Meat Shelves..... like or dislike?

[bruno59]

This question ties into a predicament I'm having in choosing between a MR Beartooth and a Exo 4800. I'm planning a hunt where spike camps and overnights are likely. So that means if I'm lucky enough to get a deer, I'll be packing a significant amount of gear AND meat. I had my heart set on a mystery ranch Beartooth. I got hung up on one detail: There are no dedicated load straps on the frame. So that means my gear and load of meat are all cinched down by the same straps. The contents of the bag are under the same compression needed to hold the meat secure. Is that ideal? Packs like the Exo K3 4800 have straps ON frame. Meat is held in place independently from your gear.

you could just buy a pair of MR accessory straps for $18 on their website and just leave them hooked on the frame then use them when you need them

 

[NJ_BHA]

you could just buy a pair of MR accessory straps for $18 on their website and just leave them hooked on the frame then use them when you need them

Do they attach to the frame independent from the existing compression straps? So you can have these straps on AND the bag?

 

[bruno59]

Do they attach to the frame independent from the existing compression straps? So you can have these straps on AND the bag?

Yes you just hook them over the existing tab loops on the frame and just leave them under the bag

 

[IDWapiti]

Surprised nobody's mentioned what I see as the biggest benefit to using a shelf - getting the center of mass higher on your back. Setting the "sag" of the shelf 6" or more above bottom of frame does wonders for moving heavy loads. No different than how you load a pack for a bivy hunt - light stuff on bottom.

 

[*zap*]

Nothing wrong with a load shelf on a small to mid sized bag, stows away e-z and may come in handy.

 

[805Bowhunter]

Meat shelf hands down...for just about every reason already listed

 

[Nightlight1]

I like the option of having the meat shelf even though the only time I’ll use it is if my pack is too full of gear ( like packing camp out). Otherwise I prefer to just drop the game bags inside the pack


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Frost]

Packing meat in the bag is kinda like throwing your deer carcass in the back seat of your pickup rather than in the bed. Head scratcher for sure.

As others have stated there’s a certain amount of meat and gear that will still end up between the frame and compression straps on the back of the pack one way or another. The difference is just where one layer of fabric separates things. Personally I don’t really want to get blood all over my sleeping bag, food, gear etc if I can avoid it. That’s just extra clean up at home. If it happens it happens but no reason to intentionally make a mess. I also don’t want to put warm meat inside a garbage bag unless it’s for a very short period of time and can then cool and air out. I’d rather have a bag sized for just my gear so there’s not a bunch of excess fabric when it’s not stuffed with meat.

My buddy has a Kifaru 44 mag and says it’s a bit of an ordeal to separate the bag from the frame so he just packs meat in the bag. On my exo it is so simple I can probably do it in less than 20 seconds. So for me it’s really a no brainer. But to each their own.

 

[Wright406]

+1 for the meat shelf. Haven't found any cons. Keeps meat cooling while packing out, keeps your gear cleaner, can be used to pack in extra gear if needed. Never had an issue of feeling "pulled" back due to having a full meat shelf and couple days worth of camp.

 

[Kevin Dill]

Big believer in meat shelf packs. Second best thing I ever discovered for packing meat. The BEST thing (for me) I've ever used is a sizable tapered meat-packing bag made from 500D packcloth. With this one piece I can choose to carry meat on the meat shelf or in the pack bag while keeping the meat load from bulging down/out in my lumbar area. It also helps protect the pack from excess blood stains and reduces cleanup. I also use the tapered bag as a gear-carry bag on the way in or out of camp.

 

[Nossback]

It’s nice to have but not a big deal if you don’t.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[jswayze1]

^^^^ This^^^^. I don't know what people carry to say that the load in the bag is going to pull you backwards if you have meat in the shelf. Yes, a rifle or bow strapped to a bag sandwiching meat will screw with the balance of the pack. But, unless you are bringing a size-able amount of Spike camp or a bivy camp out with a load of meat, this theory is mostly fireside logic. Day hunt gear isn't going to affect you that bad strapped over a loaded meat shelf with properly packed meat.


