Re[4]: [at-l] Pack Choices

[tmcginnis@ucclan.state.in.us (Thomas McGinnis)]

Sloetoe--Did you tell us which pack that was that won the contest? I liked 
the weight on that. I know that what worked for you may not work for me, but 
I'd be interested to know which pack it was.
Vcat


      Here's the story:
      My requirements for a pack were (in order)
      comfort at real world loads
      sleeping bag access (bottom access)
      field replaceable suspension padding (needed on a through hike)
      domestic manufacture (nearly impossible, now)
      price
      
      The packs that made it home (which is to say, they made it through 
      the initial screening stage) were
      
      Dana Arclight SomeThingorOther
      Dana Bridger
      JanSport Rockies
      MountainSmith FoxFire,FireFight,Something
      MountainSmith MountainLight 5000
      
      Had tried on Osprey, Gregory, North Face, Arc'Teryx, K2, and I'm 
      sure others, but they didn't make it out of the store. Had tried on 
      the Kelty(s), too, and found them comfy, but thought JanSport 
      provided more comfort, durablilty and features for the same price 
      and/or weight.
      
      Dana: My guess is that if I were going 40-60 pounds load-wise, I'd 
      be wearing a Dana, because at that point the suspension started to 
      flex, the padding started to pad, and the pack really felt like 
      something less than a misshapen, unpadded external frame. But I 
      wouldn't carry that much without a gun pointed at my head.
      
      JanSport Rockies: Felt nice, and is REALLY nice for the money and 
      capacity/weight ratio, but I had three complaints. Most important 
      is that the hip belt padding only comes about half way around. (It 
      occurred to me that a solution to this would be a pretty easy 
      addition of padding, so this might just be an inconvenience.) 
      Second is that while the shoulder straps can be replaced in the 
      field, the hip belt cannot. But one thing I've learned is that 
      field replaceable suspension padding (shoulder straps and hip 
      belts) add a pound or more to any pack. And this one is lighter. 
      Drag. Third complaint is that the load compression straps were 
      nearly useless. This is very important to me because I tend to 
      carry a minimum of equipment and a maximum of food -- and therefore 
      tend to go from a very full pack to a very empty pack -- and I HATE 
      BOUNCING, PENDULUM-SWINGING loads. Dang.
      
      MountainSmith Frostfire and Mountainlight: I have yet to try on a 
      MountainSmith pack that I didn't love the feel of, especially at 
      realistic pack loads of forty pounds or less. The Frostfire was a 
      nicely built pack, nicely designed, and not as heavy as some of 
      that degree of build durability, and if I was to go that route, 
      it'd be a battle between the JanSport Rockies and the FrostFire 
      which I think the Frostfire would win going away. The Frostfire was 
      more comfortable, had field replaceable suspension, and had load 
      control down pat.
      
           The one problem (outside of being built way more durable 
           than anyone short of the American Tourister gorilla needs) 
           is that the bottom of the shoulder straps dig inward where 
           the bar tacking transfers pull from the padded strap to 
           the connection webbing. This would be fixable (post 
           manufacture) with some artful X-acto work, but even in my 
           house, it was rubbing my ribcage raw. (This sounds much 
           worse than it was -- if the padding wasn't so 
           enthusiastic, there wouldn't have been any problem. In 
           fact, the design is basically the same as on the 
           MountainLight, and with it's much more modest padding, IT 
           WAS MORE COMFORTABLE.) (Note to MountainSmith: this would 
           be easy to fix at the design stage...)
           
      
      ANYWHO, I've never put on a MountainSmith that I wasn't able to 
      dial in a MARVEY fit inside of sixty seconds. Same with either the 
      MountainLight or the FrostFire. I'm bummed that MountainSmith moved 
      manufacture overseas, but the real reason that keeps me from the 
      MountainLights is that the bags are top-load only, and I absolutely 
      require sleeping bag access without dumping the rest of my stuff 
      out. 
      
           The reason here is that I don't always eat 
           dinner/breakfast at the same place that I sleep. My 
           shelter is a bivy sac, and I might stop early (at a 
           shelter), eat dinner, tank up water, and take off for a 
           few more easy miles (to a summit?), stop for the night 
           (stealthily?), then rise the next morning (speedily?), and 
           take off for a breakfast spot (maybe an AT shelter out of 
           the rain, after others have gone, etc., maybe not). But 
           this routine would be a royal pain with a topload. Imagine 
           decamping in a downpour. One advantage of my old external 
           is that I could do this in the rain without exposing the 
           entire kit to the elements.
           
      ANYwho, I loved the whole execution of the MountainLight, especially 
      the broad-surfaced, ultra compliant suspension -- a very different 
      idea from the boardlike surfaces which pass for padding on some 
      contemporary packs. (Many fit the complaint here, but I think the 
      worst is the Gregory "Flow-form" -- I think the idea there was to 
      stop YOUR blood flow and reFORM your skeleton to the pack. Ugh.) The 
      suspension padding is also field replaceable!!!
      
      And to return to our story, I found that I could feel the difference 
      between the MountainSmith Frostfire (roughly 5000ci, 6.5lbs, $300) 
      and the MountainSmith MountainLight (roughly 5000ci, 3.5lbs, $350), 
      with 32 pounds worth of identical load -- bringing carry weight to 
      35.5 for the MountainLight and 38.5 for the FrostFire. Even at a 
      difference of less than 10%, the three pounds lost with the 
      MountainLight made an immediately noticeable difference on my back. 
      I can only imagine the difference over a day's hike. And going down 
      to 30, then 25, then 20 pounds only increased the comfort margin of 
      the MountainLight over the FrostFire.
      
      After broaching MountainSmith with a modification suggestion, and 
      being rebuffed, I opted to look at frameless designs (really light, 
      but depend on intelligent packing by the user, because the load IS 
      the suspension). STILL couldn't find a pack that wasn't topload 
      only. And suspension is sewn right on -- when your padding goes, 
      you're pack's dead. So I've designed my own! 5000ci, 2.2oz Spectra, 
      about 2.2 pounds. I still have to decide on whose (field 
      replaceable) suspension to use, as this affects placement of some 
      other adjustment straps, but the real constraint is on availability 
      of replacements. And I still look at the market....
      
      Well, that's the whole story thus far. If JanSport would make a 
      5000ci frameless (they make a 3000!), if MountainSmith would make a 
      MountainLight with sleeping bag access, (You know, that 
      MountainSmith Wizard is pretty close...), if Eureka!'s new little 
      guy keeps calling my name......Ugh.
      
      Choosingly,
      Sloetoe'79
      
      
      BTW, anybody else notice JUST HOW COOL the music out of the 
      MountainSmith trailor was at Trail Days??? 
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