DIY Ultra Light Pack Setup

[AK Troutbum]

Right on. Assuming you live in Anc? I live in Girdwood so might do the same. Ak tent and tarp? Thanks!

Yeah, actually Chugiak, but we all pay the same taxes. I don’t think AK T & T gives any Girdwoodian hippie discounts, but it wouldn’t hurt to ask. All in fun of course. PM sent.


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[cjhall72]

I absolutely love the DIY efforts here. I am considering having a go at making my own bag. Thanks for the inspiration guys!

 

[DavePwns]

I put it together for my sons sheep hunt last year and it held up great for the 10 days that we were out for. The vast majority of our hiking was above tree line but we did log several miles of bush whacking through alders and blow down spruce, etc. I didn’t load him up too heavy because he’s a pretty small kid but his heaviest packs were probably in the 50-60 pound range. I don’t think it would be a bad idea to go with the heavier hybrid material, but I was pretty satisfied with how this all turned out, and for my purposes, I don’t think I would’ve changed anything. Here’s a few pics of the set up from that hunt.

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This is absolutely incredible, looks like you have a start up business on your hands

 

[AK Troutbum]

This is absolutely incredible, looks like you have a start up business on your hands

Thanks, but I already have a job, and I'd rather just be retired.

 

[DavePwns]

So I was trying to find a new light weight pack option for this year, and I was having a very hard time finding exactly what I wanted. Instead of spending several hundred dollars for something that wasn't perfect, I just decided to make it myself. So, my goal was to create a hunting pack that was lighter than any off the shelf option, specifically I wanted frame and bag to be below 3.5 lbs. My constraints were that it needed to hold winter gear and 5 days of food, carry 80 lbs, and all the fun typical desires such as water resistant, etc etc etc.

I decided to use Robic 210d since ripstop by the roll was having a pretty good sale on it at the time. Some of my other bags are made with it and I have come to really like the material. I designed the shape of what I wanted the final product to be in solidworks and used that to create a cut guide with seam allowances, notches, etc.

After a couple days of sewing, I finally have a product to test! I used the kifaru ultra light frame to mate my bag to mainly because of its versatility and ease for bag mounting options as well as its a light weight frame that doesn't depend on any features on the bag to maintain its load carrying capabilities.

The bag and frame together came in at 3lbs 4 ounces. I don't know of any off the shelf setup that is this light and can haul as much weight as this can, and if there is I guess ill have to make a new bag. My base weight with my rifle, tripod, and late season gear is now at 26.5 lbs. I could shave some weight by leaving optics, tripod, etc behind depending on the hunt.

I can say there will be lots of changes in revision 2, but I am pretty satisfied with this prototype. Now to load test until failure.

Let me know what you guys think!

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Awesome work, how did it hold up over this years season?

 

[lorsonts]

This is awesome, I would love to hear how it holds up over a season!

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[HaydenB]

Nice

 

[sharalds]

Great build. The Kifaru and Stone Glacier frames are relatively simply constructed so if you've got a modicum of skill (and a lot of time) they can be reverse engineered. Fine work on your version!