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Modded HMG Windrider 3400


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  • #1294071
    BlackHatGuy
    Spectator

    @sleeping

    Locale: The Cascades

    Got some things I like about a variety of packs in one pack yesterday when my modded HMG Windrider 3400 came in the mail. Mike did a fantastic job of creating the pack I've wanted for a bit now. Mike and Justin were great to work with, as one would expect.

    The mods: Mike made the lumbar pad pass-through so I can use any hipbelt I want. At my request he also made it narrower than normal by a few inches, so the hipbelt truly wraps around your hips. He also added velcro to the inside of the pass-through to help keep my hipbelt in place. I don't use internal bladders, so he removed the internal netting that would hold a bladder, and instead put in a small, internal zippered pocket for my wallet/keys/iPhone (like the one offered on the Ice Pack).

    I'm pretty psyched to get this out on the trail, and will hopefully do so in a couple of weeks. Thanks Mike and HMG!

    #1912271
    Steven Paris
    BPL Member

    @saparisor

    Locale: Pacific Northwest

    Sounds great, Doug.

    Post some pictures when you get a chance; always good to see new gear.

    Are you heading back to Trinity Alps in a few weeks?

    #1912330
    BlackHatGuy
    Spectator

    @sleeping

    Locale: The Cascades

    Pics:

    Looks like a standard Windrider from the front

    .pack

    The internal stash pocket

    .pocket1

    Internal pocket draped in the pack

    .pocket2

    Narrowed pass-through lumbar pad (the lumbar pad is generally around 9" wide, this one is 5 1/2 inches wide).

    .lumbar pad1

    Hipbelt in the pass-through lumbar pad

    .lumbar pad2

    #1912511
    Christopher Yi
    Spectator

    @traumahead

    Locale: Cen Cal

    When I saw the pictures of the Windrider when they changed to a full wrap around hipbelt, I thought that's how it was originally attached, but it wasn't. My previous pack was a Circuit and after using my Windrider for a bit, the only thing I would change is having a ULA hipbelt on there. And now here's the option, tempting to get a new pack.

    #1912664
    David Chenault
    BPL Member

    @davec

    Locale: Queen City, MT

    Looks like a great pack. Wonder how much weight the extra nylon and velcro add.

    Is that an HMG belt? It looks enormous.

    #1912670
    Eugene Smith
    BPL Member

    @eugeneius

    Locale: Nuevo Mexico

    That is a ULA hipbelt, specifically one that ULA uses on the ULA Ohm 2.0.

    I may be wrong, but pretty sure that's what Doug has passed through the lumbar pad.

    #1912671
    BlackHatGuy
    Spectator

    @sleeping

    Locale: The Cascades

    "That is a ULA hipbelt, specifically one that ULA uses on the ULA Ohm 2.0"

    And the Circuit as well, I think. But yes, it's the ULA hip belt, my favorite of all hipbelts. It's the main reason I asked Mike if he'd mod his pack for me, I wanted to use the ULA hipbelt.

    One of my favorite bits of my SMD Starlite pack is a small zippered pocket at the top of the pack (on the SMD it's on the side, inside), so I wanted that as well if I was 'creating' my wish-list pack. When I saw it was offered on the Ice pack, I asked to have it included on this pack as well. So, thanks to Mike's willingness, I've got the pack material I wanted, with the hipbelt I wanted, with the included small pocket I wanted! I'm thrilled with the pack, and will be getting it out on the trail for its maiden voyage Sept. 22.

    #1912673
    BlackHatGuy
    Spectator

    @sleeping

    Locale: The Cascades

    "Wonder how much weight the extra nylon and velcro add."

    Whatever weight the velcro adds should easily be offset by the much narrower lumbar pad. The internal velcro strip is only about 2"x4" – smaller than the amount of lumbar pad removed, I think.

    Not sure about what you mean about extra nylon – unless you're talking about the internal pocket. That's actually made out of the same cuben hybrid material the pack is made out of.

    #1912676
    Russ Maynard
    Spectator

    @russmay

    Locale: Central California

    That looks like a great setup! The best of both worlds. I wonder how it would cary a bear can. It looks like it would carry one vertically, but how about horizontal?

    #1912680
    BlackHatGuy
    Spectator

    @sleeping

    Locale: The Cascades

    Hi Russ,

    The only bear can I have is the Bare Boxer Contender, and it'll hold that easily on its side. Not sure about anything else.

    #1912681
    Ken Thompson
    BPL Member

    @here

    Locale: Right there

    Doug got a white pack to make himself look tan.

    #1912686
    BlackHatGuy
    Spectator

    @sleeping

    Locale: The Cascades

    "Doug got a white pack to make himself look tan."

    True! Unfortunately, next to me, the pack looks tan. sigh.

    #1912697
    David Chenault
    BPL Member

    @davec

    Locale: Queen City, MT

    "Not sure about what you mean about extra nylon…"

    There'd have to be another layer of fabric behind the 3D mesh, you can't sew velcro straight to mesh (or it would be a very bad idea, and induce a lot of stretch into the anchoring of the belt).

    The belt looks interesting. My own recent experiments have me thinking that given good design (shape, lots of surface area), padding on a hipbelt is superfluous for loads under 30-35 pounds.

