Exo Mountain K4?

[passinggas33]

Yeah we dropped Coyote back in 2018 because it wasn't selling nearly as well as Ranger Green.

For K4 packs we are using a fabric called Squadron which is a 500d laminated to 1000d fabric. The entire frame panel is made of this as well as all the laser cut Molle panels you see. It is not an option to get this in Fusion so Coyote Brown was the natural choice as it looks best with Fusion.

We've also had a decent amount of requests to bring Coyote back. I know we'll sell 5 to 1 Ranger Green to Coyote but with Coyote working with Fusion it made sense.

Are all frame panels going to be made in coyote or will the ranger green have a ranger green frame panel? I would think that would look nice with the fusion as well??

 

[S&S ARCHERY]

Are all frame panels going to be made in coyote or will the ranger green have a ranger green frame panel? I would think that would look nice with the fusion as well??

Ranger will be all Ranger and Coyote and Fusion will share Coyote Squadron fabric. Ranger Green and Fusion together just doesn't look very good to my eye.

 

[passinggas33]

Thanks for the quick response Steve! I appreciate all the great work you are doing with innovation and for the hunting community at large.

 

[svivian]

@S&S ARCHERY Hey Steve I have a few questions if you don't mind answering. Are the straps longer on the frame so that you can secure larger loads? On the last version of the K2 I have trouble fitting two large bone in quarters and scrap meat/backstraps.

Secondly is the foam lumbar pad going to be able to be taken out to either replace or change thickness? My lumbar pad is wearing thin at this point and I am the type to use my pack for several years.

Last how is the material at the bottom of the pack where everything meets? I find that I have warn through the material down to the frame over time from sitting with my pack on or just setting down and picking up with loads in it.

 

[Dos Perros]

@S&S ARCHERY why do you guys use grey hardare (buckles) with your Ranger frames and bags? Why not just all ranger? I'm assuming there's some availability issues there?

 

[S&S ARCHERY]

@S&S ARCHERY Hey Steve I have a few questions if you don't mind answering. Are the straps longer on the frame so that you can secure larger loads? On the last version of the K2 I have trouble fitting two large bone in quarters and scrap meat/backstraps.

Secondly is the foam lumbar pad going to be able to be taken out to either replace or change thickness? My lumbar pad is wearing thin at this point and I am the type to use my pack for several years.

Last how is the material at the bottom of the back where everything meets? I find that I have warn through the material down to the frame over time from sitting with my pack on or just setting down and picking up with loads in it.

Yes the straps are longer than previous generations. We will also make a strap extender kit that will go welll with with all the opposing male / female buckles so you can extend just about any strap on the pack for the rare occasions that is needed.

Yes the foam in the Lumbar pad is removable, it always has been in all of our generations. That foam takes more abuse than any other foam in the pack and definitely needs to be replaced after a few years of heavy use. Also just like K3 we will have different foam options so guys can adjust the lumbar pressure to their individual needs.

On the bottom of the frame that is something I focused on to make sure it was reinforced so long term wear isn't an issue. On the K4's the only two parts that touch the ground are a flap of the Squadron material (which is insanely tough) and webbing. Under that the real cause of that issue you are referring too is the plastic rubbing against the rock or whatever you are sitting on. We are binding all those edges (basically thin webbing) so they don't wear through the 500d Cordura.

 

[S&S ARCHERY]

@S&S ARCHERY why do you guys use grey hardare (buckles) with your Ranger frames and bags? Why not just all ranger? I'm assuming there's some availability issues there?

The primary reason is we just like the aesthetic and it's recognizable / distinct from other packs. It also certainly does make life easier on purchasing and production. The less sku's we have the better off and smoother everything goes. A good example of that working is over the last 3 years (even during Covid supply issues) Exo has averaged 18 hours from the time of a pack order being placed to it being shipped, that even takes into account someone ordering on a Friday night and it shipping Monday morning. We really focus on being streamlined / efficient where we can.

 

[svivian]

Yes the straps are longer than previous generations. We will also make a strap extender kit that will go welll with with all the opposing male / female buckles so you can extend just about any strap on the pack for the rare occasions that is needed.

