if you had to chose between a bag only out of these 3 Seek,Kuiu,Exo

[slick trick]

wondering if you had to chose between these 3 -just bag only again bag only, Seek 6300, Kuiu 5200 Icon, or Exo 5500, tell me why and which one you would chose and use- likes and dislikes

 

[92xj]

Exo, based off customer service, support of public land and the sponsorship of their other business to the slide.
Kuiu likes penis.
Seek is alright but no deep knowledge of the company.

All 3 bags will hold the sameish.

 

[couesbitten]

Kuiu likes penis.

HAHAHAHA, Love this!

Exo, I have one and it's a great bag! I've heard nothing about the Seek Outside packs, just no experience to consider in my decision.

 

[Elkoholic87]

Mentioning Kuiu in the same sentence with Exo is a slap in the face to Exo.


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[doverpack12]

From a pure functionality standpoint which I believe is the intent of the OP I prefer the kuiu for several reasons. I have no personal experience with the week outside. While I really prefer the kuiu 3200 the 5200 is the same for advantages but the lid is too big and floppy. Horseshoe zip is an unmatched design from pure access and function getting In and out of the pack multiple times a day. I had both EXO 3500 and 5500 and have moved on to the kuiu 3200. The EXO 3500 I had the first gen and hated the sewn on lid but that has been fixed with the floating lid. I could never fit nearly as much stuff in the pack due to the design and I think packs with a vertical side zip are best suited for a load up get somewhere and unload everything. Next I moved to the 5500 the following year thinking I just needed a bigger bag well not the case. Just never could fit stuff in the bag and whatever is on the far side from the zipper is a royal pain to get in and out. The kuiu pro bags have the right amount of pockets and organization with a horseshoe zip for access and are so much more functional and easy to use for me. EXO is a great company but that's not what this thread is about.

 

[Griz34]

I really don't get the kuiu hate. My guess is it's people who have never tried their products. I have kuiu and Kifaru pack and have had my hands on exo. If I was talking purely functionality of the three bags you mentioned I'd go with the Kuiu bag. I really think it's just sheep following with the in crowd piling on to Kuiu.

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[dotman]

Exo, based off customer service, support of public land and the sponsorship of their other business to the slide.
Kuiu likes penis.
Seek is alright but no deep knowledge of the company.

All 3 bags will hold the sameish.

Just look at the BHA lifetime memberships and you may see that SO does a bunch for public lands as well.

 

[dotman]

I really don't get the kuiu hate. My guess is it's people who have never tried their products. I have kuiu and Kifaru pack and have had my hands on exo. If I was talking purely functionality of the three bags you mentioned I'd go with the Kuiu bag. I really think it's just sheep following with the in crowd piling on to Kuiu.

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To understand the Kuiu hate you would have to have been a customer from the start, some could careless others got sick of the companies business practices. I'll leave it at that as nothing more is needed to be said since it just ends up ruining a thread.

To the OP I would go EXO and SO over Kuiu, between the two it just depends on what options you want.

 

[Griz34]

Ive been a customer since 2013, and have never had a bad experience. The only problem I've ever had is lack of inventory which is understandable with a growing company.

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[Elkoholic87]

From a pure functionality standpoint which I believe is the intent of the OP I prefer the kuiu for several reasons. I have no personal experience with the week outside. While I really prefer the kuiu 3200 the 5200 is the same for advantages but the lid is too big and floppy. Horseshoe zip is an unmatched design from pure access and function getting In and out of the pack multiple times a day. I had both EXO 3500 and 5500 and have moved on to the kuiu 3200. The EXO 3500 I had the first gen and hated the sewn on lid but that has been fixed with the floating lid. I could never fit nearly as much stuff in the pack due to the design and I think packs with a vertical side zip are best suited for a load up get somewhere and unload everything. Next I moved to the 5500 the following year thinking I just needed a bigger bag well not the case. Just never could fit stuff in the bag and whatever is on the far side from the zipper is a royal pain to get in and out. The kuiu pro bags have the right amount of pockets and organization with a horseshoe zip for access and are so much more functional and easy to use for me. EXO is a great company but that's not what this thread is about.

Which items were you not able to fit in the 5500? Seems rather strange you would have difficulty fitting items in such a large bag. I have the 5500 and it is HUGE. I just don't see how anyone can have issues with items not fitting.


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[Akicita]

wondering if you had to chose between these 3 -just bag only again bag only, Seek 6300, Kuiu 5200 Icon, or Exo 5500, tell me why and which one you would chose and use- likes and dislikes

My SO Fortress 6300 has been outstanding over a 100+ days and nights in the back country. The X-Pac fabric has met all expectations of weather resistance and durability and the craftsmanship and design are among the best I've seen in my 50+ years. I got the optional Side Zip and glad I did.

 

[doverpack12]

Which items were you not able to fit in the 5500? Seems rather strange you would have difficulty fitting items in such a large bag. I have the 5500 and it is HUGE. I just don't see how anyone can have issues with items not fitting.


