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Thread: Total bag weight...

  1. #21
    Senior Member natertot's Avatar
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    Anthony, you make a good point about water. I usually carry around a liter myself, but keep the ability to carry two. I often plan my trips around water sources to gulp a bunch down while there and top of supplies. Water is the trickiest part of outdoor adventures.

    The biggest offenders of excessive pack weight are excessive amounts of water and food, a fak that is way overboard, extensive cook kits, excessive liquids (guy carrying a case of beer over a 32 mile trek cones to mind), luxuries like chairs, and excessive amounts of tools.

    Give me anyone's pack that weighs 50-75 lbs and I can easily remove 10-25 lbs just be taking out senseless items.
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  2. #22
    Senior Member Antonyraison's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by natertot View Post
    Anthony, you make a good point about water. I usually carry around a liter myself, but keep the ability to carry two. I often plan my trips around water sources to gulp a bunch down while there and top of supplies. Water is the trickiest part of outdoor adventures.

    The biggest offenders of excessive pack weight are excessive amounts of water and food, a fak that is way overboard, extensive cook kits, excessive liquids (guy carrying a case of beer over a 32 mile trek cones to mind), luxuries like chairs, and excessive amounts of tools.

    Give me anyone's pack that weighs 50-75 lbs and I can easily remove 10-25 lbs just be taking out senseless items.
    My priorities Always revolve around shelter, water , and fire.
    You can solve those three well you should make it at least 2-3 weeks.
    No water you be lucky to make a day or 2 ( they say 3, but you will feel it with in 24 hours to almost a point of not been able to function)
    I Have never gone anywhere with out at least 1 lt of water myself, and the ability to carry more (clear bags etc)
    My youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/ultsmackdown Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/antonyraison/

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  3. #23
    Large bipedal Primate Billofthenorth's Avatar
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    Light is better but you can train yourself to carry a heavier pack. In fact, for conditioning you might want to carry a pack that is heavier than your actual BOB.
    My problem is I carry too much clothing and whatnot to keep me warm. I hate being cold, but I seldom need any of the extra kit, even in winter.
    If you think you'll be alone you'll carry all kinds of extra doodads that you might otherwise split up between several companions.

  4. #24

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    I just reorganized my GHB/BOB for the summer. Its primary purpose is a GHB vs a BOB and that's why it's kept in my truck. The weight varies with the season. Winter is the heaviest as I may have to hike 33 miles from work to home and in the middle of winter that would take DAYS! Hence, I've added a sled to the kit so I can pull it with all my gear while on snowshoes.
    Also, my GHB is modular so if somebody is with me, they can haul part of it as well! I have three different bags that can be split up and gear separated.

    One of the bags is a shoulder pouch that I can grab and go and have all the gear necessary to setup a shelter, start a fire, disinfect water and have a meal.
    It weighs less than 10lbs and if the weather cooperates, all I'd really need. Weather conditions are the wild variable and create the biggest need for weight.

  5. #25

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    Ohh, mine also weighs about 50-60 pounds... That's including my riffle, water and food supplies, and gear, so I can't say it's too heavy if it can carry all that stuff. I learned to get used to it, but my wife has been telling me repeatedly to try and lighten it up. Do you guys have any ideas of how I can do that? I tried to make some limitations until I reached about 30 pounds, but the weight just returned. I guess the organizing also matters? What type of bags do you recommend? I'm now using a bag from Sir Spamalot Inc., but I think it's not spacious enough.
    Last edited by crashdive123; 07-14-2021 at 06:45 AM. Reason: Idiot Spammer

  6. #26
    Administrator Rick's Avatar
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    Riiiight. Where you from...Terry

  7. #27
    Super Moderator crashdive123's Avatar
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    I suspect ole Terry is from Spamackastan.
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  8. #28
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    5# bag? They gotta move fast in Spamackastan.

    Alan

  9. #29
    Administrator Rick's Avatar
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    It's full of Spam.

  10. #30
    Super Moderator crashdive123's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by TerryDeirdre View Post
    Ohh, mine also weighs about 50-60 pounds... That's including my riffle, water and food supplies, and gear, so I can't say it's too heavy if it can carry all that stuff. I learned to get used to it, but my wife has been telling me repeatedly to try and lighten it up. Do you guys have any ideas of how I can do that? I tried to make some limitations until I reached about 30 pounds, but the weight just returned. I guess the organizing also matters? What type of bags do you recommend? I'm now using a bag from Sir Spamalot Inc., but I think it's not spacious enough.
    I'm shocked........shocked I tell ya. Ole Terry came back and changed his original message from
    My bag usually weight not more than 5lb.
    to the new one. Just shocked!
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  11. #31
    Administrator Rick's Avatar
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    That's what happens in Spamackastan. Rated the least friendly but best tasting country.

  12. #32
    Senior Member DSJohnson's Avatar
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    I kinda gave up on the whole packing a "Get Home Bag" I still carry some gear in two different bags in my truck but, I hope, my plan is to take what gear I need, based on season and the reason when I am leaving my truck (NEVER LEAVE YOUR VEHICLE). So I plan on tailoring my load at the time that I am becoming a refugee, rather than keep a bag packed with stuff I may not need. I will just leave the stuff I do not need at the time in a cache or locked in the truck till I get back to it. I try to keepa lot of stuff in my truck anyway so I will have a range of items to choose from as I am packing my bag.

