I Want A Vintage Backpack

Yo! Great backpack. Mom got my dad one in the late 50's/early 60's. I think it's still in the attic. I should head over to her house and see if it's still around. Truly a classic.

When I was a kid, we used to go over to the Kelty store in Glendale — back before the company was sold, back when Dick Kelty was still running the operation. Them was the days. :)

I have a soft spot in my heart for vintage Karrimor packs. I still use my Karrimor packs from the late 1970s and 80s. They are very well made and well designed pieces of gear (and not that heavy.)

Pictures and more information here:

http://www.larsonweb.com/backpacks/id1.html

I've got an old Sierra Designs rucksack of my dads. Leather bottom, forged alu grab loop, and felt padded shoulder straps!

You can't have it.

Does anyone have any Gregory Mountain Products Blue label hiking packs or fanny packs for sale? The Blue label packs are the ones with Gregory written in "blue" on the tag.
Thanks
(wilkest@uci.edu)

Hello, I wanted to let everyone know I have a vintage Rivendell pack listed on ebay. I have had the pack since the early 80's. My uncle purchased the pack in the 70's and gave it to me when I started venturing out with him. Just wanted to let any one with interest know about the pack. Many thanks, Brad.

Roger: I came across this exact backpack in a thrift store a while back and picked it up for four dollars. I take it out regularly and love it! Do you have any more information on it?

Hi,

I have a large Red Kelty Red Backpack for sale. I'd say very good conditon. No rips, tear; Kelty pins attach it to the aircraft alluminum frame. email me if interested joelblaylock@yahoo.com similar listed on Ebay starting at $124, I'd take less, if interested. Joel

I had a Kelty like the Roger posted and really liked it. There are a bunch of little compartments inside that made it really easy to stay organized. I'd guess it was about 4 lb. I retired it after a trip to Peru where it was just too small to comfortably hold everything (among other things I was carrying live traps for monkeys, not a lightweight trip). The Gregory internal frame pack I used after that was definitely heavier.

If I look hard enough I might still have it.

Of course, I also had a SVEA 123 at the time, bought used and if I can find it I'm sure it still works fine.
–Walter

I have a mint condition JanSport D2 (74/75 vintage) and a rebuilt JanSport Alpine Phantom ((78/79 vintage).
Does anyone remember that one? It was developed and used on a K2 expedition back in the day. It was an articulated frame pack and the bag could be removed to become an internal frame pack featuring internal "X" stays. 7000 cu. in. at full capacity. I guess they had strong legs and backs then.

Well, I'm young enough that "vintage" = Vietnam era, so how about:

http://www.uscav.com/Productinfo.aspx?productID=7146&TabID=1

I carried one of these for years, earlier in my military career. Bulletproof 420 denier nylon. I have one in storage, back in the U.S. You can find them in surplus stores for a LOT less than this website is charging for one, especially since the U.S. military converted to a new load-bearing system within the last decade or so.

Definitely NOT ultralight… :)

I not only remember the Jansport D2 I have 4 of them. I lost mine years ago and have tried unsuccessfully to recreate it. Each has some of the features mine did but none have all of the same features. I think I had the Omega of the D2 line.

Jim what color is yours?

I think you're talking to the other Jim, but I have a Jansport D2 that I bought in 1986 or thereabouts. It's Navy blue. Everything is original except that I had to replace the shoulder straps. The original straps were affixed to the frame via a two layer plastic piece that connected to the top of the shoulder strap and then tapered to a rounded point. A bolt was inserted into a hole in first layer of the rounded point, through the frame, then through the second layer, and then affixed in place with a nut. The plastic piece gave out in 2007 (20 years after I bought the pack). I sent it back to Jansport. They replaced the plastic piece with a shoulder strap with nylon webbing with a steel gromet. That's the only mod. I'll post a photo or two if anyone is interested.

It is a light light blue with a tan frame—Sorry for not answering earlier, but haven't checked the post for awhile.

