Finished it today. Just kind of took off. Sewed during study breaks because damn, intro to research is a rough class. I ran my middle pocket all the way up kinda by accident but it worked out because HTP is pretty stiff and unruly. A few small mistakes here and there but it's a first run for me and it'll work. Lots of lessons learned and I might go back and clean some stuff up. (Binding edges sucks even with a swing-away binder from Sailrite). Definitely not as clean as 4090Sharps double-needle thread injector.
One thing I did do I thought I'd share. This took some planning but I was able to pull it off because I used an inside and outside fabric. I put a piece of webbing across the middle section in between fabrics where I knew the PALS hang straps would attach. So the attachments are sewn into a horizontal strap which is sewn into the two vertical seams. This way, the weight hangs on the stronger strap (not just the fabric) and the heavier-stitched vertical seams carry the weight. Time will tell if it works. If it doesn't, then I get to make a better one!