Posted: 6/5/2010 10:35:30 AM EDT
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How comfortable are these packs for 2-day hikes?
http://www.armygear.net/ag/store/01001.html They look solid, and pretty nice. |
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Quoted:
Linky works now. A good deal, but more pack than is needed for 3 days. Agreed. I bought mine to take my two sons camping... my normal 3 day loaded pack weighs only a little more than twice the dry weight of the molle2 pack. For hauling a boatload of crap, however, the molle2 pack seems pretty damned nice (haven't taken it on a real trip yet, just piled a bunch of crap in it and carried it around for an afternoon). |
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Meh, Molle is a cruel and heartless system...
ALICE has always treated me right, and MALICE is even better. I have a MALICE II, and an old style frame, and once you learn to pack it properly, you're good to go. I have NEVER been able to fill my MALICE pack on a 3 day trip and need more space. |
| The one complaint I have heard from a couple of people is that when overloaded to a standard Army weight the plastic frame is not up to the task. I'm guessing that in the civilian world with 40-50 pounds of crap they would be fine. The shoulder straps look nicer than the old ALICE stuff, anything the military makes is always short on quality padding. |
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Quoted:
The one complaint I have heard from a couple of people is that when overloaded to a standard Army weight the plastic frame is not up to the task. I'm guessing that in the civilian world with 40-50 pounds of crap they would be fine. The shoulder straps look nicer than the old ALICE stuff, anything the military makes is always short on quality padding. I suspect most of these complaints stem from the previous generation frames, but I'm no expert. It's likely someone like raf, who apparently knows everything worth knowing about such things, will be in to confirm or refute..... Also (as you point out) how often does a civilian haul 100lbs of crap in a molle2 pack? I can't even imagine wanting to haul that kind of load. |
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Quoted:
The one complaint I have heard from a couple of people is that when overloaded to a standard Army weight the plastic frame is not up to the task. I'm guessing that in the civilian world with 40-50 pounds of crap they would be fine. The shoulder straps look nicer than the old ALICE stuff, anything the military makes is always short on quality padding. The Gen 1 black frame is seldom seen nowadays. It has studs that lock into matching female receptacles permanently mounted on the waistbelt. Great idea poor execution. The Gen 2 black frame is common, and should be avoided. It has structural, and material weaknesses, some of which only become apparent in cold temps. Pass. The Gen 3 frame, which can also be black, but is usually seen in other camo colors, is MUCH preferred. It is not expemsive, and if the original pack farme/pack ensemble is bought at a reasonable price, swapping out the frame is a very reasonable and highly recommended proposition. In short, if the MOLLE frame is any color other than black, you are pretty much assured of getting a Gen 3 frame. Beware of painted frames. I have not seen such, but I suspect some disreputable folks might go there. The frames are a molded-in color; the color is throughout the plastic, not just painted onto the surface. There are some very distinct structural differences between Gen 2 and Gen 3 frames, but it takes a sharp eye to see them. |