Which pack ?!?! MR/Kifaru/exo

[Smossy]

I think the bags say ultra on them...and the hip belt on the ultra doesn't have power pulls..the icon pro has power pulls

The frames are identical

What are the power pulls. The straps you pull out to your sides to tighten the waist?

[7mag.]

That's an Ultra frame and bags. There is only 1 generation. The Icon and Icon Pro bags are not compatible with the Ultra frame.

[kentrek]

Your kifaru pack has a power pull style waist belt sinching system and so does the icon pro....that looks like the ultra suspension, those side straps on the kuiu that run from the back of the belt to the bag can also be kind of awkward if you don't have them adjust correctly....too tight and your waist belt won't go very far around your waist...too lose and your load is wobbly

[Smossy]

Ok thanks guys. Ill prob just post them for sale and grab a bigger kifaru maybe get my urban zippy for edc.

[kentrek]

Yeah idk why youd need that since you already have the kifaru....it's nice to have a extra pack for friends tho...

That urban zippy is spendy ! To be honest the more time I've spent in the woods the more I really enjoy having something that can carry a load at all times....you never know when youl find a cool rock or chunk of wood, or maybe your friend rolls an ankle and now you gotta pack there pack too...

I wish It wasn't the case but for me,even in the off season....i love having a frame !

[sirmissalot]

Contacted a rep from kuiu a bit ago and asked him about the kuiu frame and why they are not getting a good review on our forum. He said they changed their pack design in the middle of 2014 and haven't heard any complaints since.  I also asked what they changed exactly, waiting for his response.  I'm hoping their packs can be a top pack someday, absolutely love their clothes.

I've ran the kuiu ultra for the last 2 years and pretty easily have put 200+ days in the field with it, everything from packing bulls to climbing mountains I've done in this pack.....it's a great pack, one the majority of outdoor enthusiasts would get by with nicely but when a offer came up to take it off my hands It was an easy decision

The frame breaking seems to be a mute point in my experience(ten bulls packed) with the new kuiu frame but the hip belt leaves abit to be desired on the heavy loads...it was supposed to be contoured similar to kifarus but that is not the case...also I don't think the foam is holding up that we'll either...I've noticed recently that the foam seems to be less supportive than I remember in the past and that also leads to less comfort on the heavy loads

I'm sure the icon pro would solve some of these issues,I've played with them and used one for a short hike and wish i would have known they were coming out with it at the time I put my preorder in for the ultra

Fast foward to taday and wanting to keep my money local, kifaru was a no brainer...it wasn't that much more then the kuiu,made in America, sold locally, killer hip belt, and probably one of the best reputations for durability out there...it's not much heavier and is as customizable as anything out there

I went with the new 24 inch duplex and the grab it with lash kit to attach which ever sized dry bag I want....so for around 400 bucks you can get into what the majority of people say is the "best" load hauling pack out there

Best thing to do is buy one of the top tier packs and use the heck out of it ! They all should do the job nicely 

Ps. The zippers on the kuiu have held up fine, zero problems there

I think thats probably one of the best non biased opinions I've read about the Kuiu. There are so many gear junkies on internet forums you never know who to believe. They switch from one thing, to the next and to the next after that. I think a major problem is kuiu got a bad rep when they had failures with their frames and its just stuck with them. I bought a Kuiu icon pro 5200 after someone on this forum talked me into it (he sold his and was pushing Kifaru two weeks later) for a pretty good deal, I later bought a used 3000 ultra bag and really liked the size and simplicity of it so I was mainly running the 3000 ultra on the icon pro frame, which I had great luck with. Hauled a few animals with it and had many backpacking trips with nothing to complain about. My girlfriend ended up needing to upgrade her pack so I gave her mine and bought a stone glacier sky 5100. She packed her elk out with the kuiu last year and still has it, but after a few drinks at the sheep show I bid on another stone glacier pack (the pack full of booze got me  ), which I won and gave to her so now shes running the solo, but otherwise she would still be running that 3,000 without worry. My opinion is a lot of guys buy them, get more into the backcountry thing and worry about failure so they sell the Kuiu and upgrade to the pack everyone on the internet is talking about and pushing at the time. Kuiu isn't the best, or toughest pack out there but I think for most they will work just fine.

That said I love my Sky 5100, last year was my first year with it and it earned its keep in camp hauling several animals, never once did I have to bend over to walk with a full load strapped on either

[trophyhunt]

Contacted a rep from kuiu a bit ago and asked him about the kuiu frame and why they are not getting a good review on our forum. He said they changed their pack design in the middle of 2014 and haven't heard any complaints since.  I also asked what they changed exactly, waiting for his response.  I'm hoping their packs can be a top pack someday, absolutely love their clothes.