Yes the foam in the Lumbar pad is removable, it always has been in all of our generations. That foam takes more abuse than any other foam in the pack and definitely needs to be replaced after a few years of heavy use. Also just like K3 we will have different foam options so guys can adjust the lumbar pressure to their individual needs.

On the bottom of the frame that is something I focused on to make sure it was reinforced so long term wear isn't an issue. On the K4's the only two parts that touch the ground are a flap of the Squadron material (which is insanely tough) and webbing. Under that the real cause of that issue you are referring too is the plastic rubbing against the rock or whatever you are sitting on. We are binding all those edges (basically thin webbing) so they don't wear through the 500d Cordura.

Awesome I’ll have to look into the k2 lumbar pad for the time being.

Thank you

 

[dreamingWest]

Everything sounds great! Can't wait to try a K4 and keep my K2 for workouts/back-up/loaner. Really hope we still get that stretchy back pocket on the new bags. So convenient!

 

[sivart]

no more multi cam? that's my fav.

 

[Grumman]

I’d like multicam or an altitude pattern also. I’m intrigued by what I’m reading so far. So much so that I didn’t notice that +160” whitetail that just walked by my blind until he was out of bow range. Dang smart phones….


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[eoperator]

pre-order list available?

 

[Juan_ID]

Is the outer material of the lumbar pad different than that of the k3?

 

[wind gypsy]

Exo is going to sell a pile of these.

LOL on being excited about a pack but not if it isn't in your most favored color scheme.

 

[BRTreedogs]

Exo is going to sell a pile of these.

LOL on being excited about a pack but not if it isn't in your most favored color scheme.

I just don't like solids because they show every stain to the tenth, and after years of coyote in mil equipment don't really want to see it at all. Maybe I could do ranger, im not really into clothing brand camo either. I wear FL now but if I switch I cannot possibly be caught wearing camo that doesn't match my pack.

I just think MC is a great pattern. But id be into any medium tone universal type camo. I like the tones in MC, then when it gets wet its not overly dark.

I did set a pack down in the sage once and spend and hour looking for it.

Most of my camo is geared towards elk hunting. And I think its all way to dark when I hit the sagebrush.

Edit id be way more into Cypher then fusion.
Lighter tones.

 

[BRTreedogs]

At least bring back the Blaze Crib that way we have a better chance of not getting deaded by idiots.

 

[Marbles]

I just don't like solids because they show every stain to the tenth,...

Just look at it as a personalized camo pattern.

 

[S&S ARCHERY]

no more multi cam? that's my fav.

I have a pretty strict self imposed guideline to keep our color offerings to a max of 3. For every added Sku things get exponentially more complicated on our end. Rather than be a shit show with lead times and backorders I like to keep things as simple as possible so we can provide great customer service and ship packs fast. Honestly, if it were entirely just up to me I would love to just have one color and call it good. I do have to balance what I want and what our customers request so that's why I have chosen to do 3 colors that we keep in stock and produce.

Multicam sales have declined to about 14% of sales so it's the natural choice to drop since we needed to bring Coyote in to work with the Fusion packs.

Steve

 

[TheTone]

Looks good! Dang I wish I was cool enough to be a tester. I really love my k3 and am surprised how much of a departure this design is.

 

[S&S ARCHERY]

Is the outer material of the lumbar pad different than that of the k3?

We are testing a different fabric right now but I haven't made that final decision yet. The K3 fabric has been fantastic from a durability standpoint.

To get to the root of your question though exactly what that fabric is, is a lot less important than you might think. If you have experienced slipping with the K3 just swapping out to a stickier fabric would be more or less a band aid. It might help a little but won't get to the root of cause.

I have spent the vast majority of my time the last 3 years working on the lower of the K4 (frame connection, lumbar pad, shape/size/thickness of the lower plastic, hip-belt, etc) The goal was to address the slipping that some customers felt but also not to create an issue for the majority of people who love how the K3 feels. It's a balance of lumbar pressure, rigidity of the lower and how the weight transfers into and through the hipbelt. I am extremely happy with where things have landed and reviews so far have been very positive to that regard.

Some of the guys on here who are currently testing K4 can probably chime in and confirm.