I've had 9 kifaru packs over the years as well as Eberlestock, Badlands, Canadian made ArcTeryx Bora, a MR longbow and now a dragon slayer, and two Dana Externals plus a Dana arcflex Stillwater.
Having said that, if I were going on a backpack elk hunt tomorrow I would take the Kelty Cache Hauler I just got for $95 shipped.
This is based on actual testing with 100 lb loads. I got a lot of belt deformation and slip with kifaru packs with more than 70 lbs, and the same with the three piece Dana belts. The Kelty belt stays where I put it and is much more comfortable with big loads.
My next step with it is to cut off everything unnecessary and see how much lighter and more nimble I can make it. I bet I can get it in the 4-5 lb range with a dry bag hauling type setup.
Maybe I'm moving forward by moving backward? Trading $600 packs for a $100 pack that works better? Some lessons are more expensive than others I guess.
Last edited by RockChucker30; 01/17/13.
