Going frameless questions?

[Lyte-w8-hyker]

Well I think I've got my gear list refined down enough to make the plunge to frameless. My base weight ranges from 6-11 pounds. I'm thinking of going with a six moon designs feather or swift or going all out and getting a zpacks cuben blast. When I hike solo I maily use a poncho/bivy setup, but when the wife joins we use a TT dbl rainbow. How does the Zpack do with a rolled up closed cell foam mat as a frame with 10-15 pounds of gear? My current pack is a granite gear vapor-trail, I really like it but I feel I could save almost a pound by going to frameless.

[BlakeGrice]

I just got a zpacks "zero" with a few add ons. Its smaller than the normal blast I think. I rolled up my thermarest and put it in the bottom. Sleeping bag on top of that. Walrus 1 man tent on top of that. 7 pounds. No problems.

[Lyte-w8-hyker]

I look at those, Id want at least a simple hip belt and side pockets and maybe a mesh rear pocket

[ScottP]

if you're committed to being towards the 6 lb end of that range then by all means go ahead and get one of the packs you listed. I enjoy my zpack.


If you're more toward the 11 lb then buy a ULA CDT or stick with your vapor trail and look to make cuts elsewhere first.

[Lyte-w8-hyker]

yea it really depends on the weather and if the wife comes along on any given trip

[Del Q]

I bought a Hyperlite Mountain Gear cuben fiber pack last summer, super pack, great features, light, carried 32 or so lbs in the Fall, super comfortable, great gear. Heading out next Sunday for my Spring section hike, packing gear tomorrow.

[Luddite]

I look at those, Id want at least a simple hip belt and side pockets and maybe a mesh rear pocket

I agree. I think any load over 20 pounds is going to be uncomfortable without a hip belt.

[SouthMark]

I use the Gossamer Gear Murmur, a frameless pack at 2200ci. I have carried up to 22 lbs comfortably and prefer it over my GG Gorilla except in winter with bulkier and heavier loads. 15-16 lbs best. I find that usually the weight over 15-16 lb trips is food and fuel which diminishes quickly.

[1azarus]

I definitely think you are going in a good direction. I used a vapor trail for a couple of years and loved it until I started using gossamer gear products. I actually just gave it to my son because I will never use the vapor trail again. for the loads you are carrying a lighter backpack is definitely the way to go. enjoy it!!!

Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk

[couscous]

+1 on the Gossamer Gear Murmur
http://gossamergear.com/packs/backpa...kpack-297.html
The closed cell pad may take up much more space than you expect inside a frameless pack.
That depends on whether it is torso length and 3/8" thick or full length and much thicker.

[bigcranky]

Nothing wrong with having two packs, one for solo hiking and one to carry the heavier tent when hiking with your spouse.

[STICK]

I would suggest just going with the Blast pack. If you get one of the others you mentioned, chances are you will end up going with the ZPacks later on so you will end up buying more than one...

I have the Blast 30 (which I would suggest you look at, or possibly the 36 ~ depending on how bulky your gear is). I use a cut down XLPE 1/4" foam pad as my frame in the pack and it works great. My base weight is between 9 - 11 lbs (with my cold weather gear) and for a 4 day trip with all of my consumables I am usually 18 lbs or less. Here is a link to a spreadsheet with all of my gear I will be taking with me on a 4 day hike next week:

Gear List

As you can see, at the moment, my BPW is 9.37 lbs. My consumables are 8.59 lbs. This gives me a TPW of 17.96 lbs...and let me tell you...this is a sweet weight. On a 4 day trip I went on last month I started out with a 17 lb TPW and it rode like a dream. No sore spots anywhere at all. Actually when others were slackpacking to hike up to a summit I opted to keep my pack on. I loved it. Can't say enough good things about it.

I also use a Multipack which I wear on the front of me. In the Multipack I keep the items I would usually keep in my hip belt pockets, along with snacks/lunch for the day. The total Multipack weight was approximately 1.25 lbs. I opted to get this rather than add on hip belt pockets. The Multipack is a slightly larger capacity than 2 hip belt pockets, plus it is less weight than those 2 hip belt pockets. And after using it, I find that I can access it easier than hip belt pockets, and much prefer this now. As well, with the Multipack attached to the front of me, and centered, it actually creates a slight bit of counter weight to my pack which helps improve my center of balance.

