ULA Circuit

[Mags]

Others have reported that ULA will, for a small fee, add a robic pocket vs the mesh. I wish I had thought of that as mesh can problematic for bushwhacking (vs off-trail hiking).

Great packs. Great customer service, too.

[saltysack]

Well, I bought a Catalyst recently and I think it is a lot smaller than advertised. The Catalyst might benefit from the cinch cords up the sides IF they were strong enough to work.
The Catalyst isn't even close to all Robic.
The so called stretchy front pocket doesn't stretch much. The shock cord is too flimsy to be effective.
Worst of all: If you fill the main bag the pockets are useless. If you fill the pockets, the main bag suffers.
In summary, my 1974 Rivendell Mountain Works Jensen pack is listed as several liters smaller but holds more stuff better then the Catalyst. The two removable pockets actually work and don't intrude on the body of the main pack. It is also the same empty weight as the Catalyst.
Once again, new isn't always better.

Wayne

Damn Wayne...what the he!! Are you carrying???? I love my smaller circuit...actually was too big after I paired down my gear to things I really needed and used...just bought a GG gorilla 40l to try on collegiate loop as we're on sale $199.00....after packing with all my stuff for 5 days still have plenty of room....I don't have a UL tent or bag..even with a 2lb 15* marmot helium bag, 2lb solong 6, loaded food bag cloths,dogs down bag,food and fleece also!!! Still not crammed and under 25lbs..


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[Venchka]

Obviously I'm doing something wrong. Not sure what it is.
Wayne


Old. Slow. "Smarter than the average bear."

[saltysack]

Obviously I'm doing something wrong. Not sure what it is.
Wayne


Old. Slow. "Smarter than the average bear."

Doubt it....if your old and slow your definitely smarter than me!!!! Are you using a compactor bag instead of stuff sacks?


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[Namtrag]

Part of how I fit so much now vs before is I just stuff my loose quilts and my down jacket in first into the trash compactor bag, then add my clothes bag and hammock. Twist the compactor bag leftover length into an elephant trunk and tuck it. Then on top, put the food and toiletry bags and my everything (miscellaneous stuff) bag on top of compactor bag. Close the top of the pack...Then, cook kit in one side pocket, and tarp in the other (or if it's dry, I can just put it in my pack with the food bag). Water bottles will also fit in side pockets, but I plan on using the water bottle holders on the shoulder straps instead. Rain jacket, rain kilt, stakes, bug spray, saw, the day's lunch, knife, etc will be in the stretch mesh pocket. I am going to really have to cinch the Ohm down to compress this load, as it nowhere near fills the pack. If I use a Bear Vault, it will fill it up pretty good on the inside. Like I said, a Catalyst seems like it would be overkill, unless you were doing a winter trip, or needed to carry a lot of water ala PCT or desert situations.

[Willem]

Can you tell the differances in feel, how it carries? Is it flexable like the circuit e.g does it move with your hips.
What about durability of the material and manufacturing?

Regards

Willem

[Willem]

The above questions are about the arch haul

[mankind117]

Go with Element Horizons or seekoutside
http://www.elementalhorizons.com/
https://seekoutside.com/
sorry but ULA packs are not comfortable. I just don't understand the love for them. The catalyst was the most uncomfortable pack I have used. The two brands I mentioned are much much more comfortable.

[Namtrag]

you left out the words "to me" after not comfortable and more comfortable.

[mankind117]

No I didn't, the ULA catalyst (I had almost 400 miles on it and I tried a circuit which is quite similar) has a poorly thought out suspension and I'm sticking to this. Basically on both you have 1 or 2 stay(s) and back panel that narrow down to a very hard lumbar pad that is at most 4 inches wide, now the padding on the hip belt does not fully wrap to the lumbar pad, there is a couple inch gap that has no padding, and is much thinner than the lumbar pad. The result is that you basically have all the weight focused on the small of your back by this very stiff uncomfortable lumbar pad. The weight does not get nicely distributed all around your hips.
This is in stark contrast to the two packs I mentioned.
Seekoutside is an external frame (but a new twist on it that carries better than almost all internal frames) where the frame hangs from the belt hence you have no lumbar pad at all, leaving the weight distributed all around your hips. Likewise, the elemental horizon has a full wrap hip belt with almost not extra padding in the lumbar region which allows the belt to hip your whole hips rather than just falling in small area on your bad like the catalyst or circuit.

Sorry just don't get all the love for ULA

[MuddyWaters]

Sorry just don't get all the love for ULA

If you didnt bend circuit stay to match your back, its no wonder. If you do that it literally fits like a glove.

[mankind117]

Um, yeah I realize you need to bend it. That was not the issue with the catalyst/circuit, the issue was that the hipbelt/lumbar pad connection and area was poorly thought out.

[DuneElliot]

I agree with Namtrag on this...just because it doesn't work for you and you found it uncomfortable doesn't mean that it is for others. I have a ZPacks Arc Haul which hundreds of people love but I'm finding that it doesn't work for me, comfort-wise. That doesn't mean it isn't comfortable for the majority of others but experience doesn't mean the pack is uncomfortable in general.

[MuddyWaters]

I agree with Namtrag on this...just because it doesn't work for you and you found it uncomfortable doesn't mean that it is for others. I have a ZPacks Arc Haul which hundreds of people love but I'm finding that it doesn't work for me, comfort-wise. That doesn't mean it isn't comfortable for the majority of others but experience doesn't mean the pack is uncomfortable in general.

I think joe took step backward with lower crossbar and heavier pack and pad to carry more weight.

[DuneElliot]

I think joe took step backward with lower crossbar and heavier pack and pad to carry more weight.

The lower cross bar is exactly where I'm having problems.

[Namtrag]

I think the SMD fusion 65 I have is constructed very much the way you describe, and I love having most of the weight on the center of my lower back. That's where I am the strongest, and it's not in the least bit uncomfortable. So again, to each his own. I never say to anyone that any pack should not be considered just because I have a problem with it. Each person has to try on packs with real loads and find the one that fits them best.

[Lane47]

You can justify most anything that you own!
If you are unable to achieve a proper fit with ULA, it's because you didn't put enough effort into the process.
first, contact them, provide all the measurements they request, I provided 6 different measurements, plus my estimated pack load in both weight and volume.
i have a pack that fits great, and will last. I could have accomplished this with a few others, I picked ULA based on input from several other individual. The one individual above is the only negative comment I have read.