Seek Outside Backpack - Fit Advice Please!

[merthussein]

Hey Guys,

Recently received my SO Kenai 5400. It's awesome.

I am having trouble with fit. I have thoroughly checked: this forum, Seek's youtube and their website for solutions and am coming up short. I live in Aus which makes using customer service a little tricky so wanted to see if the Rokslide forum had any advice for me to try first.

@sndmn11 @Marbles @Peaks&Creeks @bozeman @mtwarden in particular if you have any thoughts am all ears.

I will try to take pictures to demonstrate my issues today/tomorrow and add as a comment.

Context:

• Hipbelt Configuration: Captured with lumbar pad. Though have tried all 4 variations over past couple months to test.
• Frame Height: 26" though have swapped back and fourth with 24" to test.
• Harness Height": Torso size measure 18" but I set to 17"
• Pack weight Test: 32kg total = 70.5lb
• Hipbelt grommet: Am using top grommet, the default one.

Issues:

• Hipbelt slippage.
  • As I walk, no matter how tight I cinch hipbelt, am feeling the hip belt slide off my iliac crest and can feel bottom of frame beneath the hip belt start to hit my butt
  • I am putting pack on and tightening hip belt such that my point of the hip bone lines up approximately with the middle of the belt.
• Shoulder constriction
  • Once I tighten shoulder straps, then tighten load lifter, the shoulder straps then dig into side of my chest and ribcage. If i loosen the straps a bit it helps slightly but then bag feels very shifty
• Harness Yoke Height
  • Torso height measuring C7 to iliac crest measure 18" but when I change harness height by measuring top of the yoke to the middle of the hipbelt to match this length, seems like the yoke is floating above my neck. otherwise harness yoke seems to float above my C7 which is weird. If i lower it down to 16.5/17 it seems to sit better
  • but, frustrating part is once I tighten hipbelt and shoulder pads and especially once I tighten load lifters, the shoulder straps lift too much off my shoulders feeling unstable.
  • Also, the frame feels like it's quite far away from my back, not sucked against my back for stability
• Lateral shift
  • I sway a bit as I walk but I feel like the pack weight is shifting around quite a bit when I walk.
  • Inside bag is 20kg of rocks + 10kg plate using internal load shelf and cinched down tight. underneath I put big bag of cloths to keep it elevated.
  • 3 compression straps on each side cinched tight but no talon available for universal compression down.
• Load Lifter Angle
  • My height and torso length should be great with 26" on paper but when I put the 2" extensions in, the load lifters start from above my ear and angle is super steep. It 'feels' wrong though I can't explain why.
  • Going down to 24" feels good but the angles then feel very low and am not getting good lift as I would hope.

I welcome any feedback, can provide any more context you need and will try suggestions to see if it helps. Am open minded but I have done my homework to make sure I understand how the pack and frame works. The solutions just don't seem to be resolving my issues for now.

 

[sndmn11]

Can you take pictures of how the harness is routed behind the yoke? The two vertical straps that provide the torso length.

Can you take pics of the waist belt to frame connection where the grommet of the belt bolts to the frame?

Can you take pics of you wearing it?



@TylerSchaffer works for Seek.

 

[woods89]

I had some similar issues that I was able to resolve by going up one belt size, and dropping the frame to the bottom grommet. Dropping to the bottom grommet made the frame fit my back like a glove.


Also, with a big load, uncaptured works a lot better for me.

 

[Marbles]

Sounds like you have put a lot of work into into this. Not sure I have anything of value to offer, but I will make an attempt.

I like the top of the shoulder harness to sit just below C7. Then use the load lifters to pull from about the midline of my shoulders, so they predominantly pull the shoulder straps up off my shoulders, rather than pulling them back into my chest. (It sounds like you already do all this). Don't crank down on the load lifters, just pull them tight enough you can slip one finger under the shoulder straps, you should be able to shrug your shoulders and take most of the weight off your hips.

