Backpacking bag vs Hunting Bag - Have my cake and eat it too

[SecretSpot]

Did you just say and imply mystery ranch isn't quality because they're built in the Philippines?

First off, I hope you didn't mean that the way you wrote it.

Second, they're made in USA, Vietnam, and the Phillys. They also have tags which say which place each pack was built, they openly disclose that to the public.

Third, I think mystery ranch quality is known world wide and has quite a large amount of positive feedback for being bomb proof and reliable.

They all used to be US made, once the company boomed they flipped where the bags were made without disclosing it. Yeah they have tags saying where, but being a Montana company and advertising Bozeman, MT is slightly misleading. My buddies and I were still buying their stuff and after closer examination realized it was all phillipines made. I take alot of pride in Montana and I think Mystery Ranch uses that as a front to sell cheaply made gear at a higher rate.
And yes I am implying anything made in the phillipines is lesser quality than USA made, except maybe authentic phillipino food. Are you implying that phillipine made gear is better than USA made gear, say like EXO or stone glacier? Because I assure you it's not. I've used sitka, EXO, Kifaru MR, Kuiu, have buddies with stone glaciers and of all of them, the stones, Kifaru, and Exo have the best craftsmanship hands down. You wont find lose stitching and threads hanging out new from the store, not to mention the customer service of these companies is top notch, and gets fixed by US hands on US soil if there is ever a problem. Change my mind.

 

[Idaho4x4Bronco]

They all used to be US made, once the company boomed they flipped where the bags were made without disclosing it. Yeah they have tags saying where, but being a Montana company and advertising Bozeman, MT is slightly misleading. My buddies and I were still buying there stuff and after closer examination realized it was all phillipines made. I take alot of pride in Montana and I think Mystery Ranch uses that as a front to sell cheaply made gear at a higher rate.
And yes I am implying anything made in the phillipines is lesser quality than USA made, except maybe authentic phillipino food. Are you implying that phillinpine made gear that is better than USA made gear, say like EXO or stone glacier? Because I assure you it's not. I've used sitka, EXO, MR, Kuiu, have buddies with stone glaciers and of them all the stones and Exo have the best craftsmanship hands done. Change my mind.

How is it misleading when every bag has the location it was made? Must of taken quite a bit of that "closer examination" to figure that part out, nevermind the giant tag stating where it was made.

Did you know on MR website it says they use the same parts for each pack, regardless of location? So you're proud of Montana and products made in Montana, but the same product made with the same materials by an Asian makes it lesser quality? Does that mean Stone Glacier would be lesser quality if they hired a Philippino employee?

Do us a favor, take the cowboy hat off and bang your head on that american made wall a few times.

 

[SecretSpot]

How is it misleading when every bag has the location it was made? Must of taken quite a bit of that "closer examination" to figure that part out, nevermind the giant tag stating where it was made.

Did you know on MR website it says they use the same parts for each pack, regardless of location? So you're proud of Montana and products made in Montana, but the same product made with the same materials by an Asian makes it lesser quality? Does that mean Stone Glacier would be lesser quality if they hired a Philippino employee?

Do us a favor, take the cowboy hat off and bang your head on that american made wall a few times.

Wow seems a few of your sensitivity buttons were pushed this morning.

I believe WHERE something is made is most important. Factors beyond that like ethnicity of the employees I cannot speak for.

Kinda curious how you'd feel if say NIGHTFORCE used all the same components but sent them to the phillipines to be assembled. Do you think you would have the same dependable scope? Do you think there is a reason the more money you spend with say Vortex, the closer to the USA and the higher quality the product becomes?

I'd say the same logic applies to a hunting pack wouldn't it?

 

[Idaho4x4Bronco]

Wow seems a few of your sensitivity buttons were pushed this morning.

Not really. You just make yourself out to be a closest racist and have a really hard time making any kind of logical sense or actual points to actually back up your paranoia.

All you implied was buy things built by Americans or it's not worth buying because it's of lesser quality. Bottom line is, you're still getting the same quality mystery ranch products with the same materials, and they openly say where each bag is made just to make people like you happy.

Before you buy a Stone Glacier, make sure you head over there since it's in the great state of Montana, and make sure no asian people there.

 

[Marbles]

H

Not really. You just make yourself out to be a closest racist and have a really hard time making any kind of logical sense or actual points to actually back up your paranoia.

