Exo Mountain K4?

[Gear-Reviewer]

Steve mentioned to me that he is working on one. For the time being, I’ve been able to fit a folded HNT 26 into the stretch side pocket of a K4 bag.

That’s awesome, I pretty much will solely be running a folding HNT 26 and folding XLR. Hoping they have something before fall. I’d be more than happy to test something as well. Thanks for the reply.

 

[BRTreedogs]

@Mark at EXO any chance us folk that can't attend the show can get hooked up on the discount code?

 

[BRTreedogs]

@Mark at EXO any chance us folk that can't attend the show can get hooked up on the discount code?

 

[Mark at EXO]

@Mark at EXO any chance us folk that can't attend the show can get hooked up on the discount code?

Sorry for the delay here. Wasn't on Rokslide during the show, so totally missed this.

We do keep the "show special" as a unique opportunity for people physically at the show.

As you likely know, we do very little in terms of discounts/sales. But if we're able to offer any new opportunities later this year, it would certainly be at the top of my list to do something specifically for you guys here at Rokslide, and on this thread.

 

[whiskybiker]

This thread makes me want to spend some money!

 

[PredatoronthePrairie]

Have been through the majoirty of this thread. Looking to add a rifle carrier to my exo. Any concensus on best direction to take? Leaning towards the exo or fhf at this point.

 

[Mark at EXO]

Have been through the majoirty of this thread. Looking to add a rifle carrier to my exo. Any concensus on best direction to take? Leaning towards the exo or fhf at this point.

That is a loaded question. From my perspective, getting feedback from a ton of customers, roksliders, etc, the answer is...

"No. There is no consensus."

There are a ton of opinions and personal preferences involved with rifle carry. And my consensus or advice (saying nothing about our products or trying to sell you anything), is that you should think about what YOU want in a rifle carry system.

Some (like ours) prioritize security/stability and weight distribution/comfort, whereas others may offer quicker access. Some are sling-based (such as FHF), but many aren't.

Regardless of which pack a guy wants to run, or which rifle carrier he wants to run, I hate to see people make pack decisions based on rifle carry as the primary factor, because the fact is that almost any rifle carrier can adapt to any pack, and vice versa. Choose your pack based on your pack needs/preferences. Choose your rifle carry systems based on your needs/preferences. They may or may not be from the same brand. Thinking that they have to be from the same company is like thinking your pants and jacket both have to be from the same company.

 

[Highlands Hunter]

I really like my Exo rifle carrier, it does it’s job well. The Exo rifle carrier keeps my rifle secure and I can access it quickly when I want to. I don’t mind taking off my pack to reattached the rifle, and prefer the location and placement of the carrier on my pack.

 

[roosiebull]

That is a loaded question. From my perspective, getting feedback from a ton of customers, roksliders, etc, the answer is...

"No. There is no consensus."

There are a ton of opinions and personal preferences involved with rifle carry. And my consensus or advice (saying nothing about our products or trying to sell you anything), is that you should think about what YOU want in a rifle carry system.

Some (like ours) prioritize security/stability and weight distribution/comfort, whereas others may offer quicker access. Some are sling-based (such as FHF), but many aren't.

Regardless of which pack a guy wants to run, or which rifle carrier he wants to run, I hate to see people make pack decisions based on rifle carry as the primary factor, because the fact is that almost any rifle carrier can adapt to any pack, and vice versa. Choose your pack based on your pack needs/preferences. Choose your rifle carry systems based on your needs/preferences. They may or may not be from the same brand. Thinking that they have to be from the same company is like thinking your pants and jacket both have to be from the same company.

Agree, I just think that weapon carry is more personal than I realized, and the broad range of preferences is kind of crazy.

Even different use case… someone who carries a bow or chassis rifle is likely not going to be happy with what one guy loves who just carries a traditional stocked rifle… then all the variations of where people want their weapon to ride, or what they personally want a weapon carrier for… someone who is still hunting between glassing knobs likely wants something different than the guy packing his camp a couple miles to go sit behind glass in big open country

Then you have people with similar needs as me who wouldn’t carry a rifle like I prefer to… so I agree, in less words, there is no consensus

 

[trogers861]

Have been through the majoirty of this thread. Looking to add a rifle carrier to my exo. Any concensus on best direction to take? Leaning towards the exo or fhf at this point.

