sheep pack weight ?????

[Deaddog]

I have used internal and external frame packs, for me the Barneys has been the only pack that would stand up over a period of time to the level I need it to.. The barneys can hold all the weight and more than I can pack, it has served us well for packing fairly large loads of meat for many hours, it also has worked well for getting our camps into remote places, I remove the top bar when in steep country for climbing purposes, as far as fit goes it has plenty of adjustments to make the pack "fit" to your body, my experience has been that lots of people have packs that will fit properly , they just lack the experience or knowledge of how to make it fit...The majority of our party has now switched to these packs...at this point in my hunting career, barneys is the way to go..

[Devilbear]

For the poster who asked, Mystery Ranch packs are not sold in stores in Canada and are best purchased by phoning them and discussing your needs. The NICE 6500 combo is the most versatile and, with Long Pockets and a couple Fliptop boxes, will cost you $900.00+ delivered in BC. There are two similar models, the 7500 is the largest and these packs will outlast you, my oldest and heavily used pack from the maker of MR is now pushing 33 years old and is in excellent shape.

The same situation obtains with the Barney's, one must buy them from Barney's Sports Chalet in Alaska; they are very nice people to deal with and they stock the best gear, Integral Designs, Hilleberg, and other state of the art equipment that makes a tough hunt both easier and safer.

Look at the NICE systems and the Kodiak internal, my BDSB is the original version of this, made for the US Navy Seals and is simply a fabulous pack, slightly more capable under really heavy loads than the Kodiak due to a heavier frame.

These and the expedition McHales are the only internals I hav found that will carry 75+ lb. loads in comfort; I have had US-made Gregory Denali, two Kifarus, Lowe Alpine Systems US-made, several CampTrails, Fjallraven, Karrimore from the UK in the days when they were worldclass and used Arcteryx, and a number of others. I wouldn't own a WW and none of the above have equaled the MRs for durability and comfort under heavy loads, this is 100+ lbs.

Guys like Deaddog, BCRams and other totally obsessed sheepists here have a lot of good advice and I would really listen to what they say and also am awaiting Carl's comments on his Barney's. A good frame pack will always be easier to carry really heavy and awkward loads with while a good internal will be better in climbing, skiing, wriggling through Devil's Club and can be worn on a horse. Several options and I am not as impressed by some of the emerging very light "cool" packs as others might be, but, I am not spending my coin on trippy camo clothing from "boutique" makers, either.

[Kody94]

I have used internal and external frame packs, for me the Barneys has been the only pack that would stand up over a period of time to the level I need it to.. The barneys can hold all the weight and more than I can pack, it has served us well for packing fairly large loads of meat for many hours, it also has worked well for getting our camps into remote places, I remove the top bar when in steep country for climbing purposes, as far as fit goes it has plenty of adjustments to make the pack "fit" to your body, my experience has been that lots of people have packs that will fit properly , they just lack the experience or knowledge of how to make it fit...The majority of our party has now switched to these packs...at this point in my hunting career, barneys is the way to go..

Thanks Deaddog. Always helps to get stuff "straight from the horse's mouth" as the saying goes.

Have you or your crew had a chance to compare head-2-head with the Mystery Ranch packs?

I ask because I have the MR already, but I'd really like to know if the Barney is really worth "upgrading" to.

[Kody94]

I am not slagging either, I own both!

Carl

Hi Carl,

I should have been more clear, but I was trying to post from my bberry, and the damn website kept logging me out between starting a reply and pressing the post button! So I was too quick...

I was agreeing with your response to BCRams, and adding that from a capacity perspective, he was making an unfair comparison. Thought you might want to make that clear in your review when you are done the testing.

Cheers
Chris

[troutseeker]

TS- You must be expecting to see lots of game taking a big bucket of bullets like that. I try to limit myself to one full ice cream pail.

SSS

Heck yeah! From what I read in your and BC Rams story, one get's jumped by sheep all the time and charged by grizzlies too. So I have lot's of ammo to practice quick reloads and for the "pray and spray" shooting I'm bound to do in them thare mountains!!!

I hope you noticed I have a target setup in my basement...

From what you and BC Rams say, I' surprised you do any hunting at all. Seems that you are out there on a culinary delight expedition, eating jerky bits and ice cream...

[BCrams]

Hi Carl,

I was agreeing with your response to BCRams, and adding that from a capacity perspective, he was making an unfair comparison. Thought you might want to make that clear in your review when you are done the testing.

Cheers
Chris

The 'bag' capacity is a little more but as Carl says, not much more than a milk jug. At the same time, you can also picture your food bag as being a bit bigger than a milk jug for 8 days. Thats considerable space. With the Hunter .... myself and others have further improvised utilizing that 'space' outside the bag on the bottom by folding the bench in and securing the sleeping bag on bottom which combined leaves a lot of space inside the bag for boned sheep meat, cape etc.

You should get a look at your buddies Barney. It took Deaddog all of 2 minutes looking at mine in the parking lot of Timmies to decide to order 3 or 4 of them.

Here's an example when you get that ram early in a hunt and you have 12 days left....half a ram, cape and horns and a lot of miles to cover moving camp up and down mountains to the next planned camp to hunt a different range. Most know just how much food space there is with 2 weeks worth. By the time the food was gone, it was enough to take the remaining ram meat but it wasn't necessary as we only took 1 ram that trip and I carried my share. Some of you may recognize my good buddy here. We were cautious in one area with lots of grizzly sign

[bighornbob]

The 'bag' capacity is a little more but as Carl says, not much more than a milk jug. However, with the Hunter .... myself and others have improvised utilizing that 'space' outside the bag on the bottom by folding the bench in and securing the sleeping bag on bottom which combined leaves a considerable amount of space inside the bag for boned sheep meat, cape etc.

You should get a look at your buddies Barney. It took Deaddog all of 2 minutes looking at mine in the parking lot of Timmies to decide to order 3 or 4 of them.

I hope they make their back packs better then what they do with their website. They have been updating it for over 2 years now.

BHB

[TriggerMag]

Would the Tatonka Lastenkraxe be worth looking into if one could get a good deal on it?

[Devilbear]

My opinion is that the Tatonka is an excellent pack and value for the price; however, there are better options for serious wilderness backpack hunting.

Do any of you Barney's users live in the Lower Mainland as I am stuck here for about another two years and would love to check one out,,,can provide BEER in payment!

[bigwhiteys]

Is this going to be your final pack job? My MR fully loaded up, is smaller and with a lower profile.



This is on day 1 of my last hunt. The pack is loaded up, but I still have all the room that the main compartment extends, which is quite a bit more., the bag is also not expanded all the way, front/back. It's got plenty of room.



Here is the pack after several days hunting, it's deflated quite a bit now that we've eaten most of our food. Plenty of room for a ram.

myself and others have improvised utilizing that 'space' outside the bag on the bottom by folding the bench in and securing the sleeping bag on bottom which combined leaves a considerable amount of space inside the bag for boned sheep meat, cape etc.

The MR has a large lower compartment... It's just fully covered, and not a meat shelf like the barneys. My valandre sleeping bag compresses to about the size of a large nalgene, and can fit in an outer pocket, or the main compt. if needed.

My clothes, sleeping bag and sleeping pad, can all fit in the lower compartment, leaving the upper for just meat,cape,horns.

My tent always rides on the back, strapped on.

Carl