Go hunt backpack stress test

[jpuckett]

I agree everyone sells product for profit.... but seeing these companies cheap out with plastic stays and cheap zipper just so they can make $10 more per bag.... that was kinda my point.


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[Riles1050]

I have a Mystery Ranch Metcalf and love it. Truly believe it is as advertised and represented here. However, I can see how the testing could be unfair. Need to do a more regulated, calculated, and consisted test so all the bags are being put under the same stress and pressure. Also add in the exo and kifaru.

 

[ljalberta]

What packs are all the people you know running?

Kifaru, SG, Exo, MR, I know people who run all these packs and who don't use a meatshelf, even if it's integrated into the pack. I guess until this meat-shelf trend really came into fruition a few years ago there was no such thing as a "serious backcountry hunter"... That being said, while I am a meat in the pack sorta guy, I can see the selling points of the shelf.

As for the video, while I enjoyed watching it, it certainly did feel like a commercial.

 

[mproberts]

Kifaru, SG, Exo, MR = packs with meat shelfs

 

[spike camp]

Despite whether or not these guys are pushing a brand, the differences in build quality are obvious.
Then add in the cost comparison and it becomes even more apparent why the top shelf brands are the clear winner.

 

[ljalberta]

Kifaru, SG, Exo, MR = packs with meat shelfs

My Kifaru does not have a meat shelf. I suppose the point I was getting at is that for many, the meat shelf is not a consideration in purchasing a pack.

 

[mproberts]

I would be willing to bet that for many more a meat shelf is a consideration, which is likely the reason all the top backcountry hunting bag companies have embraced that design. I might not ever use 4wd on my truck but I'm not buying a truck from a company that doesn't sell 4wd trucks.

I would honestly love to post a poll to see..

1) who uses a pack with a meat shelf design vs without one?

2) what brand packs people on here are hunting with?

I would be seriously surprised if Badlands, Tenzing and Eberlestock made up a sizeable percentage even combined as compared to SG, EXO, MR, Kifaru and KUIU (all companies that have embraced the meat shelf design)

 

[CorbLand]

I agree everyone sells product for profit.... but seeing these companies cheap out with plastic stays and cheap zipper just so they can make $10 more per bag.... that was kinda my point.


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I understand what your saying but dont fool yourself into thinking that any company cares about you enough to not maximize profit. They use cheaper materials to reduce material costs so they can charge an overall lower cost for the product.

 

[orionthehunter1]

I don't think Kifaru skimps on materials

 

[realunlucky]

Tons of people worry about shit that just doesn't matter in big picture. Meat shelf vs big volume bag has been discussed here multiple times. A meat shelf doesn't make a serious back pack hunter, nor brand of pack or even number of Instagram followers.

I would be willing to bet that for many more a meat shelf is a consideration, which is likely the reason all the top backcountry hunting bag companies have embraced that design. I might not ever use 4wd on my truck but I'm not buying a truck from a company that doesn't sell 4wd trucks.

I would honestly love to post a poll to see..

1) who uses a pack with a meat shelf design vs without one?

2) what brand packs people on here are hunting with?

I would be seriously surprised if Badlands, Tenzing and Eberlestock made up a sizeable percentage even combined as compared to SG, EXO, MR, Kifaru and KUIU (all companies that have embraced the meat shelf design)

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[WoolyBugger]

I hunt with the kifaru mountain warrior which does not have an actual meat shelf

 

[BFM]

I would be willing to bet that for many more a meat shelf is a consideration, which is likely the reason all the top backcountry hunting bag companies have embraced that design. I might not ever use 4wd on my truck but I'm not buying a truck from a company that doesn't sell 4wd trucks.

I would honestly love to post a poll to see..

1) who uses a pack with a meat shelf design vs without one?

2) what brand packs people on here are hunting with?

I would be seriously surprised if Badlands, Tenzing and Eberlestock made up a sizeable percentage even combined as compared to SG, EXO, MR, Kifaru and KUIU (all companies that have embraced the meat shelf design)

I just bought a MR last week, of the packs I was shopping I would only look at ones that had a meat shelf.

A meat shelf doesn't make a serious back pack hunter

This is true. I am not much of a backpack hunter. Maybe a night or two at most but the majority of the time I'm back at the truck each night.

 

[fngTony]

We all know the true stress test is when your wife finds the credit card statement

 

[mproberts]

Poll submitted in the backpack forum here.. go vote (7 days left)

 

[muddydogs]

The testing was kind of out there and putting the packs through stuff they weren't designed for. Pockets are made to hold stuff not be ripped sideways and the same with the zippers, ya lets open up a pocket and then try and rip the zipper apart.

As for the different stay material are the lighter cheaper packs made to haul a ton of weight? Do they need to be as ridged as a pack that hauls 100+ pounds? I don't think so.

Just by watching the video the guy sure didn't put the force into the MR pack as he did the others when ripping and tearing at the pockets, buckles and straps.

I have a MR pack and think its one of the best but lets not take the video for anything more then what it is and I see it as a commercial to buy the things these guys are selling by discounting lighter cheaper packs with some unrealistic tests doing what no pack is designed to have done to it.

 

[wapitibob]

Had a REAL meat shelf on my aluminum freighter back in the 70's. They're nice and I used the one on the S. G. last week but I managed to haul a bunch of Elk out without one.

 

[LaHunter]

I loved it, stone glacier and mystery ranch obviously want bullet proof packs and those other companies want to sell packs for profit. Sure they will get hate but I also think guys like this are great for the industry. Guys that aren’t beholden to a product and will talk crap on any product that doesn’t cut the mustard.


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Did you miss the part where the Stone Glacier frame snapped in half and the seams failed?

If you want to destroy a pack, any pack, it is do-able. Snatching on zippers while they are open will eventually cause a failure.

It didn't look like the guy was putting the same effort into breaking the MR Metcalf vs some of the other packs.

 

[WoolyBugger]

Confused as to why they wouldn't test kifaru when their claim to fame is being bulletproof. Maybe too many options? Would it not look good because it would probably beat their packs that they sell? Not really great when you dont show one of the biggest players in the hunting pack world. Or even exo for that matter

 

[jpuckett]

La Hunter, yeah I did see the video lol, one seem busted and the carbon stays busted in a place that just won’t get abused while hunting (I hunt with a kifaru, but.... if I used a diff pack it would be for weight reasons) and I’d at least consider the stone glacier knowing where the failure came from. But honestly I love kifaru and will Just probably get the lightest version of what they offer and skimp weight wise on others

I also don’t have a meat shelf in my amr, but, the kifaru separates at the frame and basically acts as a meat shelf.


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[bcimport]

I rather enjoyed the video, more for entertainment than science. Having had too many packs over the years the quality of the MR frame and stitching has never been in question for me. Everything is a compromise though, heavy durable stitching is going to add some weight, as are 4 vertical stays. The SG failure location makes sense. If you glue a flexible carbon tube or rod into a rigid piece of metal you’re going to create a leverage point that will become the break point. Pretty unlikely to put that kind of stress on that joint in most any conceivable scenario though. Based on how a Kifaru frame is built I think you could bend or break their stays too but it would have taken a lot of effort. 7075 aluminum is tough but you can bend them yourself to fit your back so there is no reason to believe that they can’t be bent in a test too. What we’re really looking for is the sweet spot between vertical stiffness and flexibility. A tubular aluminum external is completely rigid in both vertical and horizontal planes but certainly isn’t as comfy under light loads than a frame that flexes some.