If you have not, try dropping the frame to the bottom grommet of the belt attachment. I resisted doing this for fear the frame would sit on my butt, but it fixed my issues.

If you role the frame on its site, does the load shift? If it does, stuff some clothes around it or link your straps so the wrap the entire back just connecting to each side of the frame.

Other than adjusting the sternum strap, I don't have any ideas for the shoulder straps digging into your sides.

In general I think a too long frame is better than a too short frame with heavy loads, you could try cutting down the frame extensions by one inch, but I would not until you have everything else working how you want as I imagine getting new ones in Australia would be a bit more expensive.

Feeling like the frame is too far away from your back sounds odd to me, and without pictures I don't have any ideas.

 

[merthussein]

@Marbles @sndmn11 @woods89 see photos for context.

Will definitely try dropping to bottom grommet.
I am suspicious the harness straps from the rediriect to the yoke may not be correctly set up. Let me know what you think:

i am pointing to my c7 in one photo so you can see the distance from yoke to c7.

i am pointing to point of hip bone underneath hip belt so you can see where hip belt sits in relation. By end of walk it had slid down to near my pant belt line

i made wife put hand underneath shoulder pad to show room under it. Seems too much to me.

you can see load liftet angle I think in one side photo is quite steep.

profile side photo taken to show full arrangement

 

[merthussein]

 

[sndmn11]

@merthussein I'll look at the photos on my big screen a little bit later.

My main concern from your initial description of feeling far away, was that your harness wasn't captured. It is, and below is what I was looking for in that regard.

 

[sndmn11]

@merthussein my opinion is that the torso length of the bag currently is pretty close. What I see is that the waist belt is sitting low, the three bar slider is subsequently rolled back from your collar bone to the top of your shoulders, and that angle is giving leverage to the load amplifying the "far away" feeling of the load and movement of the hip belt. Basically, the picture looks like the portion of the hip belt that is on your butt is the fulcrum point for the load to be pulling backwards, rather than the load sitting vertically and distributed well.


I think that you can accomplish this by loosening the load lifter straps en you put the pack on, and think about dipping your shoulders down and back to "catch" the yoke and straps, and then rolling your shoulders up and forward to bring the yoke forward and three bar slider forward then down to your collar bone. Almost like your shoulders are doing a bicycle pedal motion. If I have a heavier load or a load that is deep away from my body, this takes a handful of shoulder rolls sometimes.

I think this will solve the issue of the pack feeling far away, and it will also raise the belt up ABOVE your hips. I would also try without the lumbar pad.

 

[Marbles]

Not sure this is the correct answer, and I would go with what @sndmn11 said first as my preferences may just be because I'm self taught and don't really know what I am doing.

However, my preference is to have the yoke slightly higher, with an unloaded bag the yoke should pull the bag against your body without the load lifters being tight and without having to crank down on the shoulder straps.

Personally, I like the three bar slider on the load lifters being behind my collar bone as I want the load lifter to pull the shoulder strap up without pulling the load tighter against my back. If I get out of work at a reasonable time today, I'll try and take some pictures. If I leave at 2000 like yesterday, that will not happen.

A lumbar pad might help with the hip belt slipping. Not certain it would though. For heavy loads of about 50 or more Kg, removing the side release buckle and running the gatekeeper straps straight across helps. This may just be because I'm in-between wast belt sizes and run out of adjustment with the side release, but I think it helps tighten the top more than the bottom and mold the belt to my hips too.

 

[Marbles]

My shirt collar is at the level of C7, if I shrug my shoulders up the joke covers C7.


How the yoke sits with loose load lifters.

With tight load lifters, my finger touches my collar bone.

Where the frame hight is in relation to my ear, head is turned and ear touches the strap. This is without frame extensions. With a load of about 50 Kg I like having the 2 inch extensions. I will use the 4 inch extentions for loads over about 75 Kg.


My fingers point at the top of my iliac crest.