TL;DR: Allen's Backcountry Bruiser is a legitimate budget set at $52.99, four quarter bags plus a storage pouch, sized for whitetail, mule deer, and antelope, or a boned-out elk. Our $70 set costs more, but the 40" x 24" bags are sized to take an elk hindquarter bone-in, no extra field work required, and we back it with a lifetime warranty against Allen's 1-year limited. This is a fair fight between two budget-tier sets, not a budget-vs-premium mismatch.
Prices checked September 2026 on each brand's own site.
Same Tier, Different Sizing
Allen and Lone Trail both sit in the budget-friendly bracket, well under the $75-300+ premium synthetic brands. Allen's Backcountry Bruiser Deer Set runs $52.99: four quarter bags at 20"x30" plus a blaze-orange storage pouch. Allen's own copy sizes it for whitetail, mule deer, and antelope quarters, or a boned-out elk.
Our Game Bags 5-Piece Set is $70: four 40" x 24" quarter bags, one 17" x 29" bag for trim, and a carrying case. Our own FAQ answers the elk question directly: will these actually fit an elk hindquarter? Yes, the quarter bags are 40" deep by 24" wide.
Both companies are honest about what their bags are built for. The difference is what "sized for elk" actually means in each case.
What "Sized for Elk" Actually Means
Allen's Bruiser bags are 20"x30". That's plenty of room for a deer or antelope quarter, bone-in, no prep needed. For elk, Allen's own listing says the set works for a boned-out elk, meaning you debone the meat first so it compresses down to fit a smaller bag.
Our 40" x 24" bags are built to take an elk quarter bone-in, straight off the animal. Bone-in quarters hold their shape, hang cleanly, and stay easier to keep organized between loads, though they're heavier and bulkier to carry than boned-out meat. Which approach is right for you depends on how you already process game. If you always bone out in the field regardless of species, Allen's smaller bags work fine on elk too. If you prefer to keep quarters bone-in until you're back at the truck or camp, you need the bigger bag.
For deer-sized game, this distinction barely matters. Both companies' quarter bags handle a deer quarter bone-in without issue. It's specifically the elk-or-bigger question where bag size becomes a real decision, not a marketing detail.
Allen Also Sells True Elk-Sized Bags, Just Not as a Set
To be fair to Allen here: the Backcountry Bruiser set isn't the only option in their lineup. Allen sells a Backcountry Elk Quarter bag as a single, 25"x40", with the same reflective drawstring and washable/reusable construction, for $19.99 each. That's a real elk-sized quarter bag, big enough for a bone-in elk quarter without deboning first.
The catch is price and structure. Four of those singles run $79.96, more than our $70 set, and you're still not getting a fifth, smaller bag for backstraps or trim, or the storage pouch that ships with the Bruiser. If you want Allen bags sized the way our set is, four elk-sized quarters plus something smaller for the rest, you're assembling it yourself from singles at a higher total cost than buying our set outright.
Allen's Budget-Within-Budget: The Colorado Line
Allen also sells a second, cheaper tier under the "Colorado" name, separate from the Backcountry Bruiser:
- Colorado Deluxe Elk Quarter Bags, 4-pack, 35"x12": $19.99
- Colorado Deluxe Deer Bags, 4-pack, 28"x12": $17.99
- Colorado Deer Quarter Bags, 4-pack, 20"x12": $11.99
- Colorado Full Body Carcass Bag, single, 54"x12": $5.99
These are narrower, no-frills bags without the storage pouch that comes with the Bruiser. If your budget is closer to $20 than $53, the Colorado line is Allen's actual floor, and it undercuts our $70 set by a wide margin on sticker price alone. Note that Allen also sells an "Imperial" elk-specific Backcountry set above the Bruiser, but the set price for that one isn't confirmed anywhere we could verify, so we're leaving it out rather than guess.
The Colorado Full Body Carcass Bag is a different tool entirely, one bag sized to hold a whole skinned animal rather than individual cuts. Full carcass bags are the right call for hanging and aging a whole deer or antelope in accessible terrain, camp or backyard, but they aren't a substitute for a quartered pack-out system once you're breaking an animal down deep in the backcountry. If you're comparing Allen to our set for a western elk hunt, the carcass bag isn't really in the running.
Fabric and Care
Allen's Bruiser bags are polyester, described on their own site as a lightweight, breathable wicking fabric, and the set weighs about 15.38 ounces per Amazon's listing. Care instructions: soak in cold soapy water overnight, rinse, then machine wash cold (bleach is optional), and hang or tumble dry on low.
