WhiteBlaze Pages 2024
A Complete Appalachian Trail Guidebook.
AVAILABLE NOW. $4 for interactive PDF(smartphone version)
Read more here WhiteBlaze Pages Store

Results 1 to 12 of 12

Thread: Osprey sizing?

  1. #1

    Default Osprey sizing?

    I have a chance to buy a used Levity for a fair price.

    However it is a Large. I did some quick measurements based on info from their site and I think I am a medium. 17”-18” torso.

    That seems strange, I am 6’ tall. I thought for sure I would be a large.

    Anyhow just wonder what you pros think?

    I plan to measure more with a helper.

  2. #2
    Leonidas
    Join Date
    04-26-2016
    Location
    Birmingham, Alabama
    Posts
    1,065

    Default

    I am 6'2" and I have used a Medium and a Small Osprey. Turns out I am a weird build in between the two and I couldn't get an Exos in either size that worked right for me.
    AT: 695.7 mi
    Benton MacKaye Trail '20
    Pinhoti Trail '18-19'
    @leonidasonthetrail https://www.youtube.com/c/LeonidasontheTrail

  3. #3

    Default

    I'm 5'5 and have a 19" torso. I use the medium Osprey (Aura and Exos) and it fits great, although I do tend to prefer a slightly longer pack fit due to back issues...I don't like any weight on the shoulder straps.
    Have someone check your torso measurements but I think the large would be too big

  4. #4

    Default

    I'm 6'2" and have a long torso so I always get the large with Osprey. Pretty sure I am 21" which puts me on the cusp for many of their packs. If such were the case for anyone reading, I recommend against the medium as it won't drop to the waist, the hipbelt will ride high.
    "Sleepy alligator in the noonday sun
    Sleepin by the river just like he usually done
    Call for his whisky
    He can call for his tea
    Call all he wanta but he can't call me..."
    Robert Hunter & Ron McKernan

    Whiteblaze.net User Agreement.

  5. #5
    Registered User
    Join Date
    11-01-2014
    Location
    Anchorage, AK
    Age
    62
    Posts
    2,500

    Default

    Torso length also isn't the end-all in pack sizing. The "best fit" can easily vary by an inch or more depending on where you like your hip belt to ride on your hips. Heck, depending on the weight in my pack, I will run my hip belt a little lower for comfort with heavier loads and a bit higher for more agility with lighter loads.

    So, if you prefer the hip belt slightly on the high side and/or you have proportionally longer than average legs, you'll likely run a smaller pack size than someone else the same height, but with proportionately shorter legs and/or a lower preferred riding position.

    I'd say go try one on at your local outfitter, but, that's hard to do these days.

    Good luck.
    I'm not lost. I'm exploring.

  6. #6

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by nsherry61 View Post
    Torso length also isn't the end-all in pack sizing. The "best fit" can easily vary by an inch or more depending on where you like your hip belt to ride on your hips. Heck, depending on the weight in my pack, I will run my hip belt a little lower for comfort with heavier loads and a bit higher for more agility with lighter loads.

    So, if you prefer the hip belt slightly on the high side and/or you have proportionally longer than average legs, you'll likely run a smaller pack size than someone else the same height, but with proportionately shorter legs and/or a lower preferred riding position.

    I'd say go try one on at your local outfitter, but, that's hard to do these days.

    Good luck.
    Actually there is a point where the hip belt won't go any further. If that point is too high on the hips, the pack is too small. That point is affected greatly by your torso length. What you are saying is not untrue, but it only works if there is some leeway left to vary the positioning.
    "Sleepy alligator in the noonday sun
    Sleepin by the river just like he usually done
    Call for his whisky
    He can call for his tea
    Call all he wanta but he can't call me..."
    Robert Hunter & Ron McKernan

    Whiteblaze.net User Agreement.

