BOUNDARY SUPPLY PRIMA SYSTEM: REVIEW
Boundary Prima in the wild.
FOREWORD
Prima System was the first Kickstarter project by an upcoming US-based bag company called Boundary Supply. Launched back in May 2017 the campaign generated a lot of buzz in the carry world and, to nobody’s surprise, was successfully funded on June 23, 2017, by almost 3k backers, raising over $700k.
Located in Lake City UT, Boundary Supply has been producing interesting projects and enriching the carry options by making high-quality products built to endure and accompany you on your adventures.
ABOUT THE BAG
The Prima System, as the name implies, is not a single bag but a set of modular components that include the backpack (expandable from 25L to 35L), the Fieldspace case (essentially a removable laptop sleeve with magnetic closure) and the Verge case (removable insert intended to store photography gear and accessible from the side of the bag or carried as a stand-alone piece)
The technical specifications (sourced from the Boundary’s official website at https://www.boundarysupply.com/products/prima-system) are:
Magnetic Autolock Buckles
17" Laptop Storage
Fieldspace: 13" Laptop or Tablet Storage
Verge Case: Camera body plus two lenses
Padded NYWOOL® Sunglass Pocket
RFID safehouse passport pocket
External 32oz bottle stowage
Luggage pass-through
Charging pocket
Magnetic key clip included
Removable waist belt
YKK Stormguard® zippers
Hypalon® abrasion resistant panels
LFT® Foam Shoulder Straps and Backpad
External Verge Case Attachment
Prima Weight: 3 Pounds 12 Ounces/1.70kgs
Verge Weight: 12.28 Ounces/0.38kgs
Fieldspace Weight: 8 Ounces/0.23kgs
31 Liters of Storage
Price: $204 (temporary discounted), regular price $240
The bag is offered in several colors - Obsidian Black, Stone Gray and Mojave Tan (this is the one I have)
There is also a limited run of X-Pac version that also comes in three different colors (Black Camo, Grey and Black)
The hidden pocket can be accessed while the bag is on. Very handy for keys.
QUALITY & COMFORT
The quality of the bag is top-notch, very durable materials used and what’s personally important to me - they feel great when in use. What elevates the everyday use of the bag are:
Magnetic Fidlock V-Buckles that are a joy to use and just play with
Side access to the main compartmentÂ
A very robust harness system
The middle zip that allows opening up the entire bag and has excellent access and visibility (unlike many other bags that quickly turn into the black holes where things get lost forever)
The bag carries well but it does come with a significant trade-off - the weight of the harness system and the extra padding is definitely above average for a bag of this size. The entire system (pack+verge case+fieldspace) weighs well over 2kg and this is essentially an empty bag without your stuff in.
ORGANIZATION
The bag offers a decent organization. I would give it 8 out of 10.
External access to the main compartment
Quick access pocket on top of the bag
Dedicated and suspended laptop access from the top of the bag
Nice mesh pockets inside the bag allowing to store some extra stuff.
Stretchy pocket for book/tablet/miscellaneous items
External water bottle pocket
The hidden pocket which uses the side of the water bottle pocket
Fidlock V-Buckle magnetic closure. Love at first sight.
WHAT’S HOT
Robust materials and great build quality
External water bottle pocketÂ
External top access to your laptop
The zip in the middle that offers great access and visibility inside the bag
Very comfortable harness system and thick padded straps
Magnetic Fidlock V-Buckle closure system
Magnetic sternum strap
WHAT’S NOT
The bag is heavy (the entire system weighs over 2kg and this is without your stuff inside, the bag alone is 1.7kg which is still more than most of the bags of the same size)
The system is over-engineered - the laptop sleeve is not very usable and the verge case is bulkyÂ
When the verge case is installed there is a gap between the bottom of the bag and the case which essentially becomes a wasted space that cannot be used for anything else
A magnetic key holder is stored in the top quick access pocket which is also fleece lined. It’s not very practical to store your keys and glasses/mobile phone in the same pocket
The hidden pocket is unusable when the water bottle is in the pocket
The sternum strap tends to come undone due to metal hooks not securing it well enough
WRAP-UP
Boundary Supply Prima is a unique bag with the flexibility to be your EDC and one-bag travel companion assuming you can bear its weight. As the first product of the company, I’d say its quite a success. Unfortunately, since the release back in 2017 the company has not substantially improved or iterated on its winning formula (technically the bag is in V2 now but the difference from the previous version is cosmetic at best).
If Boundary Supplied addressed the weight issue (which is real and mentioned by most of the reviewers) it could have turned a good bag into a legend in its class. I hope the company will find the time and resources to further develop its products and not just pump out new campaigns.