Here are some great ideas for the gun owner on your holiday gift-giving list.
I always carried both a range bag and my purse when going to the range. Don’t you and all the other women shooters you know do it that way? Finally, someone―Sandi Keller―decided women needed just one bag that would do double duty, as stylish as an expensive purse, as functional as a range bag. She invented one and calls it No Ordinary Range Bag (NORB).
I was skeptical at first, then I got one to try. The NORB is big 12” x 14” with buckles on the front and a shoulder strap.. “That’s going to be heavy”, I thought as I reached for it the first time. Boy, was I wrong. Empty, it weighs a mere 1.5 lbs., lighter than my big old empty gun bag and much lighter than, say, a leather or many other purses.
It is constructed like a fine purse/range bag, with lots of thoughtful padded pockets and places to put guns, gun gear and other stuff.
I thought I might not like the strap―a stretchable one―but it is light and works great cross body or over the shoulder (no slipping). A short, 12”, handle is available if you would prefer to carry it like a satchel or tote bag.
You can put gun(s), ammo, eyes, ears and more gun stuff inside. Think of the things you would normally need to carry in your purse (money, credit cards, licenses, keys, etc.). You can put them loose or in a little purselet or organizer and slip that in the pocket in the back. Yes, there is a pocket for your phone.
One of the best features is a zipper in the top. That lets you get at everything in the bag, your purse stuff or your gun stuff, without undoing the buckles!
Left handed? That top zipper opens both ways so it works great for lefties, too. The bottom opens flat, so the bag will sit on the ground or on a bench. If it just seems too big, there is now a smaller, compact version of NORB.
Range bags made for women used to be much like the ones made for men, but in colors other than black and camo. I tried a black NORB, but there is an amazingly beautiful gray pattern with circles that looks like the finest, most interesting purse, not at all like a range bag.
The NORB is a real change for women, a new option. One gorgeous bag, two uses. No more lugging both a purse and an ordinary range bag to the range. It retails for $139.