I like my slik sling coupled with the exo.

 

[Bushman77]

Have been through the majoirty of this thread. Looking to add a rifle carrier to my exo. Any concensus on best direction to take? Leaning towards the exo or fhf at this point.

I have the K4 rifle carrier and it seems pretty good. Setting it up takes some time, or at least it did for me. The height was set to where my bipod could move up and hit the buckle on the quick release when slinging my bag onto my shoulders, thus sending my rifle into a free fall. I was next to my bed so no damage done, but it made me really check it over and adjust things

 

[TOLeary]

Have been through the majoirty of this thread. Looking to add a rifle carrier to my exo. Any concensus on best direction to take? Leaning towards the exo or fhf at this point.

for the lower portion, I like how the EXO attaches to the pack. I like how you don’t feel it on the hip belt. The elastic is a little too tight but it’s definitely not going anywhere. I think the attachment method outweighs how tight the elastic is. I have a kifaru gun bearer and it’s nice to be able to drop in but iit pulls on the belt a lot. I want to modify it to attach like the EXO but haven’t yet. Then would have to test it out to see how that compares.

For the upper portion I have the EXO and kifaru attached. I think with them being so small there’s no reason not to have both. Kifaru for when you’re hunting and EXO for you’re packing out. You could skip the EXO and use a side strap but it’s nice to still have access with the pack on

 

[Mark at EXO]

We have an email going out shortly, but I wanted to make sure that you guys in this thread also don't miss this opportunity...

We just celebrated the 10th anniversary of our very first pack sale and are doing a quick flash sale to say thank you to everyone. Between now and Noon (MST) tomorrow (03/14/24), you can save 10% OFF site-wide with the code:

10YEARS​

We will also pick 10 orders that were placed during that timeframe, fully refund those orders, and ship all of those items to the purchaser at no cost.

Thank you all for the support over the years, and especially with your feedback in this thread throughout the K4 development and launch.

 

[IDVortex]

This is about to cost me some money.

 

[RaggedHunter]

Just made the switch to EXO, I have been using various Kifaru frames and bags for the last decade. I tried a buddy's K2 roughly 5 years ago. Compared to my kifaru duplex lite at the time I preferred the Kifaru when it came to frame comfort. Of the packs I've tried over the years, the duplex lite frame is the gold standard for me. But Kifaru bags always seem to leave something to be desired. I've came close to finding my perfect bag, but there always just seems to be a few things I feel like miss the mark with the bags.

I recently bought the new ark frame when it was released and sold my duplex lite before the ark arrived. After trying the ark out for a while, it was clear the ark did not fit me as well as my old duplex lite, I was kicking myself for selling my tried and true pack before trying out the new one. The back profile on the ark seemed to not quite work for me and my flat ass. I was bummed kifaru no longer has a way of changing stays to fit different back profiles.

So I decided to use the opportunity to try something completely new. I've always liked the design of the EXO bags, and have heard so much good about the new K4 frame, I figured it was worth a shot. I sold the ark frame and ordered a K4 2200.

My K4 arrived yesterday, and I spent some time getting it adjusted last night. I have to say as far as initial impressions go, I am very impressed with EXO. I love the bag, this is the bag I have been trying to find for several years, EXO knocked the bag design out of the park. There are a handful of "small details" on the K4 that really hit the mark.

It's too soon to tell on the frame, but just walking around the yard a bit with ~30lbs, it feels great and was extremely easy to adjust. I can't wait to get it loaded up and put some miles on it. I will post back with my updates once I get some miles logged with it, but I am very optimistic.

 

[sr80]

We have an email going out shortly, but I wanted to make sure that you guys in this thread also don't miss this opportunity...

We just celebrated the 10th anniversary of our very first pack sale and are doing a quick flash sale to say thank you to everyone. Between now and Noon (MST) tomorrow (03/14/24), you can save 10% OFF site-wide with the code:

10YEARS​

We will also pick 10 orders that were placed during that timeframe, fully refund those orders, and ship all of those items to the purchaser at no cost.

Thank you all for the support over the years, and especially with your feedback in this thread throughout the K4 development and launch.

You guys rock, what an awesome company. Congratulations on your guys' achievements, and future!

