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How do you waterproof the gear inside your pack?

I have always like panel loaders. All my gear goes into stuff sacks or dry bags anyway. Best panel loader design IMO is the Granite Gear, where there are internal compression straps so there is no unnecessary strain in a zipper.

You do pay more in weight but they sure are convenient.

That said, I don't own a panel loader at present, well except for a day pack. I have really come to appreciate the simplicity of a hauler style like the ULA Epic and now the Paradox. Big dry bag for multi day, medium dry bag for weekend or overnight and small dry bag or nothing at all except the Talon/compression panel pocket for day use or day hunts.

I learned long ago to not trust any coated fabric on any style pack to keep stuff dry that has to be kept dry.

Laughin'...



Travis

Ed,

I was damn tempted to buy that GG pack you had up for sale. I'm sure it is gone now but it looks ideal.

BillyGoatGruff bought a GG Flatbed and I am very tempted to switch to that style with dry bags. Seems like you can carry most anything with it.



Travis

I'm really liking the looks of the Paradox. Has a combination of features I'm looking for - the shoulder lift, the daypack, the compression ability for hauling quarters.

A couple questions:
What size pack bag are you using?

The Paradox site says they use "actual measured volumes", which come out to be larger than other manufacturer's stated volumes. Did you find this to be the case?

The 1st demo Paradox had the bag which I would say is equal to most 7500 ci bags. The Paradox I have now is just the hauler version with a day Talon.

As far as dry bags, I like a 65-70 liter for a big bag, a 50 liter for the medium and then a 15 liter for a day bag.

Fixed it for ya'. You're welcome.

So, some hate panel loaders, EdT, who is one here whom I greatly respect in terms of realtime gear knowledge likes them, MR packs are actually no good and so on and so forth.

I will no longer, after a highly satisfactory period of using Dana Gleason's various packs, from 1978 to the present and owning about a dozen different ones, buy MR gear. They have instituted a shipping policy to Canada, which makes each gear item MUCH more expensive as they now will ONLY ship UPS or FEDEX and these companies charge HUGE special fees to Canadians.

So, while I have always found DD and MR packs to be better than any of the scores I have tried (FOR ME), (worked in the gear industry helps, too), a longtime and formerly most satisfactory relationship is no more. Well, WTF, life goes on....

Me? For many things, mostly fishing alpine lakes and "nature study", I LIKE panel loaders and have a DD Longbed Loadmaster in unused condition which I bought for fishing trips, just B/4 my wife became ill. I do NOT care for this type as my "working" pack for living out of in remote BC or Yukon-NWT wilderness for extended periods and this is where the MR NICE system has been THE choice FOR ME.

All that said, I have not seen a pack yet that appeals to me, based on photos, as much as the Paradox system does, other than custom McHales and these are what I would choose if buying another pack now.

The Kifaru Siwash I had, G1, I loved, but, their waistbelt does NOT suit me and neither of my Kifaru packs was ever comfortable with weights that my MRs carry with ease. So, back to "square one" as only some serious use can really tell you just what works best for YOU.

I also like the look of the SG "Solo" and as my wife is slowly improving after spinal neuro-surgery, I am thinking of one of these for her as she wants to hike and even hunt with me.

As others have mentioned here, we ARE lucky to have so many choices and not live in some sch!thole like Syria!

The cut on the 6300 is different than other bags as well. Its more of a V shape than the pear looking bags that most packs are. I have packed it a but different than other bags i have used. Some of the bulkier stuff ended up higher than in the usual sleeping bag compartment.

It was either you, or your BFF backpacked a 5th of Wild Turkey 101. don't pretend to have more class that you actually do

I don't know what that means.



Travis

Well, now I know what I've been missing. I should be hunting in places where I can swim rivers.......

I can't stop laughing...


Travis

It just keeps getting better and better.

Maybe poker's not your game Ike.

You'd best stay away from AK in that case. The Rockies are pretty damned dry, and the rivers shallow, no glaciers to speak of. In spite of that NOLS has lost at least one student to drowning on their trek at the end of the course.

Post pictures...or it never happened.

sreekers,

How does the width of the Stone glacier frame compare to the NICE frame?

They tend to frown on taking pictures at Camp McKall during the Special Forces Qualification Course, as you are otherwise quite occupied at the time, and when I had to do it in AK, I didn't have my camera out, because, well, I was crossing a SWOLLEN RIVER.

Dude. Chill out. On the list of things that are important in a hunting backpack, the ability to swim rivers is not one I see mentioned very often. Probably because so few do it. And those few who do would be foolish to count on their pack alone to keep their stuff dry, as Ed T pointed out. How did the NOLs students keep their rifles dry?

You made a general statement about panel loaders being POS's, and then you gave "swimming rivers" as the reason.

Generally speaking, swimming rivers is not an issue for backpacking hunters. I don't know about the rest of you guys, but I don't do Bear Grylls sh** when I'm out hunting, especially alone. It's foolish.