  7. #7
    Registered User
    Join Date
    10-08-2013
    Location
    nashua, New Hampshire
    Posts
    160

    Default

    Just a tip for people looking to get the correct torso size, when you put that backpack on you will be putting the hipbelt to the exact placement that you want/need it to ride on your hips. This is the first step before anything else. Now that you have the hipbelt where it needs to be, you can use the height of the bag to determine whether the bag fits for you. Particularly, you now look at the shoulder straps (fixed on the levity) location compared to your actual shoulders. The second part is seeing where the top of that frame/load lifters are sitting. Generally, a 45* angle from load lifter to shoulder strap is optimal. Less of an angle gives a shorter torso size while more of an angle gives a longer torso. From my experience, sizing up in torso size will give better load transfer assuming the hipbelt is still located in the correct location for both sizes compared to sizing down.


    Most people have the hipbelt sitting too low but as we can see from several posts above, this location can be smudged a little due to personal preference and individual comfort.


    Hope this helps!



    See if you can try both sizes out at a store or purchase/return both sizes from a accommodating retailer.

  8. #8
    Leonidas
    Join Date
    04-26-2016
    Location
    Birmingham, Alabama
    Posts
    1,065

    Default

    The other issue is the fact that you can't change the hipbelts out. If you are slimmer, you may not be able to get the belt tight enough to properly transfer the load and have it stay where you need it. I think that was part of the issue with the Medium Exos I had. It would ride down and the frame would dig into my glutes.
    AT: 695.7 mi
    Benton MacKaye Trail '20
    Pinhoti Trail '18-19'
    @leonidasonthetrail https://www.youtube.com/c/LeonidasontheTrail

  9. #9

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by JC13 View Post
    The other issue is the fact that you can't change the hipbelts out. If you are slimmer, you may not be able to get the belt tight enough to properly transfer the load and have it stay where you need it. I think that was part of the issue with the Medium Exos I had. It would ride down and the frame would dig into my glutes.
    The Medium Aura has a belt that barely goes short enough for my petite frame, but I made it work. The small just wasn't comfortable. Sometimes it's good to be a woman...those hips sure do some in handy for a backpack

  10. #10

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by OhioHiker View Post
    I did some quick measurements based on info from their site and I think I am a medium. 17”-18” torso.

    That seems strange, I am 6’ tall. I thought for sure I would be a large.
    I'm 6'2"/240 lb with a 18-1/2" torso. I've never tried a Levity, but I've carried other Osprey packs for years, always a medium, and have found them incredibly comfortable. (I particularly love the AG system on the Atmos even though it's heavier.)

    But as you have discovered, height and pack size are two very separate things. It's not like buying a T-shirt where pretty much any "large" shirt is going to fit pretty much the same as any other. Most folks all wear their t-shirts on their shoulders the exact same way.

    As several others have already noted, "fit" with packs can be a very personal thing. Though it might seem strange, someone else with my exact measurements may find a large or a small suits their needs better.

    Bottom line ... I concur with the recommendations several others have made that you visit a quality outfitter that carries the Levity to get fitted properly. If you have one nearby, stop in and spend 30 mins to an hour with them. You can do that even if you don't buy the pack from them and it's well worth the time.
    ~ All I want is affordable, simple, ultralight luxury. That’s not asking too much is it?

  11. #11
    Registered User
    Join Date
    10-08-2013
    Location
    nashua, New Hampshire
    Posts
    160

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by PopcornFool View Post
    Bottom line ... I concur with the recommendations several others have made that you visit a quality outfitter that carries the Levity to get fitted properly. If you have one nearby, stop in and spend 30 mins to an hour with them. You can do that even if you don't buy the pack from them and it's well worth the time.
    This. I encourage you to do this. For sure it is worth the time and no, you don't have to buy the pack from them. But DO NOT WASTE THEIR TIME!

  12. #12
    Registered User
    Join Date
    09-08-2017
    Location
    Ottawa, Ontario
    Age
    56
    Posts
    2

    Default

    I just bought a 60 L Levity from my local Osprey retailer. They had me put on a pack-like hip belt with a sizing gauge extending up along my vertebral column. The fitter simply slide a pointer up along the gauge until it reached my C7 vertebra and the gauge clearly showed that I was on the large end of medium sizing and a bit too small for a large.

    I put on a medium and the fitter loaded some weighted stuff sacks in there. We adjusted the harness and he eyeballed everything to confirm that the angles were good.

    All of my other osprey packs are medium-large and fit fine, but they are more adjustable (Xenith, Mutant and Talons) and I had never been properly fitted before.

++ New Posts ++

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •