New pack

[Black hog]

I have a badlands 2200 that I have packed a few elk with and it's not bad are the more expensive packs really that much more comfortable while packing heavy loads I've been looking at the mystery ranch Metcalf but not sure if worth the extra money

 

[oldhorse]

I ran a Badlands 2200 for 8 years. I didn't even know high-end packs existed at that time. I switched to an Eberlestock Dragonfly for one season. Then I bit the bullet and bought a Kifaru setup and haven't looked back. You will not regret upgrading to any of the top tier packs. The difficulty will be deciding which make and model to go with.

 

[HuntWyld]

Yep badlands 2200 to a mystery ranch and now Kifaru for me. Huge difference between the badlands and the high end packs. Like going from a BB gun to 300 win mag.

 

[aion2come]

Badlands make awesome day packs (except for the zippers). But hauling loads, no comparison. A good upper-end pack is comfortable in day mode too. I've run Badlands ... and then done Mystery Ranch, Horn Hunter, Exo, and Kifaru. I've stuck with both Exo and Kifaru. While your legs and hips will feel the weight, the difference in how your back and shoulders will feel after even one mile will be significant.

 

[87TT]

I kept upgrading and had a Kuiu. Then I got the EXO. No comparison. I've said it a jillion times: "unless it catches on fire or someone steals it, I've bought my last pack".

 

[Rizzy]

Yes it's worth it

 

[DoubleDown]

No one likes kuiu? Prices right now is same as badlands 2200.

 

[Olsolitaire1]

Well I for one really like my KUIU 5200 Icon Pro.

 

[Young Blood]

Ran the badlands 2200 for years. Made my shoulders sore even packing my day gear for a long day. I broke down and bought an exo 4800 this year. I can say after packing 3 elk out last week (3/4 of my 5 point bull 1 mile in 2 loads and 1/2 of my buddies cow out 2.5 miles in one load all in one day) that the upgrade is absolutely worth it. My legs were jello but my shoulders were pain free. An absolutely amazing pack!

 

[Firestone]

I have packed a lot of meat off the mountain with a kuiu pack and it has worked fine for me. If you can pick one up for the price of a badlands i would say thats a hell of a deal

 

[lkwoolsey]

I had a Kuiu, and like it. Then I bought Kifaru, and fell in love. Best pack I've ever used, hands down. Very comfortable, carries the weight well. Deciding which pack can be tough, but once you figure out which one you want/ like, you'll be set. Plus Kifaru customer service has yet to let me down.

 

[Brady1]

Definitely worth it. The saying "you get what you pay for" stands true, especially for packs.

 

[Krieg Hetzen]

I went from a large Alice pack with a steel frame to an Eberlestock Dragonfly and now have a SG Sky Guide. Threw 35lbs in the SG to take my dog on a walk today. Didn’t even notice it. My dragonfly would have started making my neck sore. The dragonfly was 10x better than the Alice and the SG is 100x better than the dragonfly. It’s that good.

 

[hunting1]

I ran a Badlands 2200 for 8 years. I didn't even know high-end packs existed at that time. I switched to an Eberlestock Dragonfly for one season. Then I bit the bullet and bought a Kifaru setup and haven't looked back. You will not regret upgrading to any of the top tier packs. The difficulty will be deciding which make and model to go with.

This!

 

[*zap*]

I went from a large Alice pack with a steel frame to an Eberlestock Dragonfly and now have a SG Sky Guide. Threw 35lbs in the SG to take my dog on a walk today. Didn’t even notice it. My dragonfly would have started making my neck sore. The dragonfly was 10x better than the Alice and the SG is 100x better than the dragonfly. It’s that good.

My SG Krux (older model) and sky 6200 has been awesome...handles weight very well.

 

[hikenhunt]

No one likes kuiu? Prices right now is same as badlands 2200.

I have a KUIU that's worked great for me. It's all about finding a pack that fits your build.

 

[carnageasada]

I have a KUIU that's worked great for me. It's all about finding a pack that fits your build.

Yup, had a Kifaru Pointman, then a Mystery Ranch, now headed back to another K, it's gotta "fit" you, that simple...

 

[Newtosavage]

My first pack upgrade was to a Eberlestock Dragonfly, which is a great pack but starts to show it's weakness at about 35-40#. Still, as a day pack for a rifle hunter, it's pretty great.

I bought two MR packs (pop-up 28 and then a Pintler) and couldn't get along with either of them. The shoulder straps on the MR packs just don't suit me at all.

So I went back to Eberlestock and bought the tall F1 Mainframe, attached the lid from my Dragonfly, and will run it with two batwing pouches. I've already loaded that Mainframe with 50+ lbs. and it's very comfortable. It could easily handle much more weight than I can.

I know a lot of guys love the MR packs, but to me they put the weight too far away from your body and I always feel like I'm tipping back when I load anything on the overload shelf. I also didn't like that the frame was straight instead of contoured with your shoulders, which I think contributes to that problem above.

So I'll stick with my Eberlestock packs because of all I've tried, they have been the most comfortable and their durability is second to none.

 

[Shigawire4sure]

Yup, had a Kifaru Pointman, then a Mystery Ranch, now headed back to another K, it's gotta "fit" you, that simple...

This

 

[LeftOverChicken]

I run a dragonfly and it’s been good to me. With that being said I’ve never had a chance to try a higher end pack. From everything I’ve read and heard from various people is that the higher end packs do make a huge difference when packing heavy. But I’ve also heard of guys going with less expensive packs because they fit them better.


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