Review - Kuiu Icon Pro
I have previously owned the Icon series of packs and didn’t have any catastrophic failures, but had several issues with them that I couldn’t get worked out. Their customer service was great working to get it right, but in the end I went with another pack.
I have only used this pack for two days, but it was two ugly days. On trail, off trail, scrambling over boulders, spider manning down sheer rock faces and beating brush. The pack had about 50 pounds in it and it was about 12 miles total.
This new frame came out and I saw it about a month before they were released. I was very surprised at all the new features in just the frame. The little side wings the Icon had were gone, which was one of the things I didn’t like about the Icon. The top of the frame was slightly narrower, which tends to lead to more strength and the frame was beefed up in the high stress areas. The bend it the frame was very close to my current carbon stays in my current pack.
I was then showed the new bags and this is what got me most interested. The new 500D material is in my opinion the best all around bag material for durability and functionality for hunting. The pocket configuration changed and many of the super small pockets were eliminated and now there are just the two inside the main bag, two in the lid, and then the panel has three on the outside and two on the inside. All of the pockets were much more useable. There are also two drawstring pockets along the side of the bag commonly used for Nalgene bottles that have drawstring closures.
The side pockets on the outside are double zippered, so you can open the top and bottom slightly and the pocket can be used as a scabbard if needed. I opened the bottom and put my tripod through it and into one of the two open top pockets that sit below the zippered pockets. First bag I have owned that has a pocket large enough for my tripod with the head attached that is completely covered.
The horseshoe zipper for the main body of the bag is the same with the exception that all the zippers are YKK. The ability to open up the bag this was makes for easy loading and unloading. The inside of the bag has four removable compression straps that work great to secure meat close to your body or you could run a fairly large compression sack in it, with your heavier gear to keep it close to your body.
The snow collar or shroud as some refer to it is much more user friendly. When you only have a top loader, the snow collar is constantly in the way for me when loading and unloading or just trying to find something in my pack. (I have cut them out of every pack I have owned previously) The snow collar has two drawstrings, one at the top and one at the bottom, so you can secure items better and it packs easier.
The bags are also the easiest to change out compared to my other packs. The straps have these simple little plastic/metal ends that open and close with one hand. Just open them up, slide them through the appropriate webbing and close.
The suspension is super easy to adjust for torso length. It takes all of about 5 seconds to adjust. With two frame lengths offered, you should be able to get the proper angle for your load lifters to work properly. I am 6’ tall and went with the longer frame and the load lifters were about a 25-30 degree angle.
The hip belt was similar to most hip belts to me. The lumbar section has two pads for different sizes for a more personal adjustment. I ran the larger of the two because my normal pack has a large one. I did have the pack slide down a few times, but no more than any other pack I have used. It seems the longer I wear it, the more technical moving I am doing, the more I need to adjust my pack.
This pack is also over 2 pounds lighter than my current pack and I haven’t even cut a single strap yet, but I will. The 7200 and new frame weighed in at 5# 10 ounces and the 1850 with the frame at 4# 6 ounces.
Overall, the pack did very well and better than I expected. I personally think it is the best pack at this price range by a long shot. I don’t know what it will do with 100 pounds in it yet. I will take this pack to Nevada in a few weeks and I will know then how it handles the 100 + loads. Although, I don’t think any pack is comfortable at the heavy weights, it is which pack is more tolerable for me than others with that much weight.
These are just my personal opinions of this pack based on two long days with it and having the pack in my hands to examine for about 10 days now. I am not paid by Kuiu and don’t get anything from them for using some of their products.
If you have any questions about the packs that I may be able to answer or something you need clarified just send me a PM and I will try my best to get an anwer for you.
Doug.
I have previously owned the Icon series of packs and didn’t have any catastrophic failures, but had several issues with them that I couldn’t get worked out. Their customer service was great working to get it right, but in the end I went with another pack.
I have only used this pack for two days, but it was two ugly days. On trail, off trail, scrambling over boulders, spider manning down sheer rock faces and beating brush. The pack had about 50 pounds in it and it was about 12 miles total.
This new frame came out and I saw it about a month before they were released. I was very surprised at all the new features in just the frame. The little side wings the Icon had were gone, which was one of the things I didn’t like about the Icon. The top of the frame was slightly narrower, which tends to lead to more strength and the frame was beefed up in the high stress areas. The bend it the frame was very close to my current carbon stays in my current pack.
I was then showed the new bags and this is what got me most interested. The new 500D material is in my opinion the best all around bag material for durability and functionality for hunting. The pocket configuration changed and many of the super small pockets were eliminated and now there are just the two inside the main bag, two in the lid, and then the panel has three on the outside and two on the inside. All of the pockets were much more useable. There are also two drawstring pockets along the side of the bag commonly used for Nalgene bottles that have drawstring closures.
The side pockets on the outside are double zippered, so you can open the top and bottom slightly and the pocket can be used as a scabbard if needed. I opened the bottom and put my tripod through it and into one of the two open top pockets that sit below the zippered pockets. First bag I have owned that has a pocket large enough for my tripod with the head attached that is completely covered.
The horseshoe zipper for the main body of the bag is the same with the exception that all the zippers are YKK. The ability to open up the bag this was makes for easy loading and unloading. The inside of the bag has four removable compression straps that work great to secure meat close to your body or you could run a fairly large compression sack in it, with your heavier gear to keep it close to your body.
The snow collar or shroud as some refer to it is much more user friendly. When you only have a top loader, the snow collar is constantly in the way for me when loading and unloading or just trying to find something in my pack. (I have cut them out of every pack I have owned previously) The snow collar has two drawstrings, one at the top and one at the bottom, so you can secure items better and it packs easier.
The bags are also the easiest to change out compared to my other packs. The straps have these simple little plastic/metal ends that open and close with one hand. Just open them up, slide them through the appropriate webbing and close.
The suspension is super easy to adjust for torso length. It takes all of about 5 seconds to adjust. With two frame lengths offered, you should be able to get the proper angle for your load lifters to work properly. I am 6’ tall and went with the longer frame and the load lifters were about a 25-30 degree angle.
The hip belt was similar to most hip belts to me. The lumbar section has two pads for different sizes for a more personal adjustment. I ran the larger of the two because my normal pack has a large one. I did have the pack slide down a few times, but no more than any other pack I have used. It seems the longer I wear it, the more technical moving I am doing, the more I need to adjust my pack.
This pack is also over 2 pounds lighter than my current pack and I haven’t even cut a single strap yet, but I will. The 7200 and new frame weighed in at 5# 10 ounces and the 1850 with the frame at 4# 6 ounces.
Overall, the pack did very well and better than I expected. I personally think it is the best pack at this price range by a long shot. I don’t know what it will do with 100 pounds in it yet. I will take this pack to Nevada in a few weeks and I will know then how it handles the 100 + loads. Although, I don’t think any pack is comfortable at the heavy weights, it is which pack is more tolerable for me than others with that much weight.
These are just my personal opinions of this pack based on two long days with it and having the pack in my hands to examine for about 10 days now. I am not paid by Kuiu and don’t get anything from them for using some of their products.
If you have any questions about the packs that I may be able to answer or something you need clarified just send me a PM and I will try my best to get an anwer for you.
Doug.