 

[MT_Wyatt]

Okay - I’ve actually read all 136 pages now. I’ve been using SG for 10 years but at 5’8” I’m intrigued by this new exo frame, specifically due to the 23.5” option and stay shape. The only thing that’s ever bugged me with SG is the stay height at 26” so exo has some nice options there. After reviewing a lot of the excellent content exo puts out on their systems I’m curious for some user feedback on two specific things I’ve noticed but have no experience with.

1) loads: I’m used to the “load shelf” SG uses to elevate loads on the frame. How well do the load straps on k4 do in keeping meat backs high on the frame? Does the bag connection at bottom help much in keeping loads up?

2) compression: the bottom of the bag looks like a unique/clean way to compress. But there’s no connection at the top of the frame back to top of bag (I’m used to this with an SG) - it appears the lid is designed as that bridge point. How well does this work? With the bottom and only 2 side compression straps, I can see the easy/fast load access for frame being a feature.

It obviously works based on some of the user photos in the thread - if anyone has used both pack systems a bit of compare/contrast would really be appreciated!

 

[prm]

Okay - I’ve actually read all 136 pages now. I’ve been using SG for 10 years but at 5’8” I’m intrigued by this new exo frame, specifically due to the 23.5” option and stay shape. The only thing that’s ever bugged me with SG is the stay height at 26” so exo has some nice options there. After reviewing a lot of the excellent content exo puts out on their systems I’m curious for some user feedback on two specific things I’ve noticed but have no experience with.

1) loads: I’m used to the “load shelf” SG uses to elevate loads on the frame. How well do the load straps on k4 do in keeping meat backs high on the frame? Does the bag connection at bottom help much in keeping loads up?

2) compression: the bottom of the bag looks like a unique/clean way to compress. But there’s no connection at the top of the frame back to top of bag (I’m used to this with an SG) - it appears the lid is designed as that bridge point. How well does this work? With the bottom and only 2 side compression straps, I can see the easy/fast load access for frame being a feature.

It obviously works based on some of the user photos in the thread - if anyone has used both pack systems a bit of compare/contrast would really be appreciated!

Note, I am also 5-8 and started with the 23.5”. It was too short. If you have a relatively longer torso I would recommend the 25”.

 

[rileybassman]

Okay - I’ve actually read all 136 pages now. I’ve been using SG for 10 years but at 5’8” I’m intrigued by this new exo frame, specifically due to the 23.5” option and stay shape. The only thing that’s ever bugged me with SG is the stay height at 26” so exo has some nice options there. After reviewing a lot of the excellent content exo puts out on their systems I’m curious for some user feedback on two specific things I’ve noticed but have no experience with.

1) loads: I’m used to the “load shelf” SG uses to elevate loads on the frame. How well do the load straps on k4 do in keeping meat backs high on the frame? Does the bag connection at bottom help much in keeping loads up?

2) compression: the bottom of the bag looks like a unique/clean way to compress. But there’s no connection at the top of the frame back to top of bag (I’m used to this with an SG) - it appears the lid is designed as that bridge point. How well does this work? With the bottom and only 2 side compression straps, I can see the easy/fast load access for frame being a feature.

It obviously works based on some of the user photos in the thread - if anyone has used both pack systems a bit of compare/contrast would really be appreciated!

1) - Yes, keeping meat high on the shelf is not an issue, you can use the bag connection, two independent frame straps, or the crib to accomplish this depending on how you want to do it.

2) - IMO compression works fine/great. The bottom compresses really well. The top you can run with or without the lid. The upper straps do a good job of compressing the top of the bag. The bag does have slots and sits on top of the stays at the top. Personally, I don't love top straps, my wife's mystery ranch has some and they always bugged me a little but YMMV.

Where you at in MT? I have a K4 in the Kalispell area if you are curious to see...

Edit to add - I'm 5'7" and have both the 22 and 23.5 stays on hand. I cruise around and day hunt in the 22" and if I know I'm carrying a heavy load have the 23.5". I have the 2200 and 5000 bags and my wife has the 3600 on an EXS frame, so a bunch of options for you to check out if you are close...

 

[rileybassman]

Note, I am also 5-8 and started with the 23.5”. It was too short. If you have a relatively longer torso I would recommend the 25”.

Somewhat agree - the 23.5 works for me, but it's not an extreme lift angle - I'm sorta a tweaner. I do like the 22" for "daypack" mode tho and end up rolling short for the day hunts I do.