Brands you just couldn’t make work

I couldn’t get Mystery Ranch to work for me. I could get them to fit me great, but not under heavy load. Tried two of their packs. Helped a buddy pack out an elk with the metcalf, and it was one of the worst experiences I’ve ever had with a pack.

Switched to Kifaru (now have a couple of their packs) and it was night and day for me.

I think packs are like boots, you just have to find the one(s) that work best for you and your body.
 
fisherman983 said:
I still can't get my exo or kifaru to be comfy under moderate load or not slip.

It may be because I don't have them properly fitted right. I'm still trying with both

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Click to expand...
The right clothing makes a difference how a pack rides, everything from the base layer to the outer layer.
 
For me, the Kifaru Lite frame just never worked. Before it I had their hunter frame and absolutely loved it. I sold the hunter and bought the lite frame when they came out, and spent 3 years trying to get the lite frame to work for me. I've since found a used hunter frame and sold the lite frame, and couldn't be happier.

I also love the SG Xcurve frame, it fits me perfectly. I probably wear it more than my Kifaru because it is a little lighter and more streamlined, but both brands have their uses and I don't think I will be getting rid of either.
 
This makes me think about one of the major disadvantages of internal frame packs - they tend to be much more reliant on fit than external frames. That's why you can outfit a troop of boy scouts with Kelty Trekkers for a week and they'll probably all have a good trip although their equipment isn't top of the line.

I've been finicky about packs for a long time. The Cabela's and Kelty freighter frames fit me well. Seek Outside works pretty good although the curve of the frame isn't ideal and I'm too scared to bend it myself.

I wore a Mystery Ranch fire pack on a few fires and hated it ... other guys love them but I couldn't wait to trade it out for a cheaper and less fashionable brand of fire pack. The shape of the yoke didn't fit my shape and it was too rigid with its plastic inserts. The hipbelt was pretty good though.
 
I got a new MR sawtooth 45 and loved it until I got up around the 80lbs mark packing elk, then it slips. Now I'm looking for something else. Kifaru or Exo K4.
 
After reading another thread. I think I wore the foam out in my kifaru duplex lite in 1 year.
The 1st season it was great.
Next season painful as hell on an elk pack out.
 
Had an old K2/Dana Design Long Bed for a long time and many adventures. Decided to try a hunting specific pack and tried a Kifaru (their lite frame). Never really worked for me and tried Seek Outside and have been happy ever since. Haven't tried the others so may not know what I'm missing! And Kifaru is a quality pack no doubt..just didn't work for me.
 
BRTreedogs said:
After reading another thread. I think I wore the foam out in my kifaru duplex lite in 1 year.
The 1st season it was great.
Next season painful as hell on an elk pack out.
Click to expand...
I would think unless it got soaked and left wet or stored improperly the foam should last a really long time given the hours it would be in use aren’t really a high number.
 
Eberlestock and Badlands.

Honestly best small day pack I ever had was a Dakine helipro.

Full on MR beartooth guy now, use it for everything.
 
Exo slipped like a Mofo with any real weight in it and bruised the front of my hip bones after any decent hike.

SG bruised the shit out of my front hip bones, very unconfortable for me.

Kifaru lite has been perfect for me the last 5 seasons with the exo 4800 bag on it. The large lumbar pad fixed the hip pain issue completely and it doesn't slip. Used kuiu before that and it never slipped on me at all either.
 
Jansport. Was a great pack up until about 7 boxes of Girl Scout cookies then she really dug into my shoulders and started to semi barrel. Tried riding it lower but when I ran it that way my upper lumbar would burn hot like a fresh pancake on cast iron. I pretty much single-handedly made the Blue Emu shareholders billionaires within a month due to how much I was using to combat pain.
 
Eberlestock J24. Got it fit to their spec, but it would just fold up under weight, so uncomfortable. The built in scabbard is a terrible idea for hunting, a waste of space and weight. There are many other problems with their designs, not a serious player IMHO. I moved to MR, and loved them, great packs. But I tried SG, and that just flat spoiled me.
 
I had a an Exo K2 in a 5500 and a K3 frame with the 3200 and 6400 packs. Going light and fast with the Exo was awesome. It felt apart of my body and moved very well.

Anything over 50lbs and it buckled for me. I tried multiple fittings, playing with the shims, or going with the stiffer foam. Extremely purposeful design, I just couldn’t make it work unfortunately.

I was so over it I changed my pack mid season. I never do this usually because I risk big problems I wasn’t aware of that testing pre-season would bring out. Aron got back to me right away and he was able to dial in a fit based on my feedback.

It’s a stiff pack but for the first time ever, no matter what I throw at it, the pack stays put. I’m definitely a Kifaru customer for life.

FE24F469-C7D8-412B-8048-169271F4CF57.jpeg
 
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