Need new pack

J

jester

Inactive
i'm thinking about getting a blackhawk industries RAPTOR pack (2500 cubes). what do you guys think?
and do you have any other suggestions?
 
Blackhawk makes good stuff, but it probably won't be as comfortable as the high-end consumer stuff (i.e. Lowe, Mountainsmith, Osprey etc).

As for the volume, what are you going to use it for? 2500 in3 is probably a good size for a summer weekend pack, depending on how many creature comforts you like to bring. I've concluded that it is better for me to have a small pack and being forced to carry only essentials, than having a larger pack and having the weight creep up.
 
I have a Blackhawk Phoenix pack on order from "Geared Up" [the best place to buy from in my opinion] and it is supposed to be 2576 cubic inches , when I called Blackhawk they said the Raptor pack was pushing 3000 cubes , the guy I spoke with said most of the people there preferred the Phoenix over the Raptor . If you look in their catalog it shows pictures of both packs being worn and the Raptor looks a lot bigger . Good luck , Mike...
 
There's a great pack maker called Gregory... I think they may have been the first company to develop the internal frame pack.

I've got some of their stuff, and I've beat it as hard as a clumsy ox can, but the packs have continued to outlast me.

They are well designed, durable, and can be found in great used condition.

Regards,
--
Brian
 
I work in the outdoor industry part time. Sounds to me like you want a Gregory Reality.
Dana's quality has diminished a bit over the last few years. Arc'teryx also makes outstanding packs. You really need to go to an outfitter and have them fit a pack to your body style and find what is most comfortable with weight in it.

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Shop Smart! Shop S-Mart
 
Fit is really everything. One thing I really liked about my Lowe Alpine Contour IV pack is that I was able to remove the aluminum staves and recurve them to fit my back. Everybody's different -- it's like buying a handgun, no one can really recommend Model X as a 100% sure-fire winner.

Once you find a pack that fits you, you should get the pack that has the capacity that you need. Are you going on week-long trips into the backcountry? Then you'll need something with at least 5,000 cubic inches in capacity. Or are you going on long weekend type trips? Then something around 3,000 cubes will do fine.

I have the aforementioned Lowe Alpine pack for week-long trips and a Blackhawk Phoenix pack for long weekends. I am in the process of ordering two BH accessory pouches for the Phoenix pack so I can stow my tent outside the pack.

I am very happy with my Phoenix pack but in hindsight I probably would have gone with Eagle's Becker pack. It has more capacity and is made in the USA.

Hydration system compatibility is nice, but not essential. I use a Camelbak Maximum Gear HAWG as the hydration system for both packs. The Camelbak MULE and HAWG are nice for day trips from your base camp.

I second the recommendation to look at the commercial manufacturers as well as Blackhawk and Eagle. They might not have everything in kewl tactical black, olive drab or woodland camo but their stuff works very well.

A good place to buy commercial stuff off the net is Campmor, located in Paramus, NJ (http://www.campmor.com). For the tactical stuff, I would also recommend Geri Weaver at Geared Up.

HTH,

Justin

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Justin T. Huang, Esq.
late of Kennett Square, Pennsylvania
 
Another good tip for shopping online is to check out www.sierratradingpost.com. I've gotten some fantastic gear from them, saving often 50% off retail. Most of their items are closeouts and seconds, generally fine for anytning I'm gonna beat the snot out of...


Of course, most of the best deals are end of season sales, so shopping for a great deal now might require some extra work.

Regards,
--
Brian
 
I have a BHI pheonix and use it most of the time.
I just saw a slug of SF guys. Several had pheonix packs and only one had the raptor. The first I have seen. A couple had BHI patrol packs.
Most had some sort of BHI gear.

Stay safe, MDS
 
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