  13. #33
    Senior Member Michael aka Mac's Avatar
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    Well you asked a question that people could argue back and forth the answer to this for centuries. I can surely tell you that the older one gets, the more things on your body start breaking down. For some it's their ankles, others knees, many it's their hips, and the rest, like myself, it's their back.

    Honestly I use to bring an axe, hatchet, and at times even a wedge, but I had major back surgery so that I could walk again, & now have a max weight carry restriction due to fusing of my back. Sometimes one has to take a few steps back in order to take one step forward, and thus I now rely on more Bushcraft skills, so to lower my packs weight.

    If you were asking this question in a campers, hikers, or mountaineering website they would tell you about Base Weight: The Base Weight of your backpack is the weight of your pack fully loaded without food, water and fuel. It is suggested that one carry no more then 10% of a their body weight. One of the people I know is a long distance hiker, and has hiked over 5000 miles over a course of a couple of years. For them the trick for covering so much ground is a light pack.

    For survival situations though, your pack will definitely weigh more then a hikers backpack. The question I always ask people, "What in your backpack can be taken out due to another gear being able to do the same task. Having gear that have multiple uses/applications can save a ton of weight. My Swiss Army knife for example allows me to drop from my gear my folding saw, magnifying glass, nail clipper, scissors, nail file, P38, Leatherman, one of my backup knives, knife sharpener, screw driver bit set, eyeglass repair kit, etc. etc. Combining Bushcraft and survival, I dropped my axe, hatchet, wedge and now use a commando wire saw or pocket chainsaw, and my Ka-Bar BK2 companion. But then again that is due to my back surgery.

  14. #34
    Administrator Rick's Avatar
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    I don't know about you but I wouldn't trade my folding saw for a commando saw or a pocket chainsaw. Both are crap compared to a folding saw IMHO. I don't know anyone that carried half that crap. No one that carried an axe, hatchet and wedge backpacking.

  15. #35
    Senior Member DSJohnson's Avatar
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    I have always packed my bag based on mission/use/expected use. I have never understood the concept of the "INCH" "I am Never Coming Home" Neat acronym, but to my thinking, it is very hard for me to build a credible scenario where I am going have to, with very little, or no warning, leave my A.O./home and expect to take whatever I can carry to some other, "more secure or safe" location. When I walk out of camp on an elk hunt my bag is packed completely different than when I am leaving a trailhead for a 5-day backpacking trip. When I walk away from my vehicle to trout fish along the Pecos River in July, my bag/kit is much different than when I do exactly the same activity in April. I think it is good and productive to challenge our thinking and logic as to why we pack our bags the way we do, and I always learn or gain perspective from these discussions. at 66 years old, as hard as it is for me to say it, and it is DAMN hard, my days of expecting to be able to carry a 50 pound plus bag for more than a 10-mile walk in tough terrain are over. That is actually one of the reasons I started riding my mule 30 years ago, so that I could see lots of country and cover rough country. A good saddle mule and good pack mule still allows me to get in the "back country" and out in the wilderness.

  16. #36
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    Quote Originally Posted by Rick View Post
    I don't know about you but I wouldn't trade my folding saw for a commando saw or a pocket chainsaw. Both are crap compared to a folding saw IMHO. I don't know anyone that carried half that crap. No one that carried an axe, hatchet and wedge backpacking.
    I don't even carry a wedge from the shop to the woodpile... come to think of it I don't know where my wedge(s) is/are.

    Alan

  17. #37
    Senior Member Michael aka Mac's Avatar
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    Well I surely don't carry that extra weight anymore, lol not with my back.

    I brought the wedge when I was working on repairing a log cabin that was in my family for decades. Our family had built the log cabin in the middle of nowhere on stilts off the side of a mountain. One hell of a trek to get to the cabin but the view was amazing. Every tool and everything in the cabin had to be backpacked in.

    Rick I actually have a few folding saws, one of them actually states that it can cut anything. I can understand why you wouldn't want to get rid of your folding saw. When the need arises I still use my Swiss Champ's saw.

    Building a cabin in the middle of nowhere the one thing you get good at quickly is cutting down trees. Lot of the tools that my grandfather had were antiques but usable. One of those antiques is what gave me the idea below.

    One of the HUGE advantages of a high quality commando wire saw or hand chainsaw is that you can use your paracord and add a weight to one end and toss it high above you to cut down dead branches, aka the widow makers. The paracord becomes extensions of the handles of these saws. I pretty much use this setup anytime i have to cut branches that are as high or higher then chest level.

    Another thing I use this setup for, I get a long felled branch and put a log under it to raise a portion of the log and use the paracord to extend the hand grips of the wire saw or hand chain saw to cut the branch. In the end it takes less effort then with a hand saw, and it is easier on my back, which is the main reason why I use them.

    For the record, before I got the hang of this, it was a pain to do it this way, but the continued practice and adjusting of my cutting angles and what not, cutting branches this way became effortless in comparison. Btw i am no stranger when it comes to saws, use to do carpentry and make/repair furniture. Pretty much used every type of wood saw out there both new and antique, I can thank my grandfather for having to use the antique saws and tools. SO again I can appreciate you not wanting to give up your folding saw

  18. #38
    Senior Member Old GI's Avatar
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    In my misspent youth I started with very large/heavy load on my back, but as my Army career went along, it got lighter, a lot lighter.

    So now at an advanced age, I don't do it either. I live by the credo that "I know how to be miserable so I don't need to practice it".
    When Wealth is Lost, Nothing is Lost;
    When Health is Lost, Something is Lost;
    When Character is Lost, ALL IS LOST!!!!!!!

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