McHale Packs?

“Okay, so the McHale is supposed to be the best pack in world, last the longest and carry the most weight. I am seriously considering getting one and would appreciate some input.”

“Which one do you want???

8)”

“And went elsewhere, out of ignorance.

One thing I've learned over the years: Buy GOOD gear the first time. You WILL eventually buy a GOOD pack if you stick w backpacking.

Everything I've heard about McHale is A+++.”

“Ya that it is!!!!!!

$$$$$$$$$$ But it is worth it!!!

8)”

“I'm looking at the super critical mass alpine II bayonet. Whew, hell of a name.

I wore out an Osprey Zenith, so I figured, instead of dropping $475 on a new one of those, I'd just drop $650 on a McHale”

“Dude that pack kicks @ss!!!!

If I needed another pack I would get one of the McHale packs!!!

8)”

“Crazy M, is there anything you can say bad about the McHale packs? Not that it'll change my mind, but other than the price, I haven't heard a bad whisper about them.”

“NO!!!!!!


Just get it!

If I had to say one thing the $$$ is very high!

But that comes with the pack!!!

8)”

“Wow, $650 for a pack. I would have to think about that. I don't see K-12 in my future.”

“Hey, if you are going to spend 475, why not got ahead and drop 650. Hey its only money!”

“Its also not really my money, its a college graduation present. Mommy is buying it for me. I luv my mommy.”

“Yowza.

I know a guy who's had a McHale for years. He can't say enough about 'em. In fact, you can hardly shut him up, LOL...

Design, materials, workmanship, service... you name it.”

“My mechanic says the same thing about a BMW. I don't have one of those either.”

“I looked at the lighter side of McHale and I still can't get over the price. Haven't talked with many who use his lighter packs.”

“Bear, you need to wait until Monday night and then resurrect this thread. RichB, in PA, just got one of these packs, but he is out backpacking right now. He, too, just raves about the McHale packs. He has showed me all the cool details of the pack, and if you are doing a long trip or winter packing, this is a great pack, designed to be very comfortable, even with a lot of weight. Before this, Rich was using a Gregory Shasta, which I am hoping to buy from him :-)

I don't know about the lighter packs, I think Rich said that McHale just recently started making them. McHale apparently has a video that explains his packs, why they are worth the money, and other stuff that you may know already, like how to pack your pack, how to adjust your pack, how to measure for your size, etc. You should get this video before deciding to purchase. Rich said that it was a lot of money, but he feels that this is probably the last pack he will ever buy, because it is so well made and comfortable.

My husband feels the same way about expensive well made cars, but so far he hasn't talked me into buying one ;-D”

“Bear, I bought a Super Critical Mass Alpine II a few months ago and since money is not an issue in your case, I highly recommend this pack for you if you intend to carry big loads. McHale offers an excellent video that explains why his packs work so much better than others and many other details about his packs. All of it is true and his packs do what he says they will. You can order the pack with any feature you want or don't want. The pack can be compressed and features removed to convert it to a smaller pack so it's like getting two packs in one. I've tried this pack enough times to know that it saves energy and I can hike longer and faster than with any pack I've ever hiked with. The reason is that the pack never fights your movement and bounces around like other packs do so your body never has to make counter movements to compensate and that wastes energy. I ride bicycles and as you know some bikes are more efficient than others. McHales packs are like riding a top shelf bicycle in comparison to a Huffy from Kmart. I tried many packs over the years and modified a few myself, but I never was able to get a pack that performed as well as McHale's. Besides you only live once and if you like to backpack get one you will never even want to replace.”

“I have an Inex I purchased 6 years ago. An awesome pack and well worth the investment IMHO. It carries a ton, which I needed to play the family sherpa role. Now as a scout leader I still on occasion carry a hefty load. My biggest so far is 80lbs and I can't imagine doing this with any other pack I've owned.

I use the pack 1-2 weekends a month and have used it on 2 week+ treks. All the pack shows for this are a few abraded areas. The suspension still works like it did on day one.

Everything Dan says in his video is true -- the pack simply works.”

“Anyone out there have experience with the Subpop - McHale's ultralight pack? Wondering if it is worth the price difference between the GVP G4?”

“BMW? bacpac. None of my friends who are mechanics recommend Broke More than Works cars. BMW, the #1 car on the Florida lemon law list the first year they published it. Low resale value too. Mercedes, now there's a car. At least they were when they were hand made, before Chrysler.

Love my Dana Terraplane, never tried a McHale. Maybe I'll try one when my Dana wears out in about 60 years. I have four Dana packs and I hadn't heard of the McHale when I bought them. My philosophy is to buy the most comfortable pack I can, screw the money. I don't backpack for discomfort with my load. I've got my pack weight down over the years, but I still wouldn't go with one of those suspensionless ultra-lightweight packs unless I got my pack weight down to about 15-20lbs. And I just can't figure out how to get a week's worth of stuff down to 15-20lbs.

If the pack's comfortable and well made, go for it! It's an investment in quality.”

“Everyone,thanks for the input! I was hoping for some responses from McHale owners, and as usual you all didn't dissapoint.
it, how much is”

“For sale: McHale SARC, blue Spectra grid w/420 patch and twin daisy chains, c. 2001. Quite light. Great pack for trips ranging from overnights to multi-day traverses, but only if it fits (don't bother if you're shorter than 6' 1"). Designed for a max load of around 50 to 55 lbs. Dirtbag pricing = $125. Equivalent new pack would cost over $450.
http://www.mchalepacks.com/sarc/index.htm
Let me know if you're interested and I'll get you in contact with the owner.”

“A custom made-to-fit backpack designed for someone else for $125...”

“Yeah, he says he'd prefer to sell it locally so he can be sure it fits the potential buyer properly, but so far no buyers. Sure, it's used, but a McHale pack will probably go forever.”

“Kind of like Campagnolo brake pads, they suck at stopping a bike, but they'll last forever.
last edited: 2/20/09 1:45:41 PM”

“Hi new member here. Kleet is your friends pack still for sale? Thanks”