Get in the loop on hook & loop!
Did you know? The name “Velcro” comes from the French words velour (velvet) and crochet (hook). It was coined in the mid-1950s after Swiss engineer George de Mestral noticed how burrs (sticky seed pods) hooked onto his dog’s fur during a hunting trip.
Since then, the Velcro brand has become synonymous with hook-and-loop fasteners. These versatile fasteners revolutionized gear compared to older, bulkier closures like snaps, straps and buckles, and zippers. They not only lighten the load but also allow users to create custom gear organization, making them indispensable in the design of modern bags and packs.
Hook-and-loop fasteners consist of two components: the hook side, covered in tiny, scratchy hooks, and the loop side, lined with soft, fuzzy loops. When pressed together, they create a strong reusable bond. This simple yet effective system makes them ideal for closures or modular attachments. From outdoor gear to everyday carry (EDC) setups, hook-and-loop fasteners offer a lightweight, flexible fastening solution.
In this guide, we’ll explore how you can use hook-and-loop fasteners to enhance the functionality, organization, and customization of your gear.
External loop panel for customization, identification, and fun.
Many of you and your classmates personalized your school bag with buttons, ribbons, patches and pins to share your interests and express yourself. Now with a modern grown-up pack you have dedicated external loop panels for all your morale ID patches, pins and buttons to really make the bag yours!
These loop panels allow you to customize and identify your gear in a fun and functional way. You can use patches to mark specific pockets within your pack for Medical & First Aid or quickly accessible everyday items. Additionally, you can express your personality and showcase your interests with your favorite patches.
These loop panels are more than just a surface for morale patches, they serve as customizable canvases for your gear. The possibilities are endless, making it a fantastic way to add a personal touch to your Vanquest bag.
Efficient internal protection & organization with padded dividers.
With the addition of hook-and-loop panels, the inside of any pack can offer a world of dynamic organization. One of the most common ways to take advantage of this is with padded foam dividers, typically found in camera bags.
Many of our larger bags—including the TRIDENT-21 and TRIDENT-32 backpacks, as well as the GOFER-15 messenger—come equipped with dividers. These dividers can interconnect in multiple ways, allowing you to create individual sections for your gear while providing crucial protection for delicate electronics like cameras.
Many users, especially photo and video enthusiasts, add extra dividers to create custom pockets and layouts. It’s the perfect solution for keeping everything in its place.
Convenient internal organization with hook & loop pouches and admin accessories.
With your loop-lined bag, you have a blank canvas to decide where to best add additional storage and organize your personal gear. Enter the STICKY PANEL 2X7 and STICKY ADMIN 5X7!
They're the perfect solution for items like tangled-up cables, pens, or flashlights that don’t have a permanent home in your pack. Other times, you can simply add a STICKY CUBE-Small packing cube to create an instant zippered pocket wherever loop panels are available, allowing you to make the most of your pack's storage potential.
And don’t forget about the handy and lightweight MOHL-Air panel, which can convert any MOLLE pouch (such as PPM-SLIM & EDCM-HUSKY organizers) into hook-and-loop ready pouches. There's also the MOHL-Web panel, which adds elastic web retention to any loop surface.
Secure your CCW, Magazines and more with hook & loop accessories.
For those with legal permits to carry concealed (CCW) who choose off-body carry, our CCW Holder insert is designed to safely accommodate everything from subcompact to full-size firearms. Its Hypalon rubber body also securely grips loaded rifle magazines when needed.
Other accessories such as the CCW-Plus-MAG insert or DOUBLE-MAG Holder insert provide stable platforms for mounting your CCW and single or double stack magazines in the perfect orientation for quick and efficient access.
Keep in mind that these hook-and-loop accessories are not just limited to CCWs. These hook-and-loop accessories’ ability to wrap around items in any orientation makes them ideal for carrying smaller items or securing your everyday essentials.
Whether you're an outdoor enthusiast, an everyday carry fan, or someone who values a well-organized bag, hook-and-loop fasteners offer endless possibilities for personalization and practicality.
Final thoughts…
In conclusion, hook-and-loop fasteners offer unparalleled versatility for organizing your everyday essentials and have become a staple in modern outdoor and everyday-carry designs. Vanquest has integrated this fastening system into many of our bags—inside and out—to maximize customization and organization.
From external loop panels for personalization and identification to internal dividers and organizers that keep your essentials neatly arranged and protected, these fasteners enhance both functionality and style. With the added convenience of hook-and-loop pouches, admin accessories, and secure off-body CCW options, your bag becomes a true extension of your capability.
Now, show and tell us how you use hook-and-loop accessories in your gear setup! Together, let’s embrace the endless applications of this system and enjoy a more organized everyday-carry experience.
