 and is sold at Hancock Fabrics for 80 cents per foot.

Just as a hoot I had my mother in law add a single line of blue webbing along the "belt" of a lightweight denim jacket.
 
#4 ·
This topic has been beaten up many times try a little search. The are to many variable and you get people all worked up on whats best , when the reality is its all up to you. What works for me in Tx , I would not like up north. Bags and pouches can be added to anything. Check you tube also for comparison , I believe KEV the site owner compares them also. My oppinion is I like the less fabric of the alice compared to the molle, and also think it lets the body breath a little better in the hot temps.
 
#7 ·
I was trained with and used the medium Alice and have one for each of my family members.

Saturday, I just acquired a large Alice, molly on a plastic frame. It is Army digital.

I absoluty hate Army digital. But the molly puches can be adjusted to go anywhere on the pack, and it carries more than the medium Alice does, and easier. It is more comfortable on my back, and rides higher on my back, giving my lbv room around my waist.

With Alice packs being had for $20.00 give or take, you cannot go wrong if they are in good shape. The Molly I picked up Saturday was $40.00 and it looks new.

Recon3
 
#8 ·
I like molle but the Velcro sucks. Makes way to much noise. I think molle adds a lot of weight in extra fabric. And peoPle tend to get carried away and have to much gear. I still like it,it has a cool factor, but I'm fine with a LBE kit too. I've bought a lot of used molle stuff and a lot of it is damaged and worn, the old stuff seems to hold up better. In my op.
 
#12 ·
Cost is best reason.
There are some folk that say a pack shouldn't have any outside pouches.
They have even said to remove the three pockets/pouches on MED pack to give it faster sleek look.
Some folk are weird too.

You can add pouches/canteens to both ALICE packs.
Some folk add buttpacks to them.

Some guys are putting two buttpacks on ALICE frame for lighter loads.
Up to you what can be put on to suit your needs.

I'm thinking about putting M1945 combat pack and cargo bag on ALICE frame to see how it rides.
 
#14 ·
I searched and searched for months and got no closer on the internet. I did find a ton of useful links though. Based I the idea that I thought the alice was lighter, and less cost and I could add more pouches , heck I believe you can retrofit molle gear to the alice, I jumped in and got the alice.
I have taken the frame off of mine but installed the hip belt back on and travel as light as possible. I still have more room that I can ask for out of a 20 dollar pack.
 
#17 ·
ALICE for me. Cheaper. More DURABLE. Better setup for most of us. Only MOLLE gear I have is the big Gregory MOLLE pack and the OTV IIIA vest. Rather have ALICE suspenders over the OTV Reason? Case if I have to ditch the vest, I'm not ditching all my gear Grab 'n go

LOVE my Large ALICE pack LOVE IT BUT it is made to be worn with combat gear, ALICE kind, with an ass pack Shifts weight off the shoulders and onto the hips.
 
#18 ·
Alice is good if you are short. Alice is meant to ride above a cartridge belt, so it really doesn't ride on your hips. More like on the kidneys on me, i'm 6'4".

The straps are horrible by themselves. They are meant to ride on top of your load bearing gear shoulder straps. If you have load bearing gear they are fine, if not, very thin and very uncomfortable after a few miles.
Only thing Alice does better than Molle is that the frame keeps the pack completely away from your body. Mucho airflow keeps you cooler.

Alice is meant to work with a load bearing harness and cartridge belt, without it, it is a very poor pack.

Molle is much, much better. I really don't understand how some can think that Alice is better. Vietnam era gear is not better than modern gear.
I have used both.

Although i would take a M14 over a M16, but thats another discussion.

Molle shoulder straps are comfortable by themselves. very good padding.
Hip belt is huge,comfortable, and actually rides on your hips.
I think the pack material is more durable than Alice, although the material has never failed on me on either pack.
Don't pay attention to those that say the plastic frame will break on you. A gen 4 frame will not, unless you are throwing them off the roof of a bldg with 120lbs in it. Alice frames break too, if you beat on em enough.
The modularity of the pouches is fantastic. Get a GP sling and a sustainment pouch makes a great little daypack for short hikes away from your main camp.
Havin a separate sleep carrier compartment is great. Don't have to go digging through your bedding to find things.
Only thing that isn't as good as Alice, the pack lies much closer to your body, there is still airflow, but not as much. So you get a little hotter imo.

