New Pack Advise (Kuiu straps cut under heavy load)

[Gutpile]

I have been running a Kuiu pack for a few years and actually really love it except for the fact that the straps really start to dig and become pretty painful under heavy loads. I used a 5200 on a 5 day hike and a 4 day last year with 45 pound loads and after about 7-8 miles it started becoming pretty painful. This year I did 3 separate pack-outs with boned out deer (not sure of the weight but guessing 80-90 pounds each time) and the straps started really digging after about a mile. I used to use a eberlestock J1 and didn't have this problem but didn't like having the meat inside the bag with my other gear/clothes

I now use a Gregory Baltoro for backpacking and the strap design is far superior for heavy loads than kuiu's but I don't want to use the Gregory for hunting.

What I feel is a must is the load hauling ability that kuiu offers where a load of meat can be strapped between the bag and frame.

My question to you all is have you experienced this "digging" issue with Kuiu or is it just perhaps the way I'm built and are there some pack systems you'd recommend for me to look at that have the same load hauling design but better straps/frame?

THANKS!!!!

 

[IdahoElk]

Are you talking about the padded shoulder straps?

 

[Gutpile]

yes

 

[dplantz]

Stone glacier x curve. A lot of people also like kifaru. I don't think you'll hear any negatives about either of these two brands.

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[Trial153]

Get a mystery ranch or Kifaru .....problem resolved.

 

[Weekender]

I have been running a Kuiu pack for a few years and actually really love it except for the fact that the straps really start to dig and become pretty painful under heavy loads. I used a 5200 on a 5 day hike and a 4 day last year with 45 pound loads and after about 7-8 miles it started becoming pretty painful. This year I did 3 separate pack-outs with boned out deer (not sure of the weight but guessing 80-90 pounds each time) and the straps started really digging after about a mile. I used to use a eberlestock J1 and didn't have this problem but didn't like having the meat inside the bag with my other gear/clothes

I now use a Gregory Baltoro for backpacking and the strap design is far superior for heavy loads than kuiu's but I don't want to use the Gregory for hunting.

What I feel is a must is the load hauling ability that kuiu offers where a load of meat can be strapped between the bag and frame.

My question to you all is have you experienced this "digging" issue with Kuiu or is it just perhaps the way I'm built and are there some pack systems you'd recommend for me to look at that have the same load hauling design but better straps/frame?

THANKS!!!!

Seems like you might be over tightening your harness straps. Try 60/40 rule and make slight adjustments from there. Never personally experienced any digging from my Kuiu pack.


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[boom]

(any pack)..

i think you should get more load onto the hips.

 

[Steadman]

Yes I had that problem with heavy loads. I run a different brand now

 

[Weekender]

(any pack)..

i think you should get more load onto the hips.

Agree...before throwing money at the problem, just try to adjust it out. Harness really shouldn’t be the weak spot in that pack.


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[NebraskaStickHunter]

I would agree with the adjusting first. I helped my brother adjust the torso on his pack by one notch and it made a big difference on where the weight was. If that doesn’t work I have read of some guys going frankenpacks with your kuiu bag on a kifaru frame or exo or mystery ranch or stone glacier. Good luck in your quest.

 

[zeroforhire]

Exo. Kifaru. Stone glacier. Whatever fits you best. Buy used. Save money.

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[mike stoick]

Look at stone glacier you can probably pick up a used one pretty easily since they just launched their new frame and bags. The x curve is a load hauling machine.

 

[WV Mountaineer]

Sounds to me like your torso is adjusted too long causing you to really have to cinch down on the straps to stabilize a heavy load. God Bless

 

[Gutpile]

Thanks for the replies. I'm kind of between sizes on the packs and if memory serves this is a large frame. Maybe a Medium would be the ticket. I hate to just keep buying new gear and reinventing the wheel. That said, there is some realy good looking gear coming out these days.

 

[KMT]

I would be sure your pack is set up right first. Why not use the baltero? It’s a great pack. I prefer my osprey over my kifaru. Osprey is lighter and more comfortable. And I carry < 50 pounds a lot more often than I carry > 50 pounds.

 

[bluetick78]

The Gregory pack you have IS superior in harness design to the Kuiu. We as hunters tend to discount "backpacking" packs as wimpy or ineffective, but I promise that Gregory has been designing packs waaaay longer than Kuiu.
I'm not saying that your Baltero is the "best" tool out there for hauling dead ungulates back to the truck, but if it feels better than the Kuiu, then use it!

 

[Gerard Marcaurele]

FWIW from a flatland whitetail hunter, my Exo 3500 is my most used piece of hunting equipment. I train with it at least a few times a week, and it has hauled out at least 90# worth of deer in one load with no issues.

 

[Jayhawkhunter]

I had the same issue with my KUIU, when I got over 50 lbs it was rough on my shoulders, I wanted to like it and keep it, but recently sold it and am going to a Kifaru set up. It is night and day different, I decided to spend more for a bag/frame/suspension that should last me forever and be comfortable under heavy loads. It was hard for me to spend >700 on a bag setup, but once I got past the shock, I'll never second guess it, especially on my next wilderness trip.

