Help me decide on a pack. SO, Exo, Kifaru experience needed

[smokingfire]

My opinion is that you probably can't go wrong with any of the higher end packs on the market today (EXO, Stone Glacier, Kifaru, Seek Outside, Initial Ascent, etc.). For me, Seek Outside checked off the most boxes, and here is why I decided to pull the trigger on them:

I did a ton of reading, watching videos and research on all of the different pack brands. I called in and emailed each company and drilled them with questions. The two main things I was looking for was a pack that was lightweight and could handle a heavy load really well.

I have personally used EXO, Eberlestock, Tenzing, Badlands, Kelty, Osprey and now Seek Outside under heavy loads and Seek Outside was hands down my favorite. What pushed me over the top on Seek Outside was the following:

1. Lightweight. Starting at sub 3lbs, all their packs are sub 5lbs.

2. The fabric they make their packs out of (X-Pac) is a premium, durable AND waterproof material. This means no need for a pack cover when it rains and no blood stains with easy washing. You can actually take the bag off the frame and hand wash it or throw it in a front load machine if you want.

3. Their suspension system/frame. Instead of using the same frame idea that is already out on the market and trying to improve it like most pack companies out there, they started over from the ground up doing their own system. The frames are very well built...they can support 300lbs in vertical load yet weigh only 6oz. They are also very versatile in that you can have multiple pack bags and switch between smaller and larger packs if needed. I ended up doing a custom build and took certain things I liked from a couple different pack bags. But, it's nice to know I could just buy a different pack bag and switch it out if needed.

4. Adjustable frame height. 24, 26 or 28" frame height. Having the ability to adjust your frame to be taller if you get an animal down makes the pack out easier.

5. Very configurable. I'm still learning how to tweak different things on the pack to make it even more comfortable. Also, not only are they good for hunting, but you could use them for backpacking, pack-rafting, ski mountaineering, etc.

6. Excellent customer service. They have treated me very well and are super nice and helpful.

7. Made in the USA.

Just my two cents. Again, I don't think you could go wrong with any of the other packs mentioned above. I think they are all great. Seek Outside just checked off the most boxes for me and what I was after. I've been very pleased with my decision so far.

 

[NEWAoutdoors]

Smokingfire explained my exact thought process with this too. I ended up with a seek 3500 custom and could not be happier. So many adjustments and just so comfortable all day

 

[NEWAoutdoors]

Also i love the dual belt. Really can customize that too

 

[Grinch1516]

I was in the same boat three years ago. Luckily I had some buddies willing to let me try out their packs. I borrowed a Kifaru and an Exo and took each for a 7 mile hike with 45 pounds in them. Ultimately the Exo was more comfortable for me and that’s what I went with. Really happy with my choice. Both are really good quality and will do what you want. If you can find someone close willing to let you take a test drive that’s the way to make your decision since different body type and size will make comfort different for everyone.

 

[Fins_N_Tines]

I’ve had K1 and K2 exo and Kifaru gen 2 duplex. Right now I have a current gen SO peregrine and a bigger custom bag and a SG x-curve 6900. For me, the stone glacier hauls meat the best of them all followed by EXO K2. Kifaru and SO struggle a little more to stay on my hips.

My opinion/experience: EXO is tops for comfort with light loads, followed by SO, then SG, and the Kifaru gen2 duplex brought up the tail as it was most restrictive.

As far as best thought out bags, EXO is damn tough to beat as far as having convenient features and remaining streamlined and lighter. SG isn’t quite there IMO. SO has some nice designs but they aren’t as refined, I like the use of xpac. Kifaru bags seem to be either full featured with a whole bunch of Molle I wouldn’t need (read: heavy) or they are minimalistic but still not that light (muskeg).

This is spot on. I have used Exo, Kifaru, Stone Glacier and KUIU. When it came to heavy loads the SG Xcurve just seemed like its made for me. Stone Glacier has the best and easiest load shelf out of all. There is no extra item to buy. Its light, simple and flat out functions awesome. The SG load shelf makes training very easy as well.

 

[Marble]

Out of all the pack brands mentioned i have only used Kifaru. I have, and still have, countless others.

My kifaru with half a cow elk and my camp in it was far more comfortable than anything else I have other tried.

I think it weighs like 7.5 pounds empty. That is with the lid, pockets, bottle holderand extra straps.

I dont think you can go wrong with any of the top end packs.

My choice was made with the following thoughts.