Our bags are 40D diamond ripstop nylon. Our FAQ keeps the care instructions simpler: throw them in the washing machine, they come out fine, customers run the same set for multiple seasons.
Allen's reflective drawstring cord with a cinch toggle does the same low-light job as our reflective strip: something that catches a headlamp beam so you're visible on a pre-dawn or after-dark pack-out.
Breathability is the reason both companies bother with a wicking or ripstop fabric instead of a plain, non-breathable one. A covering that doesn't breathe traps moisture against the meat, and that moisture is what lets bacteria take hold. Extension guides put a number on how little time you have: internal meat temperature should reach 40 degrees or below within 24 hours, and above 50 degrees, meat should be refrigerated within 3 to 4 hours. A breathable bag buys you the airflow that keeps meat cooling instead of sweating while you're still miles from the truck.
Warranty
Allen backs the Bruiser with a 1-year limited warranty, company-wide across their product line. It covers defects in materials and workmanship only, repair or replace at Allen's discretion, no refunds, and it excludes normal wear and tear, misuse, and purchases from unauthorized sellers.
Our lifetime warranty has no time limit: if a Lone Trail game bag has a manufacturing defect or quality issue, we repair or replace it no matter how long you've owned it, plus free returns.
Both sets are marketed as washable and reusable, so a well-cared-for Bruiser set can also make it through multiple seasons, reuse isn't something we're claiming as exclusive to us. Where the warranty gap actually shows up is when something fails. If a seam lets go or a drawstring breaks in year two, Allen's 1-year window means you're on your own, repair or replace at their discretion only applies within that first year. Under our lifetime warranty, that same failure in year two, five, or ten still gets fixed or replaced at no cost to you.
Allen vs Lone Trail: The Numbers
| Product | Price | Config | Fabric | Washable | Warranty |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lone Trail Game Bags 5-Piece Set | $70 | 4x 40"x24" quarter + 1x 17"x29" + case | 40D diamond ripstop nylon | Machine washable | Lifetime + free returns |
| Allen Backcountry Bruiser (deer) | $52.99 | 4x 20"x30" quarter + storage pouch | Breathable wicking polyester | Machine wash cold (soak first) | 1-year limited |
| Allen Backcountry Elk Quarter (single, x4 = $79.96) | $19.99 each | 1x 25"x40" quarter | Reflective drawstring, washable/reusable | Washable/reusable | 1-year limited |
| Allen Colorado Deluxe Elk Quarter 4-Pack | $19.99 | 4x 35"x12" quarter | Unspecified budget fabric | Not stated | 1-year limited (company-wide) |
| Allen Colorado Deer Quarter 4-Pack | $11.99 | 4x 20"x12" quarter | Unspecified budget fabric | Not stated | 1-year limited (company-wide) |
Buy Allen If...
- You mostly hunt deer, antelope, or similar-sized game where a 20"x30" bag is plenty.
- You already bone out your meat in the field regardless of species, so the Bruiser's smaller bags work fine even on elk.
- You want true elk-sized bags from Allen and don't mind paying $79.96 for four singles plus assembling your own set.
- You want a known budget brand with at least some warranty coverage, and $52.99 (or $19.99 on the Colorado line) fits your budget better than $70.
Buy Lone Trail Game Bags If...
- You want quarter bags that take an elk hindquarter bone-in, without deboning in the field first, in one set instead of four assembled singles.
- You want a lifetime warranty instead of 1 year.
- You want one set that handles deer and elk both, instead of choosing between Allen's Bruiser, Colorado, and elk-single options depending on the animal.
Allen and Lone Trail are both chasing the same hunter: someone who wants a set that works, without paying premium-brand prices for it. Where they land is different, Allen spreads that goal across three separate product lines depending on the animal and your budget, while we built one set that's already sized for the biggest thing most hunters here are packing out.
Our Game Bags 5-Piece Set is $70, sized for elk quarters bone-in, and backed by our lifetime warranty. If you want to see exactly how many bags a given animal takes before you buy, read How Many Game Bags Do You Need for an Elk (and Deer)? We also stack up against the premium synthetic brands in our Caribou Gear vs Argali vs Lone Trail comparison, if you want to see the other end of the price range too.
You can see the rest of our gear, from bino harnesses to packs, in the full Lone Trail lineup.