All you implied was buy things built by Americans or it's not worth buying because it's of lesser quality. Bottom line is, you're still getting the same quality mystery ranch products with the same materials, and they openly say where each bag is made just to make people like you happy.

Before you buy a Stone Glacier, make sure you head over there since it's in the great state of Montana, and make sure no asian people there.

There is a lot of overextending from what @SecretSpot said. There are countries that have cheap labor. Not all of them are asian, so are you demonstrating racism by focusing the conversation on asians? There are also countries with expensive labor (some are asian). Generally, countries with cheap labor produce inferior products due to substandard working conditions (tired people finishing a 15 hour shift make more mistakes).

While I lack the information to say @SecretSpot is not a racist, the information to say he is one is also definitively lacking and making such accusations do nothing to add to the conversation.

You could have just pointed to evidence of good quality from MR and stated you put more stock in quality than country of origin.

 

[Wapiti16]

And I agree I like that setup but to get it outfitted the way I would want it, I would be looking at spending 750+ on a backpack and I just don’t know if I can just that for my budget personally.

Buy once, cry once. It's worth budgeting/saving for. One pack will do it all. Personally, I like the Kifaru 44 Mag.

 

[Mighty Mouse]

You just make yourself out to be a closest racist and have a really hard time making any kind of logical sense or actual points to actually back up your paranoia.

Preference for a domestic over foreign product isn't cause for accusations of racism. If a guy prefers domestic over foreign based on an expectation of superior quality and he's wrong about that expectation (as you seem to be claiming in the case of Mystery Ranch vs. competitors), the person he's harming most is himself.

 

[Maverick1]

I also don't want to have $750 in a backpack either.

Let's try to get this thread back on track.

Understandably, the price of a high-end pack can be difficult to get past. I'd suggest a look through this thread, noting how many people call out packs.

From that perspective, and knowing what I know now, I'd buy a "hunting pack" in a neutral color and use it for both backpacking and hunting. (Why? Because - IME - hunting packs perform better at backpacking than backpacking packs perform at hunting.) If that meant saving up the $, or buying used on the classifieds, that's the route I would go. (I would not suggest trying to marry-up or mix and match frames and bags: while that 'may' work in some instances, it may not in other cases as the frames/bags may not align particularly well. Additionally, if you don't like one aspect of the mix-match bag and frame combo - your Frankenstein pack - it could be more of a challenge to resell or unload.)

 

[CO-AJ]

I did the same thing as you are discussing, went with a hunting pack for backpacking which I do much more frequently. I got down to 3 bags, the Seek Outside, Kifaru, and Exo Mountain Gear. Exo was what I bought, LOVE IT. I have even used it as a day pack as it compresses down. I went with the K6300, so it is big. It is heavier than a comparable Seek, but lighter than the Kifaru. All the bags were priced about the same in the 600.00 range. Happy searching.

 

[R2J]

You don't have to spend $750 to get into a great pack.

SO Unaweep, frame extensions, lumbar pad and base talon = $466 on their website. Fully capable of everything you want to do with it, could always add to it later with belt pockets and a lid or merlin day pack. For $30 more you could get the 6300...

 

[kit_man_duu]

I recommend the Exo pack system very highly. You can backpack all you want and then hose it down for the hunting season.

 

[Marble]

Price paid will long be forgotten after satisfaction of purchase.

Pick what you want and then save until you can afford it.

Like someone said already, a lot of us tried others until we got the top packs. We then realized what the big deal was. Wish I had mine 20 years ago...

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[Deepshax]

As someone who also lives in the east, only goes out west occasionally, but does a lot of backpacking I would spend some money on a dedicated backpacking bag and then pick up some type of used "hauling frame" for out west. Im not sure what type of backpacking you do but I like to cover a lot of trail in a day. Ive used my Kifarus as backpacking bags in the past but was never happy with them in that scenario. My weight/space needs for 3-7 day trips is so minimal. A full framed, 22"/24"/26" duplex was way overkill (for me). I was much happier when I switch to a dedicated backpacking bag. Not only did they ride better, they were also about two/three pounds lighter. If backpacking is what youre spending the most time doing, especially if its just in the summer when even less is needed, I think a two bag solution would make the most sense.

