Mystery Ranch Hip belt advice please!

[daveymoults]

Hi everybody. I have a mystery ranch Terraframe 80. I’ve had it out a handful of times and it comfortable with 40lb loads.

However, last night I put in 70lb of sandbags as I’m training for hunting season. It was the worst 2 mile hike ever!

The back/bottom of the hip belt seems to be digging into the muscles of my upper butt/lower back. I spend the entire 2 mile hike making adjustments and trying to stop this discomfort. I adjusted the yoke 3 or 4 times, I wore the belt high (that’s when it digs in the worst) and low (which alleviates it but doesn’t feel right).

That stiffener in the hip belt seems to make the heavy loads completely unbearable.

I added some closed cell foam which seems to help some, but my hip flesh is too tender today to really tell if it solved the problem.

Is there a solution or should I be shopping for a different pack?

Thanks!

Ps for reference I am 6’ tall and weigh 185 with a 34” waist. I have the M/L pack.

 

[daveymoults]

Correction: I have the L/XL pack

 

[go_deep]

Only advise I got is watch some adjustment videos from mystery ranch. My 14 son just packed out his elk last week Monday with the pop up 38 60ish # per trip, zero issues.

 

[Mighty Mouse]

Have you been training with less weight and working your way up, or did you just start training at 70 lbs? It's possible that a pack fit/adjustment issue may be contributing to your discomfort, but going from 0 to 70 (if that's what you did) is probably going to suck no matter what pack you're using.

 

[daveymoults]

Have you been training with less weight and working your way up, or did you just start training at 70 lbs? It's possible that a pack fit/adjustment issue may be contributing to your discomfort, but going from 0 to 70 (if that's what you did) is probably going to suck no matter what pack you're using.

Oh ya I’ve been working up to it for several months. I was doing 60lb with an old school external frame pack before. I didn’t wanna wear out my nice pack just doing training so I just saved the mystery ranch one for real hikes. Figured I had better start using it with heavy loads now to figure out the quirks. And quirks there are!

And you’re right, 70 lb sucks no matter how good the pack. But it shouldn’t be unbearable like this.

 

[daveymoults]

Only advise I got is watch some adjustment videos from mystery ranch. My 14 son just packed out his elk last week Monday with the pop up 38 60ish # per trip, zero issues.

Thanks a bunch! I also have the pop up 28 and absolutely love it. Wasn’t roomy enough for my 7-8 day hunt this year so I bought the Terraframe.

I notice with the pop-up series packs that the belt doesn’t have the stiffeners inside like the larger pack does. It seems to be the belt stiffener that is jamming into my back side.

Also great work to your son for getting an elk at 14!

 

[JStol5]

I had a Sawtooth 45 for a year- I could never get it to feel comfortable above 50 pounds. Maybe it was user error, but I spent a full year trying to get it to feel better. Ended up selling it and getting a stone glacier. First hike was with 50 pounds, felt like it wasn't there. Unbelievable.

 

[Mighty Mouse]

Oh ya I’ve been working up to it for several months. I was doing 60lb with an old school external frame pack before. I didn’t wanna wear out my nice pack just doing training so I just saved the mystery ranch one for real hikes. Figured I had better start using it with heavy loads now to figure out the quirks. And quirks there are!

And you’re right, 70 lb sucks no matter how good the pack. But it shouldn’t be unbearable like this.

I've been alternating between a Mystery Ranch Guide Lite MT and Kifaru Duplex Hunter during my training this summer. With both frames, some days I get the adjustments just right and it feels great; other days something is a little off and the same amount of weight feels much heavier/more uncomfortable. Adding an OVI MEAN Pad to the Mystery Ranch frame helped make it more comfortable and less prone to slipping, but I think I'll still be taking the Kifaru on my hunts this fall.

 

[daveymoults]

Follow up time!

I had a good conversation with Colten from mystery ranch and he gave me some suggestions. The one that made a difference was to undo the clips and Velcro on the waist belt, and then re-attach the Velcro at about a 30 degree angle so that the bottom of the belt is canted backwards.

That helped, but it didn’t completely fix the problem, so I took inspiration from Mighty Mouse’s suggestion with the Ovis mean pad. I basically made my own adjustable pad that I can cinch onto the existing lumbar pad and add or remove pieces of 1/4” foam as required. That really helps push that belt stiffener off my lower back/upper butt.

