Cdh-Tac Finland’s CUTE V4 Compact roll up dump pouch – Finnish Precision Design
As I wrote in my First Impressions article, I had been looking for a suitable dump pouch for a long time. But I never seemed to find one that pleased me aesthetically or practically.
There are a lot of dump pouches out there to choose from and the designs vary quite a lot. There are the insanely large ones that can carry “your mother” in them and then there are the smaller, rapidly deployed pouches with high price tags.
I had almost decided on getting one of TAD’s RDDP 1or 2, but then I stumbled upon this Finnish manufacturer. And because these days locally produced goods are all the rage, so I set out getting myself Cdh-Tac’s CUTE pouch.
Manufacturer
Cdh-Tac Finland is a small manufacturer, one man operation actually, who works with the made-to-order principal. He has done custom-made backpacks and chest rigs, and he also has a selection of original pouch designs, like the CUTE dump. Active Finnish Defence Forces service members use his stuff and he has got some pictures of Finnish Peacekeepers on foreign operations using his products.
He does not keep anything in stock though, at least not for a long time. Only way to reach him is via Facebook, so if you are interested to see his other designs, go and check him out here.
We wanted to give you a little deeper insight to this Finnish manufacturer and set up a small question based interview with the man and you can find the interview as a separate article later. This interview can be found right here: Interview: Cdh-Tac Finland
The Pouch
The CUTE V4 compact roll up dump pouch is what it says it is. It is a single piece of 500D cordura sewn into a pouch. It has a separate piece of cordura fashioned into a “lip” on the inside of the pouch with a draw cord in it, for you to regulate the size of the intake. On the backside there are 3 rows of sturdy nylon webbing with two malice clips, that are included.
The man describes this to be the fourth and perfected incarnation of Cdh-Tac’s design of the pouch. He originally wanted to design a small dump pouch, that could hold about 3 AR or AK mags, reasoning that one rarely has a need for more room in their dump pouch at least for long periods of time. Speed is the key and this pouch promises to have that. And the name CUTE is not an acronym, but comes from another reviewer who happened to call the pouch accurately “cute” and the name stuck.
He only makes a few of these at any time he has the materials, so usually they fly out of his shelves quickly. The pouch has been available in Ranger green or Coyote brown, but in the past he has made these in Multicam too! The price is just over $45.00 posted to anywhere in Finland, but you should quote the man for delivery charges etc. to elsewhere.
And that is about it! There is not much to be said about such a small pouch, but then again, sometimes less is more.
Personal experience
First of all, the pouch is incredibly small, I mean seriously. For example: I have a MSA paraclete mag pouch with one molle row wide attachment, that somehow is almost three molle rows wide. CUTE really is two rows wide and not more. And if you pack it tightly it is actually a little bit less than that! It is amazing how it can be even smaller than the malice clips (although, malice clips are quite bulky). This small pouch squeezes into the background of your setup, does not bulk it out and then when you need it, springs to action.
Considering that it is almost unbelievable that Cdh-Tac promises it to hold 3 AR or AK mags. But I have had several AR mags in it and it still had room enough to throw two Glock mags on top of that. So the pouch is actually a little roomier than promised, but any more mags than three might need a little arranging to fit properly.
What I really like about this pouch; the simple yet effective design, which allows the pouch to be quickly deployed for use. The fabric packed under the buckle holds up nice and tidy. When you open the buckle, the pouch springs up naturally from the tension and needs little or none straightening to be fully deployed.
When I took the CUTE to range for the first time, the AK mags on the rifle practice practically flew in the pouch. And I think this is partly because of the “lips” of the pouch. At the same time the cord keeps the mags from bouncing out and also guides the mags in.
But the pouch can be used for several other applications too, besides carrying empty mags. I tried it on my Kifaru MMR’s belt and it was the perfect pouch to carry my 1l Nalgene bottle neatly and close at hand. And the great thing with it is, that even though it is full, be it with mags or other stuff, it does not really bother you in any way. Of course this also depends on the situating of the pouch, but it has not bothered me at all on my battle belt or on my rucks belt.
There are only two issues that have so far risen up and they are not that big issues. The first and bigger one is the buckle. The buckle is a bit tricky to use in haste, especially when it is partly behind your back or on your side. I guess this might be just a matter of learning. But still, maybe another simpler design would work better?
The other thing is the malice clips. I just do not like them. They are bulky and not easy to use. But they do the job and keep the pouch in its place firmly. I hate that they do their job so well.
The CUTE pouch is really good, no doubt about it. Is there anything I would change about it? The malice clips maybe, but the overall design, all in all, is well thought through. Splendidly composed construction and properly finished with affordable price. But if you want one, you should prepare yourself for a bit of a wait. The guy does these all by himself and most things he does is made-to-order. But I think it is well worth the wait!
And just the other day I found the tag inside the pouch, that I had not seen before. On the other side of it there is, by chance, a quote of my favourite passage of the Scripture. It goes: Whom shall I send? Who will go for us? And I said; Here am I. Send me! How cool is that?
-Noble
Likes/Dislikes
Likes
The “cute” size
Weight
Design
Rapid deployment
Dislikes
The Malice clips
The Buckle, but just a little bit.
Spotter Up Five points assessment:
Functionality 4/5
Weight 5/5
Durability 4/5
Cost 5/5
Comfort 4/5
Overall 22/25
This review was first published in the Noble & Blue. Noble & Blue is a small Finnish outdoor and tactical gear reviewing blog, that also shares stories of learning and adventure. Click here to know more about Noble & Blue
[jetpack_subscription_form]