 

[eaglemountainman]

Wait for the Father's Day sales. Since you mentioned MR, you should be able to pick up an MR Sawtooth 45 for around $330 as I did a couple of years ago. A Pintler would cost just a bit less and still work very well. Both are on the Guide Light MT frame. That will leave you with roughly $120 of your budget to add on your whistles and bells. Other brands might be available at similar savings.

A Pop Up 28 would be another great option. It's frame can handle some substantial weight, though maybe not as comfortably as a Guide Light MT frame.

I can't think of any advantages to a hiking pack over a hunting pack, other than the weight of the pack itself.

 

[Deepshax]

I can't think of any advantages to a hiking pack over a hunting pack, other than the weight of the pack itself.

Weight/comfort

I really like my kifaru set-ups, they are great with weight in them. They are way overkill for carrying 10-15lbs of gear/food/water. When I switched to a more backpacking specific system for backpacking I was much happier in everyway...plus no need to deal with straps all over the place

 

[Marbles]

Weight/comfort

I really like my kifaru set-ups, they are great with weight in them. They are way overkill for carrying 10-15lbs of gear/food/water. When I switched to a more backpacking specific system for backpacking I was much happier in everyway...plus no need to deal with straps all over the place

Interesting, I had the opposite experience with Exo and found I no longer grabbed my backpacking packs for anything. Granted I was just using Gregory's and Osprey's. This was with the K2 5500, the design just worked better and was cleaner with a small load than even my 34 L Osprey.

 

[Marble]

I've already contributed but I'll add something.

My kifaru pack is the only pack since the late 90s that doesn't cause me back issues. Even with day pack weights, carrying 20 pounds around did me in and sure as shit I would see have to see the chiropractor for a few months after each season. I haven't had to do that since 2017. And I'm not of of shape. I lift, run and exercise regularly. Probably more than I need to. So for me, using either of my packs in day pack mode is priceless. A 3 pound weight penalty means nothing to me. I carry more water when I leave camp each morning. Then consider the 100 pound days. I would have never thought I could put on a 100 pound pack on and be comfortable.

I haven't lost a day of hunting because of back pain since. That's worth a lot.

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[slatty]

I have similar pack needs.
I recently acquired a seek outside brooks after using a kifaru for many years. I wanted a huge bag that I could use for family backpacking where I can really just carry everything. And it's a huge bag, but folds down really nicely and is lighter than my previous one. So far really happy with it and don't see much of a downside. It's also all neutral colors which I personally really like. I have a great arcteryx bora 80 backpacking bag but I don't see a situation where I would use it at this point.

 

[Anglo-American]

So here is my dilemma, I am looking for a bag that works for both backpacking in the summer here in the east, but will also work for me when I go hunting out in the west. I only go out west 1 time a year and only been twice to Colorado and going again this year, hoping to be successful. I hike and camp the rest of the time here in the east, but when I go hunting I would like to have ability to carry my meat out when successful. I will mainly be hunting mule deer, but may also elk hunt. I like the conveniences and light weights of backpacking packs such as Osprey or others (ie. frames and suspension systems with mesh that aid in less back sweat, organizational pockets, & small extra conveniences) but I feel I eventually will need the load hauling capabilities of a hunting pack (MR, Kuiu, Kifaru or Exo). But both types are expensive and I don't want to spend the money for 2 different packs. I also don't want to have $750 in a backpack either.

My questions are...

Does anyone else have or have had this problem and have some type of solution.

Can you buy a frame from one company and then buy a bag from another company to marry together and make the "perfect bag".

Should I just by a backpacking bag with the conveniences that I want and then maybe a frame and load hauler/ back strap system to use just to pack out meat?

Any input is appreciated....

If you're looking for a cheap, yet good backpacking bag have a look at the German Army Mountaineering Bergan.
The main bag is 70 litres in volume with two side pockets at 10 litres each.
In a range of solids or camos.

This bag performs well above its price point.

Now your free to take you time, save your money and not compromise on a high end bag.

 

[peterk123]

My every day pack is my SG5900. Not nearly as light as my Osprey Exo, but the comfort trumps weight for me. I have been using it all summer hiking into the mountains on day trips pursuing cutthroat trout. It compresses beautifully and does not flop around as I stumble on the rocks. Then on overnighters I just expand the straps and pack with my gear.

I wish I bought this years ago when I still lived in Mass. Boy it would have come in handy, including when I was hanging twenty feet from a tree. They are that versatile.