I tried a couple of the top tier packs at my LGS and just cannot get comfortable with it.
Help find the criteria to buy a backpack
- Thread starter Mc Fraser
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I tried a couple of the top tier packs at my LGS and just cannot get comfortable with it.
Like a pack with a really good waistbelt and lumbar support like the Kifaru hunting frame. The load leveler straps are really nice - I find myself adjusting them frequently. When you strap it on it fits and moves with you so well you hardly know it's there. It is also very quiet.
My dedicated meat/utility hauler is an Eblerstock Mainframe with the upgraded belt. This is a low profile steel frame with the bottom shelf. The whole back panel is covered with webbing matrix so you can attach about anything to it (water jug for training, chainsaw, day pack, firewood...)
I hunt really thick cover in North Idaho so I don't like a big bag with a lot external straps and rigging that snag easy on brush. FYI - the higher end packs have different size frames for different torso height, waist, back curvature... This makes a huge difference when hauling significant weight. But you pay for the customization.
Hope this helps!
My dedicated meat/utility hauler is an Eblerstock Mainframe with the upgraded belt. This is a low profile steel frame with the bottom shelf. The whole back panel is covered with webbing matrix so you can attach about anything to it (water jug for training, chainsaw, day pack, firewood...)
I hunt really thick cover in North Idaho so I don't like a big bag with a lot external straps and rigging that snag easy on brush. FYI - the higher end packs have different size frames for different torso height, waist, back curvature... This makes a huge difference when hauling significant weight. But you pay for the customization.
Hope this helps!
Outstanding, I Tip my hat to you Sir
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I have switched to Eberlerstock's, I have the G4 Operator, Gunslinger 2 and a M5 Elk Pack, they suit me and my needs and the quality is outstanding, take a look at the M5, I think it will fit your needs
Agreed!
jdavistx
Well-Known Member
Eberlestock. I have a G3 Phantom with J2SD Duffel (2,200 cu in + 600 cu in scabbard + 2400 cu in duffel) when I need it. I attach the duffel with 25mm straps that hook on to the pack or around it. There are other models customized for your intended use.
Check out youtube to help you decide.
jdavistx
Well-Known Member
M5 looks like a great choice. Whatever you get from Eberlestock is always top quality in my opinion.
Flatbush Harry
Member
- Joined
- Mar 18, 2009
- Messages
- 15
+1 for Eberlestock. They tend to be heavy but have superb frames, comfortable fit, and very high quality. Since I no longer hunt, I find the G2 Gunslinger ideal for my needs.
Harry
Harry
Backcountry sports
Well-Known Member
I use bad lands super day never had any issue in thick country lots of different compartments
I have had five different packs. A cheap Alps freighter, a cabelas frame pack, then a Barney's freighter ( carries a load awesome but heavy to begin with) then moved to a Kuiu pack which I used the the last few years. It just did tnfit me right (short torso). Jumped into an Exo K3 and love it. Just finished my first sheep hunt with that pack and it carries a 90lb load so well. I too live remote (Ak) and don't have the luxury to go to a store but it was worth the shipping cost to try it. I also tried a stone glacier which some of my friends have but it just didn't fit me right either. Exos customer service has been too notch! I also like that you can get a sidearm holster that's custom to their pack. I have it on order but haven't received it yet.
sjones
Well-Known Member
I lived in Anchorage for a period of time and purchased a pack from Barneys Sports Chalet. It is a external pack frame but by far the most comfortable pack I have ever worn as a day pack or hauling out a moose or an elk quarter. I'm in MT now and even if I am going for a short day hunt or an evening bear hunt I use this pack because it is more comfortable than my smaller packs. To make it quiet I put a small piece of fleece under each strap that touches the frame.
Eberestock X1A3. For the long hikes or F5 Switchblade for the short one. Interchangeable water bladders. Very comfortable.
I can't say enough good about Kifuru. Their only drawback is price, but really good stuff is worth what you pay for it. Their packs are the perfect blend of fit, durability, and weight for me. Add in their modularity and they are tough to beat.
ofbandg
Well-Known Member
For what it's worth, if you can get a whole sheep (full curl ram?) in any pack without boning it out you are a better man than I. Obviously you need a single bag, strong frame, (internal or external), heavy material style, with well padded hip and shoulder straps. My favourite hunting style pack had an internal "A" frame and it carried sheep very well. I never had the opportunity to weigh it loaded, usually I was too tired and in a hurry to get the contents into a cooler, but one load I packed with it took three skookum guys to lift on to my shoulders. The straps did slip a bit on that trip and had to be doubled to keep in place. I liked the internal "A" frame or Teardrop style because it wouldn't hang up when going through the brush and timber, it carried the load close to your body, which was a help when leaping around in steep country, and it made a good shooting platform when you had the time to set it up. In hot weather my back would be soaked in sweat but that was the price I paid. I tried external frame packs for carrying sheep but they carried the load too high and made me wobbly. When carrying sheep the head usually goes on top the load and it's heavy. The lower you can get it the better. I have purchased a dozen packs over the years, and modified them all, always looking for something better, but I still reach for an old Mountain Equipment Co-op Serratus Glacier I purchased in the 80's. It packed so much game out from the mountains that I will never be able to get the smell out of it no matter how many times I wash it.