Thanks, that sky 7,200 is very hard to pass up.  It's extremely hard to look past the fact that the kuiu is 300 dollars cheaper!! Haven't decided yet but hope to soon. 

I've ran the kuiu ultra for the last 2 years and pretty easily have put 200+ days in the field with it, everything from packing bulls to climbing mountains I've done in this pack.....it's a great pack, one the majority of outdoor enthusiasts would get by with nicely but when a offer came up to take it off my hands It was an easy decision

The frame breaking seems to be a mute point in my experience(ten bulls packed) with the new kuiu frame but the hip belt leaves abit to be desired on the heavy loads...it was supposed to be contoured similar to kifarus but that is not the case...also I don't think the foam is holding up that we'll either...I've noticed recently that the foam seems to be less supportive than I remember in the past and that also leads to less comfort on the heavy loads

I'm sure the icon pro would solve some of these issues,I've played with them and used one for a short hike and wish i would have known they were coming out with it at the time I put my preorder in for the ultra

Fast foward to taday and wanting to keep my money local, kifaru was a no brainer...it wasn't that much more then the kuiu,made in America, sold locally, killer hip belt, and probably one of the best reputations for durability out there...it's not much heavier and is as customizable as anything out there

I went with the new 24 inch duplex and the grab it with lash kit to attach which ever sized dry bag I want....so for around 400 bucks you can get into what the majority of people say is the "best" load hauling pack out there

Best thing to do is buy one of the top tier packs and use the heck out of it ! They all should do the job nicely 

Ps. The zippers on the kuiu have held up fine, zero problems there

I think thats probably one of the best non biased opinions I've read about the Kuiu. There are so many gear junkies on internet forums you never know who to believe. They switch from one thing, to the next and to the next after that. I think a major problem is kuiu got a bad rep when they had failures with their frames and its just stuck with them. I bought a Kuiu icon pro 5200 after someone on this forum talked me into it (he sold his and was pushing Kifaru two weeks later) for a pretty good deal, I later bought a used 3000 ultra bag and really liked the size and simplicity of it so I was mainly running the 3000 ultra on the icon pro frame, which I had great luck with. Hauled a few animals with it and had many backpacking trips with nothing to complain about. My girlfriend ended up needing to upgrade her pack so I gave her mine and bought a stone glacier sky 5100. She packed her elk out with the kuiu last year and still has it, but after a few drinks at the sheep show I bid on another stone glacier pack (the pack full of booze got me  ), which I won and gave to her so now shes running the solo, but otherwise she would still be running that 3,000 without worry. My opinion is a lot of guys buy them, get more into the backcountry thing and worry about failure so they sell the Kuiu and upgrade to the pack everyone on the internet is talking about and pushing at the time. Kuiu isn't the best, or toughest pack out there but I think for most they will work just fine.

That said I love my Sky 5100, last year was my first year with it and it earned its keep in camp hauling several animals, never once did I have to bend over to walk with a full load strapped on either

[bearpaw]

How does badlands packs fit into this discussion? Never owned one, are they a lesser product?

[trophyhunt]

How does badlands packs fit into this discussion? Never owned one, are they a lesser product?

i have a badlands 4,500 pack now, it is a work horse.  One big compartment with a spotter pocket and a few smaller pockets.  It's pretty comfortable with a heavy load, I had 139 lbs in it on a 2.5 mile hike out.  Pretty good packs, I'm going to sell mine soon. 

[SilkOnTheDrySide]

How does badlands packs fit into this discussion? Never owned one, are they a lesser product?

In short, yes.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[trophyhunt]

This is the comment from kuiu about their frame.         Oh, I forgot to include the changes to the frame in my last message. We have removed the two bottom stays on the frame and have increased the thickness and cut in the center of the frame where most of the weight sits. Overall weight distribution has been incredible with the changes made to the frame! Here are photos of our original frame and our new frame. The original frame is the larger frame.

[trophyhunt]

Old frame is first pic, new is second.

[trophyhunt]

New

[Odell]

How does badlands packs fit into this discussion? Never owned one, are they a lesser product?

Essentially like a price point pack that got in Cabelas and other big box stores so it gained a good part of the market share. Better than the cheap stuff, not as good as the high end stuff. I put 100lbs of elk in my 4500 and it handled it well, very comfortable actually. Ive had one zipper fail but its on a side pocket so small that I don't use it.

[fillthefreezer]

i believe you have the headings on the two frames backwards