How to Mount an Alice Pack in a Low Position

The All-Purpose Lightweight Individual Carrying Pack, known better by the acronym ALICE, is military-issue gear. The ALICE pack and system is now replaced with the MOLLE system, leaving many bargains to be found on ALICE packs at military surplus shops. ALICE packs are modular and let you adjust weight distribution and pack placement to your preference. When positioning the ALICE system to a low-riding position, place the accessories and packs lower on the shoulder harness and waist belt.

Instructions

    • 1

      Pack your gear into the accessory packs, known as the Fighting Load Carriers (FLCs) designed to hang off the waist belt of the ALICE system. Place the gear and weight into the accessory bags versus the main back bag to get much of the weight into the low-resting areas. As gear is added, adjust the strap so it tightens, allowing it to be carried off the hips versus the upper back muscles.

    • 2

      Position the loaded FLCs equally, meaning, if you have an FLC with 10 lbs. of weight on the left side, position another FLC with equal or close to equal weight on the right.

    • 3

      Clip the ALICE suspenders to the waist pack. ALICE suspenders act as retaining devices and as a hanger to position other FLCs and the main pack.

    • 4

      Clip the ALICE frame to the back of the suspenders. Thread the two upper shoulder straps over the top of the frame, and clip the base of the frame to grommets on the side of the waist belt.

    • 5

      Pack weight into the bottom third of the main-soft pack and mount it to the frame using the clips on the sides of the frame. Do not fill more than the bottom third of the pack, to keep weight loads in a low position.