Originally Posted by
exv
Hey Timberjack .. busted out my old gunrunner and took it for a rip on my dirt bike to pickup some tools, figured I'd take a peek at er and give you my quick thoughts.
It's a nice pack, quality construction .. don't see why it couldnt last a lifetime of casual use. Its small and light, with decent hip straps for the packs size. A great pack for a casual atv trips with friends and family or maybe a afternoon hike up to a lake with a small fishing pole. I can't see using as a hunting pack though, it has some serious points to consider that I didn't when I bought this pack.
It's small, not only in capacity buy frame size. Forget packing a deer with it. There isnt enough capacity and the small internal frame is just isn't up to snuff for a task like that. Not saying you couldn't just go full on new zealand style and throw bambi over your shoulders and get on with it thou ... hehe. Seriously thou, it doesn't have load lifters .. that's a minimum for packing in my mind. I didn't know what load lifters where when I bought this pack ... wish I did though. The scabbard design seems awesome, it's not. It makes a 2" pocket of slack so what ever you carry can't be stapped tight to the frame .. you would never be able to draw the gun out if you could strap the pack tight. The scabbard drops directly below your rear end and gets in the way if your riding a bike or anything really. Plus it's clumsy to draw out of .. Not realistic for spot and stalk like I originally thought I'm sure. I put 2 cordless drilled and around 6 or 7 batteries and 2 chargers in the pack (a decent load but not heavy 20lbs maybe??) with no rifle. Specifically tried to strap it tight as possible to test out your concern .. it's a floppy unit.
I'm not trying to bash the pack, it's a decent pack. I could see myself using it more actually now that I see it. Just not as a hunting pack I intend on packing game with. I run a mystery ranch Metcalf for reference, but that's a huge investment. Since I already own the pack and it's paid for I'm honesty pretty happy with it but there are waaaay better options for your hard earned $$. Don't get hung up on eberlestock ... There bigger packs like the Dragonfly are heavy, lack good lifters and are big $$$ .. they are tough thou!.
Consider an external frame for packing game? ... washing blood out of a 500$ fabric pack bag is over rated. Just my 2 cents.