Adaptable Pack Advice

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Adaptable Pack Advice

Postby marron » Sun 16 Jan, 2022 10:52 am

Hi all,

Bit green here so would appreciate any advice!

I'm looking for an adaptable kind of pack and am after any suggestions or advice that might help me narrow things down - I've been browsing here and elsewhere and now my head is swimming with leads so any suggestions will be helpful. If things match up the way I'm thinking, great, if not, maybe I'll get some things I haven't looked at.

The reason I want the adaptability is because I'm basically looking at two things

1) walking and camping with the kids, on track (or not thick bush, anyway), but carrying a fair bit of gear to lighten their load (essentially I take the tents, cooking gear, my own sleeping gear, some of the mats, food, and they take their own sleeping bag/gear, clothes, and whatever food I can squeeze into their small packs).

2 - multiday hard offtrack bushwalking by myself, where I want a balance between lightness and hardiness, and the ability to really compress it down so I'm not lugging around something that is bulkier than it needs to be, particularly width and height wise. I'm a bit worried about some of that ultralight material's durability and all the mesh pockets and such.

Such a thing might not exist of course. I appreciate the "get two" argument, but the bank balance says no, at least for the sake of argument. I have an ancient pack already which is large and fine for the kids stuff, if heavy, bulky and totally featureless. So in the end, the light but hardy kind of thing is probably the way to go - but it would be nice if I could find something that would fulfill both needs - that old thing weighs a bit.

Any ideas? Also open to other kind of solutions (like, some of these come with rain covers... will they offer much extra protection to your average ultralight material?)

Thanks!
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Re: Adaptable Pack Advice

Postby Moondog55 » Sun 16 Jan, 2022 3:59 pm

I bought a pack to do #1 and used it for everything else because it's what I had, because it was overbuilt in the ruggedness department in is heavy and with decades of wear left in it so I'm stuck with it. So with the kids gear I needed the 82litres of the pack plus the detachable top, back and side pockets and extra long straps to carry the CCF mats.
It got a bit better as they grew and could carry more of their own gear, I still carried the same pack but it didn't weigh quite as much
Ve are too soon old und too late schmart
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Re: Adaptable Pack Advice

Postby Son of a Beach » Mon 17 Jan, 2022 9:08 am

I have a large old heavy canvas pack that I used to use for everything, and I still use it on rare occasions when I need to carry extra large loads. Now that my kids are older, I generally use it only once a year, when I lead a walk for a bunch of kids for an advertised bushwalking camp. This one is about 85 litres, I think.

More recently, I have found it worthwhile to own a second pack, that is smaller and lighter and not as tough, and this is the pack that I use for everything else these days (now that I'm in my fifties, lighter gear makes a lot of difference). At first it was 50 litres, but I found that I occasionally needed more space, so I've replaced this second pack with one that it 60 litres (for a mere 50g heavier). I reckon I could do 14 days with the 60 litre pack.

If you already have a large tough pack that you could use for anything, but you want to buy a second pack, then you may as well focus on what your existing pack is NOT good at. Ie, light weight! If you can find something that's somewhat adaptable, that's a bonus, but the more adaptable it is, the heavier it will end up being.

My 'light' pack is nowhere near as light as some other people's packs, because I often go off-track and I like to have a couple of large pockets (top/front) and good bottle holders. And I still want it to be fairly rugged, and hopefully last a long time.

It's difficult to give good advice on packs, because in practice, once you've shortlisted them to those that have the features you want, it all comes down to the harness. What fits comfortably on one person may not work for another.

I prefer One Planet packs (for both my older large-heavy 'Strezlecki' pack, and my newer lighter 'Tussock' pack). I find their harnesses to be excellent. However, I have a friend who cannot wear them at all - she finds the harnesses very uncomfortable.

So the best advice I can give, is to shortlist them, and then try them out fully loaded for a long period of time. This is quite tricky to do, because most shops will not want to taking them out for a long walk without buying it first. So perhaps take a bag of heavy stuff to the shop with you and stuff it into each pack in the shop and walk around the shop for a while. But in reality, you need to walk for a good hour or so with it fully loaded to really get the feel of a pack.
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Re: Adaptable Pack Advice

Postby Hiking Exped » Mon 17 Jan, 2022 10:35 am

I have used and have a lot of packs, but Ex military so often lean towards military gear for durability. I used a large Karrimor SF Predator 80-130 when the kids were small and I had to carry most of there kit and also used it for a couple of expedition jobs. It expands large so you can throw the kitchen sink into it in a hurry, but it compresses down well. It is a bit heavy though, but excellent pack. I don’t use it these days so will likely dig it out and sell and some point. These days I use Karrimor SF Sabre 75 or smaller Predator. All compress down small, but you can add side pouches, etc and plenty of strapping solutions.

Ultralights will find these packs too heavy, but I like their durability, fit, comfort, expandability and compressibility. They are bomb proof. You can also often pick up military packs like these in military used gear shops and online used and at great value.

Just another option to think about
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Re: Adaptable Pack Advice

Postby crollsurf » Mon 17 Jan, 2022 8:47 pm

I just bought a Hyperlite Southwest 3400 55L to replace my 36L overnighter and my 60L long haul.

You can buy them here in Katoomba and in Melbourne for no extra cost once you include shipping from the US, plus warrentee should be easier if needed.

I drove up to Katoomba with my 36L and gear and transferred all the gear into the Southwest because I wanted to make sure it would work as a UL 2-4day pack and the pack packed down fine.

