Tony Trietch did a great review on the ARK frame with a near-production prototype.
I later received a full production Kifaru ARK frame and the KU4300 bag to supplement his review, as well as take a look at its durability.
Kifaru ARK Frame
The over-built Duplex Tactical and Duplex Lite frames from Kifaru are legendary for their extreme heavy weight hauling capabilities as well hauling that weight with a high degree of relative comfort.
The thing about comfort under heavy loads, however, is it doesn’t always translate to comfort under lighter loads. And to be honest, most hunters spend more time with lighter loads in their packs than they do laden down with meat. Kifaru went to the drawing board to address the performance with light loads while keeping that heavy hauling performance. The result? The new Kifaru ARK frame. See it here.
ARK Features
The ARK is based on a carbon fiber frame with slots for attaching bags and accessories. This shift in construction saves a lot of fabric and sewed connections, reduces weight, reduces adjustment complexity, reduces adjustment time, and improves durability.
The ARK frame’s waist belt looks familiar to the Duplex frames, with an extra-wide belt and thick lumbar pad. However, Kifaru noted that some of the strap geometry and materials have been updated to improve longevity and fit.
My 25” ARK frame with the KU 4300 attached came in at 4.8 pounds. Adding the Guide Lid brought it up to 5.2 lbs. Even at that light weight, Kifaru is confident in the ARK’s heavy load hauling capabilities.
Kifaru claims that the ARK frame improves on the already great durability of the Duplex frames as well. We will have to test that out…
KU 4300 Features
The KU 4300 is a streamlined pack designed as a weight-conscious companion to the ARK frame. It is a simple end-opening duffle design where the snow collar folds over and buckles to close. When folded, the integrated “lid” pocket is exposed and accessed by a zipper just above the frame. The snow collar can be filled vertically if the hunter needs additional storage. A lid like the new KU Lid is a good match when maximizing the KU 4300’s internal space and adding a little more organization. However, I already had a (now-discontinued) four-pocket guide lid, which worked well with the KU 4300. Even with a lid, for a simple bag like the KU 4300 I generally like to use internal organizers like Kifaru’s own Pullouts to organize my gear in the main bag.
Build Quality
The KU 4300 is constructed of Challenge Sailcloth UltraGrid and EPX400 fabrics selected for their water resistance and durability while remaining lightweight. The sewing is the usual Kifaru excellence. The KU 4300 has no integrated load shelf, but I secured my simulated elk quarter sandbag to the frame by compression. However, I preferred just putting the load in the KU 4300 bag. Surprisingly, for an ultralight bag, all of the straps were 1-inch webbing secured by burly auto lock buckles. YKK water-resistant zippers secure the lid pocket.
Field Performance
My testing for the ARK/ KU 4300 varied widely this year. I used it for bear hunts, antler hunting, peak bagging, and even travel. But the test that really got me acquainted with the bag was a 45-mile hike through the Idaho wilderness this spring. I got to test the ARK frame’s light load comfort with a light backpacking load of around 32 pounds (pack included).
Usually, when putting on those kinds of miles, I have to adjust the fit throughout the day just to put the strain of the load on a different area of my body for a while. In fact, some of my favorite packs have a lot of easy adjustability to accommodate that task. With the ARK, though, I didn’t need to. Kifaru has my favorite hip belt design. The foam wraps around the iliac crest of the pelvis and “hugs” it, sure and comfortably. The big lumbar pad really worked well with my back shape. With the load lifters, the load was on my hips and balanced for the entire trip, and I didn’t have to adjust the fit … at all.
Breathability was really effective on my back. Sure, that big lumbar pad and hip belt caught some sweat, but I definitely shed some moisture and heat through the frame’s openings between the stays.
When hauling heavy loads like my 82 lb. simulated elk quarter, the ARK frame really reminded me of earlier Kifaru frames. That is, it hauled that heavy weight much better than most of the competition. Kifaru frames, ARK included, do a great job putting that weight on the hips, but the wide belt keeps that weight from causing a hot spot. Class-leading performance here.
Durability
It is hard to judge durability in only a few months, but I had no glaring issues during normal use.
Years ago, I inadvertently caused a bit of a stir in the hunting pack market when I did a fun durability test while comparing early backpack frames from Kifaru and Stone Glacier. I was inspired by a couple of real incidents where I decided it would be safest to toss my pack down a cliff shelf rather than risk climbing down with the weight on my back. Keeping this in mind, I conducted a decidedly non-scientific “cliff test” by tossing the two packs off a random cliff face in the mountains of western Montana. Both packs actually handled the toss pretty well, and both are still in use to this day.
I felt a little nostalgic and decided to do the same thing with this pack to see how it handled a toss off the same cliff.
Here are the results:
Conclusion
Kifaru gave themselves a tall task in improving on the Duplex frames without losing some of the heavy load hauling capabilities. But it seems they succeeded as the ARK frame excels at both heavy and light load hauling. The ARK is the most comfortable Kifaru packframe yet, fully compatible with their complete line of hunting bags, including the KU 4300 for ounce-counting minimalist hunters. The new frame allows for easier fitting, adjustment, and field repair options. The ARK is a winner and survived the “cliff test” with barely a scratch.
Comment or ask Matt questions here.
*Kifaru is a Rokslide sponsor
