Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting Packs: Internal vs. External

I have had mine since 2004 and have hauled out 2 cows, 6 bulls, 5 bucks, and helped haul 2 other bulls and a cow with mine. Distances averaged somewhere around 2 1/2 miles for these and I haven't had to replace or fix mine. I even use it for packing 75-100lbs for training in the summer. A couple of these trips I have had 120lbs of meat on it. I don't have experience with other packs, so there are probably better options but mine is working so far and hope it makes it a few more years.

I've been using my cheap external-frame pack for many years, including using it while guiding caribou hunters, sheep hunting, etc. I've had to make the odd little repair, but nothing major. I've hauled a LOT of meat and camping gear with that thing! I'm sure there are more comfortable packs that are better quality, but this thing has been doing the job for me for a long time.

Isn't the CC a external frame pack?

I like this one if MR pricing is not in the cards:

http://www.kelty.com/p-56-cache-hauler-3400.aspx

http://www.google.com/products/catalog?hl=en&sugexp=ldymls&xhr=t&q=kelty+cache+hauler&cp=11&safe=off&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.&wrapid=tljp1303262446652020&um=1&ie=UTF-8&cid=14689069758746582038&sa=X&ei=9TSuTdeyLYrdiAK0_4S4DA&sqi=2&ved=0CC0Q8wIwAA#

You could say it's a hybrid. The frame does separate from the packbag, but I'd say it's closer to an internal. It is a very beefy internal.

For packing bone in quarters or halves, my external frame has a sheet of webbing (about 1/8 inch mesh) extending all the way from shoulders to waist that keeps my frame and its accompanying load from contacting my body. The top to bottom central stays also hold the meat and bone away from the mesh as well. There's about an inch or more of airspace between my back and any portion of the metal frame or load. With our early western deer seasons, one deals with warm weather and heavy loads, and my shoulders, back, and butt can easily breath and remain dry.

There are no shelves, so I can lash loads as high or low as I want. While bags are nice for the odd array of camping items, I find they limit my imagination when it comes to creative load arrangement. Our party does little in the way of backpack camping, relying instead on horses for wilderness loads. The frames are still needed though when horses can't make it to ones kill site.

My unit dates to the late 70's, and make and model are long erased from memory. When all is properly adjusted, loads are a cinch to carry on the hips with the shoulder straps simply there for balance. I've even lashed 160 quart coolers aboard when camp was several hundred yards from the boat. The ability to lash any size and shape to that unit with about 15 ft of line is the second key selling point for me. I find today's Cabelas units wanting in several aspects, and if I had to replace my present unit, I'd find a shop and do a custom build.

I've tried fanny packs and day packs for day hunt items and shed them all due to ending up with wet spots from the load resting directly against my body. I roll day items in my game bags and rain coat and do a quick lash to the frame. If there is an internal frame that will keep the load and fabric off my back, let me know, and I'll give one a try.

When one is simply carrying heavy loads, I'm sure there are both internal and external units fully capable of getting the job done. I've settled on externals. As to their composition: I insist on metal and fabric all the way. No plastic buckles or components that always seem to fail with impact in sub-zero temps. Failure is something I will not tolerate when one is well away from the road.

I am with 1 minute on this one, I have a Freighter made by Camp Trails, this is a newer upgraded one. I have carred out over 60 elk and many deer with these frames. There may be better but this one really carries a load.

Hilarious, KC ! Yes, the things we didn't know back then. Good post. E

1minute:

Take a look at the Osprey Atmos. That pack breathes as good or better than any on the market.

If you are tall or if you have a long torso it won't work because it's made for average height people and the back panel is not adjustable. But if you are average height, then it might suit your needs for a hunting day pack.

KC

Will take a look next time I get to a city. I'm right at 6' 4", and would never make such a purchase without some hands on experience.

You can buy either an internal or external Dana Design pack that is of the same great quality as the Mystery Ranch packs, but you'll spend a good fraction of the money. Why spend $500-700 when you can get the same comfort and durability for $200-300? They're plentiful in the used market, so there isn't an issue of them not being available. You don't have the warranty, but you'll probably never need to use it anyway. They're built like tanks. I'd start with an older Dana Design pack (because I know you won't need to "upgrade" unless you're a gear junky).

I know this doesn't address the I vs. E issue, but as you'll continue to read, they both have loyalists. You won't know your preference until you use them both. Very idiosyncratic stuff. They both have their pros and cons. I prefer comfort and a tight center of gravity, so I like internals. Externals don't hug the body and keep the stress off my back like internals do. Externals tend to breathe better. Little, yet significant, stuff that is specific to the user.

I was leaning toward the external frame for two reasons. First, I did not care for the idea of blood getting inside my pack. The second, is because it held the load away from my body allowing me to breathe a little easier seeing as I sweat like a mad man. However, it sounds like the internal frame is pretty much the way to go anymore. Honestly, I don't recall having that much blood from the deer quarters last season so why should elk be much different other than sheer size.

IMO, the "best" external ever made was the Dana Design Loadmaster... despite some of the claims here, no internal will carry truly HEAVY weight as comfortably as an external like the Dana.

I've been tossing around the idea of an internal pack as well. That was one of my concerns too. I think you could get around this by lining the pack with a heavy duty garbage bag for the trip from the kill site to camp. Some of the seasoned Elk pro's probably have other advise as well.

I wash my pack in the bathtub, or outside with the hose, every handful of trips anyway. Dilute some laundry soap and go at them with a soft brush, inside and out. I'd definitely line it with a garbage bag if blood was a concern, but I wouldn't worry at all about blood getting in, and on, the pack. These packs are all very washable. The nice thing about the Dana externals is that you can completely disassemble them and put them in the washing machine. Internals a bit more tricky to wash, but like I said, they're all completely washable. Colors don't bleed. Waterproofing isn't harmed. Stitching isn't subject to loosening or damage.

If you want to put meat into a garbage bag, buy the bags made for garbage compactors. They are much heavier than the typical bags made for leaves, etc. E

Based on my limited experience, I would say a external pack frame is best for packing in and out, but a internal is the best to hunt with all day.

go internal on your day pack and external for a load hauler !I have packed out by myself or with help around 65 elk, and numerous deer. Much easier than dragging, especially when you are buy yourself. I am 65

I am a convert to internals and boning out game, however, having an external around is super handy if you are going to pack quarters - they are much easier than internals when securing down a ackward full quarter (I have the 2 biggest MR packs btw - I can;t get the quarters inside). The old kelty frames are great and the Cabelas frames work fine for most elk hunters. If you want to put up with the extra weight and torture or have a short pack, getting those quarters home are great for saving meat and keeping things clean. I recently even packed out the quarters with hide on - so nice when you strip off the hide and the quarter is so clean. Ideally, an elk hunter should have both a good internal and external pack.

FWIW, two years ago I fit a rear elk 1/4 and a front shoulder inside my Kifaru Longhunter Guide. Wasn't a huge bull by any means and was a tight fit, but it did fit.