Super expensive and limited features but had all the features I wanted and none I didn't. (Edit: Not quite true, has a bladder hose exit point I don't need)

Not saying this is the pack for you but worth considering if you're looking for an adaptable buy once, cry once purchase.

They also have a 70L version if you're still pack muling with the kids but you'd need to make sure the shoulder straps are good enough to carry those weights. Probably best to show up with the kitchen sink to try on.

It has great reviews re durability but being able to try it on first was reassuring and made the purchase a no brainer for me.

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Re: Adaptable Pack Advice

Postby marron » Tue 18 Jan, 2022 10:45 am

Thanks Moondog! I wrote this while away, and christmas money and internet surfing has probably been doing it's fair share in feeling the wallet burn. Now I'm home and I've been playing with the old pack; I'm thinking for the bush bashing excursions, maybe it just is the best thing anyway. Perhaps I can rig up some extra compression solutions for when I go light; most of my gear is relatively lightweight anyway, weighing it all up inexactly and I was still roughly around 6-7 kilos, so, not too shabby as it stands.

Son of a beach, thanks for the advice on that. It did get me thinking about going for something that is just different and then having the two options anyway. I probably do need to just get in with my gear somewhere and try a few things.

Hiking Exped, good shout, thanks for the idea, will have a look.

And crollsurf, thanks. Which store in Katoomba out of interest? Paddy's or the other one? The HPL stuff are things I've been looking at for sure, good to know it packs down well.


Another factor playing on my mind is that my daughter is going to be doing DoE type stuff this year. One of the packs I've been looking at is the Exped Lightning, because it has that adjustable torso thing for the harness. Compression is quite good too apparently, so I was thinking, cool, if I get the 60L I can still pack it down a fair way; but then I'm also like, well, my one now is 70, so, what's the point of difference? And just how durable is that material anyway? Because if I end up leaving it at home for the off track excursions, then what have I got it for? My daughter? This is supposed to be for me! Haha. Fun times :)
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Re: Adaptable Pack Advice

Postby Neo » Tue 18 Jan, 2022 8:24 pm

Hi. Regarding an Exped Lightning 60L the point of difference is it weighs about 1.1kg and the harness is comfy. I am using something else with a fixed lid but still prefer my 45L, have a 60L too that didn't make it to the snow 2021 but I'm hanging on to it for now.

Good idea thinking of your daughter using it a few times too. Just don't drag it along the ground.

Best price is from Bushcraft Equipment in Wollongong. If not listed on their website get in touch with them.

For HMG gear the store in Katoomba is Adventure Base.

Summit Gear also in Katoomba have an Emergency Services range made to order. The do a modular system but it would be bomb proof so not light!
https://summitgear.com.au/collections/e ... 6YQAvD_BwE

Cheers
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Re: Adaptable Pack Advice

Postby marron » Wed 19 Jan, 2022 8:53 am

Thanks Neo! Will check out bushcraft ,was unaware of them.

How much does the Exped 60 roll down? Would you recommend going for it over the 45 for that extra space if there was a chance it would be required?
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Re: Adaptable Pack Advice

Postby Neo » Wed 19 Jan, 2022 9:14 am

I have only taken the Lightning 60 out of its wrapper then put it back! I liked the 45L for its simpler features than other packs, just hip&side pockets, a hanging flat mesh pocket inside.

The 60L appears very similar in regards to having the same harness and to not being too tall or wider than my body.

The zig zag compression in these packs is a bit unusual, certainly would compress a smaller load. Probably better to go for the larger 60. Several forum members would have one so they might be able to show some photos or give better info.
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Re: Adaptable Pack Advice

Postby crollsurf » Wed 19 Jan, 2022 12:28 pm

If interested, you can try out Hyperlite (HMG) gear in:
Melbourne https://www.backpackinglight.com.au/brands/hyperlite-mountain-gear/
Katoomba https://www.adventurebase.com.au/hyperlite/
I don't have any affiliation to either store or HMG
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Re: Adaptable Pack Advice

Postby Walk_fat boy_walk » Wed 19 Jan, 2022 5:23 pm

crollsurf wrote:If interested, you can try out Hyperlite (HMG) gear in:
Melbourne https://www.backpackinglight.com.au/brands/hyperlite-mountain-gear/
Katoomba https://www.adventurebase.com.au/hyperlite/
I don't have any affiliation to either store or HMG
Tom's Outdoors in Tumut also now stocking all things HMG. (No affiliation either apart from thinking HMG is the best s**t)

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Re: Adaptable Pack Advice

Postby Neo » Wed 19 Jan, 2022 6:05 pm

Hmm what's the maximum comfort carry weight for HMG? Rated or experience...
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Re: Adaptable Pack Advice

Postby marron » Thu 20 Jan, 2022 12:07 pm

Thanks for the advice all. Neo, ta for the reply on the Exped. HMG might stretch the budget but I've eyed them off before, they do look good! Will have a think!
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Re: Adaptable Pack Advice

Postby markg » Sun 27 Mar, 2022 7:55 pm

How much will you be carrying ??? Amount of kilos ?.
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Re: Adaptable Pack Advice

Postby marron » Fri 07 Oct, 2022 3:22 pm

Just an update in case anyone like myself is searching for advice in future.

I got the Exped 60 and it has been abused by the kid on several hikes. She find's it super comfortable and has learnt a thing or two about packing effectively and compressing things down. I've taken all the kids out a couple of times, me with the old canvas thing and the eldest with the exped - and a fairly light load at that, compared to her DoE trips - and it packs down really nicely and keeps out of the way well enough. No rips or tears despite some rough treatment so far.
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