I've done it both ways with multiple pack frames and bags. And, I much prefer the shelf. I imagine these great big bags would hold a whole deboned elk. We are talking a lot of weight. Regardless of the internet persona present on hunting forums, it is just too heavy to feel the bag up and carry out for most common folk. I think people forget that when they advise you of their load outs. Its like guys saying they packed out their bull in 5 loads. All 5 loads were over 90 pounds. SMH

good info.

 

[jswayze1]

Big believer in meat shelf packs. Second best thing I ever discovered for packing meat. The BEST thing (for me) I've ever used is a sizable tapered meat-packing bag made from 500D packcloth. With this one piece I can choose to carry meat on the meat shelf or in the pack bag while keeping the meat load from bulging down/out in my lumbar area. It also helps protect the pack from excess blood stains and reduces cleanup. I also use the tapered bag as a gear-carry bag on the way in or out of camp.

View attachment 160259View attachment 160260View attachment 160261

What brsnd of meat bag is that?

 

[Kevin Dill]

What brsnd of meat bag is that?

It's a custom built bag from Rugged Stitching.

 

[roosiebull]

I didn't read all the replies so if this a repeat- sorry.
The meat shelf really isn't needed if there are 2 bottom straps. The meat will simply ride on those straps, same as the cordura shelf. I don't like meat in the bag, unless I am carrying 2 loads in one and have the space available, and not too difficult of a pack out.

agreed, I just pretty much consider it a "meat shelf" if you can load meat between the bag and frame

 

[roosiebull]

This question ties into a predicament I'm having in choosing between a MR Beartooth and a Exo 4800. I'm planning a hunt where spike camps and overnights are likely. So that means if I'm lucky enough to get a deer, I'll be packing a significant amount of gear AND meat. I had my heart set on a mystery ranch Beartooth. I got hung up on one detail: There are no dedicated load straps on the frame. So that means my gear and load of meat are all cinched down by the same straps. The contents of the bag are under the same compression needed to hold the meat secure. Is that ideal? Packs like the Exo K3 4800 have straps ON frame. Meat is held in place independently from your gear.

I have never found that to be a problem.... just takes some thought when cinching things down to have the meat ride correctly. I also cannot comment on strapping meat on the frame independently, even when I was using an EXO I secured meat with the compression straps on the bag…. just how I have always done it, so maybe I just don't know any better, but it's always worked for me

 

[roosiebull]

Surprised nobody's mentioned what I see as the biggest benefit to using a shelf - getting the center of mass higher on your back. Setting the "sag" of the shelf 6" or more above bottom of frame does wonders for moving heavy loads. No different than how you load a pack for a bivy hunt - light stuff on bottom.

I agree, but you can also do that in the bag, by packing lighter items beneath the meat (in theory, and I bet that's what some do) sounds messy, but i'm sure there are tricks to that like everything else

 

[Wassid82]

IMO meat shelf is the only way to go. I had lots of bags in the past and moved on to better and brighter days. Keep all my other stuff squeaky clean and the heavy load against my back is way more comfortable for pack outs

 

[406unltd]

I’ve hauled animals with and with out. With that said it was with two different systems. I did two elk and a deer with an eberlestock and carried them inside the main bag cause it didn’t have a shelf. I’ve carried a deer and three elk with a meat shelf on my Kifaru setup. I obviously preferred the Kifaru but I suspect if I had a bag big enough to put quarters into it would be great too. Not a large sample size like others may have but it was all solo except one elk so I got plenty of time under load to learn. I wouldn’t hesitate to carry quarters in main bag.

 

[elkhunter505]

Has anyone just cut the shelf off their kifaru? I feel like using the compression straps and the bag tensioners could work just as well as the actual shelf being there plus it would shave the weight off of it.