Just musing/ranting about which pack to buy

Thanks for all the insight. So to test things out and stay within my price range of $150 or less, I think I'm going to start at REI tomorrow night and test out some Ospreys and the Flash 45 if I can find it. After I carry them around the store I'll hopefully have a better idea of whether or not I need a frame. Then I might buy something used on Gear Swap or one of the packs that falls in my range new (Borah Stealth).

Keep the replies coming though, I'm having fun researching these packs. Granite Gear looks nice but they prices seem primo compared to the cottage brands. Is it just that GG and Osprey can charge more so they do, or is it based on a lot of tech that gets put into their packs?

I'd avoid the Granite Gear Crown. I carried it all last season, and it has some serious design flaws–the Vapor Current backpanel is just marketing hype and hurts the packs' ability to carry well. Granite Gear could make it simpler, cheaper, and lighter with a solid foam (or even better, fabric) backpanel and aluminum stays. It would carry a lot better too.

That said, the hipbelt is the best I've seen on a UL pack. I like it even better than the ULA Circuit/Catalyst/Ohm belt too, and it's a full 2 ounces lighter.

I remember reading something about being able to stick a granite gear hipbelt on a ULA pack.