Weight Weenies

[Where's Bruce?]

Stop and think about the coin you spend cutting weight. The lightest pack, the lightest shelter, the lightest sleeping bag or quilt...etc. So let's say you weigh 200lbs and your 10 day pack weights 75. Your hiking weight (with boots and clothes, cell phone, and such is about 280lbs give or take. You spent hundreds (probably thousands) to cut your pack weight 10-12lbs. Is that smarter than losing 10-12lbs and carrying slightly heavier and much less expensive gear? I'm asking for a friend.

 

[ozyclint]

10 day pack = 75lbs. What the hell!
my 14 day pack is 55lb

why not lose weight off the pack and the body.

 

[Nickofthewoods]

Pack dump please!

 

[ozyclint]

pack dump. take a dump

 

[Trevor73402]

My 10 day would be close to 70, but mainly because I'm going to be carrying way more food than some of yall. I cant live on handful of peanuts and a piece of beef jerky everyday like some can.

 

[nettereo16]

When I’m huffing up the mountain I’ve never thought “man, I wish my pack was heavier”!!!

 

[thinhorn_AK]

Why not both, get in great shape and cut some weight then cut weight in the pack as you see fit. Beat of both worlds.

 

[Felix40]

1. If you think being lightweight is a 70 pound pack you have too much stuff

2. The only thing in my pack that takes my cost into the thousands is optics and I sure didn’t buy those to save weight

3. Not everyone here is overweight

 

[Smithb9841]

Not everyone is going to perform better weighing 10-12lbs less... if someone is over weight than yea that will help but for people who are already at a healthy weight losing weight will usually include losing strength as well.

 

[Copen1822]

Getting pack weight down is more about not bringing stuff you dont need then it is about buying special gear.

I see no reason to pack extra weight if I can help it.

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[16Bore]

There’s certainly a point of dimeninsing returns but nobody that swapped a 4lb tent for a 3lb tent is going to admit they waisted their efforts doing so.

 

[Jon Boy]

Getting pack weight down is more about not bringing stuff you dont need then it is about buying special gear.

I see no reason to pack extra weight if I can help it.

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This. You will be within 5 lbs of some of the lightest packs with budget gear. I know because I've done it.
After a certain point I wanted every advantage I could get.
I do get where Bruce is coming from though as I pack 2-2.5 lbs of food a day and refuse to eat granola bars for 75% of the day.

 

[spike camp]

This. You will be within 5 lbs of some of the lightest packs with budget gear. I know because I've done it.
After a certain point I wanted every advantage I could get.
I do get where Bruce is coming from though as I pack 2-2.5 lbs of food a day and refuse to eat granola bars for 75% of the day.

I don’t know about ‘within 5 pounds’ when comparing UL year to budget gear....

 

[Jon Boy]

I don’t know about ‘within 5 pounds’ when comparing UL year to budget gear....

Obviously you won't be doing winter goat hunts with this stuff and the longevity will be lacking but I ran a lot of this stuff or similar for many years well into montanas rifle seasons and would again if I fell on hard times. Everything else in a pack should be the same as far as weight with kill kits, possible pouches etc can find cheap puffys, fleeces and rain gear very easily as well. I ran an Alaskan pack frame and a dry bag on it that didn't weigh much more than my exo.

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[AK Troutbum]

My personal goal wt. when hunting season comes around is 150-155 lbs. At that wt. I really don't have room to drop more body wt. so my only option is dropping pack wt. The older I get, the less wt. I want to carry on my back and if I can afford to spend more money on lighter, and a lot of times better, gear, I'm going to do it.

 

[spike camp]

Obviously you won't be doing winter goat hunts with this stuff and the longevity will be lacking but I ran a lot of this stuff or similar for many years well into montanas rifle seasons and would again if I fell on hard times. Everything else in a pack should be the same as far as weight with kill kits, possible pouches etc can find cheap puffys, fleeces and rain gear very easily as well. I ran an Alaskan pack frame and a dry bag on it that didn't weigh much more than my exo.

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Definitely some interesting choices out there...
Gotta compare apples to apples, though.

 

[Poser]

I’m about 200 lbs (can be as light as about 190 peak Mtn bike season and heavy as 210-215 coming off a strength cycle going into the Winter season).

Losing 10-12 lbs is fine if we’re talking fat, but I see no advantage to losing 10-12 lbs of lean body mass for hunting. While a hunting pack for 10 days is easily going to push 70#, id rather shoulder that weight at 200# than 185# of Bodyweight since the pack would be perceived as “heavier” at a lighter bodyweight. Again, to be clear, I’m not advising being fat, I’m talking lean body mass here. The other thing is that I’ll probably lose 5-10# over the course of a 10 day hunt, so I’d rather start out a little heavier to come out with as much lean body mass as possible.

 

[Where's Bruce?]

The same can said about your weapon. Is a 6.5lb gun that kicks like a mule better than a 10lb gun that is extremely tame and you are more accurate with? Or the guy who packs lots of snivel gear...a bottle of booze, some cigars and filet mignon. No foregone conclusions here, just challenging the notion. Sometimes lighter may not be better. Wait. What?!

 

[spike camp]

My pack for a typical September archery 10 day hunt, wouldn’t be any where near 70 pounds.

 

[HuntHarder]

The same can said about your weapon. Is a 6.5lb gun that kicks like a mule better than a 10lb gun that is extremely tame and you are more accurate with? Or the guy who packs lots of snivel gear...a bottle of booze, some cigars and filet mignon. No foregone conclusions here, just challenging the notion. Sometimes lighter may not be better. Wait. What?!

Yes the 6.5lb gun is better. I do not plan on shooting tight groups when I am hunting. Simply making your first shot count. No kill bottle or ribeyes? You sound like a bundle of joy to go hunting with.