As far a price goes, if a 20 buck difference is gonna make you or break you, don't eat out for a month and you will have enough for a Molle pack and some pouches.

I see people on here talk about Alice being great, but i went backpacking once with Alice by itself, no lbe, never do that again.
I have been on several backpacking trips with my Molle, it was a night and day difference.
 
#20 ·
i have had a ALICE pack for years and love it it replaced my old back pack from my younger years ! i modified my old frame to work with the ALICE pack and it it has the good straps and a hip belt or what ever they are called , getting old cant remember all the right terms ! i have carried 80+ pounds on it , course that was when i was younger and in excellent shape !
the ALICE has worked for me and i see no reason to to change , a lot of you young greenhorns think that you always need the newest fanciest stuff well what worked for people 10-20-30-40 years ago can still work today !

the new MOLLE stuff was designed for the newer soldier in combat , are you in combat ?
 
#25 ·
Finaly, home... now i can write a good comment about this stuff.

Well, as i am in the service i used allot of different gear, from ALICE to an ALICE type vest to a MOLLE plate carrier and even a PLCE beltkit.

Well, what is ALICE, thats the first question...Its a belt, with a suspension system. The pouches are attached to that belt and thats it.
So what does this mean; you can fill up your belt with ALICE pouches and you can make it totaly round... one of the nice things, you can put the magazine pouches to your side so that you can lay flat
The fasteners are metal allmost indestructable (yes you can brake it...i know). Its versatile and you can find allot of the ALICE stuff.

But whats the PRO side is also the down side...Its a belt! You only have one row of attachmentpoint. so most commonly you will have a butt pack.
Say bye bye to the realy big rucksacks like the Berghaus Vulcan and the Löwe Alpin saracin.

This is the same with the PLCE kit. Sturdier pouches and more options but it is still....a belt kit. The PLCE has a bit of a softer harnas so its more comfortable.

When looking to MOLLE....it just discribses the attachment system...some loops and fasteners.
Pro thing, you can change ALLOTTTTT and make it realy mission specific. Like my vest...it even has an option for 20!! ar15 magazines.
The downside...my whole frontal body is covered. So i cannot lay as flat as with the PLCE/ALICE kit.
Good thing on the other hand...i can carry a huge backpack!
Another good thing, it carries my level 4 plates...
 
#26 ·
alice pistol belt and quality H suspenders are the foundation for my setup. i then add a buttpack and 2 1qt canteens, molle or alice it doesnt matter. then i add whatever molle style mag pouches i like using malice clips instead of metal alice clips. best of both worlds. i keep the front and chest of my setup free so i can belly crawl and get very low to the ground. something that is hard to do with a molle vest with mags all over your chest. i use a medium alice pack with blackhawk updated straps. no frame. i can wear the pack over my H harness and buttpack in complete comfort. with a little tape and attention to detail i can jump up and down and not have any noise. it just depends on where your at and what your doing i guess. i'm going to be away from cities and in the woods. i feel alice is better suited to this environment. molle is good for run and gun urban kick your door down **** that our military is stuck doing now. i can only imagine in my mind the piles of abandoned molle vests if it were around for vietnam
 
#27 ·
Without getting into a lot of stuff that's already been covered I will say that I used ALICE crap for over 20 years. (My Uncle Sam thought it was a good thing) But, about 2 years a go I picked up a MOLLE Rifleman pack set with vest and tossed all of my ALICE stuff. ALICE does not even compare to MOLLE. As 5.56x45 says, it (the vest) can be hard on the front when getting into the prone. Anyway, with all of the possible combinations you can't beat MOLLE.

Al
 
#28 ·
Both

The current recession (depression) has not been very helpful to me so I pick gear for 3 reasons: 1. What I have to start with (I had a lot of ALICE gear laying around). 2. Will it function / do the job and the big one, 3. How much it COST.

So, I primarily use ALICE pouches on a MOLLE vest, but I mix and match to fit my current needs & situation. I actually like different parts of both systems. I’ll buy more MOLLE, as it becomes more common (cheaper) on the surplus market.

FYI: ALICE and MOLLE can be mixed & matched, with or w/out using the manufactured adapters. You can use zip-ties (melt the cut edge) or P Cord to attached gear. And if you do use ALICE w/ the clips be sure to tie them down too.