1. Comfort...I don't want a pack to ruin my back and thus my hunt...I did about 15 miles in a day when 100 pounds for more than half of it. My feet were sore, but my back and shoulders were great.

2. Configuration....I like a big main bag with individual smaller bags I then pull out and stay organized. Think about how you like to stay organized and then get a bag that fits that need.

3. Durability...I don't want shit breaking and then my hunt is ruined.

Narrow it down...I don't think there is a bad choice here...

 

[rekkr870]

I’ve had a few of the top brands in the backpack game. The Kifaru is the one that stayed.

In my opinion, the build quality is a notch above the rest and they stand behind their product 100%.

I’ll pay a premium for that any day. Absolutely bomb proof.


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[WillHunt4Food]

Thank you to everyone for taking the time to write out their opinions and experiences with packs.

Going out west on my first trip in the fall of 2021, so hearing this information from people who have actual experience with these pieces of equipment is worth it's weight in gold!

 

[Justinstarr11711@hotmail.]

Read about about packs on this. Helped me answer a few questions I had.

 

[kit_man_duu]

I have used the EXO MTN K2 3500 and K3 6400 system and I believe they match your requirements pretty well. These packs are light, very durable and can carry very heavy loads. The 6400 ci backpack packs down very well to be used as a day pack.

 

[HighUintas]

I don't think I ever updated here after actually using it!

So as I said before, I ended up with an exo 6400 with the lid, bow carrier, and gun carrier. I decided to skip getting the drysack to out inside, because I'm more of a rain over person unless I'm going to be in 5 days of constant downpour.

I posted a couple of initial impressions when I got the pack and I believe my only gripe was that I would like some stabilizer straps to be added between the hip belt and the pack the tighten up the marriage between the two when carrying a heavy load. I will say now that I don't think those are needed. It's all about getting everything adjusted correctly. I'm not sure what I changed to fix it, but after I got it adjusted correctly it felt very well connected to the pack with very little shifting.

I did several steep 7ish mile hard hikes with about 75 pounds. It felt very good. I didn't have any hot spots on the belt or shoulder straps, didn't have to tighten up the belt after moving for awhile, and it felt very stable and secure.

For hunting, I went out bow hunting probably around 10 days with it, most of the time with a load of about 30 pounds and a few times with very little inside. This pack is very easy to shrink to daypack size. I never felt like I needed a smaller bag when I was just out for a day with the bag mostly empty. It was comfortable every day, and the only thing that got tired was my legs. The layout of the pockets is pretty close to my old osprey, which i liked, so it worked out well. I keep my emergency kit in the large front stretch pocket, as well as my rain cover, rain jacket, and any loose clothing items I might want to be able to access easily. The bow carrier is great! The lid is the perfect size for any small items that I use regularly, and snacks. It's situated so that I can reach in there when the pack is on my back, which is really handy. The lower side stretch pockets are great for water bottles. I can get them out and back in without removing the pack.

For my rifle trip, which was an 8 day backpack trip way into the mountains, I had it loaded to about 52ish pounds all in, which includes my gun strapped to it and my binos in the bag. I removed the lid for this trip to get the weight down as much as possible. I used a small stuff sack inside the main pack in its place. I never really missed the lid! After getting out there, I pretty much hunted with rifle in hand and binos on my chest the whole time, so my daily load was a bit over 40 pounds. It was super comfy, and I hiked about 10mi a day with that load and never felt fatigued anywhere. I used the tall side pockets a lot for my trekking poles, etc. These pockets are awesome.

I ended up shooting a young bull on day 3 of being out, cutting my trip short. So, I had a lot of weight in food to pack out with the elk. I made the pack out in basically 2 trips. One load had the head all my gear, a rear quarter, and the loins... Somewhere around 120 pounds or more. The other load had the other three quarters and the trim, around 120 pounds or more.

It was fairly tough getting each load adequately secured. The straps on the frame that wrap around to the front of the pack weren't quite long enough to be useful and the additional straps I bought (I can't remember what exo calls them) weren't quite long enough either. So, it took quite a bit of work to get everything situated to carry without the load shifting around a lot. This is the first time I've loaded that much into a pack for a long packout with that type of pack, so it could be that I just didn't have everything situated correctly. I would like to either go by exo sometime or find someone with a lot more packout experience to help me get that figured out better.

