Homemade Gearskin

[DebW]

My homemade gearskin turned out to be the heavy version. I used an Osprey hipbelt and commercial shoulder straps. The fabric is 4 oz cordura which should be very abrasion resistant, and it amost completely covers my gear. 14 one-inch side-release buckles and lots of webbing added some weight too. I think it's about 3 pounds total, but hard to fit it on a scale. Carried this pack over the Kinsman's 2 weeks ago, and it worked out well. Kind of a pain to get it loaded, but after that you can reach anywhere in the pack during the day. I posted a picture in the photo gallery http://www.whiteblaze.net/gallery/showphoto.php/photo/5073.

[WhiteMtns]

Do you have any construction photos describing how you put your 'Skin together?

What did you use for a harness? Pirated shoulder straps and hipbelt, or make your own?

I have a good sized piece of Spectra Ripstop and a bunch of 3/4" webbing and buckles that could find their way into a 'Skin...

...I have ideas of how I'd like to approach it, but seeing other's successes and experiments always helps...especially since I can't get my hands on a Moonbow one.

[DebW]

Fabric size: 24x68 inches (I have an 18 inch torso)
If your goal is light weight, you can certainly make the fabric narrower
at the expense of your gear being more subject to tree snags and
abraision.

I used 5 straps on each side, but only because the hipbelt I used has
2 side cinch straps on each side that I had to match. 4 on each side
would be preferred. I also used commercial shoulder straps that I
pirated from another pack. The one mistake I made was mounting
the hipbelt too high on the skin so that there is excess pack material
below my hipbelt and not enough above shoulder level. Ended up adding
compression straps on the bottom of the pack to compensate. In terms of
setting the pull points for the hip belt cinch straps and shoulders strap
load lifters, the best solution was double pull ladder lock buckles on
the ends of the straps that passed through the side release buckles.

I'll try to post another picture or 2 to make this more clear.

[WhiteMtns]

Thank you.

I have a nice sheet of Spectra Ripstop that wants to be a pack. I've always liked the Gearskin idea of infinitely adjustable volume. I also have a handfull of 3/4" buckles and webbing. Would you think that 3/4" hardware would do the trick? I see you used 1". I would expect to have four across the sides, and two over the top. They woud be subjected to 20-25 pounds at times, usually less, but if distrubuted more or less evenly, none should see more than 2.5...I don't think they'd fail under only 2.5 pounds...but then again, I don't expect the weight to be distibuted evenly.

I was figuring on mocking up the size I need by packing most all my gear...or pillows...in my stuff sacks. Then wrapping these in taped up newspaper. Some marking and trimming and I should be able to at least figure out the length and width.

Gearskin corners...the uppermost corners, did you leave these pointed, truncated, or rounded? I picture them getting floppy unless trimmed off, unless of course your webbing meets there.

And a question on your hip belt. Permanently attached? or slid through a sleeve or something?

I'm looking to adapt a harness and hipbelt, but can't quite picture how I want to do it yet.



Are you in Boston? Small World moment. I'm working for an environmental consulting firm and sample Fish in the Mystic River (at the power plant) for Clean Water Act compliance. Never thought I'd be working in Boston...always thought fisheries sampling would take me to the mountains, and it goes and drags me to the city...

[DebW]

I would assume that 3/4 webbing would be fine, but no real experience to base that on.

I left the corners square. They are a bit floppy, but that doesn't seem to be a problem. When I use a blue foam pad just inside the gearskin and surrounding all my gear, then the fabric just covers the foam and protects it. That may not be an issue for you.

My hip belt attaches with fabric that is sewn to the pack, attaches to the hip belt with strip of 4 inch wide velcro, and then adheres to the pack with more velcro. The fabric is attached in a horizontal line at the top of the hipbelt, then wraps around the belt 360 degrees, than sticks back to the pack with velcro. The Osprey belt I got has velcro on one side in the center, so I made use of it. Turns out the velcro doesn't hold the belt on firmly unless the cinch straps are also attached and tensioned.