Lightweight Backpacks

“So I've decided I'm going to make an ultralight backpack. It will be my intermediate-size pack, and hopefully, my wife's main pack.

We have a 5200ci Dana Glacier and a 2200ci TNF Exocet, so I am looking for around 3500-4000ci from this one, giving us greater flexibility depending on the needs of the trip.

Obviously, since we will both be using it, the pack needs to be of an adjustable design. Other than the GVP G4 design, is anyone aware of other good designs available online?

Ideally, I would love a Granite Gear Nimbus Ozone or Gregory Z Pack, but money is currently a prohibiting factor, and I happen to have a great sewing machine and plenty of sail-weight nylon on hand.

I know that TT'ers are a collective wealth of information, so common, gimme yer best ideas!”

“Great. I ask a seriously on-topic question for the group, yet everyone would reather spout off their two cents about WMD, FEDEX, or banning a user they could simply choose to hit the "ignore" button for...”

“Or we could spend our time complaining about the board being off-focus...if you don't like it, go to another board.

You might try asking your question some other time than 2:30 in the morning. Most of us are asleep then, and it's easy for new threads to get pushed down in the morning when people make new posts to other threads.

Meanwhile, try reading these threads, easily found by typing the word "light" into the amazing search feature of this board:

Dana Design Mazama

Lightweight backpack recommendations

Light Weight Bacpack Idea

There, I did the work for you. Any more complaining you'd like to do today?”

“You made your post at 3am...most likely you didn't get any answers because it fell to the bottom of the thread list early in the morning.

On that note, I just got the Osprey Aether 60...I'm happy with it but I haven't had it out on the trail yet.”

“That's funny. I thought this message board was for nothing but COMPLAINING, HaHa! Actually, the reason for my second post was to bring the post back to the top of the list, and it seems to have worked, eh?

The question I asked, however, was not regarding what packs are available to buy (I am well aware of the market), but If anyone knows of DIY designs that are available.”

“Golite trek a med. is 5000 cubic inches 3 liter hydration compatible. Weighs 2lb 8oz, although mine only weighs 2lb 3oz. About $139.00”

“Bringing a thread to the top always gets more responses. As for you original question, sorry for posting information that you didn't want and I don't know.”

“"money is currently a prohibiting factor"

More testament about the Bush economic miracle.”

“I think Ray Jardine talks about making packs from what I remember. While I only know a little about backpacks, I know even less about sewing.”

“So of course I didn't read the full post. But here is what you are looking for:

http://www.backpacking.net/makegear.html

too lazy to make a link. Good luck.”

“Thanks, ynami and tango. This is the kind of info I was looking for.”

“For anyone interested, I just came across this site...

http://www.specialtyoutdoors.com/whatis.htm”

“how much weight do you plan to carry in the pack? That can have quite an effect on your design.

I have the G4 and love it but I wouldn't carry more than 30lbs. in it.”

“I would hope that 25-30lbs would be a normal load for this pack, but a max of 35-40lbs would add convenience.

Is your G4 standard, or do you have customized options added to it?”

“Imo, start off reducing the weight inside your pack first, then move on to a lighter pack. Because a lightweight pack may not comfortably carry the loads you currently haul.”

“Well, Buddur, that's subjective. My pack weight varies greatly depending on any number of variables. I can go with an extremely light pack when called for, but having the ability to carry what I need for a specific trip is the key. I doubt I would ever load this particular pack with more than 30lbs, but having options is always a good thing.”

“I have the standard pack. I love it! I think it's most comfortable with 20lbs.

If you make your own I would highly recommend a waist belt. Unless you'll be under 15 lbs.”

“You might try thru-hiker.com Also, SGT Rock has some info on building packs. I can't recall his address, but just search on hiking and SGT Rock. I'm not brave enough to make my own pack so sorry I can't be more help. It's strange that I have a homebuilt tarptent and sleeping bag, but no backpack. I'm brave enough to build things that keep the weather off and keep me safe, but not brave enough to build what carries those items. Now that I reflect on it that seems sort of backwards of me.”

“I gues short of buying a planset, I've seen just about everything I'm going to find online. Now it's time to get to work...
Thanks for all the help!”

“I'm curious.. how well do these lightweight backpacks hold up? It seems if any one piece of equipment needs to be durable, it'd be your pack. Arguably, they take more abuse then any other piece of equipment, aside from boots.”

“A lot of it depends on where and how much you abuse your pack. Full spectra is supposed to be the strongest lightweight fabric that can take anything, but costs $50 per yard and water resistance is poor. It also depends on construction because even the best fabric poorly designed and constructed will have problems. Sil nylon can be punctured and abraded pretty bad if you aren't careful, but you can always cover it with a pack cover for some bushwhacking. Silnylon over the long haul is unlikely to last as long as heavier fabrics no matter where or how you hike. Also if a stick punctures it, it potentially can go right through gear in your pack. It may also be vunerable to early UV damage. I think regular packcloth has a good balance between low cost, low water absorbtion and long life.”

“The same lightweight pack doesn't work for every backpacker. I had a GoLite Trek, but that gave me back aches for days after a backpacking trip. I now have a Granite Gear Vapor Trail and love it - I've used it since the beginning of last summer without a problem and it's only 2 lbs.”

“After a week or so of studying on-the-market pack design, I came up with a sketch which resembled a cross between the Gregory Makalu Pro and the GoLite Gust. I even started to take measurements and laying out the pattern. Then, I came across a pack I had seen before, but never really contemplated...The Dana Design Raid Z.
While it was never my intention to spend the $ on a new pack, I can't get this one out of my head. It seems very obscure, rarely written about or even stocked by retailers, making it impossible to get my hands on short of ordering one.
Does anyone have experience with this pack. Even if you just saw one on the trail, I'd love to get your impressions.”

“Oh, yeah. Here's the link to this pack on Dana's website...

http://www.danadesign.com/packs/specialist/raidz.asp”

“Have you ever seen a Racer X? It's essentially the same thing, but the "pocket" on the back is larger, and it comes with a large dry bag. You can fit a pretty big dry bag into the Racer X. I know of a guy who has use a 4000ci bag in his racer X. Never seen the raid, but the Racer X uses a suspension system similar to the Mountainsmith Ghost if I remember correctly. I've only played with one for a few minutes in a store, and talked to a guy who loved his. He carried ~30lbs in his, and he loved it. You might be able to find more info on the Racer X.”

“Yes, I have found info on the Racer X to be more abundant. So, in your opinion, is the sling basically the same for the two, or does the Raid have more volume and weight capacity?”

“http://www.ula-equipment.com. This is the site for ULA p-2. Each pack is hand made and you can customize it. The Go-lite has no stays. Greg is good but not as many sq inches as p-2. This is a great pack!! Call Brian and tell him Spencer nad Brian told you about them. He makes the packs and he answers his own phone. Great,great, light weight pack.”