Two years age I had one before that I ended up returning after never using it ( changed mind and had too many packs). But it looked like it would do OK.
Fast forward- I bought a like new ( last years pack) at the Jan. 2013 local REI scratch and dent sale- for a great price. Thought I would give it another go- especially for such a good deal. Figure I can't go wrong- especially since I can have my wife or daughter also use it if need be, and not load it too bad.
But, I would not have a problem taking it hunting.- Especially because after reading about all potential failures of the pack on the REI reviews and looking at potential sites of failure myself- I have figured out a way to address about every issue with the pack by doing some reinforced prevention stitching and can also replace with military hardware some, if not all the buckles on it easily. Since I did not pay a bunch for it- I can easily do this. The only possible thing that could ever really be a problem on mine that I can not pre-fix is the back zippered pockets (ones that are vulnerable to possibly splitting). But it they did- no big deal, as I do not really need those and could add my own ext. pockets.
This fabric on these has got to be just as durable- if not more so than the Kifaru UL fabric.
** another cool thing with the 85 XT pack- the Kifaru waist belt fits and works perfectly on this pack ( at least it does on the previous version)
Good luck with the pack- hope it works out fine for you.