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Just my standard stuff I carry for every day out. Yes the bag does get bigger if you want to use the snow collar but I'm not going to expand that for just a day hunt. When I got my Kuiu Icon Pro 3200 I unloaded my EXO 5500 into the 3200 and had room to spare in the 3200 and I felt the EXO was maxed out from a functionality standpoint. Yes the EXO had more room but, the area above the side zip to the bottom of the lid is really tough to use and get items in and out of multiple times a day. Maybe a puffy or rain jacket could go there but then as you eat foot and drink water that stuff settles down to where its in your way and you have to push it back up and hold it out of the way while trying to feel blindly on the far side of the pack for what you know is there. I will also add (forgot this in my first post) I do not use vertical side pockets for spotting scopes and tripods like the EXO has so that was another huge part of the capacity shortage for me because those and the snow collar are what gain the capacity over the 3200. I felt like the bag only from bottom of lid when compressed down with no snow collar capacity to bottom of bag and nothing in spotting scope pockets on the EXO 5500 was less capacity than the 3200. Its a personal preference on bag setup but generally when I tell people about my experiences that are frustrated with EXO bags they completely agree with me on function.

 

[slick trick]

looking at your pictures of full pack befor kill/haul pic, it seems pac is riding really low in the kill pic- it may just be the pic but load lifters look low ? and do you have bag rolled way down in that pic, from the shot above it looks like it can extend really high up

 

[slick trick]

also are you running hydro in the Talon or in the bag?

 

[Akicita]

looking at your pictures of full pack befor kill/haul pic, it seems pac is riding really low in the kill pic- it may just be the pic but load lifters look low ? and do you have bag rolled way down in that pic, from the shot above it looks like it can extend really high up

also are you running hydro in the Talon or in the bag?

The 6300 Fortress is designed like a traditional mountaineering roll top bag that allows it to extend well above risers for a full load out. The full load picture is from late season approach to the summit of Meadon Peak with a 10 days of gear and 8 days of food. In that picture I have the SO Multilid loaded with my every day back country survival gear. My Arcteryx Rush is stuffed underneath which makes it appear even taller. In the Muley pack out picture I rolled the top down below the risers with the Multilid full of my survival gear laying down between the skull and the pack as a spacer to allow me more head articulation during a climb out of a very deep ravine. It is actually riding in a full hip load bearing position with little or no weight on my shoulders. Inside the bag was my every day "day pack" load out along with the neck roasts, back straps, tenderloins, heart and liver. I packed out 2 quarters inside the bag with 2 quarters compressed between the Talon and the bag the next day along with my typical day pack load out. The picture of it resting against the rock with Meadon in the background is of it compressed down in my typical hunting "day pack" configuration with the Multilid survival gear, my "day pack" gear in the main bag and my 3 L bladder filled with 1.5 L of water. I carry the bladder inside the bladder pocket of the Talon and a 1 L Nalgene in an outside pocket. The Talon main compartment has my big game "Kill Kit" in it and Arcteryx hardshell pants. My Arcteryx Beta jacket is rolled up and lashed on outside for easy access.

 

[rockmail2]

Exo...because I think it's the best frame out there and I think the frame is the most important factor. I have seen some bag designs I like better but Exo bags work great too. I'm actually going to be running the Exo horn hauler/lid/crib in conjunction with a kifaru camp bag...super excited about this setup!

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[Brendan]

Kuiu makes great clothing. Some of their pieces I would classify as the "best" for certain scenarios.

Kuiu makes average packs that are not on the same level as some others.

Kuiu has a lot of fans, and pisses a lot of people off with a "Holier than thou" attitude. And, they're still bitter about the cliff test and the bad press from their frames failing.

Kuiu has a reputation of deleting threads and questions they don't like from their own forum.

I'm not a fan of the company, but I still use some of their gear because it works. Kenai, Chugach NX, Guide Jacket, and their zip-off merino bottoms to name a few.

Packs - there are better choices. Exo, Seek, Stone Glacier, Kifaru. Unless you just need a pack to match your camo...

 

[boom]

i dont really care about what pack a person carries..

personally i think it would be boring as eff if we all had the same gear. i just try to subscribe to the thought that if i had nothing good to say, then say nothing. i wouldnt want to poopoo on anyones purchase. reminds me of a kid that used to make me feel bad in gradeschool when i opened my mom's ethnic based lunch she packed for me. he would immediatley scrunch up his face and scream..EEYU!.

of the three packs listed..i have messed with the KUIU and the EXO. both organized nicely, but the EXO felt better constructed..to me.

 

[luke moffat]

Alright guys lets play nice or I am gonna have to pull this car over

 

[Griz34]

Exo, based off customer service, support of public land and the sponsorship of their other business to the slide.
Kuiu likes penis.
Seek is alright but no deep knowledge of the company.

All 3 bags will hold the sameish.

Not sure how my posts get removed but not this one.

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