The trick is to pack the pack correctly. Everything needs to be quite uniform inside the pack, and the pack needs to be filled, or at least close to it. Also, the less amount of gear attached to the outside of the pack the better for your center of gravity since all the weight is closer to you. In my pack I hardly have anything in the outside pockets of the pack. Here is a video I shot when I packed up my pack.



20lbs (TPW) or less is suggested in these packs, but according to the reading on the site, they can handle up to 25 lbs. Also, I know that Raul Perez has carried something like 27 lbs in his. He did report some discomfort IIRC, but after about a day the pack weight lowered (from eating) and then it was all good. Maybe he will chime in though to give a better report on it.

With these weights though, you do need a hip belt. And if you are looking at a Blast pack, they come with one standard. Joe has improved both the shoulder and the hip belts from the older version. So far I like the new style, but I admit, I was a bit skeptical about the shoulder straps at first.

Also, I found that with my ccf pad, I did not have good results with letting the pad expand inside the pack and then stuffing things down the center. Mostly because my pad is a bit tacky and trying to get it open/expanded enough to actually fill the pack is near impossible. With a smoother, slick pad this would be easier. Instead I fold my pad in quarters as seen in the video. I like this better though because I can pack the pack perfectly with the ccf pad in this state. But, I am not saying this way is better than letting it open up and expand, it just depends on your gear. And with my gear, this method works better for me.

Concerning the actual pack, there is no difference between the Zero packs and the Blast pack. The difference is in the added on features. The Zero has zero features whereas the Blast comes with a set of standard features (you can read about this on the sight when looking at the packs.) Of course all the same features are available for the Zero pacsk, and in the end a Zero pack can be made to be exactly like the Blast pack, but the Blast pack is priced lower. The small Zero is the same size as the Blast 22, the Medium is the same as the Blast 30 and the Large is the same as the Blast 36. However, Joe offers an XS Zero pack and this is his smallest pack. (Just for reference, I can fit all of my summer gear inside a XS pack, but it does not leave enough room for more than about a day's worth, two at the most, of food. So, I ordered the size Small. This pack will be used for my summer gear (BPW of 5.7 lbs, of course including the pack).

And I agree with bigcranky...nothing wrong with having multiple packs...

Hope this helps, and good luck with your decision!

[Lyte-w8-hyker]

thanks for all the imput guys, I heard some gossamer gear packs have issues with the straps pinching the neck? Any input on that?

[on_the_GOEZ]

+1 for ULA CDT. Mine lasted the whole way.. NTM the best customer service I've ever had..

I have no experience with cuban fiber packs but some others I hiked with said theirs had ripped and was patched with Duct tape. I couldn't imagine buying a pack for one thru hike if that's all it will last just to save a few ounces..

[Lyte-w8-hyker]

this ins't even necessarily for a thru hike. I'm an AT section hiker as well as hikes closer to home on weekends. hummmm decisions decisions

[Rif]

Here is a link to a spreadsheet with all of my gear I will be taking with me on a 4 day hike next week:

Stick,

Will you be updating your site with a video of your food and/or gear prep and packing? I find these visuals very inspiring as you always describe why you are taking certain things. I also like the reviews of how your trips went and what you would do differently (or not).

Thanks,
Tony

[STICK]

Stick,

Will you be updating your site with a video of your food and/or gear prep and packing? I find these visuals very inspiring as you always describe why you are taking certain things. I also like the reviews of how your trips went and what you would do differently (or not).

Thanks,
Tony

I am not sure if I will do any prehike videos this time. Reason being that I already have a lot of stuff to do next week before I leave, but also because the packing will be very similar to the packing I did in the video I posted above. I will though do some videos while on the trail, and quite possibly some when I get back.

I have ordered a Zero pack to use for warm weather set-ups, and on my first trip with it I will do a video of me packing it.

I am glad thought that you like my videos and that they can be of some help. Thanks for inspiring me!

[ScottS]

Stick, what did you use to make your cozy?

[STICK]

Stick, what did you use to make your cozy?

Reflectix & aluminum tape.

[Wags]

i always appreciate your vids stick. 2 questions:

1. rain pants and zpacks cloudkilt. reason for the redundancy?
2. towel in your multipack and inside your main pack. again, reason for the redundancy?