If you still have that pack and are interested in parting with it, Jim, please let me know. email at cx@johnbridge.com

Kelly

What you have pictured here is a Kelty Tioga. It was the largest and most deluxe frame pack available in the early 70s… bested only by the expedition pack which was basically the same but with a vestibule below to stuff your sleeping bag in. I know because I have one just like this hanging in my garage. I ousted the Holubar Chateau II tent I bought at the same time all those years ago… It was tired. I still have the Optomus 111B stove and -30F Hulubar Expedition mummy bag. So what's your fetish for the Tioga?

Those Jansport D series packs were great packs. I still use one when I have to carry a lot of water.

How come no one ever wants a vintage cell phone, or computer?

I backpack with a slightly newer version of that Tioga, an XL with nylon zippers but nickle-plated pulls and no red taping. It's just about time to update the shoulder straps, but everything else has many miles and more to go…

"How come no one ever wants a vintage cell phone, or computer?"

Interesting question. I searched eBay and you can find an Apple II, early Mac or a Commodore 64 system for around $100. Only found one Apple Lisa which was $400. Also found a Xerox Altos for $369.

I still have my first backpack that I bought strictly for hiking. It is the Jansport 80 Liter (4900 cu. in.), Carson External Frame Pack in the Pinebox green color. It originally weighed 4 pounds 13 ounces new. I trimmed and tweaked it a little and I know it weighs less now. I just have no way of getting it on my diminutive digital scale. ;-)

The one in the picture is not mine but it is a very close representation of what I have in my gear closet.

"I Want A Vintage Backpack"

Make me an offer. ;-)

Party On,

Newton

If that is what you want, I would get a late 60's or early 70's Kelty or Trailwise external frame. These were the gold standards of the time, when backpacking started to get popular.

Somewhere in the garage I have a Kelty D4, which is older than you :) but I am not going to go try and dig it out.

Here are a couple old ones, circa probably early 1980's. The internal is one of the Mountain Smith Frostfire, it served me well. I donated it to a Boy Scout troop last year. The red pack is a Kelty Serac, the largest external they ever made. I still use it on extended desert trips when several gallons of water need to be hauled.

Every once in a while I haul out some of my old gear and do a "sentimental trip." It is fun and sorta like the old school trip Craig and Adan did recently.

Alpenlite frames like this one up on Ebay are freestanding. That is a great feature. In addition lots of ventilation up your back because of the kicked-out frame and hipbelt pivot. http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=130532533517&ssPageName=ADME:B:SS:US:1123

I just received one of these (Mariposa):

http://rivendellmountainworks.com/

I feel like I am 6 again…; )

This topic forced me to search for and locate my large size Kelty pack, circa late 1960's. I purchased the pack at the Kelty store in Glendale, California. I did update the waist belt with what was then a "better" Kelty waist belt; my guess is I updated the waist belt in the early 1970's. Not only do I have my original Kelty pack, I still have my Svea 123 stove and Sigg Tourister cook set. The Svea 123 nests in the bottom of the Sigg cook set.

During my search, I found a box with the original Kelty and Svea 123 instruction sheets, some 1970 Kelty store receipts, etc.

I have backpacked, mainly in the Sierras, for too many decades to contemplate, with the usual gaps for young children at home, work demands, etc. Over the past five to ten years, I lightened my gear list considerably. It is highly doubtful I will use my vintage gear again. So, if anyone is interested in my "vintage" gear, send me a PM to start the process with photos, etc. Although looking at my “vintage” gear brings back wonderful memories, I would be pleased if another backpacking enthusiast could enjoy the gear as much as I did.

If you want to look the gear in person, let me know. I live in Pasadena, California.

David,

Can you post some pics of your Mariposa? I am diggin' these packs, but their website isn't the best and didn't see any pics of hip belt(if there is one) or shoulder straps. Neither of which are deal breakers, I am just curious before I drop the cash. thx

Ryan

Interesting stuff here in this thread…

I just picked up a classic TNF backpack recently at a yard sale a few weeks ago (it had some wonderful vintage rock climbing equipment inside as well). It has been through the wringer in some ways, but I suspect it was cutting edge in its day and is still structurally sound. The main issues are the coating on the inside of the pack has really delaminated & peeled away, and it's fairly dirty. Frame is a formed fiberglass (or similar material) that fits inside the pack via an opening at the base of the pack.

Anyone know much about this pack's vintage?