 

[maninthemaze]

Like stayed earlier. You should be able to adjust this out of the pack. I have a Kuiu Icon 5200 that I used for a couple years. Make sure the hip belt is over your hip bones. Then adjust the shoulder straps and load lifters. With 10-15 pounds in the pack, the shoulder straps shouldn't be touching your shoulders.

TUTORIAL: Fitting Your KUIU ICON Pack - YouTube

Just my 2 cents and worth the price charged.

 

[rainforest]

Which year is your current Icon Pro 5200? Does it have the rubber anti-slip on the lower back area of the hip belt/pack area? (This is from the 2016 model of Icon Pro, I believe). Are you weighting the pack like was mentioned earlier? I like 65-70% on my hips and 30-35% on my shoulders with heavy loads.

My best guess is that you have don't have the pack properly fitted. I have used all of the Kuiu packs since they came out - beginning with the Icon. This includes carrying heavy loads in all of them.

Here is some of my history with Kuiu's packs...
In August 2013, I hauled a complete boned out Dall Sheep meat/cape/horns/camp/food/gear (125#+) out several miles with the first Kuiu Icon (It was my buddy's). It did pretty well.

In March 2014, I ordered and started using the Kuiu Ultra 6000 for about 5 months of training. It did OK, but is not designed for weight much above 75#+. The heaviest load I hauled with the Ultra was 135# of sand bags on a moderate trail (80' to 1,400' elevation gain in 1.5 miles, then back) around town. It was brutal and I really had to cinch down the waist belt to make it. The pack did the job but was not ideal.

In July 2014, Kuiu came out with the Icon Pro line and I was one of the first to order them. I put my Ultra 6000 bag on that pack, did some training, & went on several backpack hunts, carrying sheep (125-135#) and alpine deer (110-120#) loads. I enjoyed the lighter base pack weight, which is what you carry around 90% of the time on a hunt, anyways.

The Icon Pro has beefier hip belts and shoulder straps compared to the Ultra model, as well as the side-cinching waist belt straps (big plus for me). They still used the same carbon fiber frame, but carry loads much better with the new suspension. I have also ordered some of their newer (2016) models that have the rubberized lower back non-slip area (good addition) since. These packs are still quite light and can carry a pretty decent load without issues.

I have been using the Icon Pro suspension with the Ultra 6000, Pro 3200, & Pro 5200 pack bags for 3-1/2 years and feel that I am somewhat of an expert on using and fitting them (almost everyone I hunt with now owns them). I train year-around hiking 1-3 times a week starting in Dec/Jan carrying 25-50# on our local trails (~40' - 3,700' elevation gain). In February/March, we add snowshoes and/or lead for 40-80#+ packs depending on distance, snow depth, and elevation. In April/early May, we drop the lead weight and pick up rifles to hunt our local "hooters" (Sooty Grouse) on the mountain sides and avalanche chutes [Fun!]. Our pack weights are usually 35-50#.

After a little coastal black bear hunting in May, we are back training 2-3 days per week with increasing pack loads and longer distances (with the snow melting back). Our pack weights are usually 35-100# with occasional 130#+ trips. On some of the longer training hikes we cut back weight to 25-35# - as the distance and elevation gain can be brutal. One example: 17+ miles in 8+ hours with elevation gains of 3,900'+ in the first 2-3 hours with multiple 100'-900'+ descent/ascents (walking ridge tops) for the next several hours, followed by a large descent and hike out.

The heaviest Icon Pro pack I have hauled hunting was 2 boned out full-size Sitka Blacktail deer, some of my overnight gear, my rifle, and my bow/arrows out of the alpine 1,600 vertical feet for 1.5 miles. My pack weighed 152# and it took me 3.5 hours through the cliffs, scree, brush, muskeg, etc. The pack did very well.

However, no matter how you look at it - none of the Kuiu packs are quite up to the level/class of the Mystery Ranch Nice/Guide Light packs for true HEAVY load hauling (140-200#+). I have owned & used many Mystery Ranch packs (Kodiak, Nice Crew Cab, G-7000, Guide Light Marshall, & Guide Light Cabinet), as well as many of Dana Gleason's earlier packs (Dana Designs Terraplane, Astralplane, etc.) over the years and find that they are the "Cadillac" equivalent of internal frame packs. It rides very nice - especially under big loads. I would say the Kuiu Icon Pro is equivalent to a "Camry". For comparison, a Cadillac can comfortably and easily haul 6 people and ride very well. A Camry can haul 6 people, but not very comfortably and the ride will not be all that smooth (especially for the 6th person in the trunk...LOL).

I hope you give the Kuiu Icon Pro the benefit of the doubt and get it fitted properly. If you need some pointers, let me know your height, weight, torso length, frame and hip belt size of your current Icon Pro pack? For reference, I am 5' 9", 195#, 18-1/2" torso, Regular Kuiu Frame, Small/Medium Hip Belt (& MR Pack size Medium).

Good luck.