    #1913419
    BlackHatGuy
    Spectator

    @sleeping

    Locale: The Cascades

    "There'd have to be another layer of fabric behind the 3D mesh, you can't sew velcro straight to mesh (or it would be a very bad idea, and induce a lot of stretch into the anchoring of the belt)."

    Ah. Didn't realize you were talking about the belt setup. Actually, the lumbar pad is pretty robust by UL standards. It's not just nylon or mesh and nylon, there's some padding in there as well. Not a lot, mind you. Mike would have to tell you exactly what the pad is made of. But more robust than you're thinking.

    "padding on a hipbelt is superfluous for loads under 30-35 pounds."

    We'll agree to disagree. ;-) My aging hip bones like a bit o' padding. Ah, you youngsters……

    #1913433
    David Ure
    Member

    @familyguy

    "padding on a hipbelt is superfluous for loads under 30-35 pounds."

    That is a reasonably obtuse comment. I was going to say dumb but I didn't want to offend.

    #1943070
    Christopher Yi
    Spectator

    @traumahead

    Locale: Cen Cal

    Do any trips with the pack yet? Thinking of following suit and getting the same mod done. I just find the stock hipbelt lacking on my Windrider.

    #1943101
    Russ Maynard
    Spectator

    @russmay

    Locale: Central California

    So, What is the final weight of this pack?

    #1943116
    BlackHatGuy
    Spectator

    @sleeping

    Locale: The Cascades

    "So, What is the final weight of this pack?"

    No idea. I don't have an easy way to weigh it.

    #1943117
    BlackHatGuy
    Spectator

    @sleeping

    Locale: The Cascades

    "Do any trips with the pack yet? Thinking of following suit and getting the same mod done. I just find the stock hipbelt lacking on my Windrider."

    I have. It carries great, is very comfortable, performed exactly like I hoped it would.

    #1945678
    Christopher Yi
    Spectator

    @traumahead

    Locale: Cen Cal

    On the Circuit hipbelt, there's a strap that goes from near the back of the hipbelt to the pack, to pull the pack closer to your back. Is that strap still useable? Basically like this: http://www.hyperlitemountaingear.com/catalog/product/gallery/id/31/image/336/

    #1945719
    MFR
    Spectator

    @bigriverangler

    Locale: West

    Chris, if I understand what you're referring to right, that buckle is made for 3/4" webbing. It's the one on either side of the belt that lets you snug it against your back.

    Thanks to Doug's idea, I had Mike do something similar on a 3400 Porter, except I had him shape the lumbar pad for the Granite Gear Crown hipbelt instead. It's also designed to find the Circiut/Ohm 2.0 hipbelt as well, but I haven't tried to fit it in since I don't have one anymore. I just wanted that option if I chose later.

    FWIW, I've been pretty impressed with the Ice Pack belt that Mike sent with it. It's not as comfortable as the GG belt, and a couple ounces heavier, putting it about the same weight as the ULA belt. But it carries heavier loads (say +25 lbs.) better, so I see no reason yet to have the ULA around.

    So far, I've been very pleased with the mod. Keep in mind that I've only taken it out a bit given the winter, but early test results are very positive.

    Which Windrider do you have? The belt on my wife's 2400 Southwest is a lot less padded that the Porter models I've seen.

    /*/Edited to fix webbing/buckle size/*/

    #1945813
    Christopher Yi
    Spectator

    @traumahead

    Locale: Cen Cal

    2400 Windrider. It has the wrap around style hip belt, and it's sparse. Do you have any shots of your pack with the GG hip belt? I'd probably opt to go with a 3400 Porter this time around.

    #1946015
    MFR
    Spectator

    @bigriverangler

    Locale: West

    I'll try to get them up for you some time tomorrow evening. Busy week for me at work.

    FWIW, I think a 3400 Porter with the Ice Pack belt would be really nice. I can't say for sure, but I'd guess that that would still allow for the ULA belt. You'd have to get the measurements between the padded sections to see if it still would. If it's 10" or more, the ULA belt would fit. To fit a GG belt, the lumbar pad's shape definitely needs to be modified.

    Personally, I wanted the full 10" at the top of the pad, the way HMG does it and the way GG did it on the Crown. I find that the extra length at the top (four more inches than the ULA Ohm 2.0) gives the hipbelt better purchase with the pack, facilitation load transfer and control. It helps keep the pack hugging your back without losing the wrap-around feature, and it spreads the load over a larger area.

    If this doesn't make sense, I'll try to be more clear when I put up some pictures tomorrow.

    #1946024
    MFR
    Spectator

    @bigriverangler

    Locale: West

    Oh yeah–one more thing you'll need to deal with is the velcro issue. HMG and ULA have totally different systems. ULA has a vertical strip and HMG a horizontal one. With HMG, the hook side is underneath the lumbar pad, inside the pass-through section (i.e., the loop is on the back of the Ice Pack belt, facing toward the pack's backpanel). I can't remember which is where with the ULA. Even if they don't match up, I'm not sure it matters so long as you have the belt reasonably snug with its dedicated ladderlocks.

    Just something else to think about. ULA owners, which side is the hook, and which is the loop on your belt?

    #1946272
    MFR
    Spectator

    @bigriverangler

    Locale: West

    As promised.
    hmg-lumbar-mod-1
    Lumbar pad with no belt

    hmg-lumbar-mod-2
    Lumbar pad with Granite Gear belt

    hmg-lumbar-mod-3
    Lumbar pad with the HMG Ice Pack belt

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