Can We Keep This Ultra Thread Open?

[rodney.black]

I wanted to post this up on the other thread about the extreme testing but it is closed now. Apparently if you go to the woods and leave your computer for 5-6 hours threads are closed when you come back. Hopefully we can all be civil and have a positive discussion about gear and keep this thread open for people who are actually interested and want to discuss the positives and negatives of this product.

Anyways I was watching another one of the Ultra testing videos:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZTCf0dZXfjI&list=UUC1bN36M7SnEwgkxMl_Dl7Q

In this video, if you fast forward to about 40 seconds in they show the Ultra frame and suspension with a 150 lb weight strapped to it. It shows how it carries that type of weight and how much it flexes under a heavy load. I had the pleasure of trying one of these packs at the Kuiu booth and was really impressed with how it carries heavy weight. The beauty of this frame is that it has vertical stiffness and horizontal flex. This translates to having the ability to carry heavy loads (vertical stiffness) while remaining comfortable to wear and move (horizontal flex).

And when people say that the Ultra flexes too much based on the truck test, that just doesn't make sense to me. You will never have that much weight bridged on the frame as when that truck is on it. That is way different than carrying 100 - 150 lbs of gear / animal. You can clearly see how much the frame is flexing with the 150 lb weight in the above video. I think that some flex is good because it helps to distribute the weight onto the lower back and hips without being too rigid and uncomfortable while hiking. Too much flex obviously is not good. The Ultra frame felt like a good amount of flex to me when I tried it on with the weight in it. More time in the field with it once it arrives will tell more.

 

[7mag.]

Looked like the frame and suspension kept its shape, and he had lift still too. I didn't see anything negative, other than the size of that dumbbell.

 

[whitingja]

Do we know when the first shipment of these are going out. Someone mentioned last night before the thread was shut down that they got an email stating theirs had shipped. Anyone got anymore info on this. I orders mine the first of March.

 

[MesaHorseCo.]

I hope you guys that ordered start getting them soon. Id like to know what you think of em! I run an Icon, and haven't found a need to switch, It does everything I need it to....but I'm pretty interested in the Ultra, I think it would be perfect for my wife.

 

[Poser]

FYI: The video of the Ultra thrown off a cliff had been posted on the Kuiu FB page.

 

[Highcountry_Hellrazor]

I love how Rokslide single handily made the cliff throw test the new industry standard. Keep up the good work Rokslide haha.

 

[wapitibob]

That UL pack/frame held up pretty darn well from the tumble down the hill.

 

[5MilesBack]

That UL pack/frame held up pretty darn well from the tumble down the hill.

Just a technical detail......but yes......HILL. "Cliff test" to me implies a free fall several hundred feet. The "hill test" looks more like me when a load of meat gets ahead of me on the downhill side, and a more valid test than a free fall would give.

 

[voidecho]

Just a technical detail......but yes......HILL. "Cliff test" to me implies a free fall several hundred feet. The "hill test" looks more like me when a load of meat gets ahead of me on the downhill side, and a more valid test than a free fall would give.

I haven't seen anyone do a "cliff test" as you describe above.

 

[Nick Muche]

That was a brutal toss down the hill, I was glad to see it, cool stuff.

Agreed on the quit locking threads crap... If they get out of line, delete the comments and warn the guy to keep it civil... Good commentary/discussion is why I come here and I would assume many others as well... Thanks.

 

[Hawkeye]

Although the tumble down the hill test was cool to watch, it is hard to compare one pack to the next on that test. A drop test, we could control a little more; Height of drop, weight of the pack, density of the landing pad, etc. A tumble down the hill test has way to many variables to be consistent across multiple packs. One pack may hit a rock and have a yard sale all down the chute, while another tumbles through the grass and dirt and comes up with minimal damage.

I like how Kuiu did their tumble down the hill test with visibility on the pack the whole way and we can see what it went through.

 

[trkyslr]

That was a brutal toss down the hill, I was glad to see it, cool stuff.

Agreed on the quit locking threads crap... If they get out of line, delete the comments and warn the guy to keep it civil... Good commentary/discussion is why I come here and I would assume many others as well... Thanks.

ditto!

 

[Matt Cashell]

Hey guys,

Thanks for the feedback. I don't like locking threads either.

As far as the ridiculously over-thought and overblown "toss" goes, this thread was about a totally different video Kuiu did that didn't have to do with the toss.

Hawkeye, thanks for the critique. I will keep it in mind in the future. Over a year ago when I did the toss and roll tests, I didn't foresee the hullabaloo it would create.

I put the followoing explanation on another thread:

I think this has been blown way out of proportion.

The cliff throw portion of my backpack comparison review (not a scientific test) was something I thought of as a fun way to get an impression of durability under rare and extreme circumstances.

I based it off experiences I have had when I lost my pack down a mountain a few times, sometimes intentionally and sometimes unintentionally. At least for me, I have had to do things quickly for my own safety (and due to my own mistakes), and did not have the luxury of stopping and p-cording my pack down a ledge.

As far as how useful this part was, I thought a potential buyer might find the packs' durability under these rare extreme circumstances to inspire confidence in the packs under normal circumstances.

I thought it was fun and interesting and never meant to cause anybody any grief or cast dispersions on any product or manufacturer, especially a product or manufacturer I didn't even use in the comparison.

I do not work for (or have ever worked for) Kifaru, Stone Glacier, Kuiu, or any other outdoor manufacturer, and I don't care to.

I just like to hunt and try out gear.

 

[Rucker61]

FYI: The video of the Ultra thrown off a cliff had been posted on the Kuiu FB page.

I'm pretty data rooted - we're going to need at least 30 trials, preferably 50, for each pack if we want the results to be statistically significant.

 

[Stid2677]

Anybody can throw a pack off a hill,, Becca and I did the "hill test" while wearing our Kifaru packs, before the throw it off test was even cool.

Both packs came anyway undamaged, can't say the same for us.

 

[rodney.black]

Stid2677 That looks like it was a brutal fall and I hope any injuries you sustained are healed up.

In that cliff toss video I could not believe how well the 160 D Cordura held up. There was one small tear that was easily repairable and did not seem to effect the integrity of the pack at all.

The Icons are mainly 160 D Cordura, although the back and bottom are reinforced with 500 D Cordura. I knew the 160 D Cordura was tough because I have not had any rips or tears in my Icons, but I didn't realize it was that tough. That was one hell of a fall the Ultra Pack took.

 

[Jason Snyder]

That UL pack/frame held up pretty darn well from the tumble down the hill.

Yes it did, that was a hell of a tumble. It's funny, Jason has done a really good job of "talking down" the expectations during these. I got a laugh out of him saying how "there's no way that thing survived".

Looks like a good pack, coming from a Mystery Ranch homey

 

[Lip_Ripper Guy]

Just got the email that my Ultra 6000 in Verde has shipped. We don't have any mountains here in MN, but I'll certainly give my $.02 on how it handles a load.

 

[Kody]

Just got the email that my Ultra 6000 in Verde has shipped. We don't have any mountains here in MN, but I'll certainly give my $.02 on how it handles a load.

When did you preorder?

 

[Lip_Ripper Guy]

When did you preorder?

I ordered right after the release. There's been a couple other posts I've seen on other sites that other packs have shipped too.