View Full Version : pack with airpad suspension on a long hike
mankind117
10-29-2013, 12:00
I have a granite gear crown vc 60. I also recently got this new "airbeam" pad make by klymit to replace the regular framesheet. It actually works well, better than the regular HPDE framesheet. I know MLD, gossamer gear, and maybe others have used similar inflatable pads in their packs recently. Has any used one of these framesheet pads from Klymit on a longer trip? As comfortable as the inflatable framesheet is, I'm still weary of taking it out on a multiday trip. If it gets a leak you have going to have a very uncomfortable pack then.
I would stay away from these for a long hike! The blow-up pad on my MLD Exodus FS pack got a big leak halfway through the CDT. I met one other hiker with the same pack, and his was leaking, too. That's a small sample size, but it doesn't bode well for the lifespan of those pads.
I have a granite gear crown vc 60. I also recently got this new "airbeam" pad make by klymit to replace the regular framesheet. It actually works well, better than the regular HPDE framesheet. I know MLD, gossamer gear, and maybe others have used similar inflatable pads in their packs recently. Has any used one of these framesheet pads from Klymit on a longer trip? As comfortable as the inflatable framesheet is, I'm still weary of taking it out on a multiday trip. If it gets a leak you have going to have a very uncomfortable pack then.
I used the GG airbeam pad for 10 days in Glacier, worked great in a GG Mariposa pack. If it leaked I did have a repair patch and a piece of closed cell foam as a sit pad that I could have used in a pinch.
locknload
04-18-2014, 05:21
I just picked up the Klymit airbeam frame yesterday for my Granite Gear Leopard V.C. 46. It won't hold air longer than a few minutes, only 60-65 pumps so I didn't break a seal. I was hoping for more and had the same reservations as mankind but I really can't trust this, back it goes. I hope you have better luck with yours.
Here's something else to consider.
Like many others, I use an inflatable air pad (Exped Synmat UL) for sleeping and I'm nervous about punctures. So I only inflate and use it in my tent. I always carry a patch kit but am not confident I'll be able to locate a small puncture in the field.
Happily, I recently bought a Swift pack as SMD was selling them off. It's perfectly designed to use a few sections (4-6) of Ridgerest foam as a back pad. So that pad will serve both as a camp seat and my backup torso-length sleeping mat if need be.
The chances of both air pad and airbeam failing at the same time are, I concede, low. But I expect the consequences (no sleeping insulation AND no pack support) are more serious on longer trips.
The advantages (comfort and low volume) of air pads outweighs, for many of us, the risk of puncture. But airbeams offer no reduction in pack volume and, since I have no experience with airbeams, I can't comment on whether or not they are more comfortable than CCF pads as pack support.