For the comfort.... Well 120+ pounds always hurts. I utilized the frame extension capabilities, which was super easy to do and helped a lot. It made the load more stable and felt like it relieved a lot of pressure on my hips. I had to adjust the belt every few miles, but I figured that's unavoidable with that heavy a load and the webbing being really dirty. The load with my gear hurt a lot more, I think because no didn't have the load as secure as the other load. With some pro help on getting it loaded correctly, I think I could have mitigated the heavy load pain a lot more.

Noise, the material itself is quite enough. The pack on the frame will squeak quite a bit when I have it loaded, which I don't really mind but I know some people do. It does this even after cleaning the bag. I think wrapping the frame with low friction tape would help alot.

Overall, I really love the bag. It does check all the boxes that I listed in the first post. I do kind of want to try out a SG pack, but I don't think I would like it much more if any!

 

[Justinstarr11711@hotmail.]

I've been going back and forth between EXO and Kuiu packs. They're both comparable in price, but I'm just wondering which is more comfortable.

 

[Cameron.25]

I've been going back and forth between EXO and Kuiu packs. They're both comparable in price, but I'm just wondering which is more comfortable.

The newer kuiu pro suspension with apex shoulder straps is very comfortable for me until it gets over about 40lbs. If you're going to carry heavy loads alot or are hard on your gear i would look more at the exo or something else. I'm no expert hunter but I have been backpacking for years before i started hunting.
I have done several extended backcountry trips and hunts with my kuiu and 3 pack outs so far. It gets very squeaky when you load up the weight no matter how much i cinch and adjust things, no matter if im carrying a rifle or bow on one side or the other, and several places have tears on the suspension and ive patched several holes in both my ultra bags. I really like the shoulder straps and belt and the overall layout of their packs but they dont seem durable enough, the frame feels too weak for my needs and the squeaks/constant need to adjust straps with a load have been driving me insane. Not sure how good their QC on the bags is either, one of my ultra bags actually had a zipper on an inner mesh pocket completely stitched over with thread when i got it and i had to screw with a seam ripper for a while before i got it open lol

I had a couple of the pro bags before the ultra and they seemed more durable but i didn't like all the pockets, im more of a simple bag guy i guess.

Thats why I'm combing these threads, im looking to get a seek outside or kifaru but im torn and wish i had a way to try both frames without driving to colorado lol. Both very expensive and have a significant lead time

 

[Cascadian]

The bulk of the us at seek outside use the lanner in either breakaway or integrated . Integrated and in SpectraGridHT it’s 3.8 lbs all in


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Hi Kevin, Do you or the team have any pictures of that 3.8lb Lanner in Spectra? Thanks!

 

[CO-AJ]

I have the Exo, and it is funny the three you mention are the 3 that made my final list. In the end I choose the Exo for a couple of reasons. First, was the outside pocket configuration, would have had to do a custom Lanner from SO to get the same pocket configuration. Second I thought the outer fabric was durable for the weight. I think the Kifaru outer material is the most durable but that pack was also the heaviest. I think all of them can easily carry 100lb. I also like the fit and flexibility of the Exo frame. In the end Exo was my choice and I love the pack. I went with the K3 6400 so it is very big but it packs down small enough I can use it as a daypack. My second choice was the SO, and Kifaru was 3rd.

 

[Kevin_t]

Hi Kevin, Do you or the team have any pictures of that 3.8lb Lanner in Spectra? Thanks!

We can get a few .. it is on the Gritty Podcast with me. It's also been in a couple other Facebook posts. It's also the same pack, Zach used in the backpack shootout review that is sticky.

 

[Cameron.25]

I ended up getting a custom multicam SO pack and i absolutely love it. No regrets

 

[Cascadian]

We can get a few .. it is on the Gritty Podcast with me. It's also been in a couple other Facebook posts. It's also the same pack, Zach used in the backpack shootout review that is sticky.

Thanks Kevin! Lots of great views and data in those two videos.

 

[BigCountry49]

Ive tried a few of the big names and landed on SO unaweep 6300. I’m 5’11 170 and it fit my frame the best.

 

[trophyhill]

you are getting a ton of advice from people who have never packed out an elk or took a backcountry trip. They just regurgitate what they read or their experience hiking with sand bags. I would take most of what you read with a healthy dose of skepticism.

Ok. I guess this is where I chime in since I have a ton of experience with several Kifaru Packs and frames, as well as some China junk. First I’d say if it’s made in China or has parts from China, run! Run fast! The Kifaru’s I have work for extended backcountry hunts, or day hunts and everything in between. Durable, tough and can carry more than most humans can carry