I gotta add, Mystery ranch has pretty wicked customer service.

Thanks for all the suggestions

 

[BDRam16]

I’ve noticed anything over 50-60ish lbs and I have the slipping issue, but I’ve never experienced pain from my MR pack. Hopefully it was just an adjustment issue.

 

[307]

Seems like a really big pack size for your body size. I'm the same size as you and I think I have the S/M belt and it fits well.

 

[daveymoults]

Seems like a really big pack size for your body size. I'm the same size as you and I think I have the S/M belt and it fits well.

You might be right. I double checked while on the phone with mystery ranch and determined that I have the L/XL frame but the S/M belt. I remember when ordering it that my measurements kind of fell right in that awkward in-between zone where I coulda gone either way

 

[dpdub]

I have slipping issues with my Mystery Ranch packs, but I think it's just because I'm fat...

 

[EastHumboldt]

I’m 6 foot, 190. MR Metcalf is my favorite pack. Mine is M/L. Packed out 1/2 of a big muley last year About 3 miles in very steep mountainous terrain. With all the other gear too. Probably 75 or so? To me it just feels like there’s a monkey hugging my back it fits so good. Everybody’s body is different and you gotta get the adjustment right. Sometimes a particular design just doesn’t work for your body.

i’m assuming that after talking to customer service, you’re aware you can take the Shoulder straps yoke loose and adjust it up and down? I second the idea of putting some time into watching some of their adjustment videos.

 

[justinspicher]

I would absolutely try a smaller belt. I wear my packs high, with the pack belt above my hips and went with a smaller belt size than I am sized for. With this combo my pack fits better and feels better when the pack gets heavy. Just my opinion, your mileage may vary.

 

[Oyvind]

I am having the same issue. The lower part of the belt pushes into my lower back. I also believe its the stiffeners. I was thinking of actually cutting them shorter. Might be risky But would it be ok to just remove them from the velcro and have them on the inside? (see picture)

 

[207-12A]

I loved my two MR’s with anything under 50 pounds. Above that weight, I just couldn’t make them comfortable. I went with a Kuiu and Kifaru and both work for me much better with heavy loads.

 

[Bazookas]

I had a similar issue and tried the OVI MEAN Pad myself. Seems like the fit is unique to different body shapes. The OV Pad actually made my pain worse. I have a more curved backside so it seemed to have just added to the pressure on my lower back. I called MR and they sent me a different size waist belt and helped with making angle adjustments on the belt. Since then it has fit very well. I am 5'10" , 180# using the medium/large to get a more full fit around my waist. I wear around a 33-34" pant but the larger belt was a big difference maker for me.

Also 100% agree with EastHumboldt on it feeling like a monkey hugging your back when you get it worked out. I don't think there is a better way to describe it than that!

 

[SoxOnDMoon]

Hi everybody. I have a mystery ranch Terraframe 80. I’ve had it out a handful of times and it comfortable with 40lb loads.

However, last night I put in 70lb of sandbags as I’m training for hunting season. It was the worst 2 mile hike ever!

The back/bottom of the hip belt seems to be digging into the muscles of my upper butt/lower back. I spend the entire 2 mile hike making adjustments and trying to stop this discomfort. I adjusted the yoke 3 or 4 times, I wore the belt high (that’s when it digs in the worst) and low (which alleviates it but doesn’t feel right).

That stiffener in the hip belt seems to make the heavy loads completely unbearable.

I added some closed cell foam which seems to help some, but my hip flesh is too tender today to really tell if it solved the problem.

Is there a solution or should I be shopping for a different pack?

Thanks!

Ps for reference I am 6’ tall and weigh 185 with a 34” waist. I have the M/L pack.

I know the feeling you’re talking about. I think it may be a result of the fitment of your pack. Mystery Ranch has some videos out there on fitment I believe so those are probably worth checking out

 

[westsloper]

Interesting thread. I had this issue specifically with the terraframe. I know it's basically a Guide Light MT frame but I think a few details in regard to padding and some other things are tweaked. Are people having this issue with other Guide Light MT packs?