Metcalf vs Pop Up 28 Meat Hauling

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Sep 13, 2020
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Hey all. I currently own a Pop Up 28 for deer hunting. Contemplating a Metcalf as something that would be more versatile for Western hunting as well.

I know the Metcalf can obviously hold a lot more in the main bag. But as far as meat hauling goes, does the Metcalf allow for more to be hauled in one go as opposed to the Pop Up? Or are they basically the same in that regard and it’s just all about storage capacity?
 
Joined
Jan 2, 2013
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The Metcalf would haul weight better. How much better is up to the user. But it is a stiffer frame and a much better belt.


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OP
B
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616
But does is it physically capable of holding more? Or are the meat shelves the same and it’s just a comfort thing?
 
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Warning: I am an MR fanboy

i have and use a pop up 38 as my go to whitetail pack and have hauled 4 quartered deer as well as bags of corn and tree stands with mine. IMO it works very well as a day pack and fairly well with a load up to 60-80#. I have used mine on a few overnights but it isn’t the first bag I grab for 2 or more nights.

I also have a glmt frame and (currently) a beartooth and pintler bag.

the difference between hauling on a full size frame vs a pop up is noticeable. Sort of like the difference between a 1500 and 3500 truck. Everything is just built bigger. Bigger, wider belt with more padding and easier adjustment transfer and maintains weight on your hips better. More padded back sheet with stiffer construction holds and stabilizes a load better. Big, wider and more padded shoulder straps are more comfortable. The frame geometry toward the top is stiffer and has more lift angle so it carries better.

a note on stability between the two and in general: the pop up does a pretty good job of stabilizing. The bigger gl frame is better though. Stability is important so that the load doesn’t shift and moves with you. If you don’t have the load locked down to your back, you will be forced to use your muscles to stabilize yourself and the load as you walk. With each step on uneven terrain your feet, legs, hips, back and torso muscles will exert force to control and counterbalance the movement of the load. Over time and miles, this will contribute to additional fatigue. For an illustration of this, take 50# for a walk over your favorite piece of moderately difficult terrain With the straps on you pack cinched tight to control the load. Then repeat with all the straps completely loose and the load flopping and swinging around on your back.

the pop up is a great pack. Love mine. As a daypack that can haul, it is near perfect IMO (removable lid please, MR comrades!). For hauling a heavily load occasionally, it works great. For longer trips or more consistent load hauling, a full size frame is just going to carry better.

I think the Metcalf is great. It works but is a little overkill in daypack mode and probably too much pack for one night. I think it shines in 3-5 night trips and I have stretched mine to over a week carrying some food on the meat shelf at the beginning of the trip.

final thought, I am a bit of a pack nut and am fortunate enough to have more than one to use. However, if I only owned one pack, it would be a Metcalf (Or more likely the terraframe 80, which is a non hunting pack of the same basic design as the Metcalf with two outside pockets running down the back of the pack And an antecedent of the venerable terraplane design that Dana gleeson popularized 40 years ago - I told you I was a fanboy)
 
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Drenalin

WKR
Joined
Nov 15, 2018
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2,654
But does is it physically capable of holding more? Or are the meat shelves the same and it’s just a comfort thing?
I imagine the load shelves are dimensionally similar in both horizontal directions, but the Metcalf might offer just a touch more volume vertically. The Pop Up series is rated for 80 pounds - I don't know what the Guide Light MT is rated at, but loads of 100+ are common and expected. But still less common and expected than the internet would have you believe. If your primary use is hauling heavy crap, you want the Metcalf (or whatever other bag you like on a Guide Light MT). The Pop Up is more for occasional hauling of heavy crap. I don't know at what point the Pop Up would completely fail on you, but everything I've seen suggests maybe up to 60 pounds as a sweet spot for comfort, with heavier loads possible at a reduced comfort level.
 

Randle

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I have added a kifaru belt to my pop up and now that deficiency is gone. It took some rigging but it works well.
I was going to cut the wings off the pop up belt and sew them together but it works fine with molle straps weaved thru the 2 belts so I will probably just leave it alone.
 

fatlander

WKR
Joined
Feb 11, 2016
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When I still owned my pop up, I felt like I could break the pop up frame before I couldn’t carry the weight. I haven’t had that feeling with a full frame MR or kifaru pack.

The pop up max load is 80 per the website.


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Tsoenen

FNG
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Jul 24, 2021
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I have added a kifaru belt to my pop up and now that deficiency is gone. It took some rigging but it works well.
I was going to cut the wings off the pop up belt and sew them together but it works fine with molle straps weaved thru the 2 belts so I will probably just leave it alone.
Why this vs upgrading? Just $$$?
 

Randle

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Dec 30, 2012
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Nope
I like the compactness of the pop up and I have a heavy hauler frame at the truck if needed after first load out.. Pop up will haul what I need, and it fits me well. I am not doing multiple day trips anymore. at least for now.
 

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