FN
 
#29 ·
ALICE is cheap, well constructed, and a simple yet effective way to hual your items. With the frame alone one can carry very heavy, odd shaped loads such as firewood if needed. One large section with 3 small pockets on outside gives you enough storage room for most of your needs. Straps and a draw string secure everything effectively, ALICE and MOLLE pouches may be added also.

I have not been impressed with the military MOLLE systems. I have found to many problems with broken zippers, dirty velcro that is difficult to seal and plastic pack frames that that break.

A medium ALICE pack and frame with the addition of the MOLLE shoulder straps and waist belt and a couple small MOLLE pouches makes a comfortable and tough system.
 
#30 ·
I agree, good set up. Alice is for the average sized person, above average and molle might fit you better. I think a lot of the other folks are just sold on , molle is newer , its got to be better thinking and will not get past that. Is molle really better , IMO no. I just like the idea of the alice being designed in a generation before the computer age. Just my oppinion both look excellent but I will stick with my alice for now.
 
#31 ·
Also, when selecting gear...dont forget the situations your in!
When in allot of water you want the least fabric, because that sucks up water.
But....if you want to carry allot of gear, molle is the way to go, especialy if you want protection and load bearing capability in one package.

Nothing is better, just all a different purpose.
When i need to be in a woodland enviroment, with alles of kneeling and going prone i will use my belt kit...
When in an urban enviroment, i will use my molle vest with double plates.

later on i will post some pics how my setup is.
 
#32 ·
I'm not sure if people are talking about just the bags or the system in general? anyways:

I like ALICE more. I am also a nostalgic person which alice has a lot of history. To me, molle seems to be unnecessary, new-fangled technology lol.

For alice, the clips are really plentiful, cheap, and easy to replace. Bad stuff happens to molle if the webbing or straps happen to break or tear on molle. Both are fairly easy to repair at home, but in the field is a different story.

What i like about both is that you can jerry-rig either on the other. Using adapters or whatever is laying around. I have a alice bag from some European country which is different from the US style (mainly less sewn in pouches but with more alice webbing) but i have a molle MRE pouch attached to the bag and it is very secure. On the other hand, i had some alice things on my molle 3 day bag which was less secure but thoes clamps can go on a lot of things.

The downside with alice is that is tends to be fairly uncomfortable to me (in the shoulders) at times. I am also a large muscular guy, which from previous comments, alice isn't meant for people my size. Also, the attatched items flop around quite a lot. This is where molle picked up the slack. Especially in commercially made products, every molle item has been extremely comfortable to wear. When a molle item has been properly attached to something, it isn't coming off unless you want it to.

The downside of molle is that the material is significantly lighter which pulls on my backpack a lot more than my alice pack. Also, i hate velco. I never liked the stuff. it is loud, noisy, and will wear out faster than a button or fastener (though i do like putting funny patches on it). Zippers have never been a bit problem for me, but i get the items with big/thick teeth which will last a long time. Both packs of mine have zippers, but the alice has a drawsting for access to the main bag.


Finally, usage is my final consideration. Alice bags/pouches tend to be somewhat less ascetically pleasing and more designed for rough usage. Molle, to me, is "prettier" and just flatout looks better with nothing attached to it. Also, molle has quicker access to the main bag and is better compartmentalized.
Also, molle has been accepted into mainstream products. there are a lot more companies producing molle products out there. It seems like every day there is some kind of new attachment for molle for some kind of flashlight or electronic. You just don't see that for alice. All i can find for alice is just surplus or reproductions of the same surplus items. there is a limited number of accessories (mostly surplus) for the system with little commercial accessories.
 
#33 ·
being an avid camper/hiker i have all kinds of bags. My first camping bag was an alice pack. but after using all of these bags i spent a couple hundred on a Kelty bag and never looked back. comparing the kelty to ALL the other packs i have had everything looses in all categories.

I have yet to see a single military type bag out on a serious hike. you will not see one person who takes hiking seriously in colorado with an alice pack. they are overweight, fragile, cheaply made, uncomfortable etc. i was having back problems with the alice pack weighted down. my kelty bag will carry more weight than an alice and is a lot more comfortable. I will never go back to a cheap military bag for something as serious as bugging out. I know there is a lot of good reviews about the alice but take it from a true avid hiker this bag is not very good. if you dont believe me take it on a 50 mile week long hike and see for yourself.
 
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