I posted some of this in another thread but I was hoping to bump this up one level to try to elicit more feedback.
I'm tall (6'7") but most of my length is in my legs. That being said, my torso measures in at around 22".
I currently have an Osprey Aether 70 which I absolutely love. It's been great as the volume has allowed me to pack all of my gear and carry extras for the kids with extreme comfort. Now that they are bigger and can carry everything themselves, the Aether is simply to much volume, especially for summertime hikes.
I'm looking at purchasing a new pack in the 50-60L range and I'd like to get the weight in between 2-3 lbs. My base weight, including the Aether is around 15 lbs and I'm looking for a pack that will carry very comfortably at 25lbs.
I've had my eye on the Osprey Exos 46/58. I was worried about whether the Exos would fit me well so I ventured down to my local REI this evening to try one on. I had the salesman load it up at 25 lbs. It was very uncomfortable for me as my shoulder's were bearing all of the weight, even with the shoulder straps extended way out and load-lifters adjusted to help pull things back in. Even at 20lbs, it still was not comfortable. The frame size simply wasn't made for someone of my size. Needless to say I was disappointed because this is a very nice pack.
While I was there I tried on the REI Flash 50. For my size the pack definitely fit better, largely due to the fact that the shoulder straps seemed to ride slightly higher on the harness and would also let out more freely than the Exos. I wasn't crazy about the padded frame on the Pack though so I didn't pull the trigger.
I'd like to hear folks thoughts on the ULA Ciruit. The torso sizing seems to be more in my range and it appears to be an extremely well constructed pack. Any thoughts on the level of comfort I should expect with the Circuit compared with the frames found on Osprey?
Any advice on other packs in this class I should consider?
Thanks!
-Skip
