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Sunshine82
08-07-2013, 14:08
Just curious if anyone has problems with a pack totally rubbing all the skin off your collarbone?i thought I just needed to adjust my hip belt,chest strap and load lift straps but no matter what I do by the end of two or three days I'm bruised and bleeding!my pack was fitted by an outfitter so it's the right size.any advice?

Cyngbaeld
08-07-2013, 14:36
You need a different pack. I had to switch because mine was doing that too. Could NOT get it adjusted right. Changed packs and the difference was night and day.

Slo-go'en
08-07-2013, 21:32
How is it rubbing you raw? It's got to be because it's shifting around. Is it snug to your body or can it move around? What do you wear between your shoulder strap and your skin?

It's helpful to have someone look at the pack while you have it on. They can see where it's not fitting properly and suggest adjustments. Make sure it isn't sitting lop sided, too low or too high. If there is a torso length adjustment, play with that some and see if it helps.

I was recently reminded that packs need to be re-adjsuted once in a while. Just because it fit well once doesn't mean it still will now, but I'm guessing this is a fairly new pack with low milage on it?

Hill Ape
08-07-2013, 21:54
most t shirts have the seam right across the of the shoulder, most technical t shirts for hikers don't (there is a term for the type of seam you should look for, seamstresses out there chime in)

wear a silk weight t shirt.

everytime i walk into REI, it seems the kids that work there just get younger and younger. i know its me getting older, college kids know everything. but i wouldn't trust them as experts. bottom line they just want to make a sale.

when choosing the comfort of a pack, only you can make that call. don't be influenced by what anyone else says

Another Kevin
08-07-2013, 22:48
It could be something as simple as having your load lifter straps too tight or too loose. Most of your pack weight should ride snugly on your hips - if it sways, you need to tighten your stabilizers, if it binds as you walk, you need to loosen them. (The hip belt needs to be snug enough that the pack is supported by your iliac crest.) The remaining weight - less than a quarter of the total, usually, should be fairly far forward and snug. If it's resting on your shoulders, you need to tighten your load lifters. If it's hanging back from your ribs when your ladder straps are snug, you need to loosen your load lifters. They should take off at about a 45 degree angle from your shoulders.

If you can't get that right, your pack is either too long or too short in the torso. Get someone to measure you. Put your hands with the palms toward the floor, the inner sides of the hands resting on the iliac crest and the thumbs pointing horizontally in toward the spine. Measure from the point at the center of the back where that imaginary line crosses the spine up to the first thoracic vertebra (the highest of the protrusions you feel on the upper spine). That's your torso length. The distance from the waistbelt to the anchor of the ladder straps should be the same length. If it's off by more than a couple of inches in either direction, and your pack doesn't have a way to adjust it, your pack does not fit you. Get a different one.

I also find that if I'm doing a long steep upgrade or downgrade, I balance differently, and need to tweak the pack straps a little bit, so that the pack rides a shade lower or higher. I unconsciously fiddle with the buckles all day long.

Don't assume that the pack fitter at your outfitter knew his trade - particularly if you're having a problem.

And it could be that the cut of your pack simply doesn't fit you. For instance, my daughter swears by her Gregory, but had rented an Osprey before and swore at it. The Gregory's stays bend differently, or something. Packs don't all fit the same, so you may need to try a bunch to see what fits your body.

Me, I use a cheapo ALPS Mountaineering pack that I got from an REI closeout... it's an off brand, but it has an adjustable torso and it fits me when it's adjusted right. Lots of packs don't fit me. My daypack is a semi-custom number from Tough Traveler. (I know the owner, and she's willing to do some custom sewing if you can explain coherently what you want.) I'm long in the torso, and most daypacks do not fit me at all. The Tough Traveler was very pricey, but when it's adjusted right, I hardly know it's there. I go a couple of miles a day with twenty pounds of stuff in it to try to keep a little bit of conditioning when I can't get out and hike.

Sunshine82
08-08-2013, 08:03
Thanks for the advice everyone.ive used this pack for three hundred miles but have noticed that if I have a thin jacket on or a coat I have no problem at all.hopefully I can figure out some readjustments

snifur
08-08-2013, 08:11
Just because you bought it at an Outfitter and the Outfitter said it was the right size means nothing. Outfitters want to make money. Most dont know what to sell or how to size or use the gear. Before you buy you should take the time to learn. Go to the Outfitter you bought from and let them know about your issue. Then never purchase there again.

Slo-go'en
08-08-2013, 10:29
Thanks for the advice everyone.ive used this pack for three hundred miles but have noticed that if I have a thin jacket on or a coat I have no problem at all.hopefully I can figure out some readjustments

If you are wearing it against bare skin, then I'd not be suprised it is rubbing you raw. At least put on a proper T shirt. Not knowing your gender, I'm guessing you've been wearing a tank top?

Omaha_Ace
08-08-2013, 11:34
Cheap fix - fit a set of the seatbelt covers like they sell at Wal-mart / NAPA over your shoulder straps to give more padding.

Real fix - go get a pack fitting from someone